MOBA (MOAB, MOARE, MOA, BEN) [MFQ]
189,400 in Togo (1991). Population total both countries 191,200 (1991 L. Vanderaa CRC). Northwest. The main centers are Dapaong and Bombouaka. Also spoken in Burkina Faso. Linguistic affiliation: Niger-Congo, Atlantic-Congo, Volta-Congo, North, Gur, Central, Northern, Oti-Volta, Gurma, Moba. Dialect: NATCHABA. Related to Bimoba in Ghana, but with only limited intelligibility. Diverse dialect situation, varying almost from family to family. Possible dialect continuum. Women almost exclusively monolingual. Men and women with more education can speak limited French. French is used to talk to those from another language group, or for a few, when discussing abstract concepts. Highly educated Moba use Moba among themselves. Literacy rate in first language: 1% to 30%. More interest in learning to read French than Moba. Traditional religion, Christian. Bible portions 1941-1984.