Imonda language
| Imonda | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Papua New Guinea |
| Region | Sandaun Province |
|
Native speakers
|
250 (1994) |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | |
| Glottolog | imon1245 |
Imonda is a Papuan language of Sandaun Province, Papua New Guinea. It has a simple consonant system and a complex vowel system, with no phonological tones. Imonda is heavily verb oriented, and does not mark nouns for number or gender, but marks number on the verb for subject, object, and several other types of noun phrases. Tense, aspect, negation and interrogation are also indicated in part on the verb. There is a very high-frequency topic clitic, which can be used on noun phrases, adverbs, or verbs. The language has no coordinating or subordinating conjunctions, filling these roles with other approaches.
Late in the 19th century, Imonda speakers had limited contact with Malay traders. These traders were referred to as sue-na-id men of fire. Though in some areas of New Guinea the locals became fluent in Malay at the time, there appears to have been no such influence on Imonda speakers.
The next interaction with outsiders occurred during World War II. Japanese soldiers fleeing Americans at the coast stayed at Imonda for a few days. There was a fight and two Imonda speakers were killed, some houses were burnt down, and villagers were raped.
Later there was some contact with the Dutch, who hired locals as carriers or for work in towns. At this time many Imonda speakers did learn Malay (notably not recognizing that they had had any previous contact with it), and were exposed to Western culture.
Until 1962, the language Imonda was spoken almost exclusively in a single village now called "Imonda on the rocks". At that date the Australians assumed control from Dutch New Guinea, and the Imonda split into two groups and established two villages in more accessible locations: Mol (daughter) and Põs (grass).
Wordlists had been compiled for all Waris languages including Imonda prior to 1973. The grammar of the language was studied in detail by Walter Seiler in a Ph.D. dissertation (1984) and subsequent book (1985).
Unlike many neighboring areas, Malay was never systematically taught to Imonda speakers, though some loanwords from Malay are in use. At the time of Seiler’s 1985 grammar of the language, when conversation with the neighboring Waris occurs, it is often carried out in Tok Pisin, in which all Imonda speakers are fluent, and from which Imonda takes many loanwords.
Imonda's numerals are based on compounding. For example, 3 is denoted sabla mugõ (lit., two one) and 5, sabla sabla mugõ (two two one).
Imonda classifies nouns using verbal prefixes which evolved from serial verbs. These serial verbs typically had to do with handling and preparing objects, and the noun classifiers are only required before a small set of common nouns, with meanings like 'give', 'put', 'throw', 'hold', and 'carry'. There are around 100 different noun classes, but some nouns belong to multiple classes; for example, as they are prepared, coconuts have to be picked, husked, and split. If a coconut has been picked but not husked, it will take the classifier põt, which is identical to the verb for picking. Similar classifiers specify each state of preparation. Though they are historically derived from serial verb usage with meanings like 'pick that and hand it to me', they have entirely lost that meaning and Imonda speakers are not always aware of the similarity.
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