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Mentawai language

{{Short description|Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia}}

{{distinguish|Mendawai language}}

{{Infobox language

|name = Mentawai

|nativename = Nganga Simatawe

|states = West Sumatra, Indonesia

|region = Mentawai Islands

|speakers = 58,000

|date = 2000 census

|ref=e18

|familycolor = Austronesian

|fam2 = Malayo-Polynesian

|fam3 = Northwest Sumatra–Barrier Islands

|iso3 = mwv

|glotto=ment1249

|glottorefname=Mentawai

}}

The Mentawai language is an Austronesian language, spoken by the Mentawai people of the Mentawai Islands, West Sumatra, Indonesia.

Dialects

According to Ethnologue, Mentawai dialects include: Silabu, Sipura – Simalegi, Sakalagan, Saumanganja – North Siberut, South Siberut – Taikaku – Pagai.

Syamsir Arifin, et al. (1992) list twelve dialects of Mentawai:

{{tree list}}

{{tree list/end}}

Dialects in Siberut Island are:{{Cite web|url=http://www.indonesiatravelingguide.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/Siberut-National-Park-map-800.jpg|title=Findresults.site}}

  • Sikapone
  • Togiiite
  • Pokai
  • Simajegi
  • Simatalu
  • Paipajet
  • Sakuddei
  • Sagulubbe
  • Sirileleu
  • Sikabaluan
  • Sempungan
  • Saibi & Sarabua
  • Silaoinan
  • Sarareiket
  • Sabirut

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|ɲ}}

|{{IPA link|ŋ}}

rowspan="2" |Plosive/
Affricate

!voiceless

|{{IPA link|p}}

|{{IPA link|t}}

|({{IPA link|t͡ɕ}})

|{{IPA link|k}}

voiced

|{{IPA link|b}}

|{{IPA link|d}}

|{{IPA link|d͡ʑ}}

|{{IPA link|ɡ}}

colspan="2" |Fricative

|

|{{IPA link|s}}

|

|

colspan="2" |Lateral

|

|{{IPA link|l}}

|

|

colspan="2" |Rhotic

|

|{{IPA link|r}}

|

|

colspan="2" |Semivowel

|{{IPA link|w}}

|

|{{IPA link|j}}

|

  • Allophones of /b ɡ k/ can be heard as [β ɣ ʔ]. [t͡ɕ] is a distinct sound in Mentawai, but not given phoneme status by Syamsir et al. because of the lack of minimal contrasts.{{harvp|Arifin|Malano|Kasim|1992}}
  • The semivowels /w j/ only appear in final position.

= Vowels =

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

!

! Front

!Central

! Back

Close

|{{IPA link|i}}

|

|{{IPA link|u}}

Mid

|{{IPA link|e}}

|

|{{IPA link|o}}

Open

|

|{{IPA link|a}}

|

References

{{reflist}}

Bibliography

{{refbegin}}

  • {{Cite book |last1=Arifin |first1=Syamsir |url=http://repositori.kemdikbud.go.id/2523/1/Fonologi%20Bahasa%20Mentawai%20%20%20%20%20%20175.pdf |title=Fonologi Bahasa Mentawai |last2=Malano |first2=Nasroel |last3=Kasim |first3=Yuslina |publisher=Pusat Pembinaan dan Pengembangan Bahasa, Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaa. |year=1992 |location=Jakarta |language=Indonesian |trans-title=Mentawai Language Phonology}}
  • {{Cite journal |last=Adriani |first=N. |author-link=Nicolaus Adriani |date=1928 |title=Spraakkunstige Schets van de Taal der Mĕntawai-Eilanden |trans-title=Grammar Sketch of the Language of the Mĕntawai Islands |journal=Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde van Nederlandsch-Indië |language=Dutch |volume=84 |issue=1 |pages=1–117 |doi=10.1163/22134379-90001493 |jstor=20770239 |doi-access=free}}

{{refend}}

{{Incubator|code=mwv}}

{{Western Malayo-Polynesian languages}}

{{Languages of Indonesia}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mentawai Language}}

Category:Languages of Indonesia

Category:Northwest Sumatra–Barrier Islands languages

{{Austronesian-lang-stub}}