Nukuoro language

Last updated
Nukuoro
Nukuoro
Native to Micronesia
RegionWestern Nukuoro Island
Native speakers
700 (2016) [1]
140 in the U.S. (no date) [2]
Language codes
ISO 639-3 nkr
Glottolog nuku1260
ELP Nukuoro
Lang Status 60-DE.svg
Nukuoro is classified as Definitely Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger

The Nukuoro language is a Polynesian Outlier language, spoken by about 1,200 people on Nukuoro Atoll and on Pohnpei, two islands of Pohnpei State within the Federated States of Micronesia. Nukuoro is a remote coral atoll with a population of about 150, where the primary language is Nukuoro. An additional several hundred Nukuoro speakers live in Kolonia, Pohnpei, with smaller diaspora communities elsewhere in Micronesia and in the United States. Most Nukuoro speakers, particularly those that live away from Nukuoro Atoll, are multilingual in Pohnpeian and/or English; some older Nukuoro speakers also know German or Japanese.

Contents

Classification

Nukuoro belongs to the Polynesian language family, a branch of the Oceanic subgroup of the Austronesian family. It is closely related to other Polynesian languages, with considerable phonological and lexical similarities. Within the Polynesian branch, Nukuoro is a member of the Polynesian Outliers, which are spoken by island populations in Micronesia, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia. [3] Nukuoro is most closely related to Kapingamarangi, the only other Polynesian language found in Micronesia. While the two languages are not mutually intelligible, it is nonetheless possible for a speaker of one language to make themselves understood to a speaker of the other with some difficulty. [4]

Language use and orthography

Population

The primary language spoken on the Nukuoro atoll is Nukuoro. In 1965 there were approximately 400 speakers. 260 of these speakers resided on the atoll, 125 lived on Ponape, the District Center, and a few others were spread out on the other islands in the District (Carroll 1965). The current population is estimated to be at about 1000 speakers.

Orthography

The Nukuoro writing system was developed by Chief Leka in the 1920s, perhaps with the assistance of resident Europeans or missionaries in Ponape. It is known and used in some form by nearly all Nukuoro speakers, and has been the educational standard since its creation. [4] The Nukuoro orthography differs from other Polynesian orthographies in that voiceless stop phonemes /ptk/ are written using the letters b d g, a choice that probably stems from the fact that Nukuoro voiceless stops are unaspirated like English voiced stops.

Phonology

Vowels

There are 5 vowel qualities in Nukuoro: /a,e,i,o,u/. Vowel length is contrastive, and long vowels are represented by writing the vowel symbol twice. Long vowels are about twice as long as a short vowel, and are not rearticulated. The phonemic geminate /aː/ is often realized phonetically as [æ]. [4]

Monophthongs
Short Long
front back frontback
Close iu
Mid eo
Open a

Consonants

There are 10 consonants in Nukuoro, each of which is contrastive for length. Geminate consonants are articulated for about twice as long as a singleton consonant, with the exception of stops and taps: geminate stops are articulated with increased aspiration, and geminate taps are articulated as a long, pre-voiced dental or retroflex stop. [4] Geminate consonants are typically found stem-initially, and are often created by reduplication.

Consonants
Labial Alveolar Velar Glottal
Stop p t k
Fricative v s h
Nasal m n ŋ ŋː
Tap ɾ ɾː

Like many Polynesian languages, Nukuoro has only three stops in its phonemic inventory: /p/, /t/, and /k/. These stops are unaspirated and can be variably voiced, but are phonemically voiceless. The orthography of Nukuoro represents these voiceless stops with b, d, g. The alveolar tap /ɾ/ is represented in Nukuoro orthography using the letter l, although early records of Nukuoro (and in fact, the spelling of the language name itself) use r.

Since singleton /p/, /t/, /k/ are written with b, d, g, geminate /p/, /t/, /k/ are written with p, t, k. Geminated /m/, /n/, /s/, /h/, /ɾ/ are represented with double letters (mm, nn, ss, hh, ll), and geminated /ŋ/ is written as nng. [5]

Syllable structure

Syllables take the shapes V, VV, VVV, CV, CVV and CVVV. All possible V and VV combinations occur. All possible CV combinations occur except /vu/. The first member of a diphthong is always the syllabic peak when the syllable is stressed; elsewhere there is little difference between members, the peak of sonority tending to occur on the most naturally sonorous vowel. [4]

Grammar

Reduplication

Reduplication is one of the most productive morphological processes in Nukuoro. Reduplication is most common for adjectives and verbs.

