Manean language
| Manean | |
|---|---|
| Mani | |
| Pronunciation | /mæni/ |
| Language family | Ngerupic
|
| Early forms: | |
| CWS code | – |
Manean is the official language of Manea and is spoken alongside of other languages of Manea.
Classification
Manean is a Ngerupic language which is descended from Mañi. It is most closely related to Awatese.
History
Phonology and Orthography
Manean is characterized by a strange phonology for a Ngerupic language.
Phonemes
Consonants
| Labial | Coronal | Palatal | Velar | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m ⟨m⟩ | n ⟨n⟩ | ŋ ⟨ng⟩ | |
| Plosive | t ⟨t⟩ | k ⟨k⟩ | ||
| Voiceless Continuant | ɸ ⟨f⟩ | ʃ ⟨x⟩ | h ⟨h⟩ | |
| Voiced Continuant | β ⟨v⟩ | ð ⟨d⟩ | ||
| Approximant | l ⟨l⟩ | j ⟨y⟩ | ||
| Rhotic | r ⟨r⟩ |
Vowels
| Front | Back | |
|---|---|---|
| Close | i ⟨i⟩ | u ⟨u⟩ |
| Mid | e ⟨e⟩ | o ⟨o⟩ |
| Open | æ ⟨a⟩ | a ⟨ą⟩ |
Phonotactics
Morphology and syntax
Vocabulary
Numerals
Numerals in Manean are complex, each having three forms differing in usage. These usages vary considerable among speakers, but the most common usages are enumerated below.
- The first numeral form is the native numeral, inherited from Mañi. These numerals are most often used in formal context, in general counting, and frequently to count people.
- The second numeral form is the substrate numeral, also inherited from Mañi but from substrate origins. These numerals are often used to count animate (non-human) objects, long/thin items, and inaminate objects, informally..
- The third numeral form is the Ounyu numeral, borrowed from Vayama. These numerals are used to count maritime objects and islands of varying animacy and in contexts of non-high formality.
| Native | Substrate | Ounyu | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | mvi | kay | me |
| 2 | ra | tay | la |
| 3 | li | va | li |
| 4 | e | tąmfe | akume |
| 5 | den | mekuy | tan |
| 6 | ngonem | tenav | tame |
| 7 | ngonera | kuyav | tanla |
| 8 | ngoneli | fata | tanli |
| 9 | ngokung | xutakay | ngakume |
| 10 | deądą | mexąn | tanga |
| 100 | ngorva | ngalva | ngalva |
| 1000 | ngovade | lvala | lvala |
Manean uses a base-10 numeral system. Multiples of each power of ten are indicated by a preceding factor (e.g. li deądą – 'three ten' – means 'thirty'). Higher powers of ten precede lower powers (e.g. ngokung ngovade ngokung ngorva ngokung deądą ngokung – 'nine thousand nine hundred nine ten nine' – means '9999').
Manean also has a class of word to express large numbers. These words are loaned from Vosan language, and therefore have only one form. The base stem for these forms is xenitą meaning one million (10⁶). For each multiple power of six an additional xe- is added (e.g. xexenitą meaning one trillion (10¹² or 10⁶+⁶). From these forms, the prefix xen- can be added for an multiple power of three (e.g. xenxexenitą meaning quadrillion (10¹⁵ or 10⁶+⁶+³). Numerals 1 through 999 may be place before these forms, modifying their value in a multiplicative manner. The above patterns are described in the following table.
| Manean | English | Power of Ten | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ngovade | thousand | 10³ | |||
| deądą ngovade | ten thousand | 10⁴ | |||
| ngorva ngovade | hundred thousand | 10⁵ | |||
| xenitą | million | 10⁶ | |||
| deądą xenitą | ten million | 10⁷ | |||
| ngorva xenitą | hundred million | 10⁸ | |||
| xenxenitą | billion | 10⁹ | |||
| deądą xenxenitą | ten billion | 10¹⁰ | |||
| ngorva xenxenitą | hundred billion | 10¹¹ | |||
| xexenitą | trillion | 10¹² | |||
| xenxexenitą | quadrillion | 10¹⁵ | |||
| xexexenitą | pentillion | 10¹⁸ | |||
| xenxexexenitą | sextillion | 10²¹ | |||
| xexexexenitą | septillion | 10²⁴ | |||
| xenxexexexenitą | octillion | 10²⁷ | |||
| xexexexexenitą | nonillion | 10³⁰
- |
xenxexexexexenitą | decillion | 10³³ |