Kwerba language

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Kwerba
Sasawa
Native toIndonesia
RegionSarmi Regency, Papua
Native speakers
(2,500 cited 1996)[1]
Dialects
  • Serikenam
  • Sasawa
  • Nogukwabai
Language codes
ISO 639-3kwe
Glottolognucl1595

Kwerba is a

Papuan language of Indonesia
. Alternate names are Airmati (Armati), Koassa, Mataweja, Naibedj, Segar Tor, Tekutameso.

Kwerba is spoken in Apiaweti, Aurime, Munukania, Tatsewalem, and Wamariri villages in Sarmi Regency.[2]

Phonology

Consonants[3]
Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar
Plosive p pʷ
t
 		tʃ k kʷ
Fricative s
Nasal m mʷ
n
 		ɲ ŋ
Approximant w
r
 		j
  • The consonants /p k/ can be heard as [ɸ x] intervocalically.
  • The plosive and affricate consonants can be aspirated word-finally.
  • /s/ sometimes varies to [h] word initially and intervocalically for some speakers.
  • /r/ does not occur word-initially.
Vowels[3]
Front Central Back
High i u
Near-high ɪ
Mid-high e ə o
Mid-low ɛ
Low a

Stress occurs on the penultimate syllable.[3]

Pronouns

Kwerba nominative pronouns as given in Foley (2018):[4]

singular dual plural
1st person excl co nano’ nino
incl na’no neno
2nd person am nono nom
3rd person iiniim iinembwano iinembwa

References

  1. ^ Kwerba at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. SIL International
    .
  3. ^ a b c Slizer, Peter J. (1976). Suharno, Ignatius; Pike, Kenneth L. (eds.). "A six-week phonemic analysis of Air Mati with a tentative orthography". From Baudi to Indonesian. Jayapura: Cenderawasih University and Summer Institute of Linguistics: 192–201.
  4. ISBN 978-3-11-028642-7
    .

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