Nalca language

Last updated
Nalca
Mek Nalca, Hmanggona
Native to Highland Papua Indonesia
Native speakers
16,000 (2013) [1]
Trans–New Guinea
  • Mek
    • Northern
      • Nalca
Language codes
ISO 639-3 nlc
Glottolog nalc1240

Nalca (Naltya, Naltje) is a Papuan language spoken in Yahukimo Regency, Highland Papua, Indonesia. Alternative names are Hmanggona, Hmonono, Kimnyal (Kimyal). The latter is most often used for Korupun-Sela. Indonesian Kemendikbud classified Nalca as Mek Nalca, while Kimyal is used for Korupun-Sela. [2]

Contents

History

The Nalca language was an unwritten language until missionaries from the USA entered the area in the early 1960s. A literacy program was developed, and many people in the Nalca language group learned to read. Roger Doriot from the USA learned the language and completed the translation of the New Testament of the Bible in 2000.

Classification

Nalca belongs to the Western branch of the Mek languages, which is a family of closely related languages belonging to the larger grouping of Trans-New Guinea languages. [3]

Geographic distribution

The Nalca language is spoken by about 18,000 people in Yahukimo Regency, Highland Papua. [4]

Phonology

Consonants

Nalca has 15 phonemic consonants: [5]

Consonant phonemes
  Bilabial Alveolar Palatal Velar Laryngeal
Plosive b d    ɡ ʔ  
Fricative    s       h  
Nasal   m   n     ŋ   
Tap or flap     ɾ       
Approximant   w     j     

Vowels

Nalca has five phonemic vowels: [5]

Monophthong phonemes
  Front Central Back
Close i   u
Close-mid e   o
Open-mid ɛ   ɔ
Open   a  

Grammar

Morphology

Nalca is a generally isolating language, but exhibits an elaborate system of agglutination in verb formation.

Syntax

The usual word order of Nalca is subject-object-verb (SOV).

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mek languages</span> Trans–New Guinea language branch

The Mek languages are a well established family of Papuan languages spoken by the Mek people and Yali people. They form a branch of the Trans–New Guinea languages (TNG) in the classifications of Stephen Wurm (1975) and of Malcolm Ross (2005).

Momuna (Momina), also known as Somahai, is a Papuan language spoken in Yahukimo Regency, Highland Papua and Asmat Regency, South Papua, Indonesia.

The Mek are a Papuan people living in Dirwemna and Puldama, Yahukimo Regency, Highland Papua, Indonesia. They are closely related to Ketengban people in Pegunungan Bintang Regency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yali people</span> Ethnic group of the Highland Papua, Indonesia

Yali are a major tribal group in Highland Papua, Indonesia, and live to the east of the Baliem Valley, mainly in Yalimo Regency, Yahukimo Regency, and the surrounding regions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yahukimo Regency</span> Regency in Highland Papua, Indonesia

Yahukimo Regency is one of the regencies (kabupaten) in the Indonesian province of Highland Papua. It covers an area of 17,152 km2, and had a population of 164,512 at the 2010 Census, but this figure more than doubled to reach 350,880 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate as at mid 2022 was 361,776. The official administrative centre of Yahukimo Regency is at Sumohai, which is located 25 kilometres north of the town of Dekai, but - due to the lack of infrastructure in Sumohai - the actual administrative centre of the regency is in Dekai. The regency was formerly part of the Jayawijaya Regency, but was split off to become a separate regency on 11 December 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bintang Mountains Regency</span> Regency in Highland Papua, Indonesia

Pegunungan Bintang Regency or Bintang Mountains Regency is a regency in the Indonesian province of Highland Papua. It was created on 11 December 2002 from the north-eastern districts of Jayawijaya Regency. It covers an area of 15,683 km2, and had a population of 65,434 at the 2010 Census and 77,872 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate as at mid 2022 was 78,466 - comprising 42,362 males and 36,104 females. The administrative centre is the town of Oksibil.

