| Penrhyn | |
|---|---|
| Mangarongaro, Penrhynese, Tongareva | |
| tongareva | |
| Native to | Cook Islands |
| Region | Penrhyn Island, Northern Cook Islands |
Native speakers | 200 (2011 census)[1] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | pnh |
| Glottolog | penr1237 |
| ELP | Penrhyn[2] |
The Penrhyn language is a Cook Islands Maori dialectal variant[3] belonging to the Polynesian language family spoken by about 200 people on Penrhyn Island and other islands in Northern Cook Islands.[4] It is considered to be an endangered language as many of its users are shifting to Cook Islands Māori and English.
Phonology
Alphabet
A, E, H, I, K, M, N, Ng, O, P, R, T, U, V[5]
Long vowels are written with a macron.
Consonants
| Labial | Alveolar | Velar | Glottal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| nasal | m | n | ŋ<ng> | |
| stop | p | t | k | |
| fricative | (f) v | s | h | |
| Approximant | l<r> |
Tongareva is one of the few Cook Islands languages without a glottal stop [ʔ]. There is allophonic voicing of stops present. [f] is present in loanwords from languages like Rakahanga-Manihiki language.[6]
Grammar
References
- ^ Penrhyn at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
- ^ Endangered Languages Project data for Penrhyn.
- ^ "Te Reo Maori Act" (2003)
- ^ "Penrhyn". Ethnologue. Retrieved 7 March 2013.
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Penrhyn (Tongareva)". Dictionary of Cook Islands Languages. Suva: The University of the South Pacific. 2016.