{
  "version": "1.1.0",
  "last_updated": "2026-05-02",
  "language": {
    "name": "Sango",
    "iso639_1": "sg",
    "iso639_3": "sag",
    "region": "Central African Republic"
  },
  "description": "Grammar rules and correction patterns for Sango language generation. Compiled from systematic review of AI output errors on the SangoAI platform (sangoai.sbs). Each rule documents a confirmed error pattern — the wrong form was observed in generated Sango text before the rule was added.",
  "note": "Rules are ordered by discovery date, not importance. All examples are minimal pairs unless noted otherwise.",
  "rules": [
    {
      "id": 1,
      "category": "question_formation",
      "title": "Question particle 'fa' (yes/no questions)",
      "correct": ["Mo yeke nzoni fa?"],
      "wrong": ["Mo yeke nzoni na?"],
      "explanation": "'fa' is the yes/no question particle. 'na' means 'and / with' (conjunction/preposition) and is NOT a question marker.",
      "gloss": {
        "Mo yeke nzoni fa": "you are well [question]",
        "Mo yeke nzoni na": "you are well and [incomplete — grammatically wrong]"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": 2,
      "category": "adverbs",
      "title": "Adverb 'nga' means 'also', not a question particle",
      "correct": ["Mo yeke nzoni nga?"],
      "wrong": ["Mo yeke nzoni nga?"],
      "explanation": "'nga' = also/aussi. It is NOT a question particle. Confusing it with 'fa' produces sentences like 'Are you also well?' when 'Are you well?' was intended.",
      "gloss": {
        "Mo yeke nzoni nga": "you are well also",
        "Mo yeke nzoni fa": "are you well? [correct yes/no question]"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": 3,
      "category": "modal_verbs",
      "title": "Modal 'can/able' — 'lingbi na', NOT 'lingbi ti'",
      "correct": ["Mo lingbi na sara", "Mbi lingbi na gwe"],
      "wrong": ["Mo lingbi ti sara", "Mbi lingbi ti manda"],
      "explanation": "The modal 'lingbi' (can / be able to) takes the preposition 'na', not the possessive/purpose marker 'ti'.",
      "word_order": "Subject + lingbi + na + verb"
    },
    {
      "id": 4,
      "category": "word_order",
      "title": "Word order for 'can' sentences",
      "correct": ["Mo lingbi na sara nzönî lâsô?"],
      "wrong": ["Nye la mo lingbi ti sara nzönî lâsô?"],
      "explanation": "Correct SVO order: Subject + lingbi + na + verb. Do not front-shift 'nye la' (what) into the subject position for ability questions."
    },
    {
      "id": 5,
      "category": "negation",
      "title": "Negation particle 'ape' — self-introduction error",
      "correct": [
        "Mbi yeke SangoAI, mbi yeke na mo ti sara kwa tî manda ngo yângâ tî Sängö"
      ],
      "wrong": ["mbi yeke ape na mo ti sara kwa na yângâ tî Sängö"],
      "explanation": "'ape' = negation (not / ne…pas). Inserting 'ape' in a self-introduction negates the entire clause. 'ngo' = about/or, not 'na' = and/with."
    },
    {
      "id": 6,
      "category": "question_formation",
      "title": "'How are you?' requires 'Tongana na nye?', not 'Tongana mo?'",
      "correct": ["Tongana na nye?"],
      "wrong": ["Tongana mo?"],
      "explanation": "Literal: tongana (like/how) + na (with) + nye (what) = 'like what?' The 'na nye' portion is mandatory. Dropping it to 'Tongana mo?' ('like you?') is grammatically incorrect.",
      "gloss": {
        "Tongana na nye": "how (lit. like with what)"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": 7,
      "category": "verbs",
      "title": "'fa' as verb = teach (enseigner), not language (yângâ)",
      "correct": ["mbi yeke na ngia ti fa na ma legue ti manda ngo Sängö"],
      "wrong": [
        "mbi yeke na ngia mingi ti yângâ na mo na Sängö",
        "Mbi yeke ape ti gbâ mo na kötä zo tî âla!"
