Hote language
Hote, also known as Malê, is an Oceanic language in Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea.
Grammar
Stress Patterns
A. In words up to four syllables, the first syllable is primarily stressed with occasional exceptions.Example:
- 'damak "lightening"
- 'dumloli "mountain"
- du'viyaŋ "earthquake"
Example:
- 'kate'poli "potato"
- 'kubaheŋ'vi "Friday"
Word Classes
Nouns
- Common Nouns: Most nouns in Hote are common nouns without inflection.
- # Example:
- ## kamuŋ "jungle"
- ## ayuk "firewood"
- ## pik "ground"
- ## uniak "house"
- Person Names: Hote names are typically nouns and modifiers that have been put together, or sometimes taken from the Jabem or Tok Pisin language.
- # Example:
- ## malak "home"
- ## kambaŋ "lime"
- Place Names: Place names in Hote are nouns that occur as subject only in an equative clause.
- # Example:
- ## valantik
- ## biyaŋai
- ## bayuŋ "Bulolo"
Compound Nouns
- Example:
- ## kubaheŋvi "Friday"
- ## kuayova "Thursday"
- ## balaliŋ "playground"
Pronouns
- Example:
l.dl.exc all go down to school
"we all are going to the school."
| Singular | Dual | Plural | ||
| 1. | inclusive | yanaŋ ~ yenaŋ | iniŋ | iniŋ ~ aniŋ |
| exclusive | iniŋ | iniŋ ~ aniŋ | ||
| 2. | anim | unim | unim | |
| 3. | aneŋ | iniŋ | iniŋ |
In the plural forms of both the inclusive and exclusive pronouns, 'aniŋ' is used over 'iniŋ' often by Hote villagers and by coastal dwellers.
- Example:
my cloth
anim avuŋ "your dog"
your dog
aneŋ kev "his shirt"
his shirt
6. Modifiers: Divided into four classes, these words modify nouns, adjectives, and verbs. Class one modifiers are adjectives used to modify nouns and pronouns. These words are found in descriptive noun phrases which indicate size, quality, color, etc. Class two modifiers are adverbs that indicate manner and aspect. Class three modifiers can modify both nouns and verbs, however, there is only one known word. Fourth class modifiers are intensifiers.
Class 1 Example:
daim "tall, long"
moma "dry"
ma "sharp"
lopali "wet"
thapuk "white"
doho "some"
sapeŋ "all"
tom "one"
Class 2 Example:
ketheŋ "quickly"
daŋ "completely"
katu "well"
loŋbu "again"
tibum "straight"
Class 3 Example:
kambom "bad, very."
Class 4 Example:
amuŋ "very"
na "very"
Location Words: Hote location words are often depicted by vertical and horizontal planes with the exception of kapo "inside" and yaiŋ "outside." The orientations are as follows:
Vertical:
vuliŋ on.top/overhead
vibiŋ "underneath"
vumak "underneath"
Horizontal:
saka "over there"
toka "over there"
toku "over there"
tuvulu "over there"
Height:
daka up.there
saku up.there
daku up.there
tamu down/down to
Example:
hamu vibiŋ "It is underneath."
3s.is underneath
Manner Words: These words connect a clause to the following particle of the sentence.
Example:
entek "this"
aintek "this"
nena "that, called"
hatum "like, as"
ma yamalu hanaiŋ i aintek nena
and 3s. talk to them this that
"and her husband said this,..."
Prepositions: In Hote, prepositions connect phrases to clauses.
Example:
aniŋ "inside"
haviŋ "with"
imbiŋ "with"
lok "with, including"
ek "for, to, at"
hamu haviŋ talebu lo lambu
3s.stay with mother and father
"He stayed with his mother and father."
Time Words:Muzzey, M. (1979). Hote grammar essentials. ''SIL Language and Culture Archives''. (pp. 23).
Example:vemam "later"
vem "a little while, a little time"
wakbok "yesterday"
sebok "before"
yamuŋ "tomorrow"
denaŋ "not yet"
Demonstratives:Muzzey, M. (1979). Hote grammar essentials. ''SIL Language and Culture Archives''. (pp. 23-24).
Example:atu "this"
entek "this"
intu "that"
namalu yauna atu "This very small boy."
male.child small.very this
duviyaŋ entek "It is an earthquake."
Verbs:Muzzey, M. (1979). Hote grammar essentials. ''SIL Language and Culture Archives''. (pp. 28).
In the Hote language, verbs are divided into four classes depending on what consonant the word begins with and how the word is tensed, class 1, class 2, class 3, and class 4. Class 1 verbs indicate tense signaled by a change in the first consonant of the stem. Class 1 verbs changed to voiced stops before the person marker prefix are prenasalized. Class 2 verb stems are identified by a beginning consonant of either the voiced stop d or b. The initial stop is prenasalized before the person marker to create the potential tense. Class 3 verb stems are began with the voiced prenasalized stop ŋg. Class 4 verb stems encompass all that are marked for poetneial b use of potential tense person markers or tense markers.More Class 1 Verb Examples:
yaha-va "I made/ am making."
ls.make
ya-m-ba "I will make."
ls.pot.make
o-n-doyeŋ "You will dance."
2s.pot.dance
Class 2 Verb Examples:
yaha-dum "I worked/ am working."
1s.work
ya-n-dum "I will work."
1s.pot.work
i-n-dum "He will work."
3s.pot.work
Class 3 Verb Examples:
yaha-ŋgabom num "I am cooking food."
1s.cook food
ya-ŋgabom num "I will cook food."
1s.cook food
Class 4 Verb Examples:
yahu-mu "I am resting."
