Yapen languages (Austronesian)
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Branch of the Austronesian language family
Geographic
distributionYapen Island, Western New Guinea, Indonesia
distributionYapen Island, Western New Guinea, Indonesia
Proto-languageProto-Yapen
Subdivisions
- Eastern
- Western
| Yapen | |
|---|---|
| Geographic distribution | Yapen Island, Western New Guinea, Indonesia |
| Linguistic classification | Austronesian |
| Proto-language | Proto-Yapen |
| Subdivisions |
|
| Language codes | |
| Glottolog | yape1249 |
 | |
The Yapen languages are the branch of Malayo-Polynesian languages spoken on Yapen Island and the nearby small islands in Cenderawasih Bay, all in Papua province of northeastern Indonesia.
They share Yapen Ιsland with the Papuan Yawa languages.
Reconstructions of subject markers and inalienable possessive markers for Yapen proto-languages according to Kamholz (2015). Note that V = vocalic conjugation, C = consonantal conjugation:
Proto-Yapen:
1sg. *y- (V), *ya- (C) 1pl. *t- (incl.), *am- (excl.) 2sg. *bu- (V), *-u- (C) 2pl. *m- 3sg. *dy- (V), *-i- (C) 3pl. *si- 1sg. *-ku, *-ni 1pl. *ta-...-mi (incl.), *ama-...-mi (excl.) 2sg. *-mu 2pl. *mi-...-mi 3sg. *-n-pai 3pl. *si-...-mi
Proto-Western Yapen (Proto-Central–Western Yapen):
1sg. *y- (V), *ya- (C) 1pl. *tat- (incl.), *amat- (excl.) 2sg. *bu- (V), *-u- (C) 2pl. *met- 3sg. *dy- (V), *-i- (C) 3pl. *set- 1sg. *-ku, *-ni 1pl. *ta-...-mi (incl.), *ama-...-mi (excl.) 2sg. *-mu 2pl. *me-...-mi 3sg. *-n-pai, *-na-ni 3pl. *se-...-mi
Proto-Central Yapen:
1sg. *y- (V), *ya- (C) 1pl. *tat- (incl.), *amat- (excl.) 2sg. *w- (V), *-u- (C) 2pl. *met- 3sg. *dy- (V), *-i- (C) 3pl. *et- 1sg. *-u, *-ni 1pl. *ta-...-mi (incl.), *ama-...-mi (excl.) 2sg. *-mu 2pl. *me-...-mi 3sg. *-nempai, *-na-ni 3pl. *se-...-mi
Proto-Eastern Yapen:
1sg. *ay- (V), *a- (C) 1pl. *t- (incl.), *nam- (excl.) 2sg. *b- (V), *-u- (C) 2pl. *mi- 3sg. *d- (V), *-i- (C) 3pl. *si- 1sg. *ai- 1pl. *ta- (incl.), *na- (excl.) 2sg. *me- 2pl. *mi- 3sg. *ne- 3pl. *si-
Languages
Proto-Western Yapen
| Proto-Western Yapen | |
|---|---|
| Proto-Central-Western Yapen | |
| Reconstruction of | Western Yapen languages |
| Region | Western Yapen Island |
| Era | around 2000 years ago |
Reconstructed ancestors | |
Proto-Western Yapen, also known as Proto-Central-Western Yapen, was reconstructed in 1983 by P.J. Silzer, with further amendments by Usher and Gasser (in preparation).[1]
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | *i | *u | |
| Close-mid | *e | *ə | *o |
| Open | *a |
Consonants Bilabial Alveolar Palatal Velar Stop *p, b *t, d *k Nasal *m *n *ŋ (?) Fricative *β *s, *S *x Rhotic *r Approximant *w *j Unclear *P, *B *D
Lexical reconstructions mentioned in Gasser and Benesch (2025):
| Proto-Western Yapen | Gloss |
|---|---|
| *βəβo | 'above, top' |
| *inapa | 'beach, shore' |
| *kaBaru[r] | 'bean' |
| *man | 'bird' |
| *woinai | 'bowl/bucket' |
| *=nunum | 'to burn, cook' |
| *wa | 'canoe' |
| *aNtum[a] | 'child' |
| *arixaN | 'child' |
| *=tara | 'to chop or pound sago' |
| *sur | 'comb' |
| *=sur | 'to comb' |
| *təbura | 'conch shell/trumpet' |
| *tau[i]n | 'cooked/dried sago' |
| *ano | 'cross-cousin' |
| *mararu | 'type of cooking pot' |
| *ur[u]n | 'type of cooking pot' |
| *=unum | 'to drink' |
| *=an | 'to eat' |
| *iai | 'father' |
| *tama | 'father, father's brother' |
| *βaβin | 'female, woman' |
| *=mun | 'to fight' |
| *adia | 'fire' |
| *dian | 'fish' |
| *taraN | 'type of fish harpoon or spear' |
| *=pot | 'to fish with a line' |
| *jer | 'type of fish poison' |
| *ne una | 'fish scales' |
| *se | 'type of fish trap' |
| *maraiN | 'fishing line' |
| *sarəper | 'fishing line' |
| *buoN | 'fruit' |
| *pi mun-a | 'game, prey' |
| *Busa(r) | 'gray, white' |
| *ruai | 'grill, rack for roasting' |
| *[o/u]tin | 'hundred' |
| *sawan | 'husband' |
| *inoi | 'knife' |
| *=məri | 'to laugh' |
| *=rep | 'to lick, taste' |
| *kaβui | 'loincloth' |
| *sur | 'louse' |
| *muan | 'male, man' |
| *=[r]aut | 'to marry, be married' |
| *tawan | 'matoa (Pometia pinnata)' |
| *s[i/e]na | 'mother, mother's sister' |
| *diru | 'night' |
| *pəreN | 'nipa palm' |
| *maniN | 'oil' |
| *su | 'papeda/sago porridge' |
| *=mopar | 'to poison fish' |
| *=iSin | 'to prepare papeda/sago porridge' |
| *=ram[i/u][s] | 'to rinse/squeeze sago' |
| *anaN | 'sago' |
| *parari | 'sago frond' |
| *amau | 'sago pounder' |
| *aro | 'sago swamp' |
| *kawein[i] | 'shrimp' |
| *raruo | 'sibling' |
| *amai | 'sibling-in-law' |
| *morir | 'spinefoot fish (Siganus sp.)' |
| *=iSan | 'to stab' |
| *=osar | 'to stand (up), wake up' |
| *=as | 'to swim' |
| *ma-muta | 'to vomit' |
| *a-mun-a | 'war' |
| *pi ma-mun-a | 'weapon' |
Further reading
- P.J. Silzer Ambai, an Austronesian Language of Irian Jaya, Indonesia, Ph.D. Australian National University, 1983.
- Kamholz, David (2015). The reconstruction of Proto-SHWNG morphology
- Kamhold, David (2024). "Historical linguistics of the South Halmahera–West New Guinea subgroup". In Alexander Adelaar; Antoinette Schapper (eds.). The Oxford Guide to the Malayo-Polynesian Languages of Southeast Asia. Oxford University Press. pp. 181–187. doi:10.1093/oso/9780198807353.003.0012.
References
- ↑ Gasser, Emily and Benesch, Montreal (2025). An un-Austronesian Austronesian language: Proto-Western Yapen and its lexicon
| Cenderawasih |
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| Raja Ampat–South Halmahera |
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