Halia is an Austronesian language of Buka Island and the Selau Peninsula of Bougainville Island, Papua New Guinea.
| Halia | |
|---|---|
| Selau | |
| Native to | Papua New Guinea |
| Region | Buka Island, Selau Peninsula |
Native speakers | 25,000 (2005)[1] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | hla |
| Glottolog | hali1244 |
Phonology
editThe phonology of the Halia language:[2]
Consonants
edit| Labial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ŋ | |||
| Plosive | voiceless | p | t | k | ||
| voiced | b | g | ||||
| Affricate | ts ~ tʃ | |||||
| Fricative | s | h | ||||
| Lateral | l | |||||
| Rhotic | r | |||||
| Semivowel | w | j | ||||
Vowels
edit| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High | i | u | |
| ɪ | ʊ | ||
| Mid | (e) | o | |
| ɛ | ɔ | ||
| Low | a |
Diphthong vowel sounds include /ei, au, ou/.
[e] exists, but not as a monophthong.
Allophones
edit| Phoneme | Allophones |
|---|---|
| /b/ | [β] |
| /ɡ/ | [ɣ], [χ] |
| /ts/ | [tʃ] |
| /r/ | [ɾ] |
| /a/ | [æ], [ɐ], [ʌ] |
| /ʊ/ | [ɨ] |
| /ei/ | [e], [ɛi], [ɛ] |
Grammar
editPronouns
editThere are 4 sets of pronouns. The first set functions as the subject when proceding the verb. Set 2 functions as a subject or object when following the verb. Set 3 is used for inalienable posession. Set 4 is used for alienable possession. There is an inclusive/exclusive first person distinction.
| Pronoun | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1SG | alia | lia | -r | i tar |
| 2SG | alö | lö | -mulö | i tamulö |
| 3SG | nonei | -en | -nen | i tanen |
| 1PL (incl.) | ara | ra | -rara | i tarara |
| 1PL (excl.) | alam | lam | -mulam | i tamulam |
| 2PL | alimiu | limiu | -milimiu | i tamilimiu |
| 3PL | nori | -en | -ren | i taren |
The suffix -e signifies a transitive verb.[3]
Literature
editIn the 1960s Francis Hagai produced a series of liturgies in Halia as part of his work with the Hahalis Welfare Society.[4]
References
edit- ^ Halia at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022)
- ^ Allen, Jerry (1987). Halia grammar. Data Papers on Papua New Guinea Languages, 32: Ukarumpa: Summer Institute of Linguistics. pp. 4–10, 215–219.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) - ^ Allen, Jerry; Latu, Marcello; Koesana, Maurice; Tsirumits, Maurice (1982). Dictionaries of Papua New Guinea, Volume 6: Halia Language. The Long Now Foundation. Ukarumpa: Summer Institute of Linguistics.
- ^ Trompf, G. W. (1994). Payback: The Logic of Retribution in Melanesian Religions. Cambridge University Press. p. 224. ISBN 9780521416917.
External links
edit- Written materials on Halia are available at Kaipuleohone under 'Selau'