Bukiyip language

Bukiyip (Bukiyúp), or Mountain Arapesh, is an Arapesh language (Torricelli)[1] spoken by around 16,000 people between Yangoru and Maprik[2] in the East Sepik Province of Papua New Guinea.[3] Bukiyip follows the SVO typology.[1] The Arapesh languages are known for their complex noun-phrase agreement system (Bukiyip has 18 of these noun classes).[4]

Bukiyip
Mountain Arapesh
Native toPapua New Guinea
RegionEast Sepik Province
Native speakers
16,000 (2003)[1]
Dialects
  • Coastal
  • Mountain (Bukiyip)
Language codes
ISO 639-3ape
Glottologbuki1249
ELPBukiyip
Bukiyip is classified as Vulnerable by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger

Classification

There are two primary dialects of Bukiyip Chamaun-Yabonuh and Ilipeim-Yamil (western)[3] and two minor dialects Buki and Lohuhwim.[4] Given significant variation among dialects, linguist Robert Conrad suggests that Bukiyip is likely part of dialect chain that also involves other Arapesh languages.[2] The dialects may be further generalized as Coastal Arapesh and Mountain Bukiyip.[4][5]

Phonology

Syllable structure

Syllabic stress is usually placed on the penultimate syllable, which has a higher pitch.

There are four contrastive intonation contours.

  1. Final Intonation - falling pitch on the last syllable, followed by a pause
  2. Non-final Intonation - level mid pitch on the last syllable, followed by a pause
  3. Interrogative Intonation - level mid/high pitch on the last word
  4. Imperative Intonation - high pitch and heavy stress throughout clause with a rapid pitch drop on the last syllable[4]

Consonants
Consonant Phonemes of Bukiyip
Bilabial Alveolar Palatal Velar
plainround
Nasal m n ɲ
Stopvoiceless p t tʃ kkʷ
voiced b d dʒ ɡɡʷ
Fricative s hhʷ
Rhotic ɾ
Lateral l

written as: p, t, k, b, d, g, s, ch, j, h, m, n, ny, l, r, w, y[4]

Vowels

Initial vowels clusters: ou, au, ai, ia

Medial vowel clusters: e (a,o,i,u), a (u,e,i), i (é,a,e), o (u,i), uu, úo

Final vowel clusters: eo, ou, uu

Vowel Phonemes of Bukiyip
Front Central Back
High i ɨ u
Mid e ə o
Low a

written as: i, e, a, o, u, æ, é, ú[4]

Morphophonemics

Bukiyip has 18 basic rules for morphophonemic shifts (rules 8-18 primarily apply to the Chamaun-Yabonuh and Buki dialects).[4]

  1. VcCalv → VfCalv (e.g. p-a-chuh → pechuh)
  2. w + ú → u, ú + w → uw, i + ú → i (e.g. i-ú-nak → inak)
  3. ny + u → nyú (e.g. bolany+umu → bolanyumu)
  4. ú + CrVr → uCrVr, eCrVr → oCrVr (e.g. p-ú-hok → puhok)
  5. a + CVc → éCVc (e.g. n-a-bah →nébah)
  6. Vc + C + w → VrCw, where Vc is not a, (e.g. ny-ú-hwech → nyuhwech)
  7. Cw + Vr → CVr (e.g. éhwahw →ohohw)
  8. i# + i → i (e.g. i-ú-tak → itak)
  9. #w + é → #wo (e.g. kw-é-nak → konak)
  10. m# + ú → mu (e.g. m-ú-bo → mubo)
  11. #Vc +tVr → otVr (e.g. atúwe → otuwe)
  12. e# + úk → eik (e.g. napewe+-úk → napweik)
  13. C# + CVc → CVcCVc (e.g. chagas + búk → chagasúbúk)
  14. ú + C# + u → uCu (e.g. u-túl-úgún+-u → utulugunu)
  15. ú# + C + u# → oCu# (e.g. natalú → natalogu)
  16. VrCr# + ú → VrCru (e.g. chaklipom+-úk →chaklipomuk)
  17. u# + ú → uwu (e.g. natu + -uk → natuwuk)
  18. ú# + u → o (e.g. yekinú+umu → yekinomu)

The above rules use the following abbreviations:

Vr - rounded vowels

Vc - central unrounded vowels

Vu - unrounded vowels

Vf - front vowels

C - consonant

Calv - alveopalatal consonants

Cr - rounded consonants

# - morpheme boundary in phonological word

Words

Nouns

There are 18 noun classes with a closed set of suffixes of the form: noun nucleus + number (-unú).[4]

