Language Issues

I.  INTRODUCTION

            This is a comparative analysis of Kalanguya narrative discourse. Kalanguya is the language spoken by a rough estimate of 70,000 people populating parts of seven provinces of Northern Luzon namely, Nueva Ecija, Benguet, Ifugao, Quirino, Isabela, Pangasinan and Nueva Vizcaya. This language group belongs to the Igorot tribes people of Northern Philippines, hence similarities to the languages of the North are evident most particularly the Ibaloi, Pangasinense, and Kankanaey languages.

The narrative entitled ‘Hi Manang Narda’ is a personal recollection based on a true experience originally written in Kalanguya as a letter of report to someone who is personally acquainted to the topic of the letter. The second text, “Ag Pinadtin Amah Apo Diyoh” is another factual story of a 63-year old father, recorded in tape and transcribed as is. The last one “Hi Tatadaw tan hi Ootot” is a folktale told by an old man, approximately 80 years old, written down as faithfully as possible. As opposed to the second text, this folktale was not recorded on tape but rather, notes were written down as the story was told. This folktale as far as the learners know is an original of the Kalanguya tribe and was passed on from the early generation through oral tradition.

 

II. PURPOSE

            Discourse is crucial to translation. As a mother tongue speaker of the language we are translating into, we only rely on intuition. That is okay if we don’t carry the responsibility to render God’s Word in the best possible fashion meeting all the three criteria of translation dynamicity. Besides it is fun having fun (hard fun) with your own language.

 

III.  SUMMARY OF PLOT STRUCTURE

Kalanguya narratives just like other narratives contain the elements described by Longacre. All three stories analyzed started with a setting. In the two factual stories, the primary setting was signaled by a time setting supported by an Orientation. On the one hand, the setting of the folktale is introduced by the usual folktale introducer ‘There was, it is said…’.

The similarities and differences observed in these three stories as to their setting are the following: Text A and B both have the two information of temporal location and activity of the participant. Text C’s first statement is the existential (There was a monkey and a rat, they made a deal), the participant and their activity. In the very first sentence of all three texts, the main participants in the story were stated and prominence is accorded to the topic of the narrative right from the very start.

A.Nonta hakey lan  bolan, limawak di Baguio ni an namahyal nem   komosta lah Manang Narda  During     one     [pst-lk] month    go[pst]-1s  to  Baguio       to  visit [pst]       if      ‘kumusta’  *-nmk    Manang Narda.           Last month, I went to Baguio to visit if how Manang Narda is doing.

B. Nonta la gi-gi-got kayo ahanin, waday schedule mid Kamandag ni an     When             little      you[pl] still,      there was                  we-in  Kamandang      to    go- mantodon ehel Apo Diyoh. teach-            word   Lord   God. When you were still little, we had a schedule in Kamandag to go-to-teach the word of the Lord God.

C.  Wada        konod          tatadaw ni hi ootot. Nantebal ida.       There were     it-is-said             monkey      and the rat  talked/agreed they There were monkey and the rat, they made a deal.

A. Hi Manang Narda

            As stated previously, this text is a part of a letter to recount events. It is established that a letter is preeminently a surface structure phenomenon, which may partake of the characteristics of any of the four main types; in this case, the narrative (Longacre: Grammar of Discourse; p.6).

            The ‘Hi Manang Narda’ which is a written narrative is a story within a story of a story having 75 sentences. It has an over-all plot which contains two others. The overall plot is the account of the author’s visit to Narda. The second subplot is the narrative of the involvement of the author at the time of the accident. The third was the account of the event of the accident itself as recounted by the person who met the accident but narrated by the author.

            In the over-all plot, Sentences 1-28 can be identified as the setting of the story. The next five sentences (S#29-33) is the Inciting Incident. The Developing Tension starts from Sentence # 34-36, then Sentences 38-54 is the climax, Sentence 55-71 is the Denouement and Sentences #72-75 is the Conclusion. Notice that Sentence 37 was left out because it seemed not to fit in any of the subcategories. This is like a sub-setting or an author comment that sets the recounting of the actual story.

            The second subplot begins in Sentence 3. The following sentences until S#10 comprise the setting; S#11 is the Inciting Incident; S#12-13-Developing Tension; S#14-16-Climax; S#17-21-Denoument; Sentences 1, 2, 22 and 23 are author comments or support information in that S#1-2 serve as the opener and 22-23 serve as the conclusion of this particular subplot but also opens the next episode.

            The third story starts at Sentence # 38 although 37 sets the setting of Sentences 38 through 41. Sentence 42a is the Inciting Incident followed by 42b-47 as the Developing Tension; S#48-54 is the climax; S#55-58 is the Denouement; S#59-66-Final Suspense; S#67-70 is the Conclusion of this part of the story although 67-70 is another episode (more like two episodes) with its own setting (S#67); S#68a - Inciting incident and Tension; S#68b-Climax; S#69-70 – Denouement.

            Another way of looking at this narrative is by dividing it into two sections where Sentences #1-2; 22-37; 71-75 will comprise the first part then the second and third subplots mentioned above shall be linked together into one. This is possible due to the fact that Sentence #3-21; 38-70 happen in the same timeline except that S#38-70 shifts in focus from the narrator to the person who is the topic of the narrative.

 

B. Ag Pinadtin Amah Apo Diyoh    

            This is a factual short story having 44 sentences. The setting begins in Sentence #1 and ends in #11. Sentence 12 is the Inciting Incident; 13-17 is the Developing Tension part; 18 is the climax; 19-41 is the Denouement, 42-44 is the Conclusion.

            Since this was an orally-told story, the listeners piped in their own comments or questions resulting in an embedded conversation which somewhat interrupted the normal flow of the story. For example in the Setting of this story, sentences 8 & 9 which are conversational interruptions do not seem belong in the setting but anyhow they are embedded there. The same is true with 39 & 40 in the Denouement section.

 

C. Hi Tatadaw tan hi Ootot

            This is a fable told in the third person point of view consisting of 53 sentences. Sentences 1-3 is its setting; 4-8-Inciting Incident; 9-45-Developing Tension; 46-49 Climax; 50-Denouement; 50-53- Final Suspense.

