Editing Lingala (section)

== Writing system ==
Lingala is more a spoken than a written language, and has several different writing systems, most of them ad hoc. As literacy in Lingala tends to be low, its popular orthography is very flexible and varies among the two republics. Some orthographies are heavily influenced by French; influences include a double S, ''ss'', to transcribe [s] (in the Republic of the Congo); ''ou'' for [u] (in the Republic of the Congo); i with trema, ''aï'', to transcribe {{IPA|[áí]}} or {{IPA|[aí]}}; e with acute accent, ''é'', to transcribe [e]; ''e'' to transcribe {{IPA|[ɛ]}}, o with acute accent, ó, to transcribe {{IPA|[ɔ]}} or sometimes [o] in opposition to o transcribing [o] or {{IPA|[ɔ]}}; i or y can both transcribe [j]. The allophones are also found as alternating forms in the popular orthography; ''sango'' is an alternative to ''nsango'' (information or news); ''nyonso'', ''nyoso'', ''nionso'', ''nioso'' (every) are all transcriptions of ''nyɔ́nsɔ''.

In 1976, the ''Société Zaïroise des Linguistes'' ([[Zaire|Zairian]] Linguists Society) adopted a writing system for Lingala, using the open e {{IPA|(ɛ)}} and the open o {{IPA|(ɔ)}} to write the vowels {{IPA|[ɛ]}} and {{IPA|[ɔ]}}, and sporadic usage of accents to mark tone, though the limitation of input methods prevents Lingala writers from easily using the {{IPA|ɛ}} and {{IPA|ɔ}} and the accents. For example, it is almost impossible to type Lingala according to that convention with a common English or French keyboard. The convention of 1976 reduced the alternative orthography of characters but did not enforce tone marking. The lack of consistent accentuation is lessened by contextual disambiguation.

The popular orthographies are often more simplified and ambiguous than the academic-based ones. Many Lingala books, papers, the translation of the [[Universal Declaration of Human Rights]], Internet forums, newsletters, and major websites such as Google's Lingala do not use the Lingala-specific characters ɛ and ɔ. Tone marking is found in most literary works.

=== Alphabet ===
[[File:Covid19-lingala.png|thumb|[[COVID-19]] information in Lingala]]
The Lingala alphabet has 35 [[Letter (alphabet)|letter]]s and [[digraph (orthography)|digraph]]s. Each digraph has a specific place in the alphabet; for example, ''mza'' comes before ''mba'', because the digraph ''mb'' follows the letter ''m''. The letters ''r'' and ''h'' are rare but present in borrowed words. Accents indicate the tones as follows:
* no accent for default tone, the low tone
* acute accent for the high tone
* circumflex for descending tone
* caron for ascending tone

{| class="wikitable"
! style="width:30px;"|
! style="width:30px;"|
! Variants
! Example
|-
||a
||A
||á â ǎ
||nyama, matáta, sâmbóle, libwǎ
|-
||b
||B
||
||bísó
|-
||c
||C
||
||ciluba
|-
||d
||D
||
||{{IPA|madɛ́su}}
|-
||e
||E
||é ê ě
||komeka, mésa, kobênga
|-
||{{IPA|ɛ}}
||{{IPA|Ɛ}}
||{{IPA|ɛ́ ɛ̂ ɛ̌}}
||{{IPA|lɛlɔ́, lɛ́ki, tɛ̂}}
|-
||f
||F
||
||lifúta
|-
||g
||G
||
||kogánga
|-
||gb
||Gb
||
||gbagba
|-
||h
||H
||
||bo'''h'''lu (bohrium)
|-
||i
||I
||í î ǐ
||wápi, zíko, tî, esǐ
|-
||k
||K
||
||kokoma
|-
||l
||L
||
||kolála
|-
||m
||M
||
||kokóma
|-
||mb
||Mb
||
||kolámba, mbwá, mbɛlí 
|-
||mp
||Mp
||
||límpa
|-
||n
||N
||
||líno
|-
||nd
||Nd
||
||ndeko
|-
||ng
||Ng
||
||ndéngé
|-
||nk
||Nk
||
||nkámá
|-
||ns
||Ns
||
||{{IPA|nsɔ́mi}}
|-
||nt
||Nt
||
||ntaba
|-
||ny
||Ny
||
||nyama
|-
||nz
||Nz
||
||nzala
|-
||o
||o
||ó ô ǒ
||moto, sóngóló, sékô
|-
||{{IPA|ɔ}}
||{{IPA|Ɔ}}
||{{IPA|ɔ́ ɔ̂ ɔ̌}}
||{{IPA|sɔsɔ, yɔ́, sɔ̂lɔ, tɔ̌}}
|-
||p
||P
||
||{{IPA|pɛnɛpɛnɛ}}
|-
||r
||R
||
||mala'''r'''íya
|-
||s
||S
||
||kopésa
|-
||t
||T
||
||tatá
|-
||u
||U
||ú
||butú, koúma
|-
||v
||V
||
||kovánda
|-
||w
||W
||
||káwa
|-
||y
||Y
||
||koyéba
|-
||z
||Z
||
||kozala
|}

