Dorig | |
---|---|
Dōrig | |
Pronunciation | [ⁿdʊˈriɣ] |
Native to | Vanuatu |
Region | Gaua |
Native speakers | 300 (2012) [1] |
Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 | wwo |
Glottolog | weta1242 |
ELP | Dorig |
Dorig is classified as Definitely Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger |
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 (IPA: [ⁿdʊˈriɰ] ), on the south coast of Gaua. Smaller speaker communities can be found in the villages of Qteon (east coast) and Qtevut (west coast).
The name Dorig is derived from the name of the village where it is spoken.
Dorig has 8 phonemic vowels. These include 7 short monophthongs /iɪɛaɔʊu/ and one long vowel /aː/. [3]
Front | Back | |
---|---|---|
Close | i ⟨i⟩ | u ⟨u⟩ |
Near-close | ɪ ⟨ē⟩ | ʊ ⟨ō⟩ |
Open-mid | ɛ ⟨e⟩ | ɔ ⟨o⟩ |
Open | a ⟨a⟩, aː ⟨ā⟩ |
Dorig has 15 consonant phonemes. [4] [5]
Labiovelar | Bilabial | Alveolar | Dorsal | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Voiceless stop | k͡p ʷ ⟨q⟩ | t ⟨t⟩ | k ⟨k⟩ | |
Prenasalized stop | ᵐb ⟨b⟩ | ⁿd ⟨d⟩ | ||
Nasal | ŋ͡m ʷ ⟨m̄⟩ | m ⟨m⟩ | n ⟨n⟩ | ŋ ⟨n̄⟩ |
Fricative | β ~ ɸ ⟨v⟩ | s ⟨s⟩ | ɣ ⟨g⟩ | |
Rhotic | r ⟨r⟩ | |||
Lateral | l ⟨l⟩ | |||
Approximant | w ⟨w⟩ |
The phonotactic template for a syllable in Dorig is: /CCVC/ — e.g. /rk͡pʷa/ ‘woman’ (< *rVᵐbʷai); /ŋ͡mʷsar/ ‘poor’ (< *mʷasara); /wrɪt/ ‘octopus’ (< *ɣurita). Remarkably, the consonant clusters of these /CCVC/ syllables are not constrained by the Sonority Sequencing Principle. Historically, these /CCVC/ syllables reflect former trisyllabic, paroxytone words */CVˈCVCV/, after deletion of the two unstressed vowels: [6] e.g. POc. *kuRíta ‘octopus’ > *wərítə > /wrɪt/.
The system of personal pronouns in Dorig contrasts clusivity, and distinguishes four numbers (singular, dual, trial, plural). [7]
Spatial reference is based on a system of geocentric (absolute) directionals, which is typical of Oceanic languages. [8]
Labial–velar consonants are doubly articulated at the velum and the lips, such as. They are sometimes called "labiovelar consonants", a term that can also refer to labialized velars, such as the stop consonant and the approximant.
The nine South Vanuatu languages form a family of the Southern Oceanic languages, spoken in Tafea Province of Vanuatu.
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North Efate, also known as Nakanamanga or Nguna, is an Oceanic language spoken on the northern area of Efate in Vanuatu, as well as on a number of islands off the northern coast – including Nguna, and parts of Tongoa, Emae and Epi.
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.
Lakon is an Oceanic language, spoken on the west coast of Gaua island in 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.
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 [sic] or Toga, after either of its two dialects.
Mwerlap is an Oceanic language spoken in the south of the Banks Islands in Vanuatu.
Hiw is an Oceanic language spoken on the island of Hiw, in the Torres Islands of Vanuatu. With about 280 speakers, Hiw is considered endangered.
Lemerig is an Oceanic language spoken on Vanua Lava, in Vanuatu.
Nume is an Oceanic language spoken on Gaua island in Vanuatu. Its 700 speakers live on the northeast coast of Gaua.
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.
Mwesen is an Oceanic language spoken in the southeastern area of Vanua Lava Island, in the Banks Islands of northern Vanuatu, by about 10 speakers.
Vurës is an Oceanic language spoken in the southern area of Vanua Lava Island, in the Banks Islands of northern Vanuatu, by about 2000 speakers.
Löyöp is an Oceanic language spoken by about 240 people, on the east coast of Ureparapara Island in the Banks Islands of Vanuatu. It is distinct from Lehali, the language spoken on the west coast of the same island.
Lehali is an Oceanic language spoken by about 200 people, on the west coast of Ureparapara Island in Vanuatu. It is distinct from Löyöp, the language spoken on the east coast of the same island.
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Proto-Torres-Banks is the reconstructed ancestor of the seventeen languages of the Torres and Banks Islands of Vanuatu. Like all indigenous languages of Vanuatu, it belongs to the Oceanic branch of the Austronesian languages.