Faiwol
Trans-New Guinea
Faiwol is a Trans-New Guinea Ok-family language of the Star Mountains region of Western Province, Papua New Guinea. The Ok family (Telefol, Mian, Bimin, Tifal, Faiwol — ~7 languages, ~30K total speakers) is one of the major Trans-New Guinea subgroups, occupying the rugged Star Mountains and adjacent areas. Faiwol speakers are concentrated around Olsobip in the Mountain region. Linguistically, Faiwol shares classical Ok-family features with Telefol: SOV constituent order, complex verb morphology with hierarchical agreement, simple noun morphology, and a tonal system. SIL Bible translation work since the 1970s produced the New Testament (1998) and the Faiwol-English dictionary.
Where it is spoken
20 core words in Faiwol
Water
ok
/ok/
Fire
baal
/baːl/
Sun
kibel
/kibel/
Moon
ulup
/ulup/
Mother
anim
/anim/
Father
atim
/atim/
Eat
nemin
/nemin/
Drink
ok ne
/ok ne/
Love
kunum
/kunum/
Heart
kayem
/kajem/
Tree
biin
/biːn/
House
am
/am/
Dog
kuyak
/kujak/
Cat
kit
/kit/
Hand
miim
/miːm/
Eye
nin
/nin/
Hello
ben kaba
/ben kaba/
Thank you
ngam ngam
/ŋam ŋam/
One
kowin
/kowin/
Good
kanim
/kanim/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Trans-New Guinea languages
| Meaning | Faiwol | Mian | Nalca | Puyuma | Adnyamathanha | Miyako | Noongar |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | ok /ok/ | ot /ot/ | mi /mi/ | enay /enai/ | awi /awi/ | 水 /mid͡zɨ/ | kep /kep/ |
| Fire | baal /baːl/ | aon /aon/ | lakil /lakil/ | apuy /apui/ | warlu /waɻlu/ | 火 /piː/ | kaarl /kaːɻl/ |
| Sun | kibel /kibel/ | kep /kep/ | nyem /ɲem/ | kadaw /kadaw/ | yidnu /jidnu/ | てぃだ /tida/ | ngangk /ŋaŋk/ |
| Moon | ulup /ulup/ | ham /ham/ | lakum /lakum/ | kuwalan /kuwalan/ | vuyu /vuju/ | 月 /t͡sɨkɨ/ | miyak /mijak/ |
| Mother | anim /anim/ | na /na/ | ne /ne/ | ina /ina/ | nyangka /ɲaŋka/ | あんま /amma/ | ngangk /ŋaŋk/ |
| Father | atim /atim/ | ki /ki/ | ke /ke/ | ama /ama/ | arndu /aɳɖu/ | うや /uja/ | maam /maːm/ |
| Eat | nemin /nemin/ | naka /naka/ | ne /ne/ | kuman /kuman/ | ngalkanha /ŋalkan̪a/ | 食み /kami/ | ngarn /ŋaɻn/ |
| Drink | ok ne /ok ne/ | an /an/ | mi ne /mi ne/ | enpa /enpa/ | ulpanha /ulpan̪a/ | 飲み /numi/ | ngarn /ŋaɻn/ |
| Love | kunum /kunum/ | na /na/ | ngam /ŋam/ | ulaw /ulaw/ | mukunha /mukun̪a/ | 愛 /ai/ | djaadjam /dʒaːdʒam/ |
| Heart | kayem /kajem/ | tem /tem/ | ngal /ŋal/ | kalumetan /kalumetan/ | kurda /kuɖa/ | 肝 /kimu/ | kortang /koɻtaŋ/ |
| Tree | biin /biːn/ | yel /jel/ | ye /je/ | kawi /kawi/ | urtu /uʈu/ | 木 /kiː/ | boorn /boːɻn/ |
| House | am /am/ | am /am/ | kim /kim/ | ruma /ɾuma/ | vakali /vakali/ | 家 /jaː/ | mia /maja/ |
| Dog | kuyak /kujak/ | kowok /kowok/ | ngal /ŋal/ | suwan /suwan/ | vurlpu /vuɻlpu/ | 犬 /iɴ/ | dwert /dweɻt/ |
| Cat | kit /kit/ | pus /pus/ | kucing /kutʃiŋ/ | kating /katiŋ/ | vunmara /vunmaɻa/ | 猫 /majaː/ | nguni /ŋuni/ |
| Hand | miim /miːm/ | kun /kun/ | ku /ku/ | lima /lima/ | mara /maɻa/ | 手 /tiː/ | mar /maɻ/ |
| Eye | nin /nin/ | tan /tan/ | nye /ɲe/ | mata /mata/ | mina /mina/ | 目 /miː/ | mel /mel/ |
| Hello | ben kaba /ben kaba/ | aben /aben/ | silok /silok/ | marayas /maɾajas/ | palya /paʎa/ | んみゃーち /n̩mjaːt͡ɕi/ | kaya /kaja/ |
| Thank you | ngam ngam /ŋam ŋam/ | hok /hok/ | amole /amole/ | kasapakan /kasapakan/ | mukunha /mukun̪a/ | たんでぃがーたんでぃ /tandiɡaːtandi/ | boordawan /boːɻdawan/ |
| One | kowin /kowin/ | alok /alok/ | mom /mom/ | sa /sa/ | mukuna /mukuna/ | 一つ /puːt͡sɨ/ | keny /keɲ/ |
| Good | kanim /kanim/ | kep /kep/ | ko /ko/ | mauruway /mauɾuwai/ | ngarrkanha /ŋaɻkan̪a/ | まし /maɕi/ | kwobidak /kwobidak/ |
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