Grammar
The independent pronouns are:
| sg. | du. | pl. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Incl. | iwi | amui | ami |
| Excl. | kui | ki | |
| 2 | awi | mui | mi |
| 3 | yi | tui | ti |
The dual pronouns are derived from the plural via the infix ⟨u⟩. This parallels the nearby Austronesian Cenderawasih languages, which derive the dual from the plural with du or ru, from *Dua 'two'. The plural pronouns ami, ki, mi, ti, in turn, appear to be Austronesian in origin, from *kami, *kita, *kamiu, *siDa (the latter via **tira). Although 3sg yi might also derive from Austronesian *ia, 1sg iwi and 2sc awi, the most basic pronouns, have no parallel in Austronesian. However, the basic pronouns iwi, awi, yi, ki, mi, ti resemble Yoke eβu, aβu iβu, kiβu, miβu, siβu, illustrating the strong Austronesian influence on both languages.
Possessive prefixes on nouns are nearly identical to subject prefixes on verbs. The object suffixes are also similar; the paradigm is very close to that of Yoke, apart from an inclusive-exclusive distinction which is not completely grammaticalized in the case of possessives.
| Possessive | Subject | Object | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | e- | i-, e-, ja- | -ewi, -e(o) |
| 2sg | a- | u-, wa-, a- | -awi, -a(o) |
| 3sg | i-, ∅- | i-, ja- ∅- | -i, -i(o) |
| 1ex | ami | ami-, ama-, ame- | -mo, -m(o) |
| 1in | ki-, ke- | ki-, ka-, ke- | -ki, -k(o) |
| 2pl | mi-, me- | mi-, ma-, me- | -mi, -m(o) |
| 3pl | ti-, te- | ti-, ta-, te- | -ti, -t(o) |
The singular prefixes of Warembori and Yoke are nearly identical to the 1sg e-, 2sg a-, 3sg i- of the Kwerba languages Kauwera and Airoran. However, Kwerba has no more basic vocabulary in common with the Lower Mamberamo family than what is expected by chance.
Read more about this topic: Warembori Language
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