Woleaian
Encyclopedia
Woleaian is the main language of the island of Woleai
and surrounding smaller islands in the state of Yap
of the Federated States of Micronesia
. Woleaian is a Trukic language
, and within that family its closest relative is Satawalese
, with which it is largely mutually intelligible. Woleaian is divided into two dialects: Woleaian proper and Lamotrek. There are approximately 1700 speakers of Woleaian.
Woleai has a writing system of its own, a syllabary influenced in part by Latin letters.
(long) consonants and vowels.
In the orthography of Sohn (1975), along with a few approximations in the IPA, the inventory is,
Note that both sh and r become ch when long, and that l becomes nn.
Vowels occur long and short, except for eo and oa, which are only found long.
Woleai
Woleai is a coral atoll of twenty-two islands in the eastern Caroline Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district in Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia and is located approximately west-northwest of Ifalik and northeast of Eauripik...
and surrounding smaller islands in the state of Yap
Yap
Yap, also known as Wa'ab by locals, is an island in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean. It is a state of the Federated States of Micronesia. Yap's indigenous cultures and traditions are still strong compared to other neighboring islands. The island of Yap actually consists of four...
of the Federated States of Micronesia
Federated States of Micronesia
The Federated States of Micronesia or FSM is an independent, sovereign island nation, made up of four states from west to east: Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae. It comprises approximately 607 islands with c...
. Woleaian is a Trukic language
Trukic languages
The Trukic languages are a dialect continuum of Micronesian languages, conventionally divided into a dozen languages.-Components:The database seems to say that Sonsorol is the most divergent of the Trukese languages. However, the results are defective and it is not clear that they support a Trukese...
, and within that family its closest relative is Satawalese
Satawal
Satawal is a solitary coral atoll of one island located at in the Caroline Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district in Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia...
, with which it is largely mutually intelligible. Woleaian is divided into two dialects: Woleaian proper and Lamotrek. There are approximately 1700 speakers of Woleaian.
Woleai has a writing system of its own, a syllabary influenced in part by Latin letters.
Phonology
Woleaian has geminateGemination
In phonetics, gemination happens when a spoken consonant is pronounced for an audibly longer period of time than a short consonant. Gemination is distinct from stress and may appear independently of it....
(long) consonants and vowels.
In the orthography of Sohn (1975), along with a few approximations in the IPA, the inventory is,
| short oral consonant | b [ɸʷ] | p | f | t | s | l | sh [ʃ] | r | g [x] |
| equivalent geminate | bb [pːʷ] | pp | ff | tt | ss | nn [nː] | ch [tʃ] | k [kː] | |
| nasal consonant | mw [mʷ] | m | n | ng [ŋ] | |||||
| semivowel | w | y [j] | |||||||
Note that both sh and r become ch when long, and that l becomes nn.
Vowels occur long and short, except for eo and oa, which are only found long.
| i | iu [y] | u |
| e | eo [øː] | o |
| a | oa [ɑː] |