Kaytetye language

Last updated

Kaytetye
Native to Australia
Regioncentral Northern Territory
Ethnicity Kaytetye people
Native speakers
109 (2021 census) [1]
Akitiri Sign Language
Language codes
ISO 639-3 gbb
Glottolog kayt1238
AIATSIS [2] C13
ELP Kaytetye
This article contains IPA phonetic symbols. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Unicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see Help:IPA.

Kaytetye (also spelt Kaititj, Gaididj, Kaiditj, Kaytej) is an Australian Aboriginal language primarily spoken in the Northern Territory north of Alice Springs [3] by the Kaytetye people, who live around Barrow Creek and Tennant Creek. It belongs to the Arandic subgroup of the Pama-Nyungan languages and is related to Alyawarra, which is one of the Upper Arrernte dialects. It has an unusual phonology and there are no known dialects. [3]

Contents

The language is considered to be threatened; it is used for face-to-face communication within all generations, but it is losing users, [4] with only 109 speakers of the language in the 2021 census. [1]

The Kaytetye have (or had) a well-developed sign language known as Akitiri or Eltye eltyarrenke. [5]

Map showing languages Languages of Central Australia - map.jpg
Map showing languages

Phonology

Kaytetye is phonologically unusual in a number of ways. Words start with vowels and end with schwa; full CV(C) syllables only occur within a word, as in the word arrkwentyarte 'three' (schwa is spelled e, unless initial, in which case it is not written and often not pronounced). Stress falls on the first full syllable. There are only two productive vowels, but numerous consonants, including pre-stopped and pre-palatalized consonants. [6]

Consonants

Consonants occur plain and labialized.

Peripheral Coronal
Laminal Apical
Bilabial Velar Palatal Dental Prepalatalized Alveolar Retroflex
Plosive p k c t̪ʷʲtʲtʷ t ʈ ʈʷ
Nasal plain m ŋ ŋʷ ɲ ɲʷ n̪ʷʲnʲnʷ n ɳ ɳʷ
prestopped ᵖmᵖmʷᵏŋᵏŋʷᶜɲᶜɲʷᵗn̪ᵗn̪ʷjtnjtᵗnᵗnʷᵗɳᵗɳʷ
Lateral ʎ ʎʷ l̪ʷʲlʲlʷ l ɭ ɭʷ
Approximant ɰ w j ɻ ɻʷ
Tap ɾ ɾʷ

[w] is phonemically /ɰʷ/. In the orthography, /ɰ/ is written h.

Vowels

Front Central Back
High i ɨ ~ ə ( u )
Mid
Low a

/u/ is marginal. [7]

Two-vowel systems are unusual, but occur in closely related Arrernte as well as in some Northwest Caucasian languages. It seems that the vowel system derives from an earlier one with the typical Australian /iau/, but that *u lost its roundedness to neighboring consonants, resulting in the labialized series of consonants, while *i lost its frontness (palatal-ness) to other consonants as well, resulting in some cases in the prepalatalized series.

Grammar

Kin terms are obligatorily possessed, though with grammatically singular pronouns. There is a dyadic suffix as well: [6]

Kaytetye kin inflections
Elder brotherMother
1alkere-ye
my/our brother
arrwengke
my/our mother
2ngk-alkere
your brother
ngk-arrwengke
your mother
3kw-alkere
his/her/their brother
kw-arrwengke
his/her/their mother
dyadicalkere-nhenge
elder and younger brother
arrwengke-nhenge
mother and child

Dual and plural pronouns distinguish clusivity as well as moiety (or 'section') and generation. That is, for a male speaker, different pronouns are used for I and my sibling, grandparent, grandchild (even generation, same moiety), I and my father, I and my brother's child (odd generation, same moiety), and I and my mother, spouse, sister's child (opposite moiety). This results in twelve pronouns for 'we': [6]

Kaytetye pronouns for 'we'
Number & personEven generation
(same moiety)
Odd generation
(same moiety)
Opposite moiety
Dual inclusiveaylemeaylakeaylanthe
Dual exclusiveayleneaylenakeaylenanthe
Plural inclusiveaynangkeaynakeaynanthe
Plural exclusiveaynenangkeaynenakeaynenanthe

That is, root ay-, dual suffix -la or plural -na, exclusive infix en, an irregular nasal for even generation, and a suffix for same moiety -ke or opposite moiety -nthe.

