Shiaxa (Sjiagha) and Yenimu (Jénimu, Oser), together known as South Awyu, are a Papuan language or languages of Papua, Indonesia. Whether they constitute one language or two depends on one's criteria for a 'language'. The two varieties are,
- Bamgi River Awyu (Oser, Yenimu/Jénimu)
- Ia River Awyu (Shiaxa/Sjìagha)
Phonology
- Word-initial voiced stops /b, d, ɡ/ may have prenasalized allophones [ᵐb, ⁿd, ᵑɡ] when the preceding word within a sentence ends in a vowel.
- /s/ may have an allophone of [ɕ] when preceding /i/, and may also have an affricate allophone [ts] in word-initial positions.
- /x/ may be voiced as [ɣ] in intervocalic positions.
- /n/ when in word-final position, may nasalize a preceding vowel [Ṽ].
- In the Yenimu dialect, /ɾ/ may also have lateral allophones as [l] or [ɺ].
References
External links
- Shiaxa at the Awyu–Ndumut research group at VU University Amsterdam: [1]
