Sonsorolese language
| Sonsorolese | |
|---|---|
| ramari Dongosaro | |
| Native to | Palau |
| Region | Palau: originally Sonsorol state (all three inhabited islands Sonsorol, Pulo Anna and Merir) |
|
Native speakers
|
400 (2007) |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | |
| Glottolog | sons1242 |
The Sonsorolese language is a Micronesian language spoken in Palau, originally on the islands composing the state of Sonsorol, and spreading through migration elsewhere in the country. It is very close to Tobian.
There are about 360 speakers spread out within 60 islands. Some linguists believe that the language is fading little by little. The population started to fall due to an influenza epidemic that the Germans caused. Most speakers of Sonsorol are bilingual, with their second language being English, to be able to communicate with others outside their island (sonsorol.com). The language is an official language for the areas where it is spoken. Some sister languages of Sonsorol are Ulithian, Woleaian, and Satawalese. The language is part of the Austronesian language family.
In Sonsorolese, there are 19 consonants. These consonants are: /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/, /c/, /k/, /g/, /m/, /n/, /f/, /v/, /j/, /x/, /ɣ/, /r/, /w/, /s/, /ŋ/, and /ʟʲ/.
Consonants that are plosive and labial are p and b. T and d are dental-alveolar and plosive. The consonant c is palatal and plosive. K and g are velar and plosive consonants. The consonant that is nasal and dental-alveolar is n. F and v are fricative and labio-dental. The consonant that is fricative and dental-alveolar is s. J is a fricative and palatal consonant. The consonants x and ɣ are fricative and velar. R is rolled and a dental-alveolar consonant. Lastly, w is a continuant and labial consonant (Capell, 1969).
Sonsorolese has 5 vowels which are; /o/, /e/, /a/, /u/, and /i/. The vowels that are in the front for frontness are /i/, /e/, and /a/. The back frontness vowels are /u/ and /o/. As for the height of the vowels, /i/ and /u/ is high, /e/ and /o/ is mid, and /a/ is low. There are many exceptions to the vowel usage depending on where the vowel is placed and the consonants used before and after the vowel. The vowel /i/ sometimes is drawn back in frontness, which produces a different sound. /E/ is considered as a chiefly vowel and is rare. The only time you will see the vowel used is when it is in the body of a word. The vowel /a/ developed a velar fricative that involves either a /x/ or /y/ in front of the vowel. /O/ is mostly used in diphthongs and a variety of French influenced words. And lastly the vowel /u/ is to lip-round the word that is being pronounced.
The language does allow diphthongs. Some of them are /ae/, /ai/, /ao/, and /au/. Some of the diphthongs are considered to be difficult to pronounce and some do elongate the vowel sound. An example of the diphthong /ae/ is mae, which means breadfruit in English (Capell, 1969).
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