Everything You Need To Learn Mandinka

Everything You Need To Learn Mandinka

Mandinka is a Mandé language and the native language of the Mandinka ethnic group. It’s spoken throughout West Africa in Mali, The Gambia, Guinea, Senegal and Sierra Leone.

It belongs to the Niger-Congo family of languages which also include Wolof, Ishango, the Bantu languages and more. There are over 1.3 million Mandinka speakers.

Mandinka is closely-related to Bambara, another Mandé language spoken in Mali and Senegal.

The sad news is, learning materials for Mandinka are almost nonexistent. We’ve gathered together everything we could find, and we hope you can get some use out of them.

Mandinka Language Learning Books

Due to the limited number of learning resources available, your only real option is learning through a Mandinka study book. With this, you’ll get a general introduction to the language, an overview of its basic grammar and vocabulary, and some useful cultural information about Mandinka society.

A good Mandinka-English dictionary is also a must for anyone serious about learning the language. You’ll need a handy reference book for looking up all of those new Mandinka words you come across during your studies.

Mandinka: A communication guide for travelers to The Gambia and Senegal
Amazon.com
Mandinka: A communication guide for travelers to The Gambia and Senegal
Mandinka English Dictionary
Amazon.com
Mandinka English Dictionary

Other Mandinka Books

A great way of improving not only your reading comprehension but your overall command of the language is by reading books written in the Mandinka language. You’ll pick up things like grammar, vocabulary and see how the language is structured in a natural, interesting way.

Kitaabu Senuno (Mandinka Bible)
Amazon.com
Kitaabu Senuno (Mandinka Bible)

Mandinka Digital Courses