      ],
      "explanation": "'fa' is polysemous: (1) yes/no question particle, (2) verb 'to teach'. 'yângâ' = language (noun). Using 'yângâ' as a verb is incorrect.",
      "gloss": {
        "fa": "question particle OR to teach (context-dependent)",
        "yângâ": "language (noun only)"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": 8,
      "category": "particles",
      "title": "Particle 'ti' (possessive/purpose) vs 'na' (and/with)",
      "correct": ["yângâ tî Sängö", "manda tî mo", "lingbi na sara"],
      "wrong": ["yângâ na Sängö", "lingbi ti sara"],
      "explanation": "'tî/ti' = possessive or purpose marker ('of', 'for'). 'na' = and/with (conjunction/preposition). These are NOT interchangeable.",
      "gloss": {
        "yângâ tî Sängö": "the Sango language (language of Sango)",
        "manda tî mo": "your learning",
        "lingbi na sara": "able to do"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": 9,
      "category": "vocabulary_disambiguation",
      "title": "Commonly confused function words",
      "entries": [
        {
          "word": "fa",
          "meaning": "question particle (yes/no) OR verb 'teach' (context-dependent)"
        },
        {
          "word": "nga",
          "meaning": "also/aussi (adverb, NOT a question word)"
        },
        {
          "word": "na",
          "meaning": "and / et / with (conjunction/preposition, NOT 'also')"
        },
        { "word": "ngo", "meaning": "about / or (NOT 'na' for this meaning)" },
        {
          "word": "ape",
          "meaning": "negation (not / ne…pas) — do NOT use randomly"
        },
        {
          "word": "manda",
          "meaning": "to learn / to speak (both meanings, context-dependent)"
        },
        { "word": "fa (verb)", "meaning": "to teach" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": 10,
      "category": "greetings",
      "title": "Standard greeting sequence",
      "correct_sequence": [
        "Bara âla!",
        "Mbi yeke nzoni mingi, singuila!",
        "Mbi yeke SangoAI, mbi yeke na mo ti sara kwa tî manda ngo yângâ tî Sängö.",
        "Mbi yeke na ngia ti fa na ma legue ti manda ngo Sängö.",
        "Tongana na nye? Mo yeke senge?"
      ],
      "translations": [
        "Hello everyone!",
        "I am very well, thank you!",
        "I am SangoAI, I am here to help you learn the Sango language.",
        "I am happy to teach you a little about learning Sango.",
        "How are you? Are you well?"
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": 11,
      "category": "interjections",
      "title": "'awa' (awâ) is an interjection only — never inside a verb phrase",
      "correct": ["Mbï yeke na pekö ti mo", "Awâ! Ti sara kwa."],
      "wrong": ["Mbï yeke awa na pekö ti mo"],
      "explanation": "'awâ' = come on / allez (interjection). It cannot be inserted inside a verb phrase like 'yeke awa na'. It stands alone as an exclamation."
    },
    {
      "id": 12,
      "category": "language_ability",
      "title": "Saying someone 'speaks' a language — use 'yé ti manda yânga tî'",
      "correct": ["Mo yé ti manda yânga tî Sängö fa?"],
      "wrong": [
        "Mo hînga ndâ na yângâ tî Sängö",
        "Mo lingbi na kua na ndâ âyë"
      ],
      "explanation": "'hînga' = to know/savoir — not 'to speak'. 'yé ti manda yânga tî [language]' is the construction for expressing language-speaking ability.",
      "gloss": {
        "Mo yé ti manda yânga tî Sängö fa": "Do you speak Sango? (lit. you [progressive] to learn the language of Sango [question]?)",
        "Mo hînga Sängö": "Do you know Sango? (different meaning)"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": 13,
      "category": "verbs",
      "title": "'ounda' = to look for/search (chercher)",
      "correct": ["Mo yé ti ounda mbéni yé ndé fa?"],
      "wrong": ["mo lîngbi na kua na ndâ âyë"],
      "explanation": "'ounda' = to look for / to search. 'yé ti [verb]' = progressive/purposive construction. The wrong form is unnatural/incorrect for searching contexts.",
      "gloss": {
        "Mo yé ti ounda mbéni yé ndé fa": "Are you looking for something? (lit. you [progressive] to search some thing [question]?)"
      }
    }
  ],
  "orthography_rules": [
    "Use proper diacritics: â, ê, ë, î, ö, ô, û, ü, ï",
    "Tone marks are essential for meaning",
    "Sango uses Subject-Verb-Object word order",
    "No grammatical gender",
    "Tense is expressed through context and auxiliary words"
  ],
  "cultural_context": {
    "status": "National language of the Central African Republic (alongside French)",
    "speakers": "5+ million",
    "origin": "Creole language based on Ngbandi",
    "uses": ["Government", "Education", "Daily life", "National unity"]
  },
  "citation": {
    "source": "SangoAI platform (https://sangoai.sbs) — compiled from AI error analysis",
    "organization": "MEYNG",
    "year": 2026,
    "license": "CC-BY-SA-4.0"
  }
}