Proto-Winter Pygmy

Proto-Wintewr Pygmy Vocabulary

Proto-Winter Pygmy is the most recent common ancestor of the Winter Pygmy languages, a large macrofamily of languages spoken in the Radakui Archipegalo by the Winter Pygmies. The language is head-final with an OSV word order.

=Phonology=

Consonants
=Nouns=

PWP has two grammatical numbers, singular and plural. Thew plural is made by reduplicating the final CV syllable of the noun:


 * *ku- ("boar") > *kuku- ("boars")
 * *natu- ("snail") > *natutu- ("snail")
 * *wiu- ("morning") > *wiuwiu- ("morning")
 * *atæ- ("brain") > *atætæ- ("brains")

=Pronouns=

Personal Pronouns
Like nouns, personal pronouns are made plural via reduplication.


 * wæ- ("I") > *wæwæ- ("we")
 * *ki- ("you") > *kiki- ("you.pl")

PWP compounds the 1st and 2nd person pronouns to make a wide variety of nounced pronouns.


 * *wæki- ("I and you.sg")
 * *kikiwæ- ("I and you.pl")
 * *wæwæki- ("we and you.sg")
 * *kikiwæwæ- ("we and you.pl")

=Verbs=

PWP has two tenses; past and non-past. All verbs are inherantly past and are rendered non-past with the postposition *ani- ("at"):


 * wæ næli ("I ate") > wæ næli ani ("I eat")
 * ki sæo ("you loved") > ki sæo ani ("you love")

Imperative
The imperative mood is formed with a construction literally meaning "VERB on you":


 * næli ki toa "eat!" (eat on you)
 * sæo ki toa "love!" (love on you")

=Syntax=

Subordinate Clauses
Subordinate clauses are made with the verb *wioki- ("to say"). The subordinate clause is structured so that the subordinate verb is placed at the front (although after an object if there is one), which is followed by the head noun which is followed by the verb *wioki-.

[(Object) Subordinate.Verb] Noun say

E.g:


 * suwawa næli ku wioki "the boar that eats roots" (root- eat boar say)