            Others have surely noticed this in folklores before but it is interesting to see that this narrative can be further subdivided into three parts. And when each subdivision is examined independent from the other, it is noticeable that the particular part has its own complete plot structure.  Example is: First episode includes Sentence 1-27. (S#1-3-Setting; 4-8-Inciting Incident; 9-25-Developing Tension; 26-Climax; 27-Denouement). The second episode follows with Sentence 28-50 (S#28-Setting; 29-30 Inciting Incident; 31-48 Developing Tension; 49 Climax; 50 Denouement) and then the last three sentences is the last episode (S#51a-Setting; 51b-Inciting Moment; 52-53a Developing Tension; 53b- Climax; 53c-Denouement).

           

III.  PARTICIPANT REFERENCE

A. Hi Manang Narda

• In this story the Major Participants are referred to by their names (Proper nouns), except for the narrator-author who refer to herself in first person singular pronouns. In the succeeding reference to them, they are referred to by pronouns.
• Minor participants are referred to by their function (Noun Phases) in the story and no special introduction is accorded to them. They appear and disappear as the story moves.

¨Collective minor participants are addressed in third person plural pronoun.

• Zero Reference - 28, 30, 36, 55, 56,

 

B. Ag Pinadtin Amah Apo Diyoh

• The Major Participant, who is also the narrator refers to himself in first person singular pronouns except in the direct quote in S#26 & 30 where the major participant was referred to in the second person singular.
• Minor Participants also pop up as needed and disappear as the story moves away.
• Zero Reference -  8, 9, 39, 40, 42

 

C. Hi Tatadaw tan hi Ootot

• Major Participants are named using proper nouns and noun phrases. This name alternates in function as their proper name in other sentences becomes their title. They are also referred to by pronouns.
• Due to the fact that this is a third person narrative, the storyteller refers to all the participants in the third person except in direct quotations.
• Zero Reference – 6, 8,12,15, 19-25,28, 33, 34, 35a, 36, 37, 42, 43, 44, 52

 

D. Occurrence of Zero-Reference in Text A, B, and C

            Aside from the above enumerated pronoun references of participants, some major and minor participants are referred to by noun phrases mostly occupying the subject and (P1, F1) and object (F2) positions. On the other hand, there are a few clauses having no reference of their verbs. In Text A, the following 5 clauses with zero reference (S 28, 30, 36, 55, 56) were noticed.

28. Dakel i landok ni himamdiw Di nangkayang tan di dingding ida.

Many steel bars are protruding on the second floor and the walls.

 

30. Naagyat ni hinawngan ko men matibew ay kamanggayan nangitibwen towak.

(She was) surprised with my arrival but then (it is) noticeable that (she was) happy to see me.

 

36. Antatakot ni peteg! Amon anhakit ni peteg nem kaitibtibew!

(It is) very scary, (it) looks so painful when (you) look at it.

 

55. Nem haballi ay nakonsensiya na-mo.

But thanks that (he) might have-been-bothered-by-his-conscience

 

56. Nem nonta kono ginoyod dalli ag magoyod tep nai-let gayam pati kadhon.

But when they pulled (her), (she) cannot be pulled because (her foot) was stuck including (her) pants.

 

            The reference of Sentence 28 goes back in 26 where the unfinished house building was mentioned and further described in 27. In Sentence 30a, the reference in focus was not mentioned. Again, the preceding clause (29) mentioned the reference; then the verb in the clause that followed is modified by a relative clause with the pronoun reference embedded in it. Sentence 36 is an exclamation whose reference is that which is mentioned in 34 and 35. Sentence 55 and 56 are similar to 28 and 30 where the referent is mentioned earlier in the discourse.

            In Text B there are five (8, 9, 39, 40, 42) occurrences of zero reference where the first four are direct quotes of conversations. Sentence 42, a self-rebuke which is common in Kalanguya everyday conversation most of the time if not always, does not include a reference.

            In Text C, sentences 6, 8, 12, 15, 19-25, 28, 33, 34,35a, 36, 37, 42, 43, 44, 52, there are 29 zero reference, 28 of which are dialogues. Only sentence 28 and 52 are different in that the nearest reference is in the first clause of the previous sentence which is even alternated with another noun phrase.

26. An kono intibew ootot ay nalgeban hi tatadaw men matey.

     Rat went to see monkey and saw that monkey is burned and died.

 

27. Han to kono pambelin ni in-abbong.

       Then     he                 turned                a     meat.

           Then he turned (it) meat (for give- away).

 

28. Nonta nalabah di kad-an idan tatadaw, kan da kono ay,

   When       passed  by      in   where         they(the)   monkeys,    said     they,

     When (rat) passed by where the monkeys were, they asked, “What is that?(you are carrying)

 

51. Nonta kono mowan pihakey, intibew dah ootot et han da hipola.

         When              again       ne time,        saw     they-he   rat and then they chased

             Again, one time they saw rat and then they chased(him).

 

 

52. Kimalab di kiyew han ida dama la komlab hota tadaw

     Climbed       in-the    tree           then     they   also    already  climbed      the        monkeys

  (The rat) climbed in the tree then they(monkeys) also climbed but the rat descended(down a vine).

 

E. Introduction of Participants

a. Introduced in a non-topic, non-interactive role

1. Text A. s1. Limawak di Baguio ni an namahyal nem komosta lah Manang Narda.
2. Text B. s14. Men wadada hota gait kon Tagalog nonta damang ni wangwang.
3. Text C. s1. Wada konod tatadaw ni hi ootot.

b. Into Existing Mental representation

1. Text A. s1.…limawak di Baguio ni… (I went to Baguio to…)
2. Text B. s23.…intibew ida nonta gait kon Tagalog hota aabong…
3. Text C. s28. Nonta nalabah di kad-an idan tatadaw...

 

IV. COHESION

            The types of cohesion most apparent in the texts studied are identity (particularly repetition and pronouns,) and morphosyntactic patterns. Following are few examples:

Text C. Repetition

53. Nonta intibew ootot ay naiptek ida la nonta daplah, nayapah ni

 When          saw              rat   that    near         they already   the       cliff             descend    

  dagoh   hi ootot et han to ngitngiti hota kawayan ni killaban da

immediately  rat       and  then  it chewed-on the     bamboo    that   climbed  they

et ma-gah ida lan amin hota tatadaw di daplah.

and    fell      they           al      the     monkeys   to the  cliff

When the rat saw they(monkeys) were already near the cliff, the rat immediately descended and then chewed on the bamboo that they  climbed and the monkeys all fell to the cliff.

 

Text A. Pronoun

46. Hi Jaqueline kono ngo, to kagoyogoyodalih Manang Narda nem igmana na-let.

                                                    she    pulling                            Manang Narda         but    then           stuck.

