Marind–Yaqai languages

The Marind–Yaqai (Marind–Yakhai) languages are a well established language family of Papuan languages, spoken by the Marind-anim. They form part of the Trans–New Guinea languages in the classifications of Stephen Wurm and Malcolm Ross, and were established as part of the Anim branch of TNG by Timothy Usher.

Marind–Yakhai
Marind
Geographic distribution	South Papua
Ethnicity	Marind people
Linguistic classification	Trans–New Guinea Anim (Fly River)[1] Marind–Yakhai
Subdivisions	Marind Yaqay
Language codes
Glottolog	mari1437
Map: The Marind–Yaqai languages of New Guinea   The Marind and Yaqai languages   Other Trans–New Guinea languages   Other Papuan languages   Austronesian languages   Uninhabited

Languages

The languages are:

• Marind–Yaqai
  • Marind
  • • Warkay-Bipim
    • Yaqay

Proto-language

Phonemes

Usher (2020) reconstructs the consonant inventory as follows:^[2]

*m	*n
*p	*t		*k
*b	*d		*g
*mb	*nd		*ŋg
	*s		*h
*w	*ɾ	*j	*ɣ

Vowels are *a *e *i *o *u.

Pronouns

The pronouns are:^[1]

	sg	pl
1	*nok	?
2	*oɣ	*eoɣ
3m	*anep	*anip
3f	*anup

Classification

The Marind languages were partially identified by Sidney Herbert Ray and JHP Murray in 1918; the family was filled out by JHMC Boelaars in 1950. It was incorporated into Trans–New Guinea by Stephen Wurm in 1975.

The Boazi languages were formerly classified as Marind.

Evolution

Marind reflexes of proto-Trans-New Guinea (pTNG) etyma:^[3]

• kase ‘saliva’ < pTNG *kasipa ‘spit’
• maŋgat ‘mouth’ < *maŋgat[a]
• mudu-meŋ ‘belly’ < *mundu-maŋgV ‘heart’
• mokom ‘fruit, seed’ < *maŋgV
• saŋga ‘hand, finger, arm’ < *sa(ŋg,k)(a,i)l ‘hand, claw’
• sâ ‘sand’ < *sa(ŋg,k)asiŋ
• de ‘tree’ < *inda
• iwar ‘wind’ < *kumbutu
• kuyu ‘cassowary’ < *ku(y)a

See also

• Marind people

Further reading

• Drabbe, Petrus. 1950. Twee dialecten van de Awju-taal [Two dialects of the Awyu language]. Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde 106: 92–147.
• Drabbe, Petrus. 1954a. Comparative Vocabulary 100 words in 24 languages. Posieux/Fribourg: Instituut Anthropos.
• Drabbe, Petrus. 1954b. Talen en dialecten van zuid-west Nieuw-Guinea [Languages and Dialects of Southwest New Guinea]. Posieux/Fribourg: Instituut Anthropos.
• Drabbe, Petrus. 1955. Spraakkunst van het Marind: Zuidkust Nederlands Nieuw-Guinea [A Grammar of Marind: South Coast of New Guinea]. Wien-Mödling: Drukkerij van het Missiehuis St. Gabriël.