2017 1. background · eastern mon-khmer languages. it is spoken mainly in the mountainous region of...

Bru Tri Grammar Sketch

Eastern Bru Grammar Sketch Carolyn P Miller

20171. BACKGROUND

Eastern Bru (BRU) is an Austorasiatic language of the Western sub-division of the Katuic Branch of Eastern Mon-Khmer languages. It is spoken mainly in the mountainous region of Quang Tri and Quang Binh provinces of Vietnam and in neighboring areas of Savannakhet province in Laos. However, in 1968 several thousand Bru were resettled in Dac Lac province because of the war, and many of these people still live in the central highlands. Of an estimated population of around 100,000, 26,700 are living in Laos (2005 census) and 74,506 are living in Vietnam (2009 census). Because of the discrepancy in the way in which the group is calculated in Vietnam, the Ethnologue gives an estimate of 82,300 Eastern Bru speakers.

Although the term Bru is used by many languages of the Katuic subgroup of Mon-Khmer languages in Vietnam, Laos and Thailand, the variety described in this article is the one referred to in the Ethnologue as “Eastern Bru.” The Eastern Bru are known in Laos as Bru Tri and in Vietnam as Bru Van Kieu. The term Van Kieu is an exoethnonym applied to a number of related groups, namely Tri, Khua, and Mangcong by the Vietnamese. (Ethnologue 2013) According to Gabor Vargyas, Hoang Van Ma and Ta Van Thong the term Van Kieu comes from old Vietnamese references to “Vien Kieu” or “Sakieu,” a mountain region or village. In some related languages, the term Bru means “mountain.” In the Bru Tri/Van Kieu language it simply means minority people or people of the mountains or jungle areas.

Traditionally the Bru have been rice swidden farmers, cutting and burning fields on mountainsides. In recent years government pressure against this type of agriculture as well as a large influx of lowlanders moving into their traditional areas have caused the Bru to diversify their agriculture and adapt to other ways of making a living.

The Bru have been primarily animists, and in some areas strongly maintain their animistic practices. However the upheaval of the war years and economic factors that have caused them to leave their traditional areas have led to many changes. Within the last two or three decades many have turned toChristianity, and Christian churches are found in most areas where the Bru live. The New Testament was printed in 1981 and went through several printings before it was revised and printed with the Psalms in 2009. A translation of the entire Bible was printed in 2014..

The Bru have had materials in their language in a modified Roman script since the 1960s as a result of the work of SIL, and some mother-tongue literacy efforts were begun in the 1970s, but these were interrupted during the war. Literacy among the Bru is less advanced on the Lao side. Writing Bru in Lao script has been investigated, but to date no materials have been distributed to teach Bru on the Lao side to read Bru in that script. Literacy efforts on both sides of the border have been in Roman script.

Descriptions of features of the Bru language were written during the 60s and 1970s by foreign researchers and by Vietnamese linguists during the 1980s. A listing of some of these is found in an appendix to this article.

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2. PHONETICS/PHONOLOGY

2.1 Word/Syllable structurePhonological words in Bru Tri as in other Katuic languages are either mono- or disyllabic. Because aword with two syllables always has an unstressed first syllable and a dominant second syllable, theselanguages have sometimes been described as “sesqui-syllabic.”

Generally the pre-syllable consists of either a syllabic nasal which assimilates to the point of articulation of the initial consonant of the main syllable, or a consonant plus vowel, or consonant-vowel-consonant in which the vowel is usually a neutral mid-central vowel. Only in a very few words is the vowel of the pre-syllable differentiated to carry contrastive meaning. e.g. /kucit/ 'to die',/kacit 'to kill''. Rarely is a consonant cluster found initially in a pre-syllable, though a few examples exist. e.g. /blablɨəʔ/ 'flashing'. And consonants closing the pre-syllable are restricted to /m,n,ŋ,r,l/.

The main syllable of a word consists of an obligatory consonant (C1), an optional second consonant (C2), a vowel nucleus (V) and an optional final consonant (C3). If the initial consonant is a glottal stop, it is unwritten in roman script, but written in Lao script Bru. Eleven vowel nuclei can generallyoccur in one of two lengths and one of two registers. Ten off-glided diphthongs may also occur in thevowel nucleus position.

