Mairasi language

Mairasi (a.k.a. Faranyao and Kaniran) is a Papuan language of the Bomberai Peninsula of West Papua, Indonesia.

Mairasi
Native toWest Papua, Indonesia
RegionBomberai Peninsula
Native speakers
(3,300 cited 1996)[1]
Mairasi
  • Mairasi
Language codes
ISO 639-3zrs
Glottolognucl1594

The Northeastern dialect may be a distinct language.

Distribution

Locations:[2]

  • Kaimana Regency
    • Interior villages: Umbran, Jamna Fata, Matna, Tarwata, Sara, Kasira, Orai, Wangatnau, Faranyau, and Sarifan
    • Coastal villages: Sisir, Foroma Jaya, Warasi, Lobo, Lomira, Morona, Nanggwaromi, Omay (May may), and Warika
  • Teluk Wondama Regency
    • Naikere District villages: Sararti, Oya, Yabore, Wosimo, Undurara, and Inyora

Phonology

Consonants[3]
Bilabial Alveolar Post-
alveolar
Velar Glottal
Nasal mn
Plosive voiceless tʔ
voiced bdʤɡ
Fricative voiceless ɸs
voiced β
Liquid r
Semivowel w
Vowels[3]
FrontBack
Close iu
Mid eo
Back a

Pronouns

Mairasi possessor prefixes are:[3]

sgpl
1 o-ee-
2 ne-e-
3 na-ne-

Morphology

Case markers

Noun phrase case markers in Mairasi:[3]:546

  • instrumental suffix -t
  • locative postposition ar
  • allative postposition ev(i)

Some examples:

ex:

ovuru-t

machete-INSTR

ovuru-t

machete-INSTR

‘with a machete’

ex:

weso

house

ar

LOC

weso ar

house LOC

‘in the house’

ex:

mundu

village

evi

ALL

mundu evi

village ALL

‘to the village’

Possessors

Mairasi possessor prefixes:[3]:546

sgpl
1 o-ee-
2 ne-e-
3 na-ne-

Examples of inalienable possessors:

ex:

ee-rovo

1PL.POSS-hand

ee-rovo

1PL.POSS-hand

‘our hands’

ex:

na-iambi

3SG.POSS-skin

na-iambi

3SG.POSS-skin

‘his skin’

Directionals

Mairasi has two directional suffixes, which are only used with movement verbs.[3]:549

  • -aʔi ‘up, inland’
  • -ari ‘down, seaward’

Examples of directional suffixes in use:

ex:

o-is-aʔi

1SG.SBJ-stand-up

o-is-aʔi

1SG.SBJ-stand-up

‘I stand up’

ex:

o-fon-ari

1SG.SBJ-sit-down

o-fon-ari

1SG.SBJ-sit-down

‘I sit down’

Animacy

Animacy is marked by the adjective modifier n-, as exemplified by the contrast in the following two noun phrases.[3]:546

ex:

fariri

word

Ø-avwer

INAN-big

fariri Ø-avwer

word INAN-big

‘a big word’

ex:

fariri

word

n-avwer

ANIM-big

fariri n-avwer

word ANIM-big

‘a long-winded person’

Vowel changes can modify the number of animate nouns:[3]:546

ex:

uratu

fish

n-avwer

ANIM-big.SG

uratu n-avwer

fish ANIM-big.SG

‘a big fish’

ex:

uratu

fish

n-evwer

ANIM-big.PL

uratu n-evwer

fish ANIM-big.PL

‘big fishes’

References

  1. Mairasi at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. Ronsumbre, Adolof (2020). Ensiklopedia Suku Bangsa di Provinsi Papua Barat. Yogyakarta: Penerbit Kepel Press. ISBN 978-602-356-318-0.
  3. Foley, William A. (2018). "The languages of Northwest New Guinea". In Palmer, Bill (ed.). The Languages and Linguistics of the New Guinea Area: A Comprehensive Guide. The World of Linguistics. Vol. 4. Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton. pp. 433–568. ISBN 978-3-11-028642-7.
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