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North Vanuatu Languages
The North Vanuatu languages form a Linkage (linguistics), linkage of Southern Oceanic languages spoken in northern Vanuatu. Languages Clark (2009) Clark (2009) provides the following classification of the North Vanuatu languages, divided into two main geographic areas (Torres–Banks–Maewo–Ambae–Pentecost and Espiritu Santo, Santo). Outlier (aberrant) languages identified by Clark (2009) are in ''italics''.The language names used by Clark have often been superseded by other names; in that case, the glottonym used by Clark is indicated in brackets. *North Vanuatu **Northern (Torres–Banks–Maewo–Ambae–Pentecost) ***Torres–Banks languages ****Torres Islands: Hiw language, Hiw, Lo-Toga language, Lo-Toga (“Loh”) ****Banks Islands: Lehali language, Lehali–Löyöp language, Löyöp (“Ureparapara”), Mwotlap language, Mwotlap–Volow language, Volow (“Mwotlav”), Lemerig language, Lemerig–Vera'a language, Vera’a (“Vera'a”), Vurës language, Vurës–Mwe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vanuatu
Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, east of New Guinea, southeast of the Solomon Islands, and west of Fiji. Vanuatu was first inhabited by Melanesian people. The first Europeans to visit the islands were a Spanish expedition led by Portuguese navigator Fernandes de Queirós, who arrived on the largest island, Espíritu Santo, in 1606. Queirós claimed the archipelago for Spain, as part of the colonial Spanish East Indies, and named it . In the 1880s, France and the United Kingdom claimed parts of the archipelago, and in 1906, they agreed on a framework for jointly managing the archipelago as the New Hebrides through an Anglo-French condominium. An independence movement arose in the 1970s, and the Republic of Vanuatu was fou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vera'a Language
Vera'a , formerly known by its Mota name ''Vatrata'', is an Oceanic language spoken on the western coast of Vanua Lava Island, in the Banks Islands of northern Vanuatu. Vera'a was described in 2011 by linguist Stefan Schnell. Schnell (2011). Name The language ''Vera'a'' is named after the village where it is spoken. This village is known locally as ''Vera'a'' , even though foreigners often ''Vatrata'' after its name in Mota. These names ultimately reflect a protoform *''βaturata'' in Proto-Torres-Banks — literally "flat stone": *''βatu'' "stone" (< *) + *''rata'' "flat" (< *''rataR'' < [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sungwadia Language
Sungwadia, also known as Marino and North Maewo, is an Oceanic language spoken on Maewo, Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of no .... Phonology Consonants * /k/ can also have prenasal allophones ɡor k * /ŋʷ/ can also have an allophone of a labial ʷin word-initial position. Vowels * /e, o/ can also have allophones of more open sounds , ɔ * /i/ can also be heard as a semivowel in word-final position. Notes References * Penama languages {{Vanuatu-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pentecost Island
Pentecost Island is one of the 83 islands that make up the South Pacific nation of Vanuatu. It lies due north of capital Port Vila. Pentecost Island is known as in French and in Bislama. The island was known in its native languages by names such as ''Vanu Aroaroa'', although these names are not in common use today. Pentecost has also been referred to as ''Raga'' or ''Araga'', a tribal name that originated in the north but is now widely applied to the whole island. In old sources, it is occasionally referred to as Whitsuntide Island. Geography Pentecost is a lush, mountainous island which stretches north to south over some . It has an area of . The mountain range, of which the highest is Mount Vulmat (), marks the dividing line between the humid, rainy eastern coast and the more temperate western coast. The coastal plains, cross-cut by small torrents, are generally very green and ideally suited for plantations and livestock. The climate on Pentecost is humid tropical ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ambae Island
Ambae Island, also known as Aoba, Omba, Oba, or Opa and formerly Lepers’ Island, is an island in the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu, located near , approximately north-northwest of Vanuatu's capital city, Port Vila. History First recorded sighting by Europeans was by the Spanish expedition of Pedro Fernández de Quirós in the spring of 1606. The misty sight of Ambae from neighbouring Espiritu Santo, which served as a major World War II airbase, inspired the mythical Bali Ha'i in James Michener's ''Tales of the South Pacific''. Geography Rough, black basalt stones compose its shoreline and surface in many places, though the soils (where present) are rich. The island appears to be covered in nearly unbroken vegetation; inhabited areas feature large gardens and managed forests above, with coconut and cacao plantations usually closer to shore. There are no reliable sources of surface water (rivers, streams, or lakes), save the crater lakes which are inaccessible. Wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maewo Island
Maewo (; formerly ''Aurora Island'') is an island in Vanuatu in Penama province, 105 km to the east of Espiritu Santo. It is 47 km long, and 6 km wide, with an area of 269 km2. Its highest point is 795 m above sea level. In 2009 the island had a population of almost 3,600. Maewo is covered with dense vegetation: tropical forests in which banyan trees grow. Name The name ''Maewo'' is thought to have come from Mota or Raga as an attempt to transcribe the pronunciation . In the local languages it is spelled as ''N̄waewo'' . Other names for the island include Mwerlap ''N̄wēw'' and Mwotlap ''Am̄ew'' (with the locative prefix ''a-''). All of these terms are thought to have come from Proto-North-Central Vanuatu (and Proto-Torres–Banks) ''*mʷaewo''. History First recorded sighting of Maewo Island by Europeans was by the Spanish expedition of Pedro Fernández de Quirós at the end of April 1606.Brand, Donald D. ''The Pacific Basin: A History of its ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mwerlap Language
Mwerlap is an Oceanic language spoken in the south of the Banks Islands in Vanuatu. Its 1,100 speakers live mostly in Merelava and Merig, but a fair proportion have also settled the east coast of Gaua island.François (2012: 97). Besides, a number of Mwerlap speakers live in the two cities of Vanuatu, Port Vila and Luganville. Name The language is named after ''Mwerlap'', the native name of Merelava island. Phonology Mwerlap has 12 phonemic vowels. These include 9 monophthongs and 3 diphthongs . Grammar The system of personal pronouns in Mwerlap contrasts clusivity, and distinguishes three numbers (singular, dual, plural). Spatial reference in Mwerlap is based on a system of geocentric (absolute) directionals, which is in part typical of Oceanic languages, and yet innovative. François (2015:) 173-175). References Bibliography * * . * * * External linksLinguistic map of north Vanuatu, showing range of MwerlapOnline material in Mwerlap (Merlav) audio recordings, docu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lakon Language
Lakon is an Oceanic language, spoken on the west coast of Gaua island in Vanuatu. Names The language name ''Lakon'' refers originally to the area where it is spoken ‒ namely Lakona Bay, corresponding to the west coast of Gaua. The alternative name ''Lakona'' is from the Mota language. These names are derived from a Proto-Torres-Banks form *''laᵑgona'', of unknown meaning. Lakon had four dialects, named Qatareu (''Qätärew'' ), Vure (''Vurē'' ), Toglatareu, and Togla. Phonology Consonants Lakon has 16 phonemic consonants. François (2022). The glottal stop only occurs before vowels in syllable-initial position. While non-phonemic, it is sometimes noted in the orthography, using a mark. Vowels Lakon has 16 phonemic vowels. These include 8 short /i ɪ ɛ æ a ɔ ʊ u/ and 8 long vowels /iː ɪː ɛː æː aː ɔː ʊː uː/. Historically, the phonemicisation of vowel length originates in the compensatory lengthening of short vowels when the alveolar trill w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Olrat Language
Olrat was an Oceanic language of Gaua island, in northern Vanuatu. It became extinct in 2009, with the death of its last speaker Maten Womal. François (2022). Name The name ''Olrat'' (spelled natively as ''Ōlrat'' ) is an endonym. Robert Codrington mentions a place south of Lakon village under the Mota name ''Ulrata''. A few decades later, Sidney Ray mentions the language briefly in 1926 under the same Mota name ‒ but provides no linguistic information. The language In 2003, only three speakers of Olrat remained, who lived on the middle-west coast of Gaua. Their community had left their inland hamlet of Olrat in the first half of the 20th century, and merged into the larger village of Jōlap where Lakon is dominant.. Alexandre François identifies Olrat as a distinct language from its immediate neighbor Lakon, on phonological, grammatical, and lexical grounds. Phonology Olrat has 14 phonemic vowels. These include 7 short /i ɪ ɛ a ɔ ʊ u/ and 7 long vowels /iː ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Koro Language (Vanuatu)
Koro is an Oceanic language spoken on Gaua island in Vanuatu. Its 280 speakers live in the village of Koro, on the south coast of Gaua. Koro is a distinct language from its immediate neighbours, Dorig (300 sp.) and Olrat (4 sp.). Name The name ''Koro'', spelled natively as ''Kōrō'' , is an endonym referring to the village. Phonology Koro has 8 phonemic vowels. These include 7 monophthongs and one diphthong . The diphthong is spelled as . Grammar The system of personal pronouns in Koro contrasts clusivity, and distinguishes four numbers (singular, dual, trial, plural). Spatial reference in Koro is based on a system of geocentric (absolute) directionals, which is typical of Oceanic languages. François (2015). Notes and references References Bibliography * * . * * * * External links Linguistic map of north Vanuatu, showing range of Koro on Gaua Audio recordings in the Koro language in open access, by A. François (''Pangloss Collection The Pangloss ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dorig Language
Dorig (formerly called ''Wetamut'') is an Oceanic language spoken on Gaua island in Vanuatu. The language’s 300 speakers live mostly in the village of Dorig (), on the south coast of Gaua. Smaller speaker communities can be found in the villages of Qteon (east coast) and Qtevut (west coast). Dorig's immediate neighbours are Koro and Mwerlap. Name The name ''Dorig'', spelled ''Dōrig'', is derived from the name of the village where it is spoken. The term is related to ''Dōlav'' (the Dorig name of a village that is called in Lakon as ''Jōlap'' ), with the ''-rig'' and ''-lav'' parts meaning "small" and "big" respectively. The element ''dō'' is obscure; hence the only term that can be reconstructed for Proto-Torres-Banks is ''*-riɣi''. Phonology Dorig has 8 phonemic vowels. These include 7 short monophthongs and one long vowel . Dorig has 15 consonant phonemes. The phonotactic template for a syllable in Dorig is: — e.g. ‘woman’; ‘poor’; ‘octopus’. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nume Language
Nume (also called ''Gog'' and ''Tarasag'') is an Oceanic language spoken on Gaua island in Vanuatu. Its 700 speakers live on the northeast coast of Gaua. Nume is a distinct language from its immediate southern neighbors, Mwerlap and Dorig. Names The name ''Nume'' originates in the name of a village, now abandoned. ''Tarasag'' is currently the community's main village. The alternate name ''Gog'' refers to the broader area, and by extension, to the island. Phonology Nume has 7 phonemic vowels, which are all short monophthongs. : Grammar The system of personal pronouns in Nume contrasts clusivity, and distinguishes four numbers (singular, dual, trial, plural). Spatial reference in Nume is based on a system of geocentric (absolute) directionals, which is typical of Oceanic languages. François (2015). References Bibliography * * . * * * External links Linguistic map of north Vanuatu, showing range of Nume on Gaua Audio recordings in the Nume language in open access, by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