Noun Classes
Noun Class Noun Suffix Adjective Suffix Verb Prefix
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
1 -b/n -bús -bi -búsi b-/n- s-
2 -bél -lúb -bili -lúbi bl- bl-
3 g/-gú -s/-as -gali/-gú -gasi g- s-
4 -k -ou/-eb -kwi -wali kw- w-
5 -m/-bal -s/-ipi/-bal -mi/-bali -si/-ipi/-bali m-/bl- s-/p-/bl-
6 -n/nú -b -nali -bi n- b-
7 -n/nú -m -nali -mi n- h-
8 -ny/-l -ch/-has -nyi/-li -chi ny-/l- ch-
9 -p -s -pi -si p- s-
10 -l/-ny -guh -li/-ny -guhi l-/ny- hw-
11 -t/-tú -gw -tali -gwi t- gw-
12 -hw -lúh -hwi -lihi hw- hl-
13 -V1h -V2h -hi -h h- h-
14 -s -s -si -si s- s-
15 -gún -gún -gúni -gúni gn- gn-
16 -has -has - - gn- gn-
17 - - -nali/-kwi - n-/kw- -
18 - -gún - -gúni gn- gn-

V1 is the first vowel in a medial vowel cluster, V2 is the second vowel in a medial vowel cluster.

Pronouns and demonstratives

Pronouns and demonstratives must agree with the noun class and have singular and plural forms, pronouns also encode proximal and distal information.[4]

Noun Class Singular Pronouns Plural Pronouns Singular Demonstratives Plural Demonstratives
Proximal Distal Proximal Distal
1 ébab babi ébúsab babasi ébúdak ébúsúdak
2 éblab babli éblalúb balbi ébúlúdak élbúdak
3 égag gagi égsag gagasi égúdak égúsúdak
4 okok kwakwi owou wawi oukudak oudak
5 omom mami éblab babli omudak ébúlúdak
6 énan nani ébab babi énúdak ébúdak
7 énan nani omom mami énúdak omudak
8 enyeny nyanyi echech chachi enyédak echédak
9 énap papi ésas sasi opudak ésúdak
10 élal lali oguhogw gwaguhi élúdak oguhudak
11 état tati ogogw gwagwi étúdak ogudak
12 ohohw hwahwi éhlah hlahli ohudak éhúlúdak
13 éhah hahi ohoh haehi éhédak éhúdak
14 ésas sasi ésas sasi ésúdak ésúdak
15 égnag gani ogohuh gwaguhi égúndak oguhudak
16 égúgún gani égúgún gani égúndak égúndak
17 énan nani omom mami énúdak omudak
18 okok kwakwi owou wawi oukudak oudak
Personal Pronouns
Person Singular Dual Plural
1st yek(eik) ohwak apak
2nd nyak(nyek) bwiepú ipak
3rd (masculine) énan/nani omom bwiom omom/mami
3rd (feminine) okok/kwakwi owo bwiou owo/wawi
3rd (mixed gender) - echech bwiech echech/chachi

Possessive pronouns have the form: pronoun + -i + unú (noun number class)

Verb structure

Verbs have a complex structure of affixes encoding mood, object, benefactive, and direction which either have their own classes or must agree with the noun class. The structure is:[4]

Subject (n-) + Mood (u- 'irrealis', a- 'realis') + Object (unú-) + Verb Nucleus (verb root 1–6, verb stem 1-2)+ Object 2 (-unú) + Benefactive (-m 'benefactive' + -unú or -ag 'here') + Directional (-u 'displaced', -i 'toward speaker', '-uk' permanent).

Object 2 and Benefactive may not occur in all verbs.

Verb subject prefixes
Person Singular Dual Plural
First i- w- m-
Second ny- p- p-

Mood marker

All verbs (with the exception of class 6 have a mood marker). The realis mood (mood marker 'a-') concerns events that have happened in the past and present. The irrealis mood (mood marker 'u-') concerns future events and events that did not happen in the past (such as in the case of a mistaken memory). The imperative mood (used for commands) and interrogative mood (used for questions) are formed by clausal transformations.

Verb object suffixes
Person Singular Dual Plural
1st -uwe/-owe -ohu -apú
2nd -enyú/-inyú - -epú
3rd (masculine) -unú/-an´ - -om
3rd (feminine) -ok/-uk - -ou
3rd (mixed gender) -eny/-iny - -ech/-ich

Verb root classes
Transitive Intransitive Stative
Obligatory Object Optional Object
Prefix Suffix Prefix Suffix
Optional Free Subject 1 2 3 4 / 8 5 6
Obligatory Free Subject 7

Class 8 has a second object while class 4 only has one.

Adjectives

Adjectives consist of a root word followed by the appropriate noun-class suffix (see the noun class table).[4]

Adverbs

There are three adverb classes in Bukiyip: 'natimogúk' (all) in the irrealis mood and '-nubu' (completely) and '-gamu' (well) in the realis mood. All adverbs are inflected, and may have free or bound stems depending on which modifier slot they are placed in the clausal, phrase, or sentence syntax.[4]

Counting system

There are two basic numeral roots 'atú-' (one) and 'bia-' (two). These numeral prefixes are added to noun root words and then undergo a morphological process (see the Morphophonemics section) that combines them.[4] For example:

atú + -p + utom → atum → otum

or

bia + -ch + batowich → biech

The numeral root 'nobati-' (four) is an exception to this assimilation pattern. In addition to the atú- and bia- numeral roots, there is also a stem éné- meaning one, an, or some depending on context.

