Selepet language

Selepet
Native toPapua New Guinea
RegionHuon Peninsula, Morobe Province
Native speakers
7,200 (2000 census)[1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3spl
Glottologsele1250

Selepet (or Selepe)[2] is a Papuan language spoken in Selepet Rural LLG, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea.

Evolution

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Below are some reflexes of proto-Trans-New Guinea proposed by Pawley (2012):[3]

proto-Trans-New Guinea Selepet
*masi ‘orphan’ madu
*me(n,t)e ‘head’ mete ‘forehead’
*mV(k,ŋ)V[C] + t(e,i)- ‘vomit’ mohat (cf. Nomu mekat ‘spittle’, Timbe mugat ‘be sick’)
*mVn[a]-‘be, live, stay’ man- ‘live, dwell’
*mo ‘penis’ mɔi
*(m,mb)elak ‘light, lightning’ belek
*kumV- ‘die’ (cf. Burum kɔmu-)
*iman ‘louse’ imen
*(s,nd)umu(n,t)[V] ‘hair’ somot
*amu ‘breast’ (n)am ‘breast, milk’
*am(a,i) ‘mother’ (?) (m)ɔmɔ
*na- ‘eat’ ne-
*nVŋg- ‘know, hear, see’ nɔgɔ- ‘hear, know, listen to s.t.’
*ni ‘1PL free pronoun’ ne(n) ‘1PL’, ne(t) ‘1DL’
*n[e]i ‘bird’ nɔi
*kan(a,e)ne ‘left (side)’ kane
*mVn[a]-‘be, live, stay’ man- ‘live, dwell’
*mbena ‘arm’ bɔt
*kani ‘foot’ kɔi
*iman ‘louse’ imen
*-Vn ‘1SGsubj agrmt’ -an ‘1SG, 1PL’
*ŋaŋ[a] ‘baby’ ŋaŋa
*mbalaŋ ‘flame’ balam
*mbilaŋ ‘tongue’ ni-bilam
*sa(ŋg,k)asiŋ ‘sand’ sak
*mbalaŋ ‘flame’ balam
*mbilaŋ ‘tongue’ [ni]bilim
*mbena ‘arm’ (?) bot
*mbulikV ‘turn (oneself)’ purik (sɔ-)
*imbi ‘name’ ibi
*sambV ‘cloud’ hibim ‘sky’
*ambi ‘man’ (?) ibi ‘woman’
*simb(i,u) ‘guts’ tep- ‘stomach, intestines’
*si(mb,p)at[V] ‘saliva’ (Sialum sawat, Migabac sofoʔ, Nomu sowot)
*kutV(mb,p)(a,u)[C] ‘long’ kɔlip
*kambu ‘ashes’ kɔu
*kend(o,u)p ‘fire’ kɔlɔp
*nde- ‘speak’ sɔmedial
*kend(o,u)p ‘fire’ kɔlɔp
*ka(nd,t)(e,i)kV ‘ear’ (?) ɔndɔp (prob. a loanword. Suter (p.c.) reconstructs pHuon Peninsula *kazap ‘ear’)
*tVk- ‘cut, cut off’ tok [yap] ‘snap, break’
*kutV(mb,p)(a,u)[C] ‘long’ kɔlip
*kVtak ‘new’ irak
*(s,nd)umu(n,t)[V] ‘hair’ somot
*sa(ŋg,k)asin ‘sand’ sak
*(s,nd)umu(n,t)[V] ‘hair’ somot
*si(mb,p)at[V] ‘saliva’ (Sialum sawat, Migabac sofoʔ, Nomu sowot)
*simb(i,u) ‘guts’ (?) tep- ‘stomach, intestines’
*sambV ‘cloud’, ‘sky’ hibim ‘sky’
*masi ‘orphan’ madu
*nj(a,e,i)- ‘burn’ si
*ŋga ‘2SG’ ga
*nVŋg- ‘know, hear, see’ nɔgɔ- ‘hear, know, listen to s.t.’
*kend(o,u)p ‘fire’ kɔlɔp
*kakV- ‘carry on shoulder’ kaku-
*kutV(mb,p)(a,u)[C] ‘long’ kalip
*kambu ‘ashes’ kɔu
*kakV- ‘carry on shoulder’ kaku-
*mbulikV ‘turn (oneself)’ purik
*sa(ŋg,k)asin ‘sand’ sak
*mV(k,ŋ)V[C] + t(e,i)- ‘vomit’ mohat (Nomu mekat ‘spittle’, Timbe mugat ‘be sick’)
*kVtak ‘new’ irak
(m,mb)elak ‘light, lightning’ belek ‘lightning’
*ok[V] ‘water’ (?) (gel-)ok ‘rain’
*mbalaŋ ‘flame’ balam
*(m,mb)elak ‘light, lightning’ belek
*mbilaŋ ‘tongue’ ni-bilam
*mbulikV ‘turn (oneself)’ purik

References

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  1. ^ Selepet at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) Closed access icon
  2. ^ "OLAC resources in and about the Selepet language". www.language-archives.org. Retrieved 2024-01-22.
  3. ^ Pawley, Andrew (2012). Hammarström, Harald; van den Heuvel, Wilco (eds.). "How reconstructable is proto Trans New Guinea? Problems, progress, prospects". History, Contact and Classification of Papuan Languages (Language & Linguistics in Melanesia Special Issue 2012: Part I). Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea: Linguistic Society of Papua New Guinea: 88–164. hdl:1885/38602. ISSN 0023-1959.