As for Jaqueline, she was pulling Manang Narda but then (she) was stuck.

 

Text B. Discourse Pragmatic Structuring

22. Atte linaknak law ay anhakit i halik et han nak mabangon et nak man-apoy nonta, nak And      felt-I         already that painful        foot-my and then I  stood-up    and   I    went-to- build-fire,    I tomokan hota apoy di liyang at mantongtongawak law diman inggato law i natelweg.                                          rekindle    the fire       at     cave  and       Sit               -I      already   there    until already   became-morning. And then I now feel that my foot is painful and then/and so I stood up and then I went to build fire, went to rekindle the fire in the cave and sat there now until it-became-morning already.

23. Nonta law natelweg, intibew ida nonta gait kon Tagalog nonta damdamang hota When      already  morning,      saw          [pl]   the    companion my Tagalog  from     other-side     the abong, aabong ni naogipan ko. house,      hut       which  slept         I When it is already morning, my Tagalog companions who are at the other side saw the house, (I mean) hut which I slept in.

            This example is also true of Repetition under identity.

 

1. Paragraph Boundaries 

Text A. Hi Manang Narda

            The first paragraph is introduced by a statement of the temporal location, and the narrator as a participant, and the activity. It ends with a statement of a change of location which was stated in a general term.

Nem nonta dendeni kami law lad Cabanatuan , nalangboh i batterin cellphone ko isunga      

But   when      almost/near  1pl[exc]  already -in    Cabanatuan,  use-up[pst]         battery-of         1s      so/therefor/that is why    

naogipak ketteg law inggaton kami kahawang di Manila .

sleep[pst] –1s             already   until  1pl[exc]     arrive     in     Manila.

But when were almost in Cabanatuan, the battery of my cellphone was used-up, so I just went to sleep until we arrived in Manila.

 

            The second paragraph takes the general location that ends the preceding paragraph and makes it specific and then attaches it to a temporal location.

Nalabah ni alas onsen malabi ay ondatengak di abong.

Pass[pst]        11:00 o’clock-in  evening  when arrive[pst]-1s  in  (my) house.

It was past 11:00 o’clock in the evening when I arrived at my house.

            The above introduces the new paragraph and ends with an author comment recapping the intent of the topic activity introduced in the first sentence of the first paragraph.

Nabayag noman ni kan to ay nak ompahyal, men ani-wel tep   andin nayon i wayak.

 Long time                         said   3s          1s     go-and-visit, but then    cannot be because  none  always      time/chance-1s

(It has been) a long time that she asked me to goand visit (her), but (it) cannot be because I always don’t have time.

Isunga   nihaya tep nakdeng law i ihkoyla, pinalanok ni ollaw ni an mangitibew.

So/That is why   now that      finished  already  studies/classes, planned-I      to go           to    see (to go and see)

So now that classes are finished, I planned to go (to-go-and) see.   

            The third paragraph begins with statement of a new episode as evidenced by a new activity, new spatial location and new temporal location, then it ends with a visual description where the verb used was stative.

            The fourth paragraph is a continuation of the preceding one but there is a change of focus and there is an activity. The verb is now an active action verb. This paragraph ends with an interlude summarizing the time spent in the talking exchange after which it is followed by a clause with a verb in the active voice.

            The fifth paragraph is now a new episode and so the introductory statement contains all three information: temporal, spatial, and activity.

Nonta kono nakdeng ni intolod daak di bus ni mampaManila, limaw

When   she said    finished          take [pst]   they-me   bus            going-to-Manila,       went    

ida lad paradaan ni jeep ni mampaKayapa.

they               terminal    of  jeep        going-to-Kayapa.

After they took me to the bus going to Manila , they went to the terminal of the going to Kayapa.

 

            The sixth paragraph is another episode signaled by a temporal location and an orientation. This is followed by another paragraph introduced with a new spatial location.

            The eighth paragraph starts with a new activity. The story ends with another paragraph signaling the end of the story or at least a pause as evidenced by the change in activity, the mode of the narrative and the eminent change of location.

 

Text B. Ag Pinadtin Amah Apo Diyoh

            This short narrative is divided into four paragraphs. The first one is the statement of the temporal location and an existential. The end of this paragraph is based upon the cohesive device (another temporal location) which signals another episode or events thus, taken here as a clue to start another paragraph. In the third paragraph, the change in time and new event or activity signals another division (End of 2.2 and Beginning of 3.1). In the fourth paragraph, the narrator gives a conclusion to his story suggestive of another division although in this one, the two sentences begin and end the story (4.1, 4.2).

 

Paragraph A. 1.1. Nonta la gi-gi-got kayo ahanin, waday schedule mid Kamandag ni an mantodon ehel Apo Diyoh. Atte hi-gak hota ollaw ah.

 

1.2. Pirmi odan! Men tep wadada hota gait kon Tagalog nonta damang ni wangwang. At kaondalndalnak!

           

Paragraph B. 2.1 Alas dose na-mon malabi ay mabwag ali hota kiyew di ha-pat nonta a-abong han to dah-oka hota aabong ni naogipan ko.

2.2. Atte linaknak law ay anhakit i halik et han nak mabangon et nak man-apoy nonta…  nak tomokan hota apoy di liyang at mantongtongawak law diman niya inggato law i natelweg. 

 

Paragraph C. 3.1. Nonta law natelweg, intibew ida nonta gait kon Tagalog nonta damdamang hota abong, aabong ni naogipan ko.

3.2 Ag indawat dadan hota oras ni mantodon ehel Apo Diyoh tep igmana schedule ko dadan ni ollaw diman. 

 

Paragraph D. 4.1. Koy hiyaman ngo, i ihtodyan ag pangonodan ni piyan Apo Diyoh.

4.2 Nallogi law niman et kammon outreach men agak piyan ni maabsin basta wada et i pahding.             

 

 

Text C. Hi Tatadaw tan hi Ootot

            The first paragraph opens with the existential statement followed by an activity. It closes with the end of the activity within that episode (S1 &S13).  The second paragraph then starts with a cohesive device, that of repetition which serves as an introductory statement to the next episode. Again, this paragraph ends in the concluding event of this particular episode (S14&S27). The third paragraph is introduced by a spatial location and a new activity (S28&S50).  The fourth one is introduced by a temporal location and a new episode or activity. It ends on the concluding event of the same episode (S51&S53).

