Malua Bay language
{{short description|Austronesian language spoken in Vanuatu}}
{{Infobox language
| name = Malua Bay
| altname = Middle Nambas
| region = Malekula
| state = Vanuatu
| ethnicity = {{sigfig|715|2}} (2001)
| speakers = 500
| date = 2009
| ref = e18
| familycolor = Austronesian
| fam2 = Malayo-Polynesian
| fam3 = Oceanic
| fam4 = Southern Oceanic
| fam5 = North-Central Vanuatu
| fam6 = Central Vanuatu
| fam7 = Malakula
| fam8 = Malakula Coastal
| iso3 = mll
| glotto = malu1245
| glottorefname = Malua Bay
| map = Lang Status 99-NE.svg
| mapcaption = {{center|{{small|Malua Bay is not endangered according to the classification system of the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger}}}}
}}
Malua Bay (also called Middle Nambas) is an Oceanic language spoken in northwest Malekula, Vanuatu. It has two main dialects: one spoken in Malua Bay and the other spoken in Espiegles Bay.
Classification
Malua, as an Oceanic language, belongs to the Austronesian language family. Furthermore, it belongs to the Malekula grouping within the Central Vanuatu subgroup, along with Nese, Botovro, Vovo, Vao, and others.{{Cite journal |last=Lynch |first=John |date=2016 |title=Malakula Internal Subgrouping: Phonological Evidence |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/26408422 |journal=Oceanic Linguistics |volume=55 |issue=2 |pages=399–431 |doi=10.1353/ol.2016.0019 |jstor=26408422 |issn=0029-8115|url-access=subscription }}
Community
Malua is mainly spoken in Malua and Espiegles Bay, with a small amount of speakers in Port Vila. The majority of speakers are bilingual in Bislama, English, or French.{{Cite journal |last1=Barbour |first1=Julie |last2=Wessels |first2=Kanauhea |last3=McCarter |first3=Joe |date=2018-07-31 |title=Language Contexts: Malua (Malekula Island, Vanuatu) |url=https://www.lddjournal.org/article/id/1183/ |journal=Language Documentation and Description |language=en-US |volume=15 |doi=10.25894/ldd142 |issn=2756-1224}}
Grammar
Malua contains a distinction between alienable and inalienable possession. Verbal predicates are marked for either realis or irrealis mood. It also exhibits nominative-accusative alignment.{{Cite thesis |title=Malua Bay: A description of the Malua Bay language (Malekula, Vanuatu) |url= |publisher=University of Waikato |date=2013 |degree=masters |first=Kanauhea Janion |last=Wessels}}
External links
- Paradisec has [http://catalog.paradisec.org.au/collections/search?language_code=mll a number of collections that include Malua Bay language materials]
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Languages of Vanuatu}}
{{Southern Oceanic languages}}
{{Eastern Malayo-Polynesian languages}}
{{SOceanic-lang-stub}}