The typical phonological word may be summarized as: (C V (C)) C(C) V (C)

2.2 Phoneme inventory and phonotactics2.2.1 ConsonantsBru Tri consonants consist of the following:

Manner ofArticulation

Points of Articulation

Bilabial Alveolar Alveolo-palatal

Palatal Velar Glottal

Stop [+asp.] **pʰ tʰ kʰStop [-vd] p t k ʔStop [+vd] b dFricative [-vd] s hAffricate [-vd] cNasal [+vd] m n ɲ ŋLateral [+vd]Trill [+vd]

lr

Approximant [+vd]

w* j

The approximant /w/ is usually pronounced [v] when it is an initial consonant.

** due to Vietamese and Lao influence the aspirated /pʰ/ is moving toward /f/.All consonants occur in the initial position of either syllable. Additionally the following consonant clusters occur syllable initially in the main syllable: /pl/, /pr/, /tr/, /thr/, /kl/, /kr/, /khr/, /bl/, /br/.

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Consonants / pʰ, tʰ, kʰ, b, d, c, ɲ, s/ do not occur syllable finally. However, consonants /j/ and /w/ mayoccur with (or without) a glottal stop in final position of the main syllable e.g./sɜwʔ/ 'bad' or /bajʔ/ 'to bud'. Additionally found in this position is /jh/ which in some related languages patterns as a final/s/. e.g. /ʔajh/ 'swollen'.

2.2.2 VowelsBru vowels consist in ten basic vowel positions. These occur in two constrastive lengths and two registers,, albeit with some areas of non-contrast (see below). Five glided nuclei occur in both registers, giving a total of forty one contrastive vowel nuclei. The basic positions for vowels are as follows:

Front Central Backhigh i ɨ u

mid e ə o

mid-low ɛ ɜ ɔ

low a ɒ

Diphthongs iə ɨə uə

ia uaThe phonetic quality of these vowel nuclei has been described by Miller (1967), by Phillips, Miller and Miller (1976), as well as by Hoang Van Ma and Ta Van Thong (1998).

All of these occur in the V position of the main syllable. In the pre-syllable /a/ and /u/ occur, but these are often neutralized to /ə / in normal speech. Phonetic /i/ sometimes occurs following /c/ or /s/ but can also be neutralized to /ə/.

2.3 Suprasegmentals (tones, registers, phonation)The basic vowels may occur as either long or short and in one of two registers. The two registers (phonation types) are called in Bru /pre:ŋ/ ‘sound of a small gong’ or /krɨːm/ ‘sound of a large gong’.In other literature these are sometimes referred to as ‘light’ vs. ‘heavy’, ‘small voice’ vs. ‘large voice’, ‘tense’ vs. ‘lax’, or ‘first register’ vs. ‘second register’. In Bru the registers may also be recognized in the high and mid vowels by lower tongue-height positions gliding to a slightly higher position for the tense vowels and in the low-mid and low vowels by slight on-gliding from a mid-central vowel at the onset of the lax vowel. The acoustic differences between the various vowel nuclei in Bru have been described in Miller (1967).

No register contrast has been noted for long /ɛ:/ in the dialect studied by the author, but the contrast has been reported by Vuong Huu Le (1998:102) e.g. /lɛ:h/ ‘to untie’ vs. /lɛ:h/ ‘slope’ /tɛ:h/ ‘stick of wood’ vs. /tɛ:h/ ‘leech’

The short mid vowel has both /ə:/ and /ə:/ counterparts. The mid-low vowel /ɜ/ is perceived as tense in nature and has only a second-register long counterpart /ɜː/.

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The five diphthongs occur in both registers are show below with examples..

DipthongsHigh to mid High to Low

iəiə

iaia

ɨəɨəuəuə

uaua

/tiən/ ‘money’/tiən/ ‘add to’/tian/ ‘wrap tightly’/tian/ ‘candle’

/cɨəŋ/ ‘well’/cɨəŋ/ ‘give birth (pig)’

/cuəp/ ‘about to’/cuəp/ ‘around’

/tuaŋ/ ‘strike metal’/tuaŋ/ ‘pipe stem’ 2.4. Stress and IntonationWord stress is always found on the final (main) syllable. Yes-no questions are often accompanied by rising intonation and use of the clause-final question particle /tə:/. Other interrogatory sentences are marked by stress on the question marker.

2.5 Reduplication and RhymingFull-word reduplication is not common in Bru, though it is occasionally used for emphasis. E.g. /bi:ʔ-bi:ʔ/ ‘few’ or /kət-kət/ ‘small’ where reduplication of the word gives intensity.

