Organised Phonology Data Abau (Green River) Language [AAU] Green River, Idam Sandaun Province Sepik Ramu Phylum; Upper Sepik Stock; Abau Family-Level Isolate Population census: 4600 (1980) Major villages: Ibru, Dioru, Abaru, Bifro, Yabru, Mukwas, Idam, Wauru, Hufi, Waqu Linguistic work done by: SIL Data checked by: Arjen Lock 1997 (based on 12 years work) Phonemic and Orthographic Inventory ɑ e h i k m n o p ɾ s u w j a e h i k m n o p r, l s u w y A E H I K M N O P R, L S U W Y Consonants Bilab LabDen Dental Alveo Postalv Retro Palatal Velar Uvular Pharyn Glottal Plosive p k Nasal m n Trill Tap/Flap ɾ Fricative s h Lateral Fricative Approx Lateral Approx Ejective Stop Implos j w voiced labio-velar approximate
Abau (Green River) OPD Page 2 p pisu 'knife' hope 'tobacco' siop 'foot-print' prueyn 'one' lopruw 'to drown' orpey 'black pwospwos 'stif' nawp 'old' pyays 'tree sp.' kopyo 'tree' neyp 'tree sp.' n non hano kaun pno kanseyn ahney nwoh howniy sawn nyo nayn 'with' 'my' 'break' 'muddy' 'to loosen' 'bird' 'dog' 'wind' 'lung' 'child' 'think' m mays kamon loum mnor hme ompiy kamwon nowm eym 'cane' 'one' 'burn' 'sago stalk' 'theirs' 'grass for skirts' 'sister's child' 'tree sp.' 'darkness' s saw 'hole (in tree)' pese 'do not' leis 'tomorrow' sruw 'slurp' uwrsa 'people' swaw 'stomach' lows 'fill up (water)' syaw 'penis courd' leys 'the two' w weyn 'trait' awia 'enemy' aw 'fight' swaw 'stomach' krweney 'small fish' uru 'name' hiykwe 'he' lows 'get water' ɾ li 'spear' perey 'where' sor 'count' pra 'lame' orpey 'black' houkres 'two pieces' lwak 'to stay' uwrsa 'people' hawr 'wash' lyan 'swell up' weyr 'pair of tongs' k kor 'little way' pokon 'today' ompok 'middle' krey 'ladder' ankin 'if' kwor 'cane bangle' kwekwe 'lizard sp.' hiykwe 'he' yiawk 'cup' kyor 'downwards' nweyk 'ear' h hok 'to be afraid' hehe 'the two of you' yoh 'banana' hreme 'us' ohma 'hair' arawh 'night' hyaw 'unwilling' leyh 'go up in smoke'
Abau (Green River) OPD Page 3 j yor 'custom' - ley 'go' pyays 'tree sp.' kopyo aynou leys 'blind' 'veranda' 'the two' Vowels i e u o ɑ i i 'mark on skin' hir 'fence' ki 'ground' hiom 'brother' o om onon lo loum 'village, place' 'centipede 'shoot' 'burn' e e 'vulva' ley 'go' le 'come' meio 'to work' ɑ a nawp kina liau 'house' 'old' 'earthquake' 'go up' u u 'name of river' sune 'foot' su 'coconut' kuan 'cross over' Suprasegmentals (tone, stress, length) Stress occurs word initially. Syllable Patterns V a 'house' i.pey 'mother' yo.u.hwan 'ashes' mey.o 'make magically' VC or 'black' oh.ma 'hair' si.op 'foot-print' VCC uwr 'man' uwr.sa 'people' yi.awk 'cup' CV la 'eat' ha.no 'my' on.ki.oh 'yesterday uw.ru 'name' CCV pra 'lame' lwo.yow 'name type' hiy.kwe 'he'' CVC sok 'snake' kon.kon 'scabies' ey.row.par 'afternoon' ka.mon 'one' CCVC mnor 'sago stalk' pwos.pwos 'stiff' non.kway.e 'know it' lo.pruw 'to drown' CVCC peyk 'bite' a.rawh 'night' CCVCC nweyk 'ear'
Abau (Green River) OPD Page 4 CCCVC krwem 'argue' Conventions: Phonological /p/ is aspirated word finally, and voiced [b] fluctuating with [p] in other positions. /k/ is aspirated word finally. /ɾ/ is phonetically [ɾ], [ɺ], [t] or [d]. Word initially it variates between [d] and [ɺ], word medially between [ɺ] and [ɾ], and is always [ɾ] word finally. /h/ is phonetically [ɸ] word finally, preceding or following /i/ and /j/, and as first member of certain consonant clusters. It is pronounced voiceless bilabial nasal [ m ] preceding /m/, and voiceless alveolar nasal [n ] preceding /n/. It is pronounced /h/ elsewhere. Conventions: Orthographic /ɾ/ will be written <l> word initially and <r> elsewhere Transcription of a recorded passage /pɔkɔn kɔkwɛ hɑkwɛ hɑ mɑ ɾɛj ɛnɛkwɛi sɛ mɛ sɔɾ ɛj ɛɾiɛj ukɑɾumpa mɔn mɑ ɾɛj ɔm ɔhɔkwe hɑkwɛ ɑɾɑwh ɾɔkɾij ha in iwɑ jɛkiɾ mɔn ɾɛj nɑjr ɾiɑw ɾiɑw nɔk hɛimɛi hɑj uwɾsɑ hɔhkwɛ mɛjki ɾɛ nɛriɛ ɾɛisnɔn hɑ mɑ rɛj hɔkwɛ hɑkwɛ sil mɔ mɛj kɛ nɔnmɔn sɔɾɑsɔɾ nɔnkwɑj ɛ ɾɛj mɛj ɔk mɑ kɑnkɔum mɛj sɔkwe hɾɔm ɾɛj ihɛj mɔ jɛjk nɔn nɑkɛj hɾɔm ɑpɑw kɔ sɛ mɑ ɾwɑwk hɑ sɔhɔkwɛ hɾɔmkwɛ wɛwɑk mɔn nɑkkuɑjk nɔk uɾ hɑɾ sɔɾɛj kukɔ mɛ ɾɔkɾij hɑ in iɑhu nɔnkɑwk nɔk nɔk mɑnɑkɛj mɑnɑkɛj nɔk ɔm hɾɔm mɑ ɾwɑjɾ ɛj sɔhɔkwɛ ɛjɾɔwpɑɾ nɑkuɑjk ɾɑpɑj ɔm sɔhij sɔ uɾu hɔkwɛ jɛjk nɑkjɑj ɛj hɔkwɛ ɑijuɾɑ hɾɔm ɑijuɾɑ mɔn nɑkjɑj sɔɾɛj kukɔ sɑwk ki kɔ jɛjk nɔn hɾɛmɛ wɑwk kɾwɛik nɔk nɔk hijnɑkiɑu ɔm ɾwɑjɾ ɛj mɔn hɾɛmɛ ɑ mɛ sɑiɾ kɔw hɔh uwɾsɑ kɔkwɛ ɑ kɑmɔn mɔn ɾwɑjɾ hɑkwɛ ɑ kɑmɔn mɔn uwɾ kɾɑiɑɾ sil mɔ wɑjhih nɑjh sɔrɛj nɔnwɑjɾ hɑ sɔɾɛj mɑ ɾwɑjɾ hɔkwɛ mɛj nɔn hɾɔmkwɛ sɛjɾ mɛj iɾwɛjk iɾwɛjk meiɔ hɑkwɛ ɾɛisnɔn kɔkwɛ tɾɛnin sɛntɑ mɔn mɛiɔ ɛjɾɔwpwɑɾ kɔkwɛ hɛimɛi hɑj sɛ niɔn nɔnmɛjɔ ɑpɑw mɔ ɔkkɛ mɔn sɔɾɑsɔɾ nɔnkwɑj / < Pokon kokwe hakwe ha ma ley enekwei se me sor ey eryey Ukarumpa mon ma ley. Om ohokwe hakwe arauh lekriha in. Iwa yekir mon ley nayr lyaw. Lyaw nok, himi hay ursa hohkwe moki le nerye, leisnon. Ha ma ley hokwe, hakwe SILmo meyke nonmon sorasor nonkwaye ley, mey ok ma kankoum mey sokwe. Hrom ley, iheymo yek non nakey hrom Apawkose ma lwaukha sohokwe. Hromkwe Wewak mon nakkwayk nok, ur har sorey kukome lokriha in. Yahu manonkauk nok. Yahu nonkauk nok nok, manakey. Manakey nok
Abau (Green River) OPD Page 5 om hrom ma lwayr ey sohokwe eyrowpar nakkwayk lapay. Om sohiso uru hokwe yek nakyay ey hokwe Aiyura. Hrom Aiyura mon nakyay, sorey kuko sauk kiko yek non hrome wauk krweik nok nok, hinakyaw om lwayr ey mon. Hrome a me sayrkow. Hoh ursa kokwe a kamon mon lwayr hakwe a kamon mon. Ur krayar SILmo waihih nayih sorey nonwayr. Ha sorey marwayr hokwe sorey mey non. Hromkwe ser mey irweyk irweyk meyo. Hakwe leisnon kokwe Trening Senta mon meyo. Eyrowpar kokwe himi hayse lyan nonmeyo. Apawmo okke mon sorasor nonkway. > 'Today I am going to tell about the time I went to Ukarumpa. As for this village, I left it at night. I went up along the swamp road at night. After that the very long one (Arjen) and his wife came after me in the morning. (The time) that Iwent, I went in order to do and learn the work of S.I.L with (them), the work of translating the talk. We went, (we) went by the plane on which we boarded at Abau (=Green River). We landed at Wewak and then some men left at that place. We took again fuel. After we fuelled we took off again. After we took off again, in the afternoon, we landed at the place where we would stay. The name of that place, where the plane landed was Aiyura. When we landed at Aiyura, at that place, (they) had us sit inside the car and then they took us up (hill) to the place where we would stay. The house was showed to us. The couple stayed in one house and I stayed in one house. Many friends of S.I.L stayed there with (them). The time I stayed there, I had work there. We did several different jobs. In the morning I worked at the training centre. In the afternoon I worked with the long one. (We) studied the Abau language. Bibliography Lock, Arjen, and Maija Lock. 1990. 'Description of the phonology of the Abau language.' Manuscript. SIL, Ukarumpa.. 1992. 'Abau orthography paper.' Manuscript. SIL, Ukarumpa.