 

2. Grammatical Cohesive Devices

            Cohesive devices found in the texts are the usual introducer and conjunction particles or conjoining words (Walrod: Discourse Grammar in Ga’dang p. 27). In this text, we observed that dependent clauses obligatorily contain an introducer particle, which may be preceded by a conjunction particle. No clause contains two of either conjunctions or introducer particles. The conjoining words or particles that mostly occupy the P2 position are as follows.

 

Cohesive Particle	TEXT A	TEXT B	TEXT C	Function	English Gloss
	Sentence No.	Sentence No.	Sentence No.
Isunga	7, 24, 32, 42, 43, 52, 57, 75			Connects constituents from discourse level down to lexical level.	For that reason
at	10, 13, 45, 52, 53, 64, 68, 69, 70	2, 11, 16, 22, 26, 38, 41	4, 9, 13, 37, 49,	Either introduces or connects two words or sentences which are independent from one another.	and
tep	15, 40, 45, 56, 73	13, 42	34, 37	Used in clausal level of the discourse where the clause that follows this particle gives the reason of the preceding.	because
Ag	18, 21, 27, 56, 73	6, 19, 32, 41, 42, 44		Always occurs in P1 or pre-predicate position and negates the entire action of the clause.	not
Han	24, 43, 57	17, 22, 29, 38	26, 29, 45, 50, 52	Conjoins sequential action	and then
men	30	15		Roughly the same as nem but sometimes it can be used to conjoin clauses which are not necessarily contrastive. Can only be used in the clausal or sentence level.	but
ay	31, 35, 48, 49, 52, 58, 60, 61, 63,	10, 17	48	Connect two clauses where the second is the result of the first; sequence also	Then, as a result, afterwhich
nem	34, 46, 55	18, 31	51	Contrasts two constituents. Paragraph to clausal level.	but
tan	48	24		Used to connect 2 words or sentences in which the one is dependent upon the other to form meaning; also connects events that happened simultaneously	and
et		18, 22, 29,	29, 30, 45, 46, 48, 50, 51, 50	Used interchangeably with at but in the transcribed story, it was noticed that it is used alone mostly to connect events of fast-paced action and or normal speed actions but happened within seconds or minutes of each other. Therefore, it was posited that this is a particle used particularly for that purpose.	And, and then, then, afterwards,
andi		10, 34, 36		Negation	No, nothing
igmana	46	25, 42	46, 47	Sequence to result	And then

Figure 1. Grammatical Cohesives

 

            Aside from the above there are also other cohesive devices found in all three texts.

They are all occupying the Alpha position.

		Sentence Numbers
		TEXT A	TEXT B	TEXT C
Nonta hakey lan…	Last month, last year, Sometime ago, When	1	1, 12,
Ahleg to law i bolan ni nalabah	A few months have passed	2
Ta nonta wadaak ahanin di	For when…, For while…	3
Nonta met laeng Domingo	On that same…	4
Nonta nak mallogan di bus	When  (I)…, (B.)And when, (C) But when	5, 38, 67, 72, 73	10 (At), 28	27, 30, 31(atman), 39, 52
Nonta nakaloganak law	When (I)… already	6	23, 30, 34	45
Nem  nonta dendeni kami law lad Cabanatuan	But when…almost…already	7
Nalabah ni alas onsen malabi	It was past….	8
Nonta naba-ba-ba	After a while	11		17, 38
Nem anggan hiyaman,	But even if that is the case	21
Nabayag noman ni	It has been a long time that…	22
Isunga nihaya tep nakdeng law I ihkoyla	So now that, therefore now that	23
Ambilonget pay	It was still dark…	24
At kustokuston alas sais ay	And at that exact time, And at exactly…	25
kustokuston	It was exactly….	29
Nonta limalimaw I	When time passed as…	37
nem nonta dendeni law ni on-andal	But when almost	39
Nem nonta wadada law lad tiyed di Mona Lisa,	But when	42, 56
Hay impahding kono nonta driver,	That which (he) did is that,	43	(At...) 5
Hapa gayam ngo ay		47
Mala ngo at				37
Anggan hiyaman	Even if that is the case	49
No konon goyoden da hota hali to	When/If	51
Niman	At that time,	52		4
isunga gapota andi law I pahding da	So since	56
At hiya, kusto konon	And so far, so good….	58
Nem hay palso	But the thing/problem is,	59
isunga	So, so that is why, so that is what	59	6
Nonta kono nalabah i	After (a few days), One day,time	62		50
at nonta agsapa to	And then on the next morning	68	3, 4
Nem nonta dowan eggew da kono law diman	But when	69
isunga nonta limaw hi Manong Jimmy	So when	70
Panggep ida ngo nonta gait dan nallogan	As for the….	74
Gapota di Mapayao	Since	75
Niman law	Now, at that time	75
Inggato nonta Habado			32
Nallogi law niman			44
Mabaybayag	After a while			5, 6
Alas dose, Biyernes	(By mentioning exact date, time, day, etc.)		17, 33
Igmana hagang to				41
Bali noman ngo	Nevermind			33

Figure 2. Paragraph Boundary Cohesives  (Walrod: Discourse Grammar in Ga’dang, p. 32)

 

 

 

 

1. PROMINENCE: FOCUS, THEMATIC AND EMPHASIS

Focus which is relatively the most important information in the given setting (Dik 1978:42) or that part which indicates what the speaker intends as the most important change to be made in the hearers mental representation (Levinsohn & Dooley 2001:62) has been found to be numerous in the Kalanguya narratives studied. In the sentence or clause level, it was observed that in Kalanguya it is very easy to recognize a constituent in focus because of the pronouns and particles that marks it.

 

1. Pronouns Marked for Focus in the Texts

In the three narratives pronouns which are marked for focus are written as enclitics to the verbs or to the negative particles but sometimes they are unattached especially the third person plural ‘ida or da.’  Following is a list of pronouns that occupy the focus position (Actor, Agent, Experiencer focus) in the clauses.

 

Text A. Hi Manang Narda

 

Person	Sing	S# where it occurs	Plural	S# where it occurs
First	-ak -k	P1-18 F1-1,4,5,6,7, 8, 16,23,25,31,37, 71, 73	mi	F1- 73
	nak	12, 24, 29, 72
Third	to	P1-46, 52 F1-22, 33, 35, 43, 47, 48,49, 51, 56, 71, 75	-da/ ida	P1- 6, 40, 57, 64, 69, F1- 14, 38, 39, 48, 58, 60, 64, 67, 69, 70
	Hiyaman	Alpha - 21

Figure 3. Pronouns marked for focus in Text A.

