Tabaru language

Tabaru is a North Halmahera language of Indonesia.

Tabaru
Native toIndonesia
RegionHalmahera
Native speakers
(15,000 cited 1991)[1]
West Papuan
Language codes
ISO 639-3tby
Glottologtaba1263

Phonology

Vowels

Tabaru has a simple five vowel system: a, e, i, o, u.[2]

Consonants

Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Nasal m n ɲ ŋ
Plosive voiceless p t c k
voiced b d ɟ ɡ
Fricative f s h
Semivowel j w
Lateral l
Trill r

Syllable structure and stress

On the surface level, Tabaru only allows syllables of the type (C)V. Words with an underlying final consonant add an echo vowel: ngówaka (/ngowak/) ′child′, ókere (/oker/) ′drink′, sárimi (/sarim/) ′paddle′, ódomo (/odom/) ′eat′, pálusu (/palus/) ′answer′. The echo vowel is dropped when a suffix is added: woísene (/woisen/) ′hear′, but woisenoka (/woisen/ + /oka/) ′heard′. Stress regularly falls on the penultimate syllable, but shifts to the antepenultimate when the word takes an echo vowel.

References

  1. Tabaru at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
  2. Fortgens, J. (1928). "Grammatikale Aanteekeningen van het Tabaroesch; Tabaroesche Volksverhalen en Raadsels" [Grammatical Notes of Tabaru; Tabaru Folktales and Riddles]. Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde van Nederlandsch-Indië (in Dutch). 84 (2/3): 300–544. JSTOR 20770253. doi:10.1163/22134379-90001497 doi:10.1163/22134379-90001498
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