Phrases

There are 23 phrase formations in Bukiyip.[4]

Verb phrases

1. Modified Verb Phrase: Modifier (class 1-2 adverb) + Head (verb class 1-7) + Modifier (class 3 adverb, adverb phrase)

2. Repeated Verb Phrase: Head (verb class 10, motion verb) + Modifier (class 3 adverb) + Head (verb class 10, '-lto') + Modifier

3. Coordinate Verb Phrase: Head (verb class 1–5, coordinate phrase) + Head (verb class 1–5, modified phrase) + Modifier

4. Motion Verb Phrase: Head (motion verb, motion verb phrase) + Head (verb class 3, coordinate verb phrase) + Modifier (adverb class 3)

Noun phrases

5. Modified Noun Phrase 1: Modifier (demonstrative, numeral phrase, quantitative stem) + Modifier (class 2 adjective, adjective phrase, nominalised clause, limiter phrase) + Possessive (possessive phrase, possessive pronoun) + Head (class 1-15 noun, coordinate noun phrase)

6. Modified Noun Phrase 2: Modifier (noun stem, class 17-18 noun, class 3 locative phrase) + Head (noun)

7. Apposition Noun Phrase: Head (apposition noun phrase, coordinate noun phrase, demonstrative, intensive phrase, class 18 noun, pronoun, temporal stem) + Apposition (clause, nominalised clause, coordinate noun phrase, modified noun phrase, class 17-18 noun, derived noun stem, pronoun, temporal stem) + Identification (pronoun)

8. Coordinate Noun Phrase: Head (apposition noun phrase, modified noun phrase, class 17 noun, pronoun) + Head (apposition noun phrase, modified noun phrase, class 17 noun, pronoun) + Coordinate ('o', 'úli', ⟨n-⟩ + a- + -nú, ⟨n-⟩ + ú- + -nú)

Modified noun phrases

9. Possessive Phrase: Head (apposition noun phrase, coordinate noun phrase, demonstrative, class 3 locative phrase, modified noun phrase, class 17-18 noun, noun stem) + Possessive (personal pronoun, '-i-')

10. Limiter Phrase: Head (adverb, demonstrative, modified noun phrase, noun stem, pronoun) + Limiter (at- + <únú>, ati)

11. Intensive Phrase: Head (pronoun) + Intensifier ('kénak', 'meho')

12. Instrumental-Benefactor Phrase: Benefactive (umu) + Head (intransitive clause, transitive clause, modified noun phrase)

13. Similarity Phrase: Similarity ('(ko)bwidou(k)') + Head (intransitive clause, transitive clause, demonstrative, pronoun, modified noun phrase) + Similarity ('-umu')

14. Accompaniment Phrase: Head (pronoun, modified noun phrase, apposition noun phrase) + Accompaniment ('nagún')

Locative phrase

15. Locative Phrase 1: Locative (locative) + Head (locative clause, locative word, class 2-3 locative phrase 2, modified noun phrase, class 18 noun) + Identifier (class 18 noun)

16. Locative Phrase 2: Head (intransitive clause, transitive clause, locative, noun, pronoun) + Locative ('-umu', '-ahah')

17. Locative Phrase 3: Head (class 2 locative) + Head (class 3 locative)

Temporal phrase

18. Temporal Phrase 1: Head (temporal stem) + Temporal ('-abali')

19. Temporal Phrase 2: Modifier ('húlúkati-mu) + Head (temporal word)

20. Serial Temporal Phrase: Head (temporal word) + Head (temporal word)

Numeral phrase

21. Numeral Phrase: Head (modified noun phrase, numeral stem) + Head (numeral stem) + Head (numeral stem)

Interrogative phrase

22. Interrogative Phrase: Modifier (interrogative word) + Head (class 1-14 noun)

Adjective/adverb phrase

23. Adjective Phrase: Head (adjective stem) + Head (adjective stem) 1-14 noun

References
  1. Bukiyip at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) closed access
  2. Dobrin, Lise Miriam. Phonological form, morphological class, and syntactic gender : the noun class systems of Papua New Guinea Arapeshan. OCLC 42975575.
  3. Juagu, Junny (2008). Bukiyip dictionary. ISBN 978-9980033833. OCLC 892628484.
  4. Conrad, Robert; Wogiga, Kepas (1991). "An Outline Of Bukiyip Grammar". Pacific Linguistics. C. Australian National University (113). ISBN 0-85883-391-3. ISSN 0078-7558.
  5. "Glottolog 4.0 - Bukiyip". glottolog.org. Retrieved 2019-10-07.
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