The Yele language, or Yélî Dnye (IPA: [jelɨ t̠n̠ʲɛ]), is the language of Rossel Island, the easternmost island in the Louisiade Archipelago off the eastern tip of Papua New Guinea. There were some 4,000 speakers in 1998, comprising the entire ethnic population.^[1] The language remains unclassified by linguists.

Classification

For now, the language is best considered unclassified. It has been classified as a tentative language isolate that may turn out to be related to the Anêm and Ata language isolates of New Britain (in a tentative Yele – West New Britain family). Typologically it is more similar to the Oceanic languages of southern New Guinea than to the isolates of New Britain. Word order tends to be subject–object–verb (SOV; verb-final).^[3]

Stebbins et al. (2018) classifies Yélî Dnye as an isolate.^[3] They explain similarities with Austronesian as being due to contact and diffusion.

Phonology

Yele has a uniquely rich set of doubly articulated consonants. In nearly all the languages of the world which have them, these are labial–velar consonants—that is, they are pronounced simultaneously with the lips and the back of the tongue, such as a simultaneous p and k. However, Yele is known to contrast other doubly articulated positions: besides labial–velar, it has two distinct labial–alveolar positions (laminal/dental and apical/postalveolar), as illustrated below.

The two coronal articulations are (1) laminal/dental and slightly pre-alveolar, sometimes transcribed tʸ, nʸ, etc. (see denti-alveolar consonant), and (2) apical and slightly post-alveolar, sometimes transcribed ṭ, ṇ etc., ʈ, ɳ, etc., or simply t, n, etc.

There are two other doubly articulated consonants, [l͡β] as in lvámê (a type of cane) and [j͡β̞]. The Yele w is labial–dental [β̞͡ð̞]^{[verification needed]}, which may be also transcribed in some sources as [w̪]. These doubly articulated consonants contrast with labialization (SIL 1992/2004). Many articulations may also be palatalized. Stops may be either pre- or (except perhaps for /p/) post-nasalized. The consonant inventory includes the following:

It is not clear how many of the labial–velar and labial–alveolar consonants such as ŋ͡m may also be labialized or palatalized. Nor is it clear how many of these articulations occur prenasalized or with nasal release, but besides those noted above, the following are noted in SIL 1992/2004: /mbʷ, mbʷʲ, n̪d̪ʲ, t̠n̠ʲ, t̠͡pn̠͡mʲ, ŋkʷ, kŋʷ/.

The oral stops /p t̠ k/ (that is, apart from dental /t̪/) are voiced between vowels and when prenasalized. The (post-)alveolar is further reduced to an (apparently dental) flap [ɾ̪] between vowels. Some of the palatalized alveolar stops are pronounced as fricatives or affricates, such as [tɕ] (or perhaps [ɕ]) and [ndʑ] (or perhaps [ʑ]), but SIL (1992/2004) contradicts itself as to which these are.

Yele also has many vowels, a noteworthy number of which are nasalized:

(The distinction between open-mid and close-mid nasal vowels is rather unusual, and SIL (1992/2004) provides no examples of the close-mid vowels. They also fail to provide an example of æ̃.)

Vowels may occur long or short. SIL (1992/2004) interprets other vowel sequences as being separated by /j, w/ rather than as diphthongs.

Given that vowels may be long or short, Yele syllables may only be of the form V or CV, and in the former case, apparently only /a/ or /u/.

Orthography

The multigraphs for complex consonants are not always transparent. The labial-velar and labial-alveolar consonants are written with the labial second: kp, dp, tp, ngm, nm, ńm, lv. Prenasalized /mp/ is written mb, but /nt̪/ and /ŋk/ are written nt and nk to distinguish them from nd /nt̠/ and ng /ŋ/. Prenasalized stops are written with an m when labial, including doubly articulated stops, as with md /n̠͡mt̠͡p/ or mg /ŋ͡mk͡p/, and with n otherwise. Nasal release is likewise written n or m, as in dny /t̠n̠ʲ/, kn /kŋ/, dm /t̠͡pn̠͡m/, km /k͡pŋ͡m/. Labialization is written w, and palatalization y, apart from ch for /tʲ/ and nj for /ntʲ/ (it is not clear if ch and nj are dental or (post-)alveolar).

Of the vowels, only a and u occur initially. Long vowels are written doubled, and nasal vowels with a preceding colon (꞉a for /ã/), except for short vowels after a nasal consonant (or a nasal release?), where vowel nasality is not contrastive.

Grammar

Yele has been studied extensively by cognitive linguists. It has an extensive set of spatial postpositions. Yele has eleven postpositions equivalent to English on; using different ones depending factors such as whether the object is on a table (horizontal), a wall (vertical), or atop a peak; whether or not it is attached to the surface; and whether it is solid or granular (distributed).

Pronouns

Yele has a set of free pronouns and a set of bound possessive pronouns.

