Touo language

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File:Central Solomons languages.png
Language families of the Solomon Islands

The Touo language, also known as Baniata (Mbaniata) or Lokuru, is spoken over the southern part of Rendova Island, located in the Western Province of the Solomon Islands.

Classification

Touo is generally seen to be a member of the tentative Central Solomons family, although Glottolog considers it an isolate. Pedrós (2015) cautiously suggests Lavukaleve as the closest relative to Touo. Most of the surrounding languages to Touo belong to the Oceanic subgroup of the Austronesian language family.

Names

The Touo language is sometimes called the Baniata (Mbaniata) or Lokuru language, after the largest two villages where the language is spoken.[1] The word Touo comes from the ethnonym that Touo speakers use to refer to themselves.

Phonology

Consonants

Touo consonants are:[2]Template:Rp

labial alveolar velar glottal
nasal Template:IPAlink Template:IPAlink Template:IPAlink
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voicedScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". Template:IPAlink Template:IPAlink Template:IPAlink Template:Grapheme
fricative voicelessScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". Template:IPAlink Template:IPAlink Template:IPAlink
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approximant Template:IPAlink Template:Grapheme
liquid Template:IPAlink

Vowels

Touo has six lax and five tense vowels.[3]

Vowels
Front Back
Tense Lax Tense Lax
High Template:IPAlink Template:Angbr Template:IPAlink Template:Angbr Template:IPAlink Template:Angbr Template:IPAlink Template:Angbr
Mid Template:IPAlink Template:Angbr Template:IPAlink Template:Angbr Template:IPAlink Template:Angbr Template:IPAlink Template:Angbr
Low Template:IPAlink Template:Angbr Template:IPAlink Template:Angbr Template:IPAlink Template:Angbr

Some minimal pairs showing the tense/lax vowel phonemic distinction in Touo:[2][3]

Lax vs. Tense Vowels
Lax Tense
Orthography Gloss Orthography Gloss
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Grammar

Word order in Touo is SOV.[2]

Touo has four genders.[2]

  • masculine
  • feminine
  • neuter I (generic)
  • neuter II (certain trees)

Only in certain paradigms of the singular number can neuter I and II be distinguished.

Touo distinguishes four numbers.[2]

  • singular
  • dual
  • enumerated (i.e., numerically specified; can be used for both few or many numbers)
  • non-enumerated (i.e., not numerically specified; used for numbers greater than three)

See also

Notes

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  • Paradisec has two collections of Arthur Cappell's materials (AC1, AC2) that include Touo language materials.

References

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Template:Languages of the Solomon Islands