Sungwadia language
| Sungwadia | |
|---|---|
| Marino | |
| North Maewo | |
| Native to | Vanuatu |
| Region | Maewo |
Native speakers | 500 (2008)[1] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | mrb |
| Glottolog | mari1426 |
| ELP | Marino |
 Sungwadia is not endangered according to the classification system of the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger | |
Sungwadia, also known as Marino and North Maewo, is an Oceanic language spoken on Maewo, Vanuatu.
Phonology
Consonants
| Labial- velar |
Labial | Alveolar | Velar | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plosive | voiceless | kʷ | t | k | |
| prenasal | ᵐb | ⁿd | |||
| Nasal | ŋʷ | m | n | ŋ | |
| Fricative | f | s | x | ||
| Rhotic | r | ||||
| Lateral | l | ||||
| Approximant | w | ||||
- /k/ can also have prenasal allophones [ᵑɡ] or [ᵑk].
- /ŋʷ/ can also have an allophone of a labial [mʷ] in word-initial position.
Vowels
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i | u | |
| Mid | e | o | |
| Open | a |
- /e, o/ can also have allophones of more open sounds [ɛ, ɔ].
- /i/ can also be heard as a semivowel [j] in word-final position.[2]
Notes
- ^ Sungwadia at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
- ^ Henri (2011).
References
- Henri, Agnès (2011). Le sungwadia. Éléments de description d'une langue du Vanuatu. Collection linguistique de la Société de Linguistique de Paris (in French). Vol. 97. Leuven: Peeters. p. 463.