Verbs include incorporated former verbs of motion that indicate direction and relative timing of someone, usually the subject of the verb. There are differences depending on whether the verb is transitive or intransitive: [6]

Kaytetye 'associated motion' stems
Timeangke 'talk'Glosskwathe 'drink'Gloss
Prior motion
(go/come and X)
angke-ye-ne-'talk after going'kwathe-ye-ne-'drink after going'
angke-ye-tnye-'talk after coming'kwathe-ye-tnye-'drink after coming'
angke-ya-lpe-'talk after returning'kwathe-ya-lpe-'drink after returning'
angke-ya-yte-'talk after someone arrives'kwathe-ya-yte-'drink after someone arrives'
Subsequent motion
(X and go/come)
angke-rra-yte-'talk before leaving'kwathe-la-yte-'drink before leaving'
angke-rra-lpe-'talk before returning'kwathe-la-lpe-'drink before returning'
Concurrent motion
(X while going/coming)
angke-yerna-lpe-'talk while coming'kwathe-yerna-lpe-'drink while coming'
angke-rra-pe-'talk while going along'kwathe-rra-pe-yne-'drink while going along'
angke-rra-ngke-rre-nye-'talk continuously while going along'kwathe-la-the-la-rre-'drink continuously while going along'
angke-lpa-ngke-'talk once when on the way'kwathe-lpa-the-'drink once when on the way'
Prior and subsequentangke-nya-yne-'go and talk and come back'kwathe-nya-yne-'go and drink and come back'

People

Related Research Articles

In linguistics, an allomorph is a variant phonetic form of a morpheme, or, a unit of meaning that varies in sound and spelling without changing the meaning. The term allomorph describes the realization of phonological variations for a specific morpheme. The different allomorphs that a morpheme can become are governed by morphophonemic rules. These phonological rules determine what phonetic form, or specific pronunciation, a morpheme will take based on the phonological or morphological context in which they appear.

Middle Dutch is a collective name for a number of closely related West Germanic dialects whose ancestor was Old Dutch. It was spoken and written between 1150 and 1500. Until the advent of Modern Dutch after 1500 or c. 1550, there was no overarching standard language, but all dialects were mutually intelligible. During that period, a rich Medieval Dutch literature developed, which had not yet existed during Old Dutch. The various literary works of the time are often very readable for speakers of Modern Dutch since Dutch is a rather conservative language.

In phonology, epenthesis means the addition of one or more sounds to a word, especially in the beginning syllable (prothesis) or in the ending syllable (paragoge) or in-between two syllabic sounds in a word. The word epenthesis comes from epi- "in addition to" and en- "in" and thesis "putting". Epenthesis may be divided into two types: excrescence for the addition of a consonant, and for the addition of a vowel, svarabhakti or alternatively anaptyxis. The opposite process, where one or more sounds are removed, is referred to as elision.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tonkawa language</span> Native American language

The Tonkawa language was spoken in Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico by the Tonkawa people. A language isolate, with no known related languages, Tonkawa has not had L1 speakers since the mid 1900s. Most Tonkawa people now only speak English, but revitalization is underway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Comanche language</span> Uto-Aztecan language spoken by the Comanche people in the United States

Comanche is a Uto-Aztecan language spoken by the Comanche people, who split from the Shoshone people soon after the Comanche had acquired horses around 1705. The Comanche language and the Shoshoni language are therefore quite similar, but certain consonant changes in Comanche have inhibited mutual intelligibility.

Tübatulabal is an Uto-Aztecan language, traditionally spoken in Kern County, California, United States. It is the traditional language of the Tübatulabal, who still speak the traditional language in addition to English. The language originally had three main dialects: Bakalanchi, Pakanapul and Palegawan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arrernte language</span> Dialect cluster of Central Australia

Arrernte or Aranda or sometimes referred to as Upper Arrernte, is a dialect cluster in the Arandic language group spoken in parts of the Northern Territory, Australia, by the Arrernte people. Other spelling variations are Arunta or Arrarnta, and all of the dialects have multiple other names.

Tsimshian, known by its speakers as Sm'álgyax, is a dialect of the Tsimshian language spoken in northwestern British Columbia and southeastern Alaska. Sm'algyax means literally "real or true language."

Gurindji Kriol is a mixed language which is spoken by Gurindji people in the Victoria River District of the Northern Territory (Australia). It is mostly spoken at Kalkaringi and Daguragu which are Aboriginal communities located on the traditional lands of the Gurindji. Related mixed varieties are spoken to the north by Ngarinyman and Bilinarra people at Yarralin and Pigeon Hole. These varieties are similar to Gurindji Kriol, but draw on Ngarinyman and Bilinarra which are closely related to Gurindji.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wagiman language</span> Indigenous Australian language

Wagiman, also spelt Wageman, Wakiman, Wogeman, and other variants, is a near-extinct Aboriginal Australian language spoken by a small number of Wagiman people in and around Pine Creek, in the Katherine Region of the Northern Territory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nukak language</span> Endangered indigenous language of Colombia

The Nukak language is a language of uncertain classification, perhaps part of the macrofamily Puinave-Maku. It is very closely related to Kakwa.

The Nhangu language (Nhaŋu), also Yan-nhaŋu (Jarnango) is an Australian Aboriginal language spoken by the Yan-nhaŋu people, inhabitants of the Crocodile Islands off the coast of Arnhem Land, in the Northern Territory of Australia. The Yan-nhaŋu language belongs to the Yolŋu Matha language group of the Yolŋu people of Arnhem Land in northern Australia. The varieties of the two moieties are (a) Gorlpa and (b) Yan-nhangu.

Moro is a Kordofanian language spoken in the Nuba Mountains of South Kordofan, Sudan. It is part of the Western group of West Central Heiban Kordofonian languages and belongs to the Niger-Congo phylum. In 1982 there were an estimated 30,000 Moro-speakers. This was before the second Sudan civil war and therefore the recent number of speakers might differ. There can be noted an influence of Arabic and it is suspected that today approximately a fourth of all Moro vocabulary has a relation or an origin in the Arabic language.

The Kwaio language, or Koio, is spoken in the centre of Malaita Island in the Solomon Islands. It is spoken by about 13,000 people.

Afitti is a language spoken on the eastern side of Jebel el-Dair, a solitary rock formation in the North Kordofan province of Sudan. Although the term ‘Dinik’ can be used to designate the language regardless of cultural affiliation, people in the villages of the region readily recognize the terms ‘Ditti’ and ‘Afitti.’ There are approximately 4,000 speakers of the Afitti language and its closest linguistic neighbor is the Nyimang language, spoken west of Jebel el-Dair in the Nuba Mountains of the South Kordofan province of Sudan.

Grass Koiari (Koiali) is a Papuan language of Papua New Guinea spoken in the inland Port Moresby area. It is not very close to the other language which shares its name, Mountain Koiali. It is considered a threatened language.

Djinang is an Australian Aboriginal language, one of the family of Yolŋu languages which are spoken in the north-east Arnhem Land region of the Northern Territory.

Avava (Navava), also known as Katbol, Tembimbe-Katbol, or Bangsa’ is an Oceanic language of central Malekula, Vanuatu. It has nasalized fricatives and a bilabial trill.

Musom is an Austronesian language spoken in the single village of Musom in Labuta Rural LLG, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea. The other name for Musom is Misatik, given by the older generations because this was the name of the village that the ancestors settled on. Musom is currently an endangered language due to the fact that native Musom speakers are continuing to marry other language speakers. Musom is also endangered because of its change in grammar and vocabulary due to its bi- and multilingualism. In the Musom village, other languages that Musom speakers may speak are Aribwuang and Duwet. In the Gwabadik village, because of intermarriages other languages that Musom speakers may speak are Nabak and Mesem.

Nuaulu is a language indigenous to the island of Seram Island in Indonesia, and it is spoken by the Nuaulu people. The language is split into two dialects, a northern and a southern dialect, between which there a communication barrier. The dialect of Nuaulu referred to on this page is the southern dialect, as described in Bolton 1991.

References

  1. 1 2 "SBS Australian Census Explorer" . Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  2. C13 Kaytetye at the Australian Indigenous Languages Database, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
  3. 1 2 "Kaytetye". Ethnologue. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
  4. "Kaytetye in the Language Cloud".
  5. Kendon, A. (1988) Sign Languages of Aboriginal Australia: Cultural, Semiotic and Communicative Perspectives. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 60
  6. 1 2 3 4 Koch, 2006. "Kaytetye". In the Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics, 2nd ed.
  7. Panther, Forrest Andrew (2021). Topics in Kaytetye Phonology and Morpho-Syntax.

Further reading