Kwomtari is the eponymous language of the Kwomtari family of Papua New Guinea.
Kwomtari | |
---|---|
Native to | Papua New Guinea |
Native speakers | 600 (1998)[1] |
Language family | Senu River
|
Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 | kwo |
Glottolog | nucl1593 |
ELP | Kwomtari |
Coordinates: 3.596084°S 141.361577°E / -3.596084; 141.361577 (Kwomtari) |
Spencer (2008) is a short grammar of Kwomtari. The language has an SOV[clarification needed] constituent order and nominative–accusative alignment. Both subjects and objects are marked suffixally on the verb. Verbs are inflected for status (mood) rather than for tense or aspect.[2]
Ethnologue lists Kwomtari as spoken in six villages in Komtari (Kwomtari) ward (3.596084°S 141.361577°E / -3.596084; 141.361577 (Kwomtari)), Amanab Rural LLG, Sandaun Province.[3][4]
Baron (2007) lists Kwomtari-speaking villages as Mango, Kwomtari, Baiberi, Yenabi, Yau'uri, and Wagroni.[5]
Bilabial | Alveolar | Retroflex | Velar | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Stop | p b | t | k ɡ | |
Nasal | m | n | ||
Fricative | ɸ | s | ||
Trill | r | |||
Lateral | ɭ |
The phoneme /ɸ/ is realized as a voiced bilabial fricative [β] intervocalically and voiceless bilabial fricative [ɸ] elsewhere. The realization of the phoneme /ɭ / is in free variation between a voiced retroflex lateral [ɭ ] and a voiced retroflex stop [ɖ ].
Front | Central | Back | |
---|---|---|---|
Close | i | u | |
Lowered Close | i̞ | u̞ | |
Mid | ə | ||
Open-Mid | ɛ | ɔ | |
Open | a | ||
The unusual vowel phonemes /i̞/ and /u̞/ are of intermediate height between cardinal [i]/[u] and [e]/[o] respectively but without the centralization present in [ɪ] and [ʊ]. They have also been attested in Weri, a Goilalan language of south-east Papua, and certain Dani dialects.[8]
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Sign languages |