Is there a difference between “n baden bɛ yan” and “n baden ye yan” I hear both used. Is on more correct then the other?
1 Like
I ni ce, @Rashid! You posted your question with putting it into a specific category like Bambara/Jula-English or Maninka-English, but I am going to assume that you are focused on Bambara/Jula, so I have moved it there.
The short answer is that bɛ is the Bambara/Jula situative (or “locative”) copula for speaking about where something is located. (See this episode of Basic Bambara for more details.)
The word ye is the Maninka equivalent.
So no, there is no difference (except people thinking that you learned the language in a particular place and that you have an “accent” of one kind or the other).
Neither is more “correct” unless you are coming from the perspective of trying to speak “more standard Bambara” or “more standard Maninka”.
If you are in area with various forms of Manding being spoken, I’d say, use whichever you hear most and feel comfortable with, but make sure you can recognize both.
Hope that is helpful 
1 Like