A common feature of Mon-Khmer languages is the use of what has been variously termed expres-sives, ideophones, binomials, or double words (Watson 1980:76). In some cases these expressionshave parts which are either rhyming or phonologically similar in some way. They may be very com-mon expressions or those which are created by the speaker.

Some of these expressions take a word which has meaning by itself and add a second word whichhas no meaning of its own simply to add fullness or weight to the expression. In many cases theseshow some form of reduplication or phonological similarity. For example, in the following list, thefirst word of the pair may be used on its own with the meaning indicated. The second word only oc-curs as an extension of the first.

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/lə:jʔ lə:/ ‘play’/raŋɨh rahə:/ ‘strength’/krə:ŋ krəw/ ‘possessions’/hu:n hi:t/ ‘kiss’ (lit. ‘sniff’)/samɜ:t samə:j/ ‘certainly’

Others expressions take two words with similar meanings and put them together to strengthen or giveemphasis to the whole. For example, both /kət/ and /kɨjʔ/ mean 'small'. Used together, they mean'very small' or 'tiny'. The same is true of the other combinations given below. The use of two wordswhich have the same general meaning either intensifies or makes the expression more complete.

/kət kɨjʔ/ 'tiny'/ʔiən kʰe:/ 'easy, peaceful'/rɜ:p riəŋ/ 'appearance'/raŋɨh rahə:/ 'strength, labor'/pʰeʔ tʰu:/ 'deceive'/tah to:jʔ/ 'discard'/bək cu:l/ 'injury, wound'/ŋi:n kʰɔ:/ 'confess'

Some expressions convey a sense of picturesque speech, which in Bru is referred to as /patɔ:jsəntɔ:jʔ/. It’s difficult to give a word for word translation for these, since some of the words do nothave meaning of their own.

/kɨ pə:ʔ ceʔ cə:ŋ pə:ŋ taʔə:j,la:t plaŋ baŋ kɔh./ I went everywhere buying and selling.

/na:w pə:ʔ tɜŋ kɔh tɜŋ ki:ŋ They went all over the mountains./ɲɛʔ tɨ:h kuaj pɨ:n palɔ:ŋ cutruʔ nɜj/ Everybody in the whole wide world/mah mu:n cin tapɨn ralua/ An expression for everything one owns./bu:r ɲu:r biər ɲiər/ Wet and untidy

3. WORD FORMATION

3.1 CompoundingIn some cases two items of a class are used to indicate the entire category or class (Anderson1985:40).e.g./do:j ravɛ:h/ rice + soup = 'food'/pria ʔacu:/ bushhook + knife = 'utensils'/alik tariak/ pig + buffalo = 'domestic animals'/doŋ su:/ house + shelter = 'family'

In other cases the joining of two items indicates place or purpose:/doŋ rahɜu/ house + medicine = ‘hospital’/doŋ riən/ house + study = ‘school’

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3.2 Derivational affixes3.2.1 Deriving nounsThough there are traces of derivational morphology, these don't seem to be regular or predictable. Examples of these include infix /r/ or /r plus nasal/ changing a verb to a noun as in:

/pɛ:h/ ‘sweep’ and /parnɛ:h/ ‘broom’. /kuta:/ ‘vomit’ and /karta:/ ‘vomitus’/pa:j/ ‘speak’ and /parna:j/ ‘speech, language’/kajəm/ ‘wrap up’ and /karjəm/ ‘bundle’/kla:j/ ‘wear loincloth’ and /sarla:j/ ‘loincloth’/kahə:/ ‘breathe’ and /karhə:/ ‘breath’/kacɔh/ ‘spit’ and /karcɔh/ ‘spittle’/katɨp/ ‘close’ and /kartɨp/ ‘lid’/tɜk/ ‘wear’ and /tampɜk/ ‘clothes’/puə/ 'mix' and /tampuə/ 'mixture'/taʔ/ ‘do’ and /ranaʔ/ ‘work’/ki:/ ‘carry on back’ and /karni:/ ‘back basket’

In other cases, a prefix /ra/ changes a verb to a noun form.

