Language Safari

Languages of Africa

Discover Africa's mother languages country by country: a living map of the continent's dialects, from those spoken by millions to those on the edge of memory.

Languages 2,183

Actively spoken 1,988

Endangered 161

Extinct 34

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Darker countries speak more languages. Hover for a count, click to open a country.

Browse 49 countries

Pick a country to see every language spoken there.

🇳🇬 Nigeria 553 langs 🇨🇲 Cameroon 232 langs 🇨🇩 DRCongo 224 langs 🇹🇩 Chad 157 langs 🇹🇿 Tanzania 147 langs 🇪🇹 Ethiopia 116 langs 🇨🇮 Côte d'Ivoire 93 langs 🇬🇭 Ghana 90 langs 🇸🇩 Sudan 90 langs 🇨🇫 Central African Republic 83 langs 🇰🇪 Kenya 83 langs 🇸🇸 South Sudan 72 langs 🇿🇲 Zambia 71 langs 🇲🇱 Mali 69 langs 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso 67 langs 🇨🇬 Congo 64 langs 🇧🇯 Benin 57 langs 🇸🇳 Senegal 57 langs 🇺🇬 Uganda 53 langs 🇬🇦 Gabon 52 langs 🇦🇴 Angola 50 langs 🇬🇳 Guinea 49 langs 🇹🇬 Togo 49 langs 🇿🇦 South Africa 47 langs 🇲🇿 Mozambique 40 langs 🇧🇼 Botswana 35 langs 🇳🇦 Namibia 35 langs 🇳🇪 Niger 29 langs 🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau 28 langs 🇱🇷 Liberia 27 langs 🇸🇱 Sierra Leone 26 langs 🇩🇿 Algeria 25 langs 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe 23 langs 🇬🇲 Gambia 21 langs 🇲🇬 Madagascar 20 langs 🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea 17 langs 🇱🇾 Libya 16 langs 🇲🇼 Malawi 16 langs 🇲🇦 Morocco 15 langs 🇹🇳 Tunisia 14 langs 🇪🇷 Eritrea 12 langs 🇸🇴 Somalia 12 langs 🇪🇬 Egypt 11 langs 🇲🇷 Mauritania 11 langs 🇩🇯 Djibouti 8 langs 🇱🇸 Lesotho 8 langs 🇸🇿 Eswatini 7 langs 🇧🇮 Burundi 3 langs 🇷🇼 Rwanda 3 langs

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