Orokaiva
AltnameOrokaivic
StatesPapua New Guinea
RegionOro Province
EthnicityOrokaiva
Date2000 census – 2007
Refe18
FamilycolorPapuan
Fam 1Trans–New Guinea
Fam 2Binanderean
Lc 1okv
Ld 1Orokaiva
Lc 2hkk
Ld 2Hunjara
Lc 3aez
Ld 3Aeka
Glottoorok1268
GlottorefnameOrokaivic

Orokaiva is a Papuan language spoken in the "tail" of Papua New Guinea.

Varieties

Orokaiva is spoken in 200 villages around Popondetta in Oro Province.

Hunjara is spoken in Kokoda Rural LLG of Oro Province.

Aeka is spoken in Tamata Rural LLG of Oro Province.[1]

Phonology

Consonants

LabialAlveolarVelarGlottal
Nasalmnŋ
Plosivevoicelessptk
voicedbdɡ
Affricated͡z
Fricativesh
  • Voiced stops /b, d, ɡ/ may fluctuate to prenasalized stop sounds [ᵐb, ⁿd, ᵑɡ] in word-initial position. The prenasalized stop sounds are also heard among the voiced stops when in post-nasal sequences.
  • /b/ can be heard as [β] in intervocalic positions, and may also be heard as a voiced bilabial rounded fricative [β̹] when before /a/ in intervocalic positions..
  • /d/ may occur as flap sounds [ɾ, ɽ, ɺ] in free fluctuation in word-medial positions, except when after a nasal sound.
  • /d͡z/ may have fluctuating allophones of [d͡ʒ, ʒ] occurring in syllable-initial positions.
  • Word-final nasal sounds /-n, -ŋ/ when after a vowel, may result in vowel nasalization [Ṽ].

Vowels

FrontCentralBack
Highiu
Mideo
Lowa
  • Sounds [i, u, a] can have allophones [ɪ, ʊ, ʌ].

References

  1. ^ e18
  • Larsen, Robert E. & Marlys Larsen. 1977. Orokaiva phonology and orthography. In Richard Loving (ed.), Phonologies of five P.N.G. languages, 5-28. Ukarumpa: Summer Institute of Linguistics.