/muat/ 'glean' and /ramuat/ 'gleanings'/clɔ/ 'to wedge' and /raclɔ/ 'a wedge'/mo:t/ 'knead or squeeze' and /ramo:t/ 'piece of something squeezed together'/bo:k/ 'grab with the hand' and /rabo:k/ 'a handful'/klɔ:ŋ/ 'tunnel through' and /ralɔ:ŋ/ 'hole or tunnel'/kla:jh/ 'to lock' and /rala:jh/ 'a lock'

Another common way of deriving nouns is through compounding. For example, the classifier /ɒk/ isused to quanitfy small objects. E.g. /ɒc rahəu/ ‘Cl + medicine’ = ‘pill’. But when used with a stative verb it becomes a nominalizer.

/rangajʔ/ ‘wise’ / ʔɒc rangajʔ/ ‘wisdom’/ʔɔ:/ ‘good’ / ʔɒc ʔɔ:/ ‘goodness’/ʔajɔ:ʔ/ ‘love (v)’ / ʔɒc ʔajɔ:ʔ/ ‘love (n)’

For some objects the noun /krə:ŋ/ ‘thing’ is used with a verb to create a noun.

/ca:/ ‘eat’ /krə:ŋ ca:/ ‘food’

Or the noun /ramɨh/ ‘name’ may be used with a stative verb to produce a noun.

/ ramɨh ʔaʔi:/ ‘name + sick = illness’

3.2.2 Verb affixationSome verbs take a causative prefix /a/. These are often, but not always, verbs of motion, and in many cases change the verb from intransitive to transitive.

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/co:n/ ‘go up’ /ʔaco:n/ ‘lift up (cause to go up)’/sɛ:ŋ/ ‘go down’ /ʔasɛ:ŋ/ ‘let down (cause to go down)’/lɒ:h/ ‘go out’ /ʔalɒ:h/ ‘take out (cause to go out)’/mu:t/ ‘enter’ /ʔamu:t/ ‘put in (cause to enter)’

In some cases in addition to the prefix /a/, a change of register is noted:/riən/ ‘study’ /ʔariən/ ‘teach (cause to study)’/mojh/ 'rise up' /amojh/ 'raise up'

In other cases, causation is shown by the prefix /pa/ or /pu/ where the initial consonant is /p/.

/rɨəh/ 'choose' /parɨəh/ 'give a choice to'/sɜŋ/ 'hear' /pasɜŋ/ 'cause to hear'/siəl/ 'smooth' /pasiəl/ 'make smooth'/yu:r/ 'wet' /payu:r/ 'sprinkle'/yu:t/ 'late' /payu:t/ 'make late'/pɨt/ 'lost' /pupɨt/ 'wipe out'/pət/ 'go out (fire)' /pupət/ 'extinguish'

The infix /r/ or the prefix /ra/ is found with a fairly large number of verbs to give a sense of reciprocal or mutual activity.

/kacih/ ‘kick’ /karcih/ ‘kick each other’/kacaŋ/ ‘laugh /karcaŋ/ ‘laugh together/kacuk/ ‘incite’ /karcuk/ ‘stir up trouble’/bu:j/ ‘happy’ /rabu:j/ ‘happy together’/piən/ ‘change’ /rapiən/ ‘exchange’/suən/ ‘deny’ /rasuən/ ‘argue’/ɲiəm/ ‘weep’ /raɲiəm/ ‘weep together’/cil/ ‘fight’ /racil/ ‘fight each other’/taʔ/ 'harm' /rataʔ/ 'provoke each other /racil rataʔ/ 'do battle'/le:ʔ/ 'change' /rale:ʔ/ 'exchange'/cɛ:ʔ/ 'near' /racɛ:ʔ/ 'close to each other' /cɛ:ʔ racɛ:ʔ/ 'side by side'/ci:m/ 'test' /raci:m/ 'check each other out'/ke:t/ 'hate' /rake:t/ 'hate each other'

In other cases it carries a sense of multiple participants or multiple actions.

/cɔʔ/ 'put in place' /racɔʔ/ 'put together, assemble'/dɨ:ŋ/ 'bring, take' /radɨ:ŋ/ 'bring multiple people'/ʔək/ 'pull' /raʔək/ 'multiple people pull or pull in multiple directions'/kiaʔ/ 'keep watch' /rakiaʔ/ 'persistently go after'/kaci:t/ ‘fight’ /karchi:t/ ‘fight each other, fight among themselves’/cuaj/ ‘help’ /racuai/ ‘help each other, or help on a continuing basis’

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In some cases a prefixed /r/ carries a sense of a resulting state.