1s.rest
te ya-mu "I will rest."
pot 1s.rest
te i-tuŋ "He will find."
pot 3s.find
ha-tuŋ "He found."
3s.find
Person Markers:
Actual Tense: verbs in action, completed, or habitual.| Singular | Dual | Plural | ||
| 1. | inclusive exclusive | yaha- | a- a- | na-/a- na/a- |
| 2. | ho-/o-/hu-/u- | o-/u- | no-/o-/u-/nu- | |
| 3. | ha-/e-/i- | e-/i- | ni-/i/ne-/e- |
Potential Tense: verbs that have not yet taken place but will.
| Singular | Dual | Plural | ||
| 1. | inclusive exclusive | ya- | na- na- | na-/a- na-/a- |
| 2. | nu-/u-/no-/o- | no-/o-/nu- | nu-/u-/no- | |
| 3. | e-/i- | ni- | ni-/ne-/e- |
Example:
e-bi bok "They speared the pig."
3p.spear pig
ni-m-bi bok "They will spear the pig."
3p.pot.spear pig
ho-yuv "You blew/are blowing."
u-yuv "You will blow."
Reduplication: Complete reduplication of numerals signals distribution whereas complete reduplication of quantities signals an increase in quantity. However, reduplication is uncommon in the Hote language.
| +Head1 | +Head2 |
| numeral | numeral |
| quantity | quantity |
Example:
tom "one"
tom tom "each one"
hawa numbeŋ numbeŋ "He gets very many."
3s.get plenty plenty
Counting System:Muzzey, M. (1979). Hote grammar essentials. ''SIL Language and Culture Archives''. (pp. 46-47).
The counting system of the Hote language is based on one man which utilizes seven different numerals as a base: 1,2,3,4,5,10, and 20. Numbers in between, are indicated by inclusion quantifiers, multiple quantifier phrases, and additional quantifier phrases.| +Head | +Quantifier |
| baheŋ "hands" | vi "half" |
Example:
baheŋ vi "five"
hands half
| +Head A | ± Conj | +Inclusion | +Head B |
| BQP | ba "and" | lahavu "including | numeral |
Example:
baheŋ vi lahavu te "six"
hands half including one
baheŋ vi lahavu ayova "nine"
hands half and including four
| +Head A | ±Conj | ±Inclusion | ±Head B |
| laumiŋ "ten" | ba "and" | la or lahavu "including" | numeral BQP IQP |
Example:
laumiŋ ba lahavu te "eleven"
ten and including one
laumiŋ ba la baheŋ vi ba lahavu te "sixteen"
ten and including hands half and including one
| +Head A | +Quantity | ±Conj | ±Inclusion | ±Head B |
| buŋ "whole" | numeral BQP | ba "and" | la or lahavu "including" | numeral BQP IQP MQP |
Example:
buŋ te "twenty"
whole one
buŋ te ba lahavu lu "twenty-three"
whole one and including three
buŋ te ba la laumiŋ "thirty"
whole one and including ten
buŋ te ba la laumiŋ ba lahavu te "thirty-one"
whole one and including ten and including one
[Phonology]
Consonants
Prenasalization: In the Hote language, all voiced prenasalized stops occur in medial position across syllable boundaries in nouns and verbs, except for which occurs word initial. Other exceptions include the following: can occur in compounds, can occur in the initial position of loan words, and names, and can occur word initial before a low vowel.Examples:
Verb
/ i-bitak/ "they came up"
/im-bitak/ "he will come up"
Nouns
/kobom/ "custom"
/kam ' bom/ "bad"
/kabeɳ/ "famine"
/mambeiɳ] "play"
Coumpound
/noum-beiɳ/ "plenty"
/dum-beiɳ/ "a large group"
Examples:
Verb
/i-dum/ "they work"
/in-dum/ "he will work"
Noun
/oudouɳ/ "source"
/lenondoɳ/ "his ear"
Examples:
Verb
/ne. gia/ "they will carry"
/eɳ. gia/ "he will carry"
Noun
/ligiɳ/ "sickness"
/maɳgin/ "thorn"
| Phoneme | Allophone | Description | Occurrence | Example |
| /p/ | voiceless unaspirated bilabial stop | word initial, between vowels, word final | /palei/ "a sore" /lopali/ "wet" | |
| /b/ | voiced unaspirated bilabial stop | word initial and between vowels | /ba'lam/ "sweet potato" /laba/ "plastic object" | |
| /t/ | voiceless unaspirated dental stop | word initial and between vowels or a vowel and a consonant | /tatou/ "a cough" | |
| /d/ | voiced dental stop | word initial and between vowels | /daku/ "up" /nakaduɳ/ "small" | |
| /k/ | voiced unaspirated backed-velar stop | word initial, between vowels and between a vowel and a consonant, and word final | /kapin/ "scissors" /uakatik/ "mother" | |
| voiced glottal stop | between vowels and between a vowel and a consonant, and word final in variation with during fast speech | /uakbouk/ "yesterday" | ||
| /g/ | voiced backed-velar stop | word initial in names or loan words | /loɳga ̃ ̃ /ga ̃ /gigin/ "outside bone of ankle" | |
| voiced backed-velar stop fluctuating with voiced alveopalatal affricate | preceding or following a high front vowel | /loɳga ̃ ̃ /ga ̃ /gigin/ "outside bone of ankle" | ||
| voiced backed-velar stop fluctuating with a voiced palatalized velar stop fluctuating with a voiced alveopalatal affricate | word initial and medial preceding a low vowel /a/. | /loɳga ̃ ̃ /ga ̃ /gigin/ "outside bone of ankle" |