There are two types of reduplication in Nukuoro: phoneme reduplication, which doubles the first sound to make a geminate, and full reduplication, which copies the first two syllables.

Phoneme reduplication usually differentiates between singular and plural.

bedi

fat.SG

 

pedi

fat.PL

bedi → pedi

fat.SG {} fat.PL

lava

finished.SG

 

llava

finished.PL

lava → llava

finished.SG {} finished.PL

Full reduplication indicates that an event happens repeatedly.

galo

look

 

galogalo

look all around

galo → galogalo

look {} {look all around}

seni

sleep

 

seniseni

oversleep

seni → seniseni

sleep {} oversleep

daba

flash of light

 

dabadaba

twinkling, flashing

daba → dabadaba

{flash of light} {} {twinkling, flashing}

Basic clause structure

The basic word order in Nukuoro is Subject-Verb-Object, but there are also cases of Verb-Subject-Object.

Template for a basic Nukuoro sentence with example:

Au

1SG

subject

e

NPST

aspect

dugu

put

verb

ange

DIR.3

particles

de beebaa

DET book

object

gi honga tebele.

to top DET.table

prepositional phrase

Au e dugu ange {de beebaa} {gi honga tebele}.

1SG NPST put DIR.3 {DET book} {to top DET.table}

subject aspect verb particles object {prepositional phrase}

‘I put the book on the table.’

Verbs generally do not show any agreement or inflection, and nouns are not marked morphologically for case. Historically, Nukuoro had an ergative-absolutive alignment, a system retained in many related languages.

Pronouns

Basic pronouns

Nukuoro distinguishes singular, dual, and plural, as well as inclusive and exclusive we.

singulardualplural
1st personexclusiveaugidaaugidaadeu
inclusivegimaaugimaadeu
2nd persongoegooluugoodou
3rd personiagilaaugilaadeu

Genitive pronouns

The genitive pronouns are built off the basic pronoun paradigm.

The a/o distinction marks alienability: o marks inalienable possession, and a marks alienable possession. Some genitive pronouns do not mark the a vs. o distinction and are used for both.

Paradigm for possessed singularsParadigm for possessed plurals
singulardualpluralsingulardualplural
1st personexclusivedagu/dogutaautaadeuagu/oguadaau/odaauadaadeu/odaadeu
inclusivedemaaudemaadeuamaau/omaauamaadeu/omaadeu
2nd persondau/doodooluudoodouau/ooooluuoodou
3rd persondana/donodelaaudelaadeuana/onoalaau/olaaualaadeu/olaadeu

Aspect markers

Aspect, as opposed to tense, marks "[the] different ways of viewing the internal temporal constituency of a situation". [6]

egeneral aspect
gaanticipatory aspect
gudecisive aspect
neperfect
giprescriptive
nogopast progressive
tigi'not yet'
kanawarning
melehypothetical
goi'still'
[4]

Endangerment

Materials

There are few solid resources for the Nukuoro language. The primary and probably most informative one is Vern Carroll's book An Outline of the Structure of the Language of Nukuoro. There is also a Nukuoro Lexicon that has English to Nukuoro and Nukuoro to English, as well as grammar notes.

In 2013, Gregory D.S. Anderson and K. David Harrison of Living Tongues Institute for Endangered Languages created the Nukuoro Talking Dictionary, a digital lexicon that includes sound recordings of Nukuoro words. This lexicon was initially populated with sound recordings from Nukuoro speakers Johnny Rudolph, Maynard Henry, and Kurt Erwin. This dictionary continues to be augmented by speakers and linguists and includes over 1000 audio tokens.

