What is the collective name for a large group of sub-Saharan African languages?

The collective name for a large group of sub-Saharan African languages is Bantu. This term refers to a family of languages that are spoken by the Bantu peoples, who inhabit a vast region across central, eastern, and southern Africa. The Bantu language family includes many languages, such as Swahili, Shona, and Zulu, which are derived from a common ancestral language. The spread of Bantu languages is closely tied to the migration of Bantu-speaking peoples, which has significantly influenced the linguistic landscape of sub-Saharan Africa.

The other options represent specific languages within the Bantu language family rather than the entire collective. Zulu and Xhosa are individual languages spoken primarily in South Africa, while Sotho refers to another group of languages that are also part of the Bantu family, but they denote specific dialects rather than the broad classification that Bantu represents. Thus, the term Bantu accurately captures the overarching group of languages in question.