  Text B. Ag Pinadtin Amah Apo Diyoh

Person	Sing	S# where it occurs	Plural	S# where it occurs
First	- ak	P1- 6, 19, 44 F1-3,7,10,11,13,22,29
	nak	P1- 22,38, 41 34 (F2).
	Hi-gak	P1 – 1 F1 - 1
Second	ka	F2-26, 30	kayo	A - 1
Third	Hi-gato Hiyaman	P1 - 20 P1 - 27	-da/ ida	P1-29, 36 F1-23,24,25,29,30,34, 35,37,

   Figure 4. Pronouns marked for focus in Text B.

 

• The following pronouns function as Source Pronouns in the story. They are in clauses where the focus is in the object.  The ‘second mi’ is used as possessor.

 

Person	Sing	S# where it occurs	Plural	S# where it occurs
First	ko -k	F1- 4, 5, 27, 28, 31,33,41,42	1. mi (exc) 2. mi	1 24, 32
Third	to	18

   Figure 5. Object Focus Pronouns in Text B.

 

• Another pronoun that fills the focus position is the first person singular pronoun ‘nak’ which occurs in the story six times (S#22,38, 41 (P1), 34 (F2). Only ‘nak’ occuring in the P1 position clearly marks focus. This has also a different function in that it signals a ‘continuative’ action in a series of at least two or more activities. Sometimes it indicates action done prior to carrying out the action implied by the verb.
• The oblique pronoun ‘hi-gak’ which is a first person singular occurs once in the story (S#2) as a topic pronoun signaling focus. The second occurrence is in S#20 where it filled the non-topic, non-focus position.
• Another oblique pronoun in the story is the third person singular ‘hi-gato’ which has occurs twice (S#18, 40). Both occurrences occupy the focus position in the clause although the second occurrence is only a simple utterance or exclamation.
• Four times, the third person plural source pronoun ‘da’ co-occurs with the first person singular topic pronoun ‘-ak’ becoming ‘daak’ in the story (S#23, 29, 30, 35). The –ak here in all pronoun combinations is always the object and occupies F2.

 

Text C. Hi Tatadaw tan hi Ootot

• The third person plural ‘da/ida’ in S# 2, 3, 4, 28, 30, 31a&b, 35a&b, 41, 46a&b, 47a&b, 48, 49, 50a, 51a&b, and 52a&b are the topic pronouns that fills the focus position in this folk tale. All of these are fillers of the P1 or F1 position. The rest of the ‘da/ida’ are in S28, 32, 53 in the  Alpha Position; 13, 30, 40*, 43*, 48, 50b, 49b, in the F2 Position. (*  - Within a direct quote.)
• There were five usage of the third person singular pronoun ‘to’ in the focus position occupying the P1 position (13, 26, 34, 37, 52) and none in the F1 subject position; three in the F2 position in relative clauses and 6 more on the F2 within a direct quote.

 

2. Particles that Mark Focus on Noun Phrases

            There are four noun-marking particles in Kalanguya. When they occur in noun phrases, they mark the expressions as nominal. These are ‘i, ni, di and hay’ but only ‘i’ and hay are the focus markers. As a result any noun or noun phrase directly preceding or following by these particles are the focus in a clause. When the noun is a name of a person or a kinship term, ‘i’ is substituted by ‘hi’.

It was also noticed in the texts that there is another focus marking particle that is noticeably indispensable in Kalanguya discourse. It is the particle ‘hota.’ This particle designates previous reference when a noun expression has been previously referred to in a discourse. (It is also used in discourse when the hearers or recipients are known to be familiar with the noun expression it marks. In our texts, clauses not marked by topic pronouns or the focus noun marker ‘i’, ‘hay’ or ‘hi’ are marked by ‘hota’.

 

Particle	Alpha	P1	C	F1	F2	Omega	Text
HAY	43		59,73				A
	5		31				B
							C
HOTA	51	32		(7x*)	(15x*)	55, 72	A
		(6x*)		(4x*)	(9x*)		B
				52(3), 53	(6x*)	35	C

Figure  6. Occurrence of the ‘Hota and Hay’ Marking Particles in Text A, B, C.

 

Legend:

Text A. *F2 - S 9, 24, 33 (2), 42, 43, 45, 49, 52, 56, 57 (2), 67, 71, 74

 *F1 -  S 24, 26, 43b, 44, 45, 65, 68

Text B.  *F2 – S 17, 18d, 22, 23, 24, 29, 35, 41, 42

                 *F1 – S 15, 17, 18b&c

                 *P1 – 18a,d,e, 33b, 41

                 *A -  5, 20, 34

Text C.  *F2 - S 13, 35, 38, 46, 50, 53

 

Examples:

Text A. 1. S2. Ahleg to law i bolan ni nalabah nallogi nonta naaksidentean dad Kayapa.

            2. S3. …waday hakey ni Biyednih…

            3. S28.  Dakel i landok ni himamdiw…

            4. S12. Nak bahaan ay hi Jaqueline.

            5. S 59 Nem hay palso, andi konoy doktor diman isunga…

 

Text B. 1. S12.  Nonta malabi pirmi odan. (pirmi i odan)

2. S18. Nem hota pangay nagatlon naikoyyen…(panga i nagatlo…)

3. S20. Hota amman ali pangan hakey ni kiyew ni panga li met laeng nonta nabwag di ha-pat ali, hi-gatoy nanegteg ni hi-gak. (This sentence seem to get a triple focus J. What with the hota, the hi-gato and the i.)???

1. S5. At hay ninemnem ko law diman, hota Biyednih, Habado…

Text C. 1. S33. “Kelay amon ag mo hi-yopen i digo?” (Sentence level only)

 

Generalizations in the above Data

1. Figures 3, 4, and 6 show the distribution of pronouns, and particles that mark a constituent as the one being focused in a clause. If we compare the data in the above figures, looking at the positions (a, P1, F1, F2, W) we can see that every clause has a constituent that is solely marked by one of these focus markers in one of these positions.  There are a few instances though when a clause contains two of these markers designated as focus markers. In all these occurrences, prominence: focus, thematic and emphasis is evident.
2. The presence of the non-topic or non-focus pronouns in clauses as shown in Figure 5 further testifies to the above generalization because it proves that it is always true that when any of these non-topic pronouns occur in P1 or F1 then it is almost always sure that the constituent in focus is somewhere either in a, F2, or W position.
3. In Sentence 21 of Text A “Nem anggan hiyaman, halamat tep ag intolok Apo Diyoh ni…” the presence of the oblique pronoun ‘hiyaman’ in the Alpha position having no referent in the clause where it belongs, tells us that the constituent it is focusing on is beyond the clause level. It might be safe to conclude that when ‘hiyaman’ falls in the alpha position even functioning as a cohesive unit, it can be taken as a signal for a thematic prominence highlighting the topic of the portion of the narrative that it precedes. In this case (Text A), it gives prominence to the theme of Sentence 15 ‘Grabi kono i halin Manang Narda…’ plus the reaction (16, 17, 18, 19) of the narrator to the event in 15.  
4. In Text B, emphatic prominence by lengthening the vowel is audible J in  Sentences 12, 14, 16 (Piiiiiirmmi odan!  At kaoooondanalnak!); Text A Sentence 49 (Impiiiiilit kono…); Text C Snetence 49 (Hinaaaa-wil da kono toto-wa…). The lengthening of the above vowels in the adjective and verbs by the storyteller lends emphatic prominence to the scene being told.

 

1. Repetition for emphasis – Text B: 10&11, 12&14.
2. Change in Constituent Order and Intensive Adverbs and Adjectives will be tackled in Lexical Choices.

 

1. INTERPREPOSITIONAL RELATIONSHIP
2. Addition Relations

 

Types	TEXT A	TEXT B	TEXT C
Sequence	45a&b, 53a&b, 57a&b, 64a&b, 69,	11a&b, 17, 18, 22, 29	5-12, 29-32, 46-47, 48, 51-53
Simultaneous	48, 58		14
Alternative			4-7, 9-13…??
Conversational Exc.	71	8&9, 26&27	4-45
Matched Support	!6 to 17	6&7, 20&21

Figure 7. Examples of Clauses Containing Addition Relations

 

1. Associative Relations

* Support by Clarification using a proposition with distinct information.

1. Manner

Text A. 40. Ida et kono ngo kamanggagayan naiha-lat lad men tep…

         42. …biglan naandian ni preno hota jeep isunga kaman-atras ni mapgeh…

Text B. 18. …et hota li ngo bobong ni abong nan-awahin nai-pot ni hamman tod angel ko.

Text C. 50. …nayapah ni dagoh hi ootot…

          

1. Comparison

Text A. 30. 42…isunga kaman-atras ni mapgeh ni ag onhaldeng…

 

1. Contrast

Text A. 30. Naagyat ni hinawngan ko men matibew ay kamanggayan nangitibwan…

Text C. 47. …lololoten da ay igmana ag malolot…

*  Support by Clarification using a proposition with similar information.

1. Equivalence

 Text A. 30. 42…isunga kaman-atras ni mapgeh ni ag onhaldeng…

Text B. 14&16 Pirmi odan!…At kaondanalnak!

 

1. Generic-Specific

     Text A. 15. Grabe konoy halin M. Narda, naipit at nagomok konoy awwan to…

     Text B. 20. …pangan hakey ni kiyew… ni panga li…nonta nabwag di ha-pat ali…

    

 

 

 

 

 

* Support by Argument

 

Types	TEXT A	TEXT B	TEXT C
1. Reason - Result	7, 24a:b,42, 43a:b		49
2. Means - Result	49,	42	26, 49
3.  Means - Purpose	43,		38,
4.  Condition - Consequence
5. Concession - Contraexpectation	46, 54:55,56, 59	30-33
6. Grounds – Conclusion			34

Figure 8. Examples of Clauses Containing Support by Argument

 

1. LEXICAL CHOICES

It was found out that a line can be drawn even if not so clearly between constituents just by looking at the verbs used in the surface structure of the narrative. If we look at Subplot C which is referred to as the third story in Text A, and compare its plot structure to the other two texts, we will notice that the verbs used in each constituent somewhat tells us something about their location in the narrative.

In the setting, ‘Himegep (A), nallibwet (B),nantebel (C)’ are all relaxed verbs, all active but otherwise mute. In the inciting moment, only the two factual accounts have the same level of verb forms; Text A starts with a laid back introduction then suddenly a startling adverb bolts from the blue. Text B likewise uses an intensified adverb to emphasize the situation of that moment. Both of these adverbs when orally uttered carry emphatic prominence, that of lengthening of vowels. However Text C, which is the folktale adopts a more relax tone of verbs used and since this is also the place where the conversation exchanges begin, it follows that the dialogues carry the inciting part. In the developing tension of the folktale, the mode in the inciting moment gradually intensifies until it reaches the 99.9 percent of its tension where the narrator again takes the lead in the story and gives an audible description of the events happening in the tension.  As for the two factual dangerous experiences, the adverbs from the previous constituent are taken a notch higher to support frenetic verbs resulting in a real hypertensive, and seemingly unstoppable pace in this segment of the plot structure.

 

 

Text B	Text C	Text A
Developing Tension   Pirmi odan! kaondanalnak! nabwag ali dah-oka	Developing Tension   Hima-ha-pat kono mowan la, timakok kono mowan,	Developing Tension   kaman-atras ni mapgeh, kinabig, biglan nantangilig, maitopak la, dinah-ilan lan Nangimbabangon kono anan, kagoyogoyoda lih na-let, naipit, Kaonnanginangih kono law kamantakok ni kedaw, kaboyboyaa, impilit ali konon Jaq ni guyod, kamantakok ni anay, Anhakit konon peteg!, amon maakboh i yahyah  inang-ang konon, kaman-ahok law, kapampilitah Jaq ni maokat, anggan mabayaan, naokat konoh an makika-kaahi, kamandowadowa pay konon
Climax   nagatlon naikoyyen, manhawang, magatlo, hinadngak, nan-awahin  nai-pot	Climax   dingel da law  ni kusto, hipola, manhi-ged, Imala, lolololoten, ag malolot, Impanglo, Hina-wil da kono toto-wa, Napatil, matey.
		Climax   li law goyodan nabay-an ngod, naokat,  wada li imalin

       Figure 9.  Comparison of Verbs Used in the Developing Tension and Climax

           

All three texts agreed in their climax. Text A puts out its last ounce of tense-filled verbs to complete the pressure and havoc of the moment then lets out a sigh as the turbulence threatens to stop suddenly when the conflict is solved.  One very significant finding is that the particle ‘et’ is consistent in the climaxes.  It is a connector that is employed in the fast-paced episode of a narrative in which other usable particles will be an interruption that will ruin the normal flow of discourse.

