Mantion–Meyah languages

The Mantion–Meyah or (South) East Bird's Head languages are a language family of three languages in the "Bird's Head Peninsula" of western New Guinea, spoken by all together 20,000 people.

Mantion–Meyah
East Bird's Head
Geographic
distribution
Papua
Linguistic classificationWest Papuan?
  • (extended) East Bird's Head
    • Mantion–Meyah
Subdivisions
  • Mantion
  • Meyah
Glottologeast1459
East Bird's Head languages (in red)

Classification

East Bird's Head stock (3 languages)

Pronouns

The pronouns Ross reconstructs for the proto-language (Usher's Southeast Bird's Head) are:

Number
PersonSingularPlural
exclusiveinclusive
1st *da, *di-*meme, *me-*mimi, *mi-
2nd *ba, *bi-*ia, *i-
3rd *e, *-*rua, *ri-

Basic vocabulary

Lexical similarities among East Bird's Head languages (Meyah, Moskona, Sougb, Hatam, Mansim) listed in Holton & Klamer (2018):[1]

East Bird's Head family basic vocabulary
glossMeyahMoskonaSougbHatamMansim
‘bird’memmembahabwaw
‘louse’mejmejmemmem
‘one’egensergeshomgomwom
‘night’motumotlobammun
‘I’didifdifdandanidanu

Additional East Bird's Head basic vocabulary quoted by Holton & Klamer (2018)[1] from Miedema & Reesink (2004: 34) and (Reesink 2005: 202), showing diverse non-cognate vocabulary across different branches:[2][3]

Additional East Bird's Head basic vocabulary
glossMeyahMoskonaSougbHatam
arm/handetmaetmas(i)randab
leg/footakiegak/okoohoramig
housemodmodtuig
goodoufaojfaeigouhkei
dogmesmesmihinsien
pigmekmekhwejnab
chickenmongkukarmemkoarberougbguri
lousemejmejmemmem
water/rivermeimijuhunyei
bananameninejwida

The following basic vocabulary words are from Voorhoeve (1975)[4] and Miedema & Welling (1985),[5] as cited in the Trans-New Guinea database:[6]

glossManikionMeyahMeyah (Akrin dialect)Meyah (Mumbrani dialect)Meyah (Etskebi dialect)Meyah (Miun dialect)Meyah (Anason dialect)MoskonaMoskona (Merdey dialect)
head mogtibirfaméwifamiːfaméwèrèwitiwiribrebiwèr
hair mokodifejiméwifesimiːfèsyimeyfreitsiwirèfesiwirèreysfejabiwèrfesyé
eye ma-i resiitecyetètsmitèteytet(s)mèntètmèteysitejabitèts
tooth moktabufonmufonmufonbufon(afon)fonmefonifonmu(o)fuon
leg mohoti-muʔmakimakimaːkimeyakipèkikakigakadaki
louse kutamecmèːtmè(i)t(s)meysmaismeysmeydsmèts
dog mehimesmèsmèsmèt(y)mèytmètmès
pig hweijmekmèkmèk -ui; mèk-usmèkmèkmèːkmèk
bird bamemmèmmèmmèmmèmmeːmmemmèm
egg moʔwuʔofouòfeuafo(i) ofo(i)mémafu(i)afeːefiːofugofow
blood mokuhimugufuokguwum(u)fora-axofagufagofifugwaoxwofi
bone morimoforaacfora(m)ogu(e)afarorc(a)fonikofaofora
skin mosmofosa(o)wosmuosmenkarafuotsawuot(y)moshomuos
tree sakomergamègaòkàwu(n)mergaapowakowmergowohookow
man gijinunadusnokmonaiːsisoskisnokerisruna
sun idesi; igdamowamowamauwamauwmouwmauwamaumou
water tohumeimeymeymiːmeymiymeimey
fire smowmowoxomaːxmaːxmeraxmaːxmeraxmerahmèrax
stone idahabumamumamumamimox(w)ommekommaukommamomuosgoni
name moxomofokadufòkahmufakabou(y)okifapiwuokiwokobuoka
eat ethetmarmitmiːtmiètmitmenètitmarbitmar
one homergensèrgènsèrgènsèrgènsafimsarfinsergesèrgèns
two huayergekègekaèrgèkargakafikèrfikergakergak

See also

References

  1. Holton, Gary; Klamer, Marian (2018). "The Papuan languages of East Nusantara and the Bird's Head". 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. 569–640. ISBN 978-3-11-028642-7.
  2. Miedema, Jelle and Ger P. Reesink. 2004. One Head, Many Faces: New perspectives on the Bird’s Head Peninsula of New Guinea. Leiden: KITLV.
  3. Reesink, Ger P. 2005. West Papuan languages: roots and development. In: Pawley et al. (eds.) 185–218.
  4. Voorhoeve, C.L. Languages of Irian Jaya: Checklist. Preliminary classification, language maps, wordlists. B-31, iv + 133 pages. Pacific Linguistics, The Australian National University, 1975. doi:10.15144/PL-B31
  5. Miedema, J. and Welling, F.I. "Fieldnotes on languages and dialects in the Kebar district, Bird's Head, Irian Jaya". In Adams, K., Lauck, L., Miedema, J., Welling, F., Stokhof, W., Flassy, D., Oguri, H., Collier, K., Gregerson, K., Phinnemore, T., Scorza, D., Davies, J., Comrie, B. and Abbott, S. editors, Papers in New Guinea Linguistics No. 22. A-63:29-52. Pacific Linguistics, The Australian National University, 1985. doi:10.15144/PL-A63.29
  6. Greenhill, Simon (2016). "TransNewGuinea.org - database of the languages of New Guinea". Retrieved 2020-11-05.

Further reading

  • Reesink, Ger P. (2002). "The Eastern Bird's Head Languages Compared". In Ger P. Reesink (ed.). Languages of the Eastern Bird's Head. Pacific Linguistics. Vol. 524. Canberra: Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian National University. pp. 1–44. hdl:1885/146144.
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