Paiwan
Vinuculjan, Pinayuanan
Pronunciation	[vinutsuʎan]
Native to	Taiwan
Ethnicity	96,000 Paiwan (2014)[1]
Native speakers	15,000 (2008)[2]
Language family	Austronesian Paiwan
Writing system	Latin script (Paiwan alphabet)
Official status
Official language in	Taiwan[3]
Language codes
ISO 639-3	pwn
Glottolog	paiw1248
Distribution of Paiwan language (dark green, south)
Paiwan is classified as Vulnerable by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger
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Paiwan is a native language of Taiwan, spoken by the Paiwan, a Taiwanese indigenous people. Paiwan is a Formosan language of the Austronesian language family. It is also one of the national languages of Taiwan.^[3]

Dialects

Paiwan variants are seen divided into the following dialect zones by Ferrell.^[4]

• A1 – southern and central
  • Kuɬaɬau (Kulalao) _ used in Ferrell's 1982 Paiwan Dictionary due to its widespread intelligibility and preservation of various phonemic distinctions; also spoken in Tjuabar Village, Taitung County, where Tjariḍik and "Tjuabar" (closely related to Tjavuaɬi) are also spoken.
  • Kapaiwanan (Su-Paiwan)
  • Tjuaqatsiɬay (Kachirai) – southernmost dialect
• A2 – central
  • Ɬarəkrək (Riki-riki)
  • Patjavaɬ (Ta-niao-wan)
• B1 – northernmost
  • Tjukuvuɬ (Tokubun)
  • Kaviangan (Kapiyan)
• B2 – northwestern
  • Tjaɬakavus (Chalaabus, Lai-yi)
  • Makazayazaya (Ma-chia)
• B3 – east-central
  • Tjariḍik (Charilik)
• B4 – eastern
  • Tjavuaɬi (Taimali)
  • Tjakuvukuvuɬ (Naibon, Chaoboobol)

This classification were thought to be corrected by Cheng 2016 as below:^{[full citation needed]}

Note: A village unnoted of Vuculj/Ravar is by default placed under Vuculj here.

Phonology

Kuljaljau Paiwan has 23–24 consonants (/h/ is found only in loanwords, and /ʔ/ is uncommon) and 4 vowels.^[5] Unlike many other Formosan languages that have merged many Proto-Austronesian phonemes, Paiwan preserves most Proto-Austronesian phonemes and is thus highly important for reconstruction purposes.

The four Paiwan vowels are /i ə a u/. /ə/ is written ⟨e⟩ in the literature.

In Northern Paiwan the palatal consonants have been lost, though this is recent and a few conservative speakers maintain them as allophonic variants (not as distinct phonemes). /ʔ/ is robust, unlike in other Paiwan dialects where its status is uncertain, as it derives from *q.

Younger speakers tend to pronounce /ʎ/ as [l]. Fricative [ɣ] is characteristic of Mudan village; elsewhere is Southern Paiwan it tends to be a trill [r], though it still varies [r ~ ɣ ~ ʁ ~ h]. Word-initial *k has become /ʔ/.

Grammar

Pronouns

The Paiwan personal pronouns below are from Ferrell (1982).^[7]

Function words

Paiwan has three construction markers, which are also known as relational particles.^[8]

1. a – shows equational relationship; personal sing. = ti, personal plural = tia
2. nua – shows genitive / partitive relationship; personal sing. = ni, personal plural = nia
3. tua – shows that the relationship is neither equational nor genitive; personal sing. = *tjai, personal plural = tjaia

Other words include:

• i – be at, in (place)
• nu – if when
• na – already (definitely) done/doing or have become
• uri – definite future negative marker
• uri – definite future marker
• ɬa – emphasis, setting apart

Affixed adverbials include:^[7]

• -tiaw
  • nu-tiaw: tomorrow
  • ka-tiaw: yesterday
• -sawni
  • nu-sawni: soon, in a little while (future)
  • ka-sawni: a little while ago
• -ngida
  • nu-ngida: when? (future)
  • ka-ngida: when? (past)

Interjections include the following:^[9]

• ui – yes
• ini – no (not do)
• neka – no, not (not exist)
• ai – oh! (surprise, wonder)
• ai ḍivá – alas!
• uá – oh! (surprise, taken aback)
• ai ḍaḍá – ouch! (pain)

Verbs

Paiwan verbs have 4 types of focus.^[10]

1. Agent/Actor
2. Object/Goal/Patient
3. Referent: spatial/temporal locus, indirect object, beneficiary
4. Instrument/Cause/Motivation/Origin

The following verbal affixes are used to express varying degrees of volition or intent, and are arranged below from highest to lowest intention.^[11]

1. ki- (intentional)
2. pa- (intentional)
3. -m- (volitionally ambiguous)
4. si- (volitionally ambiguous)
5. ma- (non-intentional)
6. se- (non-intentional)

Paiwan verbs can also take on the following non-derivational suffixes.^[8]

• -anga: "certainly," "truly doing"
• -angata: "definitely" (emphatic)
• -anga: "still, yet, continuing to"

Affixes

The Paiwan affixes below are from the Kulalao dialect unless stated otherwise, and are sourced from Ferrell (1982).^[12]

The following affixes are from the Tjuabar dialect of Paiwan, spoken in the northwest areas of Paiwan-occupied territory (Comparative Austronesian Dictionary 1995).