/taloh/ ‘destroy’ /raloh/ ‘ruined’/piəjʔ/ ‘right’ /rapiəjʔ/ ‘in accord with’/bləh/ ‘ask’ /rabləh/ ‘interrogate, judge’/tah/ ‘discard’ /ratah/ ‘separate’/pial/ ‘twist’ /rapial/ ‘twisted’/haʔ/ 'tear' /rahaʔ/ 'torn'

3.3 ReduplicationPartial reduplication in some words signals ongoing, habitual, or repeated activity:

/pə:ʔ ‘go’ /pupə:ʔ/ ‘is going’/taʔ/ ‘do, make /tutaʔ/ ‘is doing, making’/ca:/ ‘eat’ /cica:/ ‘is eating’/pɜn/ ‘shoot’ /pupɜn/ ‘go hunting’/ca:t/ 'stab' /cuca:t/ 'plant by stabbing holes in the ground'/pɛ:h/ 'sweep' /pupɛ:h/ 'do the usual sweeping'/ʔən/ 'comand' /ʔuʔən/ 'customarily tell people what to do'

In other cases, reduplication indicates inappropriate or unsanctioned activity.

/la:j/ 'talk' /lula:j/ 'complain'/pa:j/ 'to speak' /pupa:j/ 'speak badly of'/pɜ:jʔ/ 'to cut down' /pupɜ:jʔ/ 'to cut down inappropriately'/pi:h/ 'to break' /pupi:h/ 'to break badly//plu:t/ 'to blow' /puplu:t/ 'blow inappropriately'/ba:p/ 'woe, misfortune' /puba:p/ 'to pronounce woe'

4. PHRASE AND CLAUSE STRUCTURE4.1 Simple sentences 4.1.1 DeclarativeThe common word order for the sentence in Bru is Subject, generally filled by a Noun Phrase, plus a Verb Complex which may include an Indirect Object and/or a Direct Object, depending on the verb. (See section 5.2)

Intransitive Clauseʔŋkiʔ ʔan cu: lah pə: doŋ ʔan.thus 3SG return again DIR house 3SG‘So he returned again to his home.’

cə: heʔ luh pə: vi:l acɨm e:nthen 1PL ran dir. village achum more‘Then we ran to the village of Achum instead.’

kɨʔ beʔ tua tɜŋ taŋaj kiI slept ill on day that‘I slept because of sickness that day.’

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palɔ:ng miə cɜ:n lɨʔsky rain heavy very‘It rained heavily.’

Transitive Clausenaa: w ceʔ cə:ŋ hɨ:t salajthey buy sell tobacco‘They buy & sell tobacco.ʼ

mɜ:m ki kɨʔ ramɔh mɒ:ʔ asuəmafter that I met miss asuam‘After that I met Miss Asuam.ʼ

Ditransitive Clausecə aləj yo:n kɨʔ rahɜwthen they gave me medicine‘Then they gave me medicine.’

Very few unambiguous ditransitive clauses are found in the texts, and most of them involve the verb /jo:n/ ‘give’. More common are the benefactive uses of /jo:n/ or corresponding malefactive usesof /cɔʔ/.

tabaj miʔ apɒŋ jo:n heʔ du: thɨ: rakawplane US dropped for us every kind rice‘The American planes dropped us all kinds of rice.

ranaʔ ki: la yiaŋ sɜwʔ sapah yo:n kɨʔ daŋthing that COP spirit bad showed give me know‘A bad spirit revealed that thing to me..’

na:w pəh pʰi:m yo:n heʔ ɲe:ŋthey open film give us see‘They showed us a film.’

kɨʔ yo:n ku:ʔ jiəm bləh amɒ:ʔ kət kəp dɒ:ʔ va:n yo:n kɨʔI give uncle yiem ask miss small and put brideprice for me‘I requested Uncle Yiem to ask Miss Small and to deposit a brideprice for me.’

mɔ kəp pana:h lɨʔ tə: te:ʔ taʔ ntrəw cɔʔ heʔshaman and spirits surely not able do anything toward us‘Shamans and spirits surely cannot do anything to us’

4.1.2 Interrogative sentencesA declarative sentence can be made interrogative by the use of the negative marker at the end of the sentence. Or by adding the tag question marker ‘or not‘.an bɨ:n kɔ:n tə:3SG have child QUE‘Does he have a child?’

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məj sɜŋ ma: tə: bɨ:nyou hear or not have‘Do you hear or not?’

Question words introduce interrogative sentences. These also may function as indefinite adverbs as shown in section (5.3.2). These include:

/ntrəw/ What

ntrəw ