Telefol language
| Telefol | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Papua New Guinea |
| Region | Sandaun Province, Telefomin District. |
| Ethnicity | Telefol people |
|
Native speakers
|
5,400 (1994) |
|
Trans–New Guinea
|
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | |
| Glottolog | tele1256 |
Telefol is a language spoken by the Telefol people in Papua New Guinea, notable for possessing a base-27 numeral system.
The Iligimin people also spoke Telefol, but they were defeated by the Telefol proper.
Single ⟨e⟩ and ⟨o⟩ represent both their single and long vowels, since they rarely contrast.
/b/ is written ⟨p⟩ pre-consonantally and word-finally.
Single /k/ is written ⟨g⟩ intervocalically, and /kk/ is written ⟨k⟩ intervocalically.
/kd/ and /ŋd/ are written ⟨kg⟩ and ⟨ngg⟩ (since they're pronounced [ɡ] and [ŋɡ] respectively).
Initial /ɡ/ (in loan words) is also written with ⟨g⟩, e.g. Got 'God'.
/ʔ/ and /h/ only appear in a few particles and some exclamations. /p/ and /ɡ/ only appear in a few loans.
There are two contrastive phonemic tones in Telefol, high and low. For example, ùlín 'club' vs. úlìn 'planted'.
/e/ and /eː/, /o/ and /oː/, are nearly in complementary distribution. Also, single /e/ and /o/ don't occur in one-syllable words or in terminal syllables.
Vowel length only contrasts in initial syllables. However, in initial syllables single /u/ and /o/, and /i/ and /e/, don't contrast.
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