Vitality

Nukuoro is listed as a developing language. Ethnologue states that this means it is in vigorous use but isn't yet widespread. It is being transmitted to children, and is used in schools, government, and daily life. After World War 2, there were already efforts to help preserve the language as the United States set up an elementary school taught completely in Nukuoro. The population of speakers also increased from 400 to 1000 since 1965, which shows positive growth.

Further reading

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tuvaluan language</span> Polynesian language spoken in Tuvalu

Tuvaluan, often called Tuvalu, is a Polynesian language closely related to the Ellicean group spoken in Tuvalu. It is more or less distantly related to all other Polynesian languages, such as Hawaiian, Māori, Tahitian, Samoan, Tokelauan and Tongan, and most closely related to the languages spoken on the Polynesian Outliers in Micronesia and Northern and Central Melanesia. Tuvaluan has borrowed considerably from Samoan, the language of Christian missionaries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polynesian languages</span> Language family

The Polynesian languages form a genealogical group of languages, itself part of the Oceanic branch of the Austronesian family.

Carolinian is an Austronesian language originating in the Caroline Islands, but spoken in the Northern Mariana Islands. It is an official language of the Carolinian people. Carolinian is a threatened language according to the Catalogue of Endangered Languages (ELCat), but available data is scarce. There are approximately 3,100 native speakers in the world. Carolinian has 95% lexical similarity with Satawalese, 88% with Woleaian and Puluwatese; 81% with Mortlockese; 78% with Chuukese, 74% with Ulithian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marshallese language</span> Micronesian language of the Marshall Islands

The Marshallese language, also known as Ebon, is a Micronesian language spoken in the Marshall Islands. Spoken by the ethnic Marshallese people, the language is spoken by nearly the country's entire population of 59,000, making it the principal language of the country. There are also roughly 27,000 Marshallese citizens residing in the United States, nearly all of whom speak Marshallese, as well as in other countries including Nauru and Kiribati.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crow language</span> Missouri Valley Siouan language of Montana, US

Crow is a Missouri Valley Siouan language spoken primarily by the Crow Nation in present-day southeastern Montana. The word, Apsáalooke, translates to "children of the raven." It is one of the larger populations of American Indian languages with 2,480 speakers according to the 1990 US Census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern Sámi</span> Most widely spoken of all Sámi languages

Northern or North Sámi is the most widely spoken of all Sámi languages. The area where Northern Sámi is spoken covers the northern parts of Norway, Sweden and Finland. The number of Northern Sámi speakers is estimated to be somewhere between 15,000 and 25,000. About 2,000 of these live in Finland and between 5,000 and 6,000 in Sweden, with the remaining portions being in Norway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nukuoro</span>

Nukuoro is an atoll in the Federated States of Micronesia. It is a municipality of the state of Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia. It is the secondmost southern atoll of the country, after Kapingamarangi. They both are Polynesian outliers. As of 2007, Nukuoro had a population of 372, though several hundred Nukuorans live on Pohnpei. Fishing, animal husbandry, and agriculture are the main occupations. A recent project to farm black pearl oysters has been successful at generating additional income for the island's people.

Kapingamarangi is a Polynesian language spoken in the Federated States of Micronesia. It had 3,000 native speakers in 1995. The language is closely related to the Nukuoro language.

Chuukese, also rendered Trukese, is a Chuukic language of the Austronesian language family spoken primarily on the islands of Chuuk in the Caroline Islands in Micronesia. There are communities of speakers on Pohnpei, and Guam. Estimates show that there are about 45,900 speakers in Micronesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kosraean language</span> Oceanic language spoken in Micronesia

Kosraean, sometimes rendered Kusaiean, is the language spoken on the islands of Kosrae (Kusaie), a nation-state of the Federated States of Micronesia, Caroline Islands. In 2001 there were approximately 8,000 speakers in Micronesia, and 9,060 in all countries.

Woleaian is the main language of the island of Woleai and surrounding smaller islands in the state of Yap of the Federated States of Micronesia. Woleaian is a Chuukic language. Within that family, its closest relative is Satawalese, with which it is largely mutually intelligible. Woleaian is spoken by approximately 1700 people. Woleai has a writing system of its own, a syllabary based on the Latin alphabet.

