Kwomtari | |
---|---|
Native to | Papua New Guinea |
Native speakers | (600 cited 1998)[1] |
Senu River
| |
Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 | kwo |
Glottolog | nucl1593 |
ELP | Kwomtari |
Coordinates: 3°35′46″S 141°21′42″E / 3.596084°S 141.361577°E |
Kwomtari is the eponymous language of the Kwomtari family of Papua New Guinea.
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°35′46″S 141°21′42″E / 3.596084°S 141.361577°E), 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 | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Plosive | p b | t | k ɡ | |
Nasal | m | n | ||
Fricative | ɸ | s | ||
Trill | ʙ[7] | 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.[9]