Akei language

Last updated
Akei
Tasiriki
Native to Vanuatu
Region Espiritu Santo
Native speakers
(650 cited 1981)
Language codes
ISO 639-3 tsr
Glottolog akei1237
Lang Status 99-NE.svg
Akei is not endangered according to the classification system of the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger

Akei, or Tasiriki, is an Oceanic dialect chain spoken in southwestern coastal Espiritu Santo in Vanuatu, centred in the village of Tasiriki as well as to its north and east. [1] It has around 650 speakers. [2] The alternate name Tasiriki literally means "small water" (tasi "water", riki "small").

Contents

Grammar

Nouns

Akei mostly lacks grammatical gender, although for some relationship nouns the feminine is marked by the prefix ve- (e.g. natuna "his son", but venatuna "his daughter"). In other cases, natural sex is indicated by separate words or by takuni ("male") or pita ("female") following the noun (e.g. tavasao takuni "man-servant", tavasao pita "maid-servant").

Plurals are unmarked and are shown only by juxtaposition of an adjective or pronoun (e.g. mazi alulusi "many animals").

A few nouns, including body parts and relationship names, decline to show possession between the noun and its pronoun subject (e.g. loeku "my voice").

Possessive suffixesSingularPlural
1stkuInclusiveka
Exclusivemam
2ndmmim
3rdnara
Espiritu Santo, where Akei is spoken on the southwestern coast Vanuatu - Espiritu Santo.PNG
Espiritu Santo, where Akei is spoken on the southwestern coast

Agent nouns are formed by the word takuni "man" followed by a word indicating the action (e.g. takuni veseni "teacher", from lulusi veseni "to teach).

Pronouns

SingularPlural
1stinau

(I)

Inclusiveinika

(we, when including the addressee)

Exclusivekomam

(we, when excluding the addressee)

2ndiniko

(singular 'you')

komim

(plural 'you')

3rdinia

(he/she/it)

inira

(they)

Akei has a clusivity distinction, a grammatical difference between inclusive and exclusive first person pronouns. The inclusive form is used when including the addressee, whereas the exclusive form excludes them.

There is a single demonstrative pronoun, nake, meaning "this" or "that". This may be preceded by the third person pronouns inia and inira to mark singularity or plurality: inia nake "this", "that"; inira nake "these", "those". The interrogative pronouns are isei "who", sava "what" and savai "what is". Indefinite pronouns include te "any", tese'ese "anyone", povi "all, every", inira povi "everyone".

The reflexive pronoun is 'ase followed by a suffixed possessive pronoun (e.g. ra te 'asera varaira "they told one another")

Reflexive pronounsSingularPlural
1st'asekuInclusiven/a
Exclusive'asemam
2nd'asem'asemim
3rd'asena'asera

Adjectives

Adjectives can be a single morpheme, a compound (e.g. takuni epevuluvulura'a "hairy man", from epe "body" and vulu "hair") or prefixed with ma (e.g. malum "soft"). A noun or verb may be used as an adjective without change to its form (e.g. uro ai "water pot" from ai "water). Adjectives follow their noun (e.g. takuni vure 'a "good man", literally "man good").

Verbs

Verbs inflect for subject and object.

Subject prefixesSingularPlural
1stnaInclusiveka
Exclusivekoma
2ndkokomi
3rdira
Object suffixesSingularPlural
1stauInclusiveka
Exclusiven/a
2ndkon/a
3rdara

In the second person plural and first person exclusive plural, the full pronoun is used (e.g. ka'ika ask us, but ka'i komim ask you).

Numbers

Akei uses a quinary numeral system, with a distinct word for ten.

AkeiEnglish
mo 'eseone
mo ruatwo
mo toluthree
mo vatifour
mo limafive
mo 'a'esesix
mo ravu 'aruaseven
mo ravu 'atolueight
mo ravu 'a vatinine
mo sanavuluten

Selected vocabulary

The list below is a selected sample of Akei words. [3]

AkeiEnglish
macifish
biriudog
utulouse
laiautree
raunaleaf
benubenuskin
kaeblood
suibone
kalinaear
mataeye
lanisunose
akotooth
memetongue
pauknee
limahand
susubreast
mapeliver
unudrink
talesiasee
ronoahear
matedie
maecome
mata alosun
macoestar
waewater
sulestone
apufire
salapath
patibutimountain
poninight
abuninew
isaname

Sample text

Genesis 1.1-5 in Akei: [4]

  1. Na muri God te veia tuka, tano.
  2. Tano tele'e ozo tanopilo; pon tumbumalate te le'e na bua'a: talumen God te Vovi na ului ai.
  3. Talena God, I pai mamara: te mamara.
  4. God te lesia mamara, inia mo vure'a: God te sinkalai mamara, koko'a.
  5. Mamara God te tia 'esana rani, koko'a te tia 'esana poni. Mataravi uluirani, pon mo 'ese.
  6. Talena God, Zara vitinana i pai le'e na valibu'ira ai, i pai sinkalara ai.
  7. God te veia zara vitinana, te sinkalara ai ram le'e atano 'inia zara vitinana, ram le 'e na uluna: inia se'ena.
  8. Zara vitinana God te tia 'esana tuka. Mataravi uluirani, pon ruana.

Genesis 1.1-5 in English: [5]

  1. In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
  2. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
  3. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
  4. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
  5. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
  6. And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
  7. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.
  8. And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

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References

  1. Lynch, John; Crowley, Terry (2001). Languages of Vanuatu: A New Survey and Bibliography.
  2. "Akei | Ethnologue". web.archive.org. 2016-10-26. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  3. "The ASJP Database - Wordlist Akei". asjp.clld.org. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
  4. Jeneses: Jona. The Long Now Foundation. London: British and Foreign Society. 1912.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  5. "Bible Gateway passage: Genesis 1 - King James Version". Bible Gateway. Retrieved 2024-12-17.