            The denouement of the three narratives is also somewhat similar in the lexical choices made. The mode of the verbs lessened to normal and the story returns to its normal pace. On one hand, it was observed that after the denouement, the texts all have a last episode of pro-antagonist moment for Text C, and an appositive situation for Text A & B.

 

1. CONCLUSION

Discourse in Kalanguya can be analyzed by coming up with a seven-position chart, dividing the components of a clause into each of them. Surface structure of Kalanguya discourse in the clause level, most of the time if not always, have seven elements in the maximum. All the temporal orientation which are usually dependent clauses occupy the first position. The second position is for discourse particles that may connect constituents together both dependent and independent. The third position is reserved for a left dislocated subject. This is followed by the mainline events in the center position.  The next position is for the ‘subject’ in its normal Kalanguya sentence position, followed by the position for objects, followed by a position for other constituents such as relative or adverbial phrases that can go on and on.

Constituents in the Alpha position not only orient or set the stage for the action of the verb but may also contain noun phrases marked by discourse particles that may signal focus, emphatic, and thematic prominences. The discourse particles occupying the second position are predictable. They are the grammatical cohesives as well as those that conjoin components that are understandably identifiers of interpropositional relationships. The third and fifth positions are usually occupied by pronouns if not by nouns or noun phrases. These pronouns either mark one component as topic or non-topic. The object position is for nouns and noun expressions, time and location and other modifiers of the verb such as obliques, and relative phrases. Dialogues, direct and indirect fill up this position. With this analysis, the flow of clausal components in Kalanguya discourse becomes predictable.

In the chart, the following occurrences have been observed but are yet to be studied.

1. 1. Comparison of a written versus oral factual narrative and fiction and non-fiction which is one of the goals of this study has not been satisfactorily achieved.  We would need more narratives and time.
2. 2. Certain verb forms having different prefixes, infixes and suffixes are present which for now, some are assumed to be focus-marking affixations. We are curious when these verb forms appear, and what they do.
3. 3. (Sentence 32 in Text A, 31 in Text C seems to be severely skewed. When does skewing occur?  What does it contribute to the discourse?)
4. 4. Left dislocated subjects: when do they occur?  Why?
5. 5. Particles like gayam, malango, ngo, men, kadi, a’, koma etc. are yet to be studied as to their relationship, effects and contribution in discourse.

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Kalanguya Sociolinguistic Issues by Margie Lumawan

Description

            Every culture has sociolinguistic norms that need to be upheld at all times.  One microsociolinguistic situation that an outsider might want to learn particularly is the situation of address form. In the Kalanguya language and culture, proper address forms are a must that should not be taken for granted any time anywhere and with anyone.  One who is younger, or poorer, or ordinary should defer to one who is older, or one who is higher in status both in wealth, or in position, or in education. 

            I know of a 19 year-old girl, then a fresh graduate from nursing college.  She had the chance to work as a company nurse at a nearby rooftile factory.  Her boss was a Dutchman from Holland.  At the same time, she was a language assistant to an American missionary in the village who, at that time, was revising the Kalanguya New Testament.  She addresses the company's boss as Sir but the American missionary does not want to be called anything but his first name.  The young nurse tried to call him that but it does not feel or sound right to her.  One morning, she greeted him saying , "Good Morning Sir!"  He looked at her weird so she stopped addressing him Sir and went back to calling him by his nickname.  One day, one of her older relatives heard her refer to this missionary by his first name, and he was shocked.  The relative asked her why she does not call the American the way she refers to her Dutch boss.  She explained to him the situation, but still the relative said there should be something that is more appropriate than just plain Bob.  In the end, she ended up calling him Uncle Bob and everybody in the village who is her age or younger call him Uncle Bob and his wife Aunt Judy.  After that was settled, it became a norm that every older person who is either older or same age as one's parents, who is not a blood relative should be addressed as 'uncle' or 'aunt' (in English).  (The Kalangoyans used to address their real aunts and uncles as 'pangamaan' or 'panginaan,' or just plain 'ina' (mother) or 'ama' (father) but nowadays, English terms are used for both real and not real aunts and uncles.

 

Observation

            The sociolinguistic issue in the situation described above has to do with appropriate language for addressing people as well as the clash that happened when two different language cultures came together.  I have observed here that when it comes to language values, an outsider within an insider's community does not have the power to tell an insider to just adapt his language value.  In our situation above, the American does not mind being in first name basis with a 'subordinate,' whose language value is very particular on using appropriate address forms.  We would expect that since the underlying value in the address forms is that of respect, then the young assistant should have felt comfortable addressing the American by his nickname since the American had told her in no uncertain terms that he does not feel insulted or disrespected by it.  But that did not happen because there is an innate microsociolinguistic attitude involved.

In the situation above, we see how borrowed words took on a slightly different range of meaning to accommodate the domain to which the language form is applied.  The 'uncle' (Kal. 'angkil') or 'aunt' (Kal. 'anti'), which is primarily a title of a particular familial relationship in English has been borrowed and assimilated into the Kalanguya as an address of respect to certain individuals depending on context or situation.

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PHONEMIC BASIS OF THE  KALANGUYA ORTHOGRAPHY by Margie Lumawan

 

I.  Kalanguya Phonemes as evidenced by Minimal Pairs and Near Minimal Pairs, Contrast in Identical Environment and Contrast in Analogous Environment

            A.  Consonants

1.  /p/  and /b/

[bElbEl]          ‘pine tree’

[pelpel]           ‘frog’

[apol]              ‘lime powder’

[abol]              ‘to drive away an animal’

 

2.  /t/ and /d/

[toqtoq]          ‘to hit the head on to something’

[doqdoq]        ‘to thread something through a cylindrical object’

[taqtaq]           ‘bother’

[daqdaq]         ‘bridge’

 

3.  /q/ and /g/

[qohqoh]         ‘bark of a tree’

[gohgoh]         ‘scabies’

[qalqal]           ‘to dig up’

[galgal]            ‘to chew’

 

4.  /m/, /n/, and /N/

[namadti]        ‘believer’

[mamadti]       ‘believe (imperfective)’

[nihnih]            ‘to wipe’

[NihNih]         ‘to show one’s teeth’

[mala]             ‘(discourse particle ‘watch out’)’

[Nala]             ‘noise’

 

5.  /h/ and /?/

[hi?jan]                       ‘to separate’

[?ijan]             ‘to live with’

[?ahol]                        ‘to fetch water’

[ha?ol]                        ‘deception’

 

6. /w/ and /j/, and /h/

[wahaj]           ‘axe’

[wa?jah]         ‘to dangle the hands’

[jahjah]           ‘breath’

[hajhaj]           ‘to tear across’

 

7.  The consonants “r” and “s” do occur in Kalanguya but they have not been included in this alphabet since they only occur in words borrowed from other languages. Borrowed words in which these consonants originally occurred but have been assimilated into the Kalanguya language have received the following substitutions: /l/ or /d/ for /r/; /h/ for /s/.  An exception is with names of people where these two consonants retain their phonemic quality.

Examples:  

 

   Ilocano       ~   Kalanguya

1. [sala]        ~   [halla]          ‘dance’ 
2. [padas]     ~   [padah]       ‘expereince’
3. [tawar]      ~   [tawal]        ‘bargain’ 
4. [rupa]       ~   [lopa]          ‘face’ 
5. [rason]      ~   [dahon]       ‘reason’

 

          

1. Vowels

            Although there are nine vowel sounds in Kalanguya, there are only four phonemic vowels in the alphabet. They are: /a/, /i/,  /e/, and /o/.

1. /i/ has four allophones and they can be predicted in the following environments.

            Rules:

            /i/ à [ji]/q___ (open syllable)

                à [I]/ C__C (Closed syllable other than following /q/.)

                à [e]/ q__C (Closed syllable following /q/)

                à [i]/ elsewhere

 

1. /i/ à [ji]/q___ (open syllable)

In an open syllable following /q/, /i/ is labialized [ji].

 

Examples:  q jimay  “intestinal worms”

                   q jiyew             “tree, wood”

 

1. /i/ à [I]/C__C (Closed syllable other than following /q/.)

In a closed syllable other than following /q/, /i/ is pronounced as [I].

 

Examples:  [bItbItmo]        “to spread it open (as a sack,etc)’

                   [hIphipIm]      “You cut the grass.”

 

1. /i/  à [e]/ k__C (Closed syllable following /k/)

In a closed syllable following /k/, /i/ is pronounced as [e].

 

Examples:  [qepqep]                      “chick”

                   [qetqjitIm]                   “You scrape with fingernail.”

1. /i/ à  [i]/elsewhere

In an open syllable other than following /k/, /i/ is pronounced as [i].

Examples:  [pitaq ]  “ground, dirt”

                   [timal] “flea’

 

1. /A/ The open central unrounded has no allophone.

Examples:  [mata]  “eye”

                   [?ama]            “father”

 

1. /E/ has two allophones

            Rules: 

                        /E/à [«]/[+Cons}___[+Cons, +Voice]

                            à [E]/ elsewhere

a. /E/à [«]/[+Cons, +Voice}___[+Cons, +Voice]

When /E/ is found as the nucleus of a closed syllable where both the consonants are voiced, it is pronounced as [«].

Examples:  [am«g]     ‘deeds’

                   [dil«g]    ‘torch’

                   [kE?l«g] ‘prohibit’

 

b.  /E/à [E]/ elsewhere

Examples:  [?EmEh]                ‘insult’

                   [bElEh]                ‘revenge’

 

Note:  Some might find confusion in the fact that the phoneme /E/ has a wide range of free variations, whereby its pronunciation varies according to geographical location. In some areas, its pronunciation is even so closed to /A/ that the difference between the two phonemically written vowels /A/ and /E/ is hardly distinguishable; and native speakers fluctuates them freely in open syllables.  Even so, evidence is too strong not treat /A/ and /E/ as contrastive phonemes.

 

Minimal Pair Evidences:

                        [lEkEm]           ‘to hold something to keep it from falling’

                        [lakam] ‘a kind of knife use for harvesting rice’

                        [pEtEq]                        ‘(location in line with something)’

                        [pataq]             ‘scar’

 

1.  /o/ has two allophones and they can be predicted in the following environments.

            Rules:  /o/ à [U]/C__C

                              à [o]/elsewhere

1. /o/ à [U]/C__C

In a closed syllable, /o/ is pronounced as /U/.

Examples:  kUpkUp          “skin”

                   kUbkUb         “pig pen”

                   killUm            “pig”

 

b.  /o/ à [o]/elsewhere

In an open syllable, /o/ remains.  

Examples: [?obi]       “camote”

                  [kalnido]           “sheep”

 

 

II.  Kalanguya Orthography

 

PHONEME	ALPHABET	EXAMPLES (written orthographically)	ENGLISH GLOSS
/b/	b	belkeg	‘a five centavo coin’
/q/	k	kipkip	‘chick’
/d/	d	dattengan	‘arrival’
/g/	g	gagmiyak	‘crackling sound’
/h/	h	hongkiyan	‘gin rummy’
/l/	l	koni-yat	‘to blink repeatedly’
/m/	m	mehmek	‘loving’
/n/	n	na-gah	‘fell down’
/N/	ng	ngitingit	‘colic’
/p/	p	palhiit	‘sling shot’
/t/	t	telebteb	‘to dip’
///	‘	e’mehen	‘to bathe’
/w/	w	wented	‘follow a path’
/y/	y	yabtok	‘to jump’
/i/	i	imadah	‘breakfast’
/α/	a	‘ambel-at	‘heavy’
/o/	o	‘obi’	‘camote’
/ε/	e	‘ehel’	word, speak, instruction
/r/	r	Ronald	(Name)
/s/	s	Sarah	(Name)

 

Initial glottals are written as an apostrophe only for the sake of this paper.  In reality, there is no need to write it because it is predictable since the syllable pattern VC is not possible in Kalanguya.

 

 

III.  Conclusion

           

            The data presented above has given us sufficient evidence that Kalanguya language has fourteen phonemic consonants,  (/b/, /q/, /d/, /g/, /h/, /l/, /m/, /n/, /N/, /p/, /t/, /w/, /j/, /?/) plus two additional consonants for modern names and other borrowed words (/r/, /s/), which totals to sixteen phonemic consonants, and four phonemic vowels (A, e, i, o) out of nine vowel sounds (i, ji, I, e, «, E, A, o, U) .   Each of these phonemes are represented with a single orthographic symbol of their own except for the velar nasal /N/ which is represented by the digraph /ng/.