=== Sample ===
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!English
!Lingala
|-
|I moved to Luanda in January this year due to a new job that I had applied for last year. I am happy that I got it and now I'm thinking of building a house in Mbanza Kongo next year so that my family can have a house.
|Mbula oyo na bonguani na sanza ya yambo pona Luanda likolo ya mosala ya sika esika na mikomisaki kuna mbula eleki. Nazali na esengo pona ndenge na zui mosala oyo sikoyo nazali ko kanisa kotonga ndaku na Mbanza Kongo na mbula ezali ko ya pona ete libota bazala na ndaku.
|}
<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Akindipe |first1=Omotola |last2=Masela |first2=Ulama |last3=Kiala |first3=Laura|title=Learn Lingala (Months)|url=https://lingala.mofeko.com/months.html|website=[[Learn Lingala]]}}</ref>

[[File:Lingala-pn.jpg|thumb|right|Lord's Prayer]]
'''The Lord's Prayer (Catholic version)'''
::Tatá wa bísó, ozala o likoló,
::bato bakúmisa Nkómbó ya {{IPA|Yɔ́}},
::bandima bokonzi bwa {{IPA|Yɔ́}}, mpo elingo {{IPA|Yɔ́}},
::basálá yangó o nsé,
::lokóla bakosalaka o likoló
::Pésa bísó {{IPA|lɛlɔ́}} biléi bya {{IPA|mokɔlɔ na mokɔlɔ}},
::límbisa mabé ma bísó,
::lokóla bísó tokolimbisaka baníngá.
::Sálisa bísó tondima masɛ́nginyá tê,
::mpe bíkisa bísó o mabé.

::Na {{IPA|yɔ́}} bokonzi,
::nguyá na nkembo,
::o bileko o binso sékô.
::Amen.

'''The Lord's Prayer (Protestant version used in Ubangi-Mongala region)'''
::Tatá na bísó na likoló,
::nkómbó na {{IPA|yɔ́}} ezala mosanto,
::bokonzi na {{IPA|yɔ́}} eya,
::mokano na {{IPA|yɔ́}} esalama na nsé
::lokola na likoló.
::Pésa bísó kwanga ekokí {{IPA|lɛlɔ́}}.
::Límbisa bísó nyongo na bísó,
::pelamoko elimbisi bísó bango nyongo na bango.
::Kamba bísó kati na komekama tê,
::kasi bíkisa bísó na mabé.

::Mpo ete na {{IPA|yɔ́}} ezalí bokonzi,
::na nguyá, na nkembo,
::lobiko na lobiko.
::Amen.

=== Sample text from Universal Declaration of Human Rights ===
:''Bato nyonso na mbotama bazali nzomi pe bakokani na limemya pe makoki. Bazali na mayele pe base, geli kofanda na bondeko okati na bango.'' 
:''(Article 1 of Universal Declaration of Human Rights)''
:

===Mandombe===
The [[Mandombe]] script is an [[abugida]], primarily used to write [[Kikongo]], that can also be used for Lingala. It is used as a liturgical script in the church of [[Kimbangu]].