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Alexandre François (linguist)
Alexandre François is a French linguist specialising in the description and study of the indigenous languages of Melanesia. He belongs t''Lattice'' a research centre of the CNRS and dedicated to linguistics. Research Language description and documentation François has done linguistic fieldwork in Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands. In 2002, he published a grammatical description of Araki, a language spoken by a handful of speakers on an islet south of Espiritu Santo (Vanuatu). Most of his research focuses on the northern islands of Vanuatu, known as the Torres and Banks Islands, an area where sixteen out of seventeen languages are still spoken: Hiw, Lo-Toga, Lehali, Löyöp, Mwotlap, Volow (extinct), Lemerig, Vera'a, Vurës, Mwesen, Mota, Nume, Dorig, Koro, Olrat, Lakon, Mwerlap - all descended from the Proto-Torres–Banks language, which was also reconstructed by him. After describing Mwotlap, the language with most speakers in that area, he has published arti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lo-Toga Language
Lo-Toga is an Oceanic language spoken by about 580 people on the islands of Lo and Toga, in the Torres group of northern Vanuatu. The language has sometimes been called ''Loh'' or ''Toga'', after either of its two dialects. Name The language is named after the two islands where it is spoken: Lo and Toga. Situation and dialects Its 580 speakers live mostly in Lo and Toga, the two main islands in the southern half of the Torres group. The same language is also spoken by the small populations of the two other islands of Linua and Tegua. Lo-Toga is itself divided into two very close dialects, ''Lo'' (spoken on Lo island) and ''Toga'' (spoken on Toga). The inhabitants of northern Vanuatu generally don't draw a distinction between dialects and languages. Conversely, Lo-Toga is a distinct language from the other language of the Torres group, Hiw. Phonology The Lo dialect of Lo-Toga phonemically contrasts 16 consonants and 13 vowels. François (2021). Consonants Vowels T ... [...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 was ... [...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 , 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 Collection ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dorig Language
Dorig (formerly called ''Wetamut'') is a threatened 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'' is derived from the name of the village where it is spoken. 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’ (< ''*rVᵐbʷai''); ‘poor’ (< ''*mʷasara''); ‘octopus’ (< ''*ɣurita''). Remarkably, the consonant clusters of these /CCVC/ syllables are not constrained by the |
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 15 consonant phonemes. * /β/ can also be heard as among speakers. 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, showi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mota Language
Mota is an Oceanic language spoken by about 750 people on Mota island, in the Banks Islands of Vanuatu. It is the most conservative Torres–Banks language, and the only one to keep its inherited five-vowel system intact while also preserving most final vowels. Name The language is named after the island. History During the period 1840–1940, Mota was used as a missionary ''lingua franca'' throughout areas of Oceania included in the Melanesian Mission, an Anglican missionary agency. Mota was used on Norfolk Island, in religious education; on other islands with different vernacular languages, it served as the language of liturgical prayers, hymns, and some other religious purposes. Elizabeth Fairburn Colenso translated religious material into the language. Robert Henry Codrington compiled the first dictionary of Mota (1896), and worked with George Sarawia and others to produce a large number of early publications in this language. Phonology Phoneme inventory Mota phon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mwesen Language
Mwesen (formerly known by its Mota name ''Mosina'') is an Oceanic language spoken in the southeastern area of Vanua Lava Island, in the Banks Islands of northern Vanuatu, by about 10 speakers. François (2012): 88). Mwesen shows many similarities with the island's dominant language Vurës, to such an extent that they have sometimes been considered dialects of a single language. However, studies have shown that Mwesen and Vurës have various dissimilarities, e.g. in their vowel systems, in their noun articles, in their pronoun paradigms. François (2009), François (2016). Name The name ''Mwesen'' is originally the name of a village, in the eastern part of Vanua Lava; it is spelled ''M̄ēsēn'' both in Mwesen itself, and in neighbouring Vurës. The village is known as ''Am̄sēn'' (with locative prefix ''a-'') in Mwotlap, and as ''M̄osina'' (modern: ''M̄osna'' ) in Mota. All these different names are derived from a Proto-Torres-Banks form *''mʷosina''. The old Mot ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vurës Language
Vurës (Vureas, Vures) is an Oceanic language spoken in the southern area of Vanua Lava Island, in the Banks Islands of northern Vanuatu, by about 2000 speakers. Vurës was described by linguist Catriona Malau, in the form of a grammar and a dictionary. Name The name ''Vurës'' is named after the bay located in southwestern Vanua Lava in the language itself. In Mota, the bay is referred to as ''Vureas'' . Cognates in other Torres-Banks languages include Mwotlap ''Vuyes'' and Mwesen ''Vures'' . These come from a reconstructed Proto-Torres–Banks form ''*βureas(i,u)'', with an unknown final high vowel. Dialectology Vurës shows enough similarities with the neighbouring language Mwesen that the two have sometimes been considered dialects of a single language, sometimes called ''Mosina'' (after the name of Mwesen village in the language Mota). And indeed, a 2018 glottometric study has calculated that Vurës and Mwesen share 85% of their historical innovations, revealing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lemerig Language
Lemerig is an Oceanic language spoken on Vanua Lava, in Vanuatu. The language is no longer actively spoken. The 2 remaining speakers live on the northern coast of the island. Lemerig has receded in favour of its neighbours Mwotlap and Vera'a. Name The name ''Lemerig'' refers to a now abandoned village in northern Vanua Lava; it is spelled in the language of the same name. It reflects an earlier Proto-Torres-Banks form ''*lemeriɣi'', where the ''*riɣi'' component likely means "small". Dialects Lemerig has sometimes been referred to using the names of its local varieties: ''Päk''; ''Sasar''; ''Alo-Teqel''. Judging from wordlists published by missionary and linguist Robert Codrington, these three varieties were very close to each other. The little differences there were went extinct during the 20th century. Phonology Lemerig has 11 phonemic vowels. These are all short monophthongs .See François 2021. Grammar The system of personal pronouns in Lemerig contrasts c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Volow Language
Volow (formerly known as ''Valuwa'' or ''Valuga'') is an Oceanic language variety that used to be spoken in the area of Aplow, in the eastern part of the island of Motalava, Vanuatu. Name The name ''Volow'' is originally a placename: it corresponds to the area known today as Aplow, but in the former language Volow rather than in Mwotlap. Now that the Volow dialect has ceased to be used, the name ''Volow'' has been forgotten by the modern population. The place is only known through its Mwotlap name ''Aplow''; as for the language variety, it is often referred to, in the Mwotlap language, as ''na-vap te-Plōw'' “the language of Aplow”. The language variety is sometimes also referred to as ''na-vap ta Dagmel'' “the language of Dagmel” (in Mwotlap), after the name of an ancient, now abandoned, village. Sociolinguistics Volow has receded historically in favor of the now dominant language Mwotlap. It is now only remembered by a single passive speaker, who lives in the vill ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |