Kuman (also Chimbu or Simbu) is a language of Chimbu Province, Papua New Guinea. In 1994, it was estimated that 80,000 people spoke Kuman, 10,000 of them monolinguals; in the 2000 census, 115,000 were reported, with few monolinguals. Ethnologue also reported 70,000 second language speakers in 2021.
Phonology
Consonants LabialAlveolarPalatalVelarPlosivevoicelessprenasal/vd. ~ ~ ~ NasalFricativeTapLateralSemivowel
Voiced plosives are usually prenasal, but may fluctuate in word-initial position as ordinary voiced stops . Voiceless stops are always aspirated in word-initial position. only occurs word-medially and word-finally. In word-final position it is heard as a trill . can be pronounced as , in word-initial position. can be pronounced as before front vowels . Like other Chimbu languages, Kuman has rather unusual lateral consonants. is heard as voiceless velar lateral when preceding a consonant. It is also heard as a voiceless alveolar fricative before an /s/. It may also be realized as a "laterally released velar affricate" (presumably , found in other Papuan languages) which is voiced word medially and voiceless word finally (not occurring word initially).Foley, 1986:63, The Papuan languages of New Guinea
Vowels FrontCentralBackHighMidLow
/a/ can be heard as either central or back in free variation. /e/ is pronounced as as a first vowel in a word. /o/ is pronounced in its lax form as before /ɾ/.
Syllable patterns Syllable structure is (C)V(C). Any consonant can occur in onset position, but in coda position only /m/, /n/, /gɬ/, /l/ and /k/ can occur.
Grammar Kuman is an SOV language.
Vocabulary The following basic vocabulary words are from Salisbury (1956)Salisbury, R.F. 1956. The Siane Language of the Eastern Highlands of New Guinea. Anthropos 51:447–480. and Trefry (1969), as cited in the Trans-New Guinea database:
{| class="wikitable sortable" ! gloss !! Kuman |- ! head | bit-na; bɩtiɩno |- ! hair | iŋguno; yungo |- ! ear | kina-na; kunano |- ! eye | gumutino; ongomit-na |- ! nose | guma-ne; gumano |- ! tooth | siŋguno |- ! tongue | dirambino |- ! leg | kati; kat-na |- ! louse | numan |- ! dog | aʝg; agi; akɬ ̥ |- ! pig | bogla; bugɬa |- ! bird | kua |- ! egg | mugɬo; muɬo |- ! blood | borɔmai; bořumai; maiam |- ! bone | yambiřo; yombura |- ! skin | gaŋgino |- ! breast | amu-na; amuno |- ! tree | endi |- ! man | yagl; yakɬ ̥ |- ! woman | ambu |- ! sun | ande; andesuŋgua |- ! moon | ba |- ! water | nigl; nikɬ ̥ |- ! fire | baugl; doŋga |- ! stone | kombuglo; kombugɬo |- ! road, path | konbo; konumbo |- ! name | kaŋgin; kangi-ne |- ! eat | neuŋgua |- ! one | suařa |- ! two | suo
References
Further reading Hardie, Peter. 2003. Is Kuman Tonal? An account of basic segmental and tonological structure in the Papuan language Kuman. MA thesis: Australian National University
External links Kuman phonology and sample text Kaipuleohone has a Chimbu-Wahgi collection from Andrea L. Berez that includes Kuman language materials A number of collections in Paradisec include Kuman materials