Kwomtari language

Kwomtari is the eponymous language of the Kwomtari family of Papua New Guinea.

Kwomtari
Native to	Papua New Guinea
Native speakers	(600 cited 1998)[1]
Language family	Senu River Kwomtari–Nai Kwomtari
Language codes
ISO 639-3	kwo
Glottolog	nucl1593
ELP	Kwomtari
Coordinates: 3.596084°S 141.361577°E / -3.596084; 141.361577 (Kwomtari)

Spencer (2008) is a short grammar of Kwomtari. The language has an SOV^{[clarification needed]} constituent order and nominative–accusative alignment. Both subjects and objects are marked suffixally on the verb. Verbs are inflected for status (mood) rather than for tense or aspect.^[2]

Locations

Ethnologue lists Kwomtari as spoken in six villages in Komtari (Kwomtari) ward (3.596084°S 141.361577°E / -3.596084; 141.361577 (Kwomtari)), Amanab Rural LLG, Sandaun Province.^[3][4]

Baron (2007) lists Kwomtari-speaking villages as Mango, Kwomtari, Baiberi, Yenabi, Yau'uri, and Wagroni.^[5]

Phonology

Consonant phonemes of Kwontari^[6]

	Bilabial	Alveolar	Retroflex	Velar
Plosive	p b	t		k ɡ
Nasal	m	n
Fricative	ɸ	s
Trill	ʙ[7]	r
Lateral			ɭ

The phoneme /ɸ/ is realized as a voiced bilabial fricative [β] intervocalically and voiceless bilabial fricative [ɸ] elsewhere. The realization of the phoneme /ɭ/ is in free variation between a voiced retroflex lateral [ɭ] and a voiced retroflex stop [ɖ].

Vowel phonemes of Kwontari^[8]

	Front	Central	Back
Close	i		u
Lowered Close	i̞		u̞
Mid		ə
Open-Mid	ɛ		ɔ
Open		a

The unusual vowel phonemes /i̞/ and /u̞/ are of intermediate height between cardinal [i]/[u] and [e]/[o] respectively but without the centralization present in [ɪ] and [ʊ]. They have also been attested in Weri, a Goilalan language of south-east Papua, and certain Dani dialects.^[9]