Birjia language
Language spoken in India
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Birjia language, also known as Binjhia or Bijori, is a language of India. It is commonly assumed to be a Munda language closely related to the Asuri language. However, Anderson,[2] based on Prasad (1961:314), suggests that Birjia (Binjhia) may be an Indo-Aryan language, although the Birjia are a tribe of the Asuri nation. The latter include the Asur and the Agariya.
Distribution
Birjia is spoken in:[1]
Phonology
Bhattacharya (2022) lists the following phonemes for the Birjia variety spoken in Gumla district, Jharkhand:
Consonants
Vowels
Word structure
Monosyllabic templates
- VC: /otʰ/ "earth", /up/ "hair"
- V: /o/ "to smell"
- CV: /kʰu/ "cough"
- CVC: /ɟan/ "bone", /bʰap/ "steam"
- CVCC: /menʔ/ "eye"
Disyllabic templates
- VCV: /iʈa/ "brick"
- VVC: /oitʰ/ "behind"
- CVV: /rua/ "fever"
- CVCV: /hasa/ "clay"
- CVVC: /ɲein/ "toy"
- VCVC: /ipil/ "star"
- VCCVC: /uttər/ "north"
- CVCCV: /samdʱo/ "daughter-in-law's mother/
- CVCVC: /palah/ "snow"
- CVCCVC: /seŋgel/ "fire"
- CVCCCV: /banɖɽo/ "storm"
- CVCVCC: /reŋetʔ/ "hunger"
- CVCCVV: /sərləi/ "matchstick"
- CVVCVV: /kairao/ "to get angry"
Polysyllabic
- VCVCV: /iremi/ "to harvest"
- CVCVCV: /haremi/ "to bury a dead body"
- CVCVCVCV: /nakaɟami/ "to comb hair"
- CVCVCVCVCVC: /tajarajanam/ "to prepare"
Morphology
Nominal morphology
Pronouns
| singular | dual | plural | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st person | ɲia | ɲia | |
| 2nd person | amaʔ | aban | ape |
| 3rd person | huni/hunikuɽi | hukin | huku |
Cases
Bhattacharya (2022) describes several cases in Birjia.[3]: 28–31 Like Santali and Mundari, Birjia lacks general case markers to demonstrate syntactic relationship between arguments.
| Case | Marker | Function |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative/Accusative | =Ø | Subjects and objects |
| Dative | =ʔta | Animate dative/recipient argument |
| Genitive | =raʔ | Possession |
| Instrumental | =te | Medium |
| Ablative | eteraʔ | From |
Vocabulary
Numerals
Numbers greater than three have been replaced by Indo-Aryan borrowings.
| Gloss | Birjia | Santali |
|---|---|---|
| "one" | mian | mitˀ |
| "two" | barija | bar |
| "three" | peja | pɛ |
Nature
| Gloss | Birjia | Santali |
|---|---|---|
| "cloud" | rimil | rimil |
| "dog" | seta | seta |
| "he" | huni | uni |
| "horse" | sadom | sadɔm |
| "wood" | səhan | sahan |
| "fruit" | ɟoʔoh | dʒɔ |
| "fish" | haku | hako |
| "ant" | muon | muˀtʃ |
| "house" | oɽa | oɽaˀk |
| "star" | ipil | ipil |
| "rope" | bawer | baber ~ waber |
