The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur or Mabia, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. They are spoken in the Sahelian and savanna regions of West Africa, namely: in most areas of Burkina Faso, and in south-central Mali, northeastern Ivory Coast, the northern halves of Ghana and Togo, northwestern Benin, and southwestern Niger. A few Gur languages are spoken in Nigeria. Additionally, a single Gur language, Baatonum, is spoken in Benin and in the extreme northwest of Nigeria. Three other single Gur languages, the Tusya, Vyemo and Tiefo languages, are spoken in Burkina Faso. Another unclassified Gur language, Miyobe, is spoken in Benin and Togo. In addition, Kulango, Loma and Lorhon, are spoken in Ghana, Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso. Additionally, a few Mossi speakers are in Senegal, and speakers of the Dagaare language are also found in Cameroon. The Samu languages of Burkina Faso are Gur languages.

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Quick Facts Geographic distribution, Linguistic classification ...

Gur
Central Gur Mabia
Geographic distribution	Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Togo, Nigeria
Linguistic classification	Niger–Congo? Atlantic–Congo Volta–Congo Savannas Gur
Subdivisions	Northern Southern
Glottolog	cent2243  (Gur + Waja–Jen)
1. Koromfé   2. Oti–Volta   3. Bwamu   4. Gurunsi   5. Kirma–Lobi   6. Dogoso–Khe   7. ? Doghose–Gan

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Like most Niger–Congo languages, the ancestor of Gur languages probably had a noun class system; many of today's languages have reduced this to a system of nominal genders or declensions or no longer have a class system.^[1] A common property of Gur languages is the verbal aspect marking. Almost all Gur languages are tonal, with Koromfé being a notable exception. The tonal systems of Gur languages are rather divergent. Most Gur languages have been described as following the model of a two tone downstep system, but the languages of Oti-Volta branch and some others have three phonemic tones.

Sigismund Wilhelm Koelle first mentions twelve Gur languages in his 1854 Polyglotta Africana, which represent ten languages in modern classification. Notably, he correctly identified these languages as being related to one another; his 'North-Eastern High Sudan' corresponds to Gur in modern classification.

The Gur family was previously called Voltaic, following the French name (langues) Voltaïques (named after the Volta River). It was once considered to be more extensive than it is often regarded today, including the Senufo languages and a number of small language isolates. The inclusion of Senufo within Gur has been rejected by many linguists, including Tony Naden.^[2] Williamson and Blench^[3] place Senufo as a separate branch of Atlantic–Congo, while other non-Central Gur languages are placed somewhat closer as separate branches within the Savannas continuum.

Kleinewillinghöfer (2014) notes that the closest relatives of Gur appear to be several branches of the obsolete Adamawa family, since many "Adamawa" languages in fact share more similarities with various (Central) Gur languages than with other Adamawa languages. He proposes that early Gur-Adamawa speakers had cultivated guinea corn and millet in a wooded savanna environment.^[4]

The regions on the map denote regional distribution of the Central Gur languages. The tree-diagram below denotes the relations between these languages and their closest relatives:

The position of Dogoso–Khe in Southern Gur is not clear; it is not closely related to other members of the branch.

Sample basic vocabulary of Gur languages:

Note: In table cells with slashes, the singular form is given before the slash, while the plural form follows the slash.