Kutubuan languages
The Kutubuan languages are a small family of neighboring languages families in Papua New Guinea. They are named after Lake Kutubu in Papua New Guinea.
| Kutubuan | |
|---|---|
| Laku Kutubu | |
| Geographic distribution | Lake Kutubu region, Southern Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea |
| Linguistic classification | Papuan Gulf ?
|
| Subdivisions | |
| Glottolog | None |
Languages
There has been some debate over whether they are closer to each other than to other languages, but Usher includes them both in the Kikorian branch of the tentative Papuan Gulf stock. Within the two branches, the lexicostatistical figures are 60–70%. Between the two branches, they are 10–20%.
Proto-language
Some lexical reconstructions by Usher (2020) are:[1]
gloss Proto-Lake Kutubu head *uni hair/feather(s) *iti eye/sixteen *hʲĩ nose *sabe tooth *mete tongue *atu foot/leg *kotage bone *kigi skin/bark *ga[o/u] breast *hʲokõ dog *g[e/ẽ/a]s[a/ã] pig/game *mena bird *hʲaka egg *kapa tree *ita moon *he̝ge̝ water *hẽ fire *ita stone *kana path *ig[i]a eat/drink *ne- one *hʲaga
Vocabulary comparison
The following basic vocabulary words are from Franklin (1975), Franklin & Voorhoeve (1973), McElhanon and Voorhoeve (1970), and Shaw (1986), as cited in the Trans-New Guinea database:[2]
gloss Foi Fasu (Namumi dialect) Fasu head a̧řuhai unahaie wamo hair u̧sæ̧ unahai iti iti; uni iti ear yo ḳʰiyʌ sinaeki; sinæki senaki eye i̧y hi̧; hĩ hi; hi̧; hĩ nose s̭abɛi sapasuma sape tooth ṱi akai mere tongue auřu airu alu; aru leg ṱamʌ kofai; kɔfai korake louse ṱʌbʌľi yapani dog ḳɛsʌ kasa kasa pig girɔ saro bird yaʔ minai mena egg hʌ̧ⁱ hai mena hai blood weḷia kakusa yapi bone kʰikʰi kiki kiki skin ḳaḳo kau kau breast o̧ḳo̧ hotu; hɔtu hoko tree iʔʌ ira ira man amɛnʌ abano; abanɔ aporo woman ḳa̧· hinamu hinamo sun iřiyapo iya; maiya; maya maiya; maĩya moon hɛḳɛ hɩki heke water ipu hi̧; hĩ hẽ; hȩ; hę fire iřʌ irə kipu; irʌkupi dufi; ira lufi stone kʰa̧nʌ ɩki eke name yaᵽo iyanu yano eat niyæi nesi anene; na one mɛna̧ḳɛ hakasa; nakasa meno two ha̧ḳɛ tita teta
Evolution
Proposed Kutubu reflexes of proto-Trans-New Guinea (pTNG) etyma are:[3]
- gage- ‘carry on back’ < *kak(i,u)
- ku- ‘die’ < *kumV-
- na- ‘eat’ < *na-
- korage ‘leg’ < *k(a,o)ondok[V]
- gariko ‘neck’ < *k(a,e)(nd,t)ak
- ira ‘tree’ < *inda
- kuba ‘wind’ < *kumbutu
- ya ‘bird’ < *yaka(i)
- babo ‘mother’s sister’ < *mbamba ‘older same sex sibling’
- ku- ‘die’ < *kumV-
- na- ‘eat’ < *na-
- reke- ‘stand’ < ta,e,i)k[V]
- ama ‘mother’ < *am(a,i)
- apa ‘father’ < *apa
- himu ‘heart, stomach’ < *simb(i,u)
- iti ‘hair’ < *iti[C]
- korake ‘leg’ < *k(a,o)ndok[V]
- kinu ‘shoulder’ < *kinV
- kau ‘skin’ < *k(a,o)(nd,t)apu
- sikini ‘hand’ < *sa(ŋg,k)(a,i)l
- pisi ‘urine’ < *pisi
- mane(raka) ‘make the law’ < *mana ‘instructions’
- horop ‘long’ < *k(o,u)ti(mb,p)V
- api(a) ‘husband’ < *ambi ‘man’
- papa ‘mother’s sister’ < *mbamba ‘older same sex sibling’
- ira ‘tree’ < *inda
- sakipu ‘sand’ < *sa(ŋg,k)asiŋ
- kupa ‘wind’ < *kumbutu
References
- Timothy Usher, New Guinea World, Proto–Lake Kutubu
- Greenhill, Simon (2016). "TransNewGuinea.org - database of the languages of New Guinea". Retrieved 2020-11-05.
- Pawley, Andrew; Hammarström, Harald (2018). "The Trans New Guinea family". 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. 21–196. ISBN 978-3-11-028642-7.