Skou_language
Skou language
Skou language spoken in Indonesia
Skou (Sekol, Sekou, Sko, Skouw, Skow, Sukou), or Tumawo (Te Mawo), is a Papuan language of Indonesia.
Skou is spoken in three villages of Muara Tami District [id], Jayapura Regency. The villages are:[2]
Consonants
The Skou consonants are:[3]
Vowels
Vowels can be nasalized, except for /ɨ/ and /u/.[3]
Tone
Skou contrasts three different tones in monosyllables: high, low and falling, which can be combined with nasality for a six-way contrast.[2]
Pitch | Oral | Nasal |
---|---|---|
high [˥] | ta
'grass' |
tã
'bird' |
low [˨] | ta
'hair' |
tã
'canoe' |
falling [˥˩] | ta
'arrow' |
tã
'machete' |
Tone in Skou is affiliated with each word, rather than with each syllable.
In addition to lexical differences in tone, tone has grammatical functions. [2]
For instance, tense in Skou is differentiated by tone.
non-past tense forms | ||
---|---|---|
[ni hu]
falling-falling 'I sew' |
[ni ha]
falling-high 'I stand' |
[ni hũ]
falling-low 'I drink' |
past tense forms | ||
[ni hu]
falling-low 'I sewed' |
[ni ha]
falling-low 'I stood' |
[ni hũ]
falling-low 'I drank' |
Skou differentiates three types of pronouns: free pronouns, genitive pronouns and dative pronouns. [2]
Free Pronouns | Genitive Pronouns | Dative Pronouns | |
---|---|---|---|
1SG | [ni˥˩] | [ni˥˩] | [nɛ˨] |
1PL | [nɛ˨] | [nɛ˥˩] | [nɛ˨] |
2SG | [mɛ˥˩] | [mɛ˥˩] | [mɛ˨] |
2PL | [ɛ˨] | [ɛ˥˩] | [ɛ˨] |
3SG.NF | [kɛ˨] | [kɛ˥] | [kɛ˨] |
3SG.F | [pɛ˨] | [pɛ˥˩] | [pɛ˨] |
3PL | [tɛ˨] | [tɛ˥˩] | [tɛ˨] |
- Skou at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
- Donohue, Mark. 2004. A Grammar of the Skou language of New Guinea. Singapore: National University of Singapore. Available at .
- Foley, William A. (2018). "The Languages of the Sepik-Ramu Basin and Environs". In Palmer, Bill (ed.). The Languages and Linguistics of the New Guinea Area: A Comprehensive Guide. The World of Linguistics. Vol. 4. Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton. pp. 197–432. ISBN 978-3-11-028642-7.
- Donohue, Mark. 2004. A Grammar of the Skou language of New Guinea. Singapore: National University of Singapore. Available at .
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