Golin language

In this article we will explore the intriguing world of Golin language, which has captured the interest of numerous researchers, experts and enthusiasts in recent years. From its origins to its impact on contemporary society, Golin language has played a significant role in a wide range of fields, from science and technology to popular culture and politics. Throughout these pages, we will examine the many facets of Golin language, as well as its implications and perspectives for the future. Prepare to embark on a gripping and eye-opening journey that will challenge your understanding of Golin language and lead you to contemplate its importance in today's world. .

"Golin" redirects here. For other uses, see Golin (disambiguation).
Golin
RegionGumine District, Simbu Province
Native speakers
(50,000 cited 1981)[1]
Latin
Language codes
ISO 639-3gvf
Glottologgoli1247
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Golin (also Gollum, Gumine) is a Papuan language of Papua New Guinea.

Phonology

Vowels

Front Back
High ɪ ɪː ʊ ʊː
Mid ɛ ɛː ɔ ɔː
Low ɑ ɑː

Diphthongs that occur are /ɑi ɑu ɔi ui/. The consonants /l n/ can also be syllabic.

Consonant

Bilabial Alveolar Palatal Velar
plain lab. plain Late. plain lab.
Nasal m n
Stop voiceless
/voiced 		p
b
(bʷ) 		t
d 		k
ɡ
(gʷ)
Fricative s~ʃ ɬ~
l
Approximant j w
Trill r

/bʷ ɡʷ/ are treated as single consonants by Bunn & Bunn (1970),[2] but as combinations of /b/ + /w/, /ɡ/ + /w/ by Evans et al. (2005).[3]

Two consonants appear to allow free variation in their realisations: varies with , and with .

/n/ assimilates to before /k/ and /ɡ/.

Tone

Golin is a tonal language, distinguishing high (), mid (), and low () tone. The high tone is marked by an acute accent and the low tone by a grave accent, while the mid tone is left unmarked. Examples:[3]

  • High: mú 'type of snake'; wí 'scream (man)'
  • Mid: mu 'type of bamboo'; wi 'coming from the same ethnic group'
  • Low: mù 'sound of river'; wì 'cut (verb)'

Pronouns

Golin is notable for having a small pronominal paradigm. There are two basic pronouns:[4]

  • ná first person
  • í second person

There is no number distinction and no true third person pronoun. Third person pronouns in Golin are in fact compounds derived from 'man' plus inín 'self':

  • yalíni 'he' < yál 'man' + inín 'self'
  • abalíni 'she' < abál 'woman' + inín 'self'

References

  1. ^ Golin at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) Closed access icon
  2. ^ *Bunn, Gordon; Bunn, Ruth (1970). "Golin phonology". Pacific Linguistics A. 23: 1–7.
  3. ^ a b Evans, Nicholas; Besold, Jutta; Stoakes, Hywel; Lee, Alan (2005). Materials on Golin: Grammar, texts and dictionary. Parkville: The Dept. Linguistics and Applied Linguistics, The University of Melbourne.
  4. ^ Foley, William A. (2018). "The morphosyntactic typology of Papuan languages". In Palmer, Bill (ed.). The Languages and Linguistics of the New Guinea Area: A Comprehensive Guide. The World of Linguistics. Vol. 4. Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton. pp. 895–938. ISBN 978-3-11-028642-7.
  • Bunn, Gordon (1974). "Golin grammar". Working Papers in New Guinea Linguistics. 5.