Bontoc
AltnameBontok
StatesPhilippines
RegionMountain Province
Date2007 census
Refe18
FamilycolorAustronesian
Fam 2Malayo-Polynesian
Fam 3Philippine
Fam 4Northern Luzon
Fam 5Meso-Cordilleran
Fam 6Central Cordilleran
Fam 7Nuclear Cordilleran
Fam 8Bontok–Kankanay
Iso 3bnc
Lc 1lbk
Ld 1Central Bontok
Lc 2ebk
Ld 2Eastern Bontok
Lc 3rbk
Ld 3Northern Bontok
Lc 4obk
Ld 4Southern Bontok
Lc 5vbk
Ld 5Southwestern Bontok
Glottobont1247
GlottorefnameBontok

Bontoc (Bontok) /bɒnˈtɒk/[1] is a macrolanguage[2] native to the indigenous Bontoc people of the Mountain Province, in the northern part of the Philippines.

Specific languages

Ethnologue reports the following locations for each of the five Bontok languages. Speaker populations from the 2007 census, as quoted in Ethnologue.

LanguageLocation of speakersDialectsNo. of speakersRef
Central Bontok
(Filipino: Finontok)
Bontoc (Bontoc ili, Caluttit, Dalican, Guina-ang, Ma-init, Maligcong, Samoki, and Tocucan)
  • Khinina-ang
  • Finontok
  • Sinamoki
  • Jinallik
  • Minaligkhong
  • Tinokukan
19,600[3]
Eastern Bontok
(Filipino: Finallig)
Barlig (Barlig, Kadaklan, Lias)
  • Finallig
  • Kinajakran (Kenachakran)
  • Liniyas
6,170[4]
Northern Bontok
(Filipino: Sinadanga)
Sadanga (Anabel, Bekigan, Belwang, Betwagan, Demang, Sacasacan, Saclit, and Sadanga Poblacion);
Southern Kalinga
9,700[5]
Southern BontokBontoc (Talubin, Bayyo, and Can-eo)
  • Tinoveng
  • Kanan-ew
2,760[6]
Southwestern BontokBontoc (Alab, Balili, Gonogon, and villages in the Chico River valley, southwest of the municipal capital Bontoc, along Halsema Highway)
  • Ina-ab
  • Binalili
  • Ginonogon
2,470[7]

Phonology

Consonant phonemes[8]
LabialAlveolarPalatalVelarGlottal
Nasalmnŋ
Plosivep bt dk ɡʔ
Fricatives
Rhoticɻ~ɺ
Approximantj
  • The archiphoneme /r/ has l, ɻ, and ɺ as its allophones.[8] The allophone l occurs word-initially, adjacent to i, as the second member of a consonant cluster consisting of a coronal consonant and /r/, and as the second member of any consonant cluster preceded by i. ɻ occurs in free variation with l word-initially, but otherwise occurs in complementary distribution with it. ɺ occurs in free variation with l and ɻ word-initially, and with ɻ elsewhere. These /r/ sounds are even applied to loanwords from Ilokano and Tagalog, and Spanish loanwords from the 2 languages.
  • The plosives t, ɡ, b, and d have, respectively, (representing an interdental consonant), , f, and t͡s as their syllable-initial allophones.[8]
  • The voiced stop b also has and v as its allophones.[8] Both of these allophones occur as the first member of a geminate cluster. They are in free variation.
  • The approximant j has one allophone: ɥ. ɥ occurs after o.[8]
Vowel phonemes[8]
FrontBack
Highi
Mideo
Closea

e becomes a slightly centralized when in a syllable whose coda is k.[8] When in the nucleus, a and o are slightly raised and i is lowered.[8]

There are two degrees of stress in Bontoc: primary and secondary. Primary stress is phonemic and secondary stress is predictable. Both types are right-oriented and occur on one of the last three syllables. Stress's effects include higher pitch, louder volume, and lengthening of the syllable nucleus, though these are all subject to certain rules pertaining to word prosody.[8]

Example text

The Lord's Prayer

Ama id chaya machad-ayaw nan ngachanmo. Omali nan en-ap-apowam. Maangnen nan nemnemmo isnan lofong ay kag id chaya. Ichowam nan kanenmi isnan kawakawakas. Pakawanem nan fasolmi, tay pinakawanmi akhes nan finmasol ken chakami. Ad-im ogkhayen chakami isnan maawisanmi ay enfasol, mod-i ket isas alakam chakami isnan ngaag.

References

  1. ^ Bauer, Laurie (2007). The Linguistics Student's Handbook. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
  2. ^
  3. ^ Ethnologue, Central Bontok (subscription required)
  4. ^ Ethnologue, Eastern Bontok (subscription required)
  5. ^ Ethnologue, Northern Bontok (subscription required)
  6. ^ Ethnologue, Southern Bontok (subscription required)
  7. ^ Ethnologue, Southwestern Bontok (subscription required)
  8. ^ Reid, Lawrence A. (1963). "The Phonology of Central Bontoc". The Journal of the Polynesian Society. 72 (1): 21–26.

Further reading