Ida'an language

The Ida'an (also Idahan) language is a Malayo-Polynesian language spoken by the Ida'an people on the east coast of Sabah, Malaysia.

Ida'an
Begak
Native toMalaysia
RegionLahad Datu, Kinabatangan, and Sandakan districts of Sabah
Native speakers
10,000 (2013)[1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3dbj
Glottologidaa1241

Background

The language has a long literary history; the earliest known work in the language is a manuscript dated 1408 A.D. The manuscript, written using the Jawi script, gives an account of an Ida'an man named Abdullah in Darvel Bay who embraced Islam, with the region thus becoming one of the earliest known regions in Malaysia to embrace Islam. The Ida'an, Begak and Subpan peoples originally formed one ethnic group. The Ida'an converted to Islam following the conversion of Abdullah, while the Begak and Subpan continued to practice their traditional religion.[2]

Varieties

The Ida'an language has been described as having three dialects: Ida'an proper (spoken in Sagama and several villages west of Lahad Datu), Begak (spoken in Ulu Tungku and several villages east of Lahad Datu), and Subpan (spoken in the districts of Kinabatangan and Sandakan).[3] These dialects correspond to three ethnic groups who originally formed a single group.

Lobel (2016)[4] lists Sungai Seguliud and Begak as Idaanic languages (language varieties closely related to Ida'an proper). The Begak dialect is said to be threatened with extinction, as younger speakers are switching to Malay.

Phonology
Collection of words in English and translation in Ida'an, Bisaya and Adang Murut (Lun Bawang) in 1860 by Spencer St.John.

Vowels
Front Central Back
High i u
Mid e ə o
Low a

Consonants
Bilabial Alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Nasal m n ŋ
Plosive/
Affricate		 Voiceless p t tʃ k ʔ
Voiced b d dʒ ɡ
Fricative s
Liquid Lateral l
Trill r
Semivowel w j

References
  1. Ida'an at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. Goudswaard (2005), p. 1
  3. Banker (1984)
  4. Lobel, Jason William (2016). North Borneo Sourcebook: Vocabularies and Functors. University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 9780824857790.

Sources
  • Banker, John E. (1984). "The Ida'an language". In King, Julie K.; King, John Wayne (eds.). Languages of Sabah: A Survey Report. Pacific Linguistics C-78. Canberra: Department of Linguistics, Research School of Pacific Studies, Australian National University. pp. 85–90. doi:10.15144/PL-C78.85.
  • Goudswaard, Nelleke Elisabeth (2005). The Begak (Ida'an) Language of Sabah. Utrecht Institute of Linguistics / LOT Netherlands Graduate School of Linguistic. ISBN 90-76864-73-X.
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