Marovo language

{{short description|Austronesian language spoken in the Solomon Islands}}

{{Infobox language

|name=Marovo

|region=Solomon Islands

|speakers={{sigfig|8090|2}}

|date=1999

|ref=e18

|familycolor=Austronesian

|fam2=Malayo-Polynesian

|fam3=Oceanic

|fam4=Northwest Solomonic

|fam5=New Georgia – Ysabel

|fam6=New Georgia

|iso3=mvo

|glotto=maro1244

|glottorefname=Marovo

}}

Marovo is an Austronesian language of the Solomon Islands. It is spoken in the New Georgia Group on islands in Marovo Lagoon and on the neighbouring islands of New Georgia, Vangunu and Nggatokae. The usual word order in sentences is verb–subject–object.

Names for local fauna are similar to but still much distinct from those in Roviana (and presumably other New Georgia languages).{{harvp|Read|Moseby|2006}}

Phonology

=Consonants=

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
colspan="2"\| ! Labial ! Alveolar !Palatal ! Velar
colspan="2"\| Nasal \| {{IPA link\|m}} \| {{IPA link\|n}} \| \| {{IPA link\|ŋ}}
rowspan="2"\| Stop/ Affricate ! voiceless \| {{IPA link\|p}} \| {{IPA link\|t}} \| {{IPA link\|tʃ}} \| {{IPA link\|k}}
prenasal \| {{IPA link\|ᵐb}} \| {{IPA link\|ⁿd}} \| {{IPA link\|ᶮdʒ}} \| {{IPA link\|ᵑɡ}}
colspan="2"\|Fricative \| {{IPA link\|β}} \| {{IPA link\|s}} \| \| {{IPA link\|ɣ}}
colspan="2"\|Lateral \| \| {{IPA link\|l}} \| \|
colspan="2"\|Tap \| \| {{IPA link\|ɾ}} \| \|

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

colspan="2"|

! Labial

! Alveolar

!Palatal

! Velar

colspan="2"| Nasal

| {{IPA link|m}}

| {{IPA link|n}}

| {{IPA link|ŋ}}

rowspan="2"| Stop/
Affricate

! voiceless

| {{IPA link|p}}

| {{IPA link|t}}

| {{IPA link|tʃ}}

| {{IPA link|k}}

prenasal

| {{IPA link|ᵐb}}

| {{IPA link|ⁿd}}

| {{IPA link|ᶮdʒ}}

| {{IPA link|ᵑɡ}}

colspan="2"|Fricative

| {{IPA link|β}}

| {{IPA link|s}}

| {{IPA link|ɣ}}

colspan="2"|Lateral

| {{IPA link|l}}

colspan="2"|Tap

| {{IPA link|ɾ}}

=Vowels=

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" ! ! Front !Central ! Back
High \| {{IPA link\|i}} \| \| {{IPA link\|u}}
Mid \| {{IPA link\|e}} \| \| {{IPA link\|o}}
Low \| \|{{IPA link\|a}} \|

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

! Front

!Central

! Back

High

| {{IPA link|i}}

| {{IPA link|u}}

Mid

| {{IPA link|e}}

| {{IPA link|o}}

Low

|{{IPA link|a}}

Vowel length is also distinctive.{{Cite book |last=Hviding |first=Edvard |title=Guardians of Marovo Lagoon: Practice, Place, and Politics in Maritime Melanesia |publisher=Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai'i Press |year=1996 |pages=xxvii-xxix}}

Footnotes

References

{{Cite journal |last1=Read |first1=John L. |last2=Moseby |first2=Katherine |date=2006 |title=Vertebrates of Tetepare Island, Solomon Islands |journal=Pacific Science |volume=60 |issue=1 |pages=69–79 |doi=10.1353/psc.2005.0060 |hdl=10125/22548 |s2cid=36048427 |hdl-access=free }}

External links

Materials on Marovo are included in the open access Arthur Capell collections ([https://catalog.paradisec.org.au/collections/AC1 AC1] and [https://catalog.paradisec.org.au/collections/AC2 AC2]) held by Paradisec

Category:Languages of the Solomon Islands

Category:Northwest Solomonic languages