Mongondow language

Last updated
Mongondow
Bolaang Mongondow
Native to Indonesia
Region North Sulawesi
Ethnicity Mongondow people
Native speakers
(230,000 cited 2000 census) [1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3 mog
Glottolog mong1342

Mongondow, or Bolaang Mongondow, is one of the Philippine languages spoken in Bolaang Mongondow Regency as well as Kotamobagu city and neighbouring regencies (North Bolaang Mongondow Regency, South Bolaang Mongondow Regency and East Bolaang Mongondow Regency) of North Sulawesi (Celebes) and Gorontalo Provinces, Indonesia. [2] With more than 200,000 speakers, it is the major language of the regency. Historically, it served as the official language of the Bolaang Mongondow Kingdom. [3]

Contents

There is some lexical influence from Malay and Ternate, [4] [5] [6] as well as the Indonesian national language. [7] It is a threatened language, with a shift to Manado Malay in the younger generation. [8] The moribund Lolak language has borrowed much of its lexicon from Mongondow, but appears to be more closely related to Gorontalo. [9] [10]

Phonology

Mongondow has the following phoneme inventory: [11]

Vowels
Front Central Back
Close i u
Mid e o
Open a
Consonants
Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Nasal m n ɲ ŋ
Plosive voiceless p t k ʔ
voiced b d ( d͡ʒ ) ɡ
Fricative s h
Lateral l
Rhotic r
Approximant w j

The lateral /l/ is pronounced as alveolar [l] when adjacent to the front vowels /e/, /i/. In all other environments, it is a retroflex [ɭ]. [12]

Grammar

Pronouns

The personal pronouns are: [13]

nominativegenitiveoblique
1.sg.akuoy-kuinako'
2.sg.iko-muinimu
3.sg.sia-ea/-nyainia
1.pl.inclusivekita-natoninaton
1.pl.exclusivekami-namiinami
2.pl.mo'iko
kamu-*
-monimu
-namu-*
imonimu
-inamu-*
3.pl.mosia
taya-*
-monia
-naya-*
imonia
inaya-*
* kamu-, taya- etc. are used with suffixed numerals, e.g. taya-tolu 'the three of them'

Numerals

1inta' / mita' [14]
2dua' / doyowa'
3tolu'
4opat
5lima
6onom
7pitu
8ualu
9siow
10mopulu'
11mopulu' bo mita'
12
(...)
mopulu' bo doyowa'
 
20doyowa no pulu'
21
(...)
doyowa no pulu' bo mita'
 
30tolu no pulu'
40
(...)
opat no pulu'
 
100mogatut
200
(...)
doyowa no gatut
 
1000tongo ribu
2000
(...)
doyowa no ribu
 

References

  1. Mongondow at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. Christopher Moseley (2008). Encyclopedia of the World's Endangered Languages. Routledge. ISBN   978-1-1357-9640-2.
  3. Sneddon (1991), p. 301.
  4. Dunnebier (1929a), p. 312.
  5. Sneddon (1989), p. 92.
  6. Babcock (1990), p. 192.
  7. Usup et al. (1981), p. 213.
  8. Korompot, Chairil Anwar (10–11 September 2008), "Menyelamatkan Bahasa Bolaang-Mongondow", Tribun Totabuan (in Indonesian)
  9. Sneddon (1991).
  10. Eberhard, David M.; Simons, Gary F.; Fennig, Charles D., eds. (2019), "Lolak", Ethnologue: Languages of the World (22 ed.), Dallas, Texas: SIL International, archived from the original on 2019-06-06
  11. Dunnebier (1929a), p. 297.
  12. Dunnebier (1929a), pp. 317–324.
  13. Dunnebier (1930), pp. 105–111.
  14. Dunnebier (1930), pp. 75ff..

Bibliography