Awbono or Awban is a Papuan language spoken in the south of Jayawijaya Mountains, specifically in Awban Village, Kolf Brazza District, Asmat Regency, South Papua, Indonesia. All that is known of Awbono is a few hundred words recorded in first-contact situations recorded in Wilbrink (2004) and Hischier (2006).

Korupun (Korapun) is a Papuan language spoken in Yahukimo Regency, Highland Papua. Dialects are Korupun (Duram), Dagi, Sisibna (Gobugdua), Deibula, (Western) Sela. It is also known as Kimyal of Korupun; Kimyal is another name for Nalca. Indonesian Kemendikbud classified the former as Mek Nalca, while Korupun-Sela is classified as Kimyal.

Yelmek, also rendered Jelmek or Jelmik, is a language of the proposed Trans-Fly – Bulaka River family in West Papua.

Una, better known as Goliath, is a Papuan language spoken in Yahukimo Regency, Highland Papua.

Eipo (Eipomek), or Lik, is a Mek language of the eastern highlands of Eipumek District, Pegunungan Bintang Regency, Highland Papua. It spoken by the Eipo people who live along the Eipo River. A large percentage of its vocabulary is shared with Una and Tanime, and they form one dialect area.

Kopkaka (Kopka) is an Ok language spoken in Seredala District, Yahukimo Regency, Highland Papua. The villages that speak this language are Seredala, Moruf, Mosomduba, Burupmakot, and others.

Kosarek is a Papuan language used in Kosarek District, Yahukimo Regency, Highland Papua.

Hupla is a Papuan language of the Indonesian province of Highland Papua, spoken by the Hubla people of Yahukimo Regency. It is similar to Lower Grand Valley Dani.

Burupmakot is a minor Ok language of Highland Papua. Despite having just forty speakers, there is limited bilingualism and the language is not considered endangered.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nop Goliat Dekai Airport</span> Airport in Highland Papua, Indonesia

Nop Goliat Dekai Airport is an airport serving the town of Dekai, the capital of Yahukimo Regency, Highland Papua, Indonesia. Nop Goliat Airport is one of the seven pioneer airports that connects 517 villages in Yahukimo. The airport was built on an area of 230 hectares between 2004–2010 by using a budget of Rp321 billion. The airport was built to be a logistics distribution center in the highland region of Papua, as well as supporting the mobility of people and goods. Construction of airports is intended as a logistics distribution center for central highland region of Papua Province, which previously concentrated through Wamena Airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brazza River</span> River in Indonesia

The Brazza River is a river in Papua province, Indonesia. The Brazza River has its source at over 3000 meters of elevation in the Jayawijaya or Maoke Mountains of central Papua in Yahukimo Regency and flows south to the lowland rainforests of Asmat Regency before meeting the Pulau River, which flows southeast to the Arafura Sea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Highland Papua</span> Province with special status in Indonesia

Highland Papua is a province of Indonesia, which roughly follows the borders of Papuan customary region of Lano-Pago, shortened to La Pago. It covers an area of 51,213.33 km2 (19,773.58 sq mi) and had a population of 1,448,360 according to the official estimates as at mid 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noken system</span> Electoral system in parts of Indonesia

The noken system, or ikat system, is a voting practice used in parts of Indonesia's Western New Guinea (Papua) that deviates from standard national electoral practices. The name refers to noken bags, which are widely used in the region and hold cultural value. In areas that use the noken system, voting is carried out by communities, either through public agreement on vote allocation or through the delegation of votes to a tribal leader. There is no law establishing noken voting, but its use has been approved by the Constitutional Court of Indonesia as an expression of customary practices.

References

  1. Nalca at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. "Bahasa Kimyal". petabahasa.kemdikbud.go.id. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  3. Suter, Edgar (2021-09-01). "The subject inflections of the Mek languages: a comparative reconstruction" (PDF). NUSA. 71. doi:10.15026/116867. ISSN   0126-2874 . Retrieved 2024-07-02.
  4. Project, Joshua. "Nalca language resources". Joshua Project. Retrieved 2024-08-30.
  5. 1 2 Rule, Rule & Cutting 1972.