Pohnpeian is a Micronesian language spoken as the indigenous language of the island of Pohnpei in the Caroline Islands. Pohnpeian has approximately 30,000 (estimated) native speakers living in Pohnpei and its outlying atolls and islands with another 10,000-15,000 (estimated) living off island in parts of the US mainland, Hawaii and Guam. It is the second-most widely spoken native language of the Federated States of Micronesia.

The Pingelapese language is a Micronesian language native to Pingelap, an atoll belonging to the state of Pohnpei in the Federated States of Micronesia. This atoll is the homeland to the Pingelapese people, consisting of a three-square mile range of uninhabited small coral islets, Daekae and Sukora, and the inhabited islet, Pingelap. These islands partially make up the Caroline Islands.

Mokilese also known as Mwoakilloan, Mwokilese, or Mwoakilese is a Micronesian language originally spoken on Mwoakilloa, Federated States of Micronesia. Of the 1200 Mokilese speakers, only about 500 live on Mwoakilloa.

Takuu is a Polynesian language from the Ellicean group spoken on the atoll of Takuu, near Bougainville Island. It is very closely related to Nukumanu and Nukuria from Papua New Guinea and to Ontong Java and Sikaiana from Solomon Islands.

Qaqet, or Baining, is a non-Austronesian language from the Baining family spoken in East New Britain Province on the island of New Britain, Papua New Guinea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ute dialect</span> Colorado River Numic dialect used in the US

Ute is a dialect of the Colorado River Numic language, spoken by the Ute people. Speakers primarily live on three reservations: Uintah-Ouray in northeastern Utah, Southern Ute in southwestern Colorado, and Ute Mountain in southwestern Colorado and southeastern Utah. Ute is part of the Numic branch of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Other dialects in this dialect chain are Chemehuevi and Southern Paiute. As of 2010, there were 1,640 speakers combined of all three dialects Colorado River Numic. Ute's parent language, Colorado River Numic, is classified as a threatened language, although there are tribally-sponsored language revitalization programs for the dialect.

Nuguria (Nukuria) was a Polynesian language, spoken by approximately 550 people on Nuguria in the eastern islands of Papua New Guinea. The language was taught in primary schools in Nuguria and was used for daily communications between adults and children. Nuguria is one of the eighteen small islands to the east of Papua New Guinea, which are known as the Polynesian Outliers. The Nukuria language has been concluded to be closely related to other nearby languages such as Nukumanu, Takuu, Nukuoro, and Luangiua. Research on the Nuguria Atoll and the language itself is scarce; past research demonstrated that this language was at risk of potential endangerment. The language was only then classified as at risk of endangerment because it was still used between generations and was passed on to the children. However, recent research indicates that Nukuria is now most likely an extinct language.

Sikaiana is a Polynesian language, spoken by about 730 people on Sikaiana in the Solomon Islands.

Pendau, or Umalasa, is a Celebic language of Sulawesi in Indonesia spoken by the approximately 4000 Pendau people who live in Central Sulawesi. Classified as an endangered language, Pendau is primarily spoken inside of Pendau villages whereas Indonesian is used to speak with neighboring communities and is the language of children's education and outside officials. The highest concentration of speakers is in and around Kecamatan Balaesang. There are no known dialects within the Pendau region, although speakers from the mainland can identify whether a speaker is from the Balaesang peninsula through their 'rhythm' or intonation pattern. In recent years, some Pendau leaders have worked with local government to preserve their language alongside Indonesian.

References

  1. Nukuoro at Ethnologue (19th ed., 2016) Closed Access logo transparent.svg
  2. Nukuoro at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013) Closed Access logo transparent.svg
  3. Drummond, Emily, Johnny Rudolph, and K. David Harrison. (2019). A Nukuoro creation story. Pacific Asia Inquiry 10(1): 141-171.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Carroll, Vern (1965). "An outline of the structure of the language of Nukuoro: Part 1". Journal of the Polynesian Society. 74 (2): 192–226. JSTOR   20704285 via JSTOR.
  5. Carroll, 1965, p. 196
  6. Hamm, Friedrich and Oliver Bott, "Tense and Aspect", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2021 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), URL = <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2021/entries/tense-aspect/>