		Singular		Dual		Plural
		English	Yele	English	Yele	English	Yele
1st person	free	I	n̠ə	we two	n̪o	we	n̠͡mo
	bound		a		n̪i		n̠͡mɨ
2nd person	free	thou	n̪i	you two	t̠͡pũ	you	n̪͡mo
	bound		N-		t̠͡pɨ		n̪͡me
3rd person	free	he/she	–	they two	–	they	–
	bound		u				ji

Taboos and special registers

There are three different types of taboos present in Yélî Dnye: vocabulary avoided by women, vocabulary avoided when in the presence of in-laws and vocabulary related to sacred places. However, since the language has fallen into disuse, many of these language changes are no longer used.

Additionally, special registers and terms are used when discussing shell money (kêndapî), at a mortuary feast (kpaakpaa) and during songs.^[4]

Women's language

As a form of women's speech, women avoid certain words, especially those related to the sea. Instead, other words are substituted.^[4]

In-laws

Since great respect is shown to in-laws on Rossel Island, speakers of Yélî Dnye will not say their in-laws' names, will only speak of each in-law using the polite third-person plural pronoun yi, and will replace certain words when speaking near them. While the alternative vocabulary is mostly no longer used, the name and pronoun taboos are still observed.

Most of the taboo words are body parts, clothing or carried possessions. Not all body words are replaced, however: for example, 'neck', 'Adam's apple' and 'stomach' retain their everyday forms.^[4]

Vocabulary

Selected basic vocabulary items in Yélî Dnye:^[6]

gloss	Yélî Dnye
bird	ńmê; ńmo
blood	wêê
bone	dînê
breast	ngmo
ear	ngweńe
eat	ma
egg	w:uu
eye	ngwolo
fire	ndê; ndyuw:e
give	yeede
go	lê; lili; nî
ground	mbwóó; têpê
hair	gh:aa
head	ny:oo
leg	yi
louse	y:emê wee
man	pi
moon	d:ââ
name	pi
one	ngmidi
road, path	maa
see	m:uu
sky	mbóó; vyââ
stone	chêêpî
sun	kââdî
tongue	dêê
tooth	nyóó
tree	yi
two	miyó
water	mbwaa; tolo
woman	kumbwada; pyââ

Sample text

Yélî Dnye:

Kiye w:ââ u pi Peetuuki, ka kwo, Doongê. Nê kuu. Daa a w:ââ. Nkal u w:ââ. Nkal ngê yinê kaa ngê. W:ââ dono. Pi yilî u te. U nuu u pi da tóó. Pi u lama daa tóó. M:iituwo Yidika, Mépé tp:oo mî kiye ngê. Daanté. Mépé dono ngê pyodo. Apê, W:ââ mbwámê nînê châpwo. Nkal ngê kwo, "Up:o" . W:ââ mî mbêpê wo, chii mênê. Mépé ngê w:ââ mbwámê mêdîpê châpwo. Awêde ka kwo, Doongê. Pi maa daa t:a. A danêmbum u dî.

Yélî Dnye in the International Phonetic Alphabet:

kijɛ β̞͡ð̞ɑ̃ː u pi pɛːt̪uːki, ka kʷɔ, t̠ɔːŋə | n̠ə kuː | t̠aː a β̞͡ð̞ɑ̃ː | ŋkal u β̞͡ð̞ɑ̃ː | ŋkal ŋə jin̠ə kaː ŋə | β̞͡ð̞ɑ̃ː t̠ɔn̠ɔ | pi jilɨ u t̪ɛ | u n̠uː u pi t̠a t̪oː | pi u lama t̠aː t̪oː | mĩːtuβ̞͡ð̞ɔ jit̠ika, mepe t̪͡pɔ̃ː mɨ kijɛ ŋə | t̠aːn̪t̪e | mepe t̠on̠o ŋə pʲɔt̠ɔ | apə, β̞͡ð̞ɑ̃ː mpʷæmə n̠ɨn̠ə tʲɑpʷɔ | ŋkal ŋə kʷɔ "upɔ̃" | β̞͡ð̞ɑ̃ː mɨ mpəpə β̞͡ð̞ɔ, tʲiː mən̠ə | mepe ŋə β̞͡ð̞ɑ̃ː mpʷæmə mət̠ɨpə tʲɑpʷɔ | aβ̞͡ð̞ət̠ɛ ka kʷɔ, t̠ɔːŋə | pi maː t̠aː t̪ã | a t̠an̠əmpum u tɨ |

Translation:

The savage dog is called "Peetuuki", and he lives at Doongê. It's nothing to do with me. It's not my dog. It's Nkal's dog. He raised it. It's a bad dog. It bites everyone. It doesn't like anyone. Recently it bit Mépé's son, Yidika. It really bit him hard. Mépé became very angry, and said, 'I'm going to kill that dog'. The dog ran away into the bush, so Mépé could not kill it. So now it's still there at Doongê, so there's not a safe road through there. That's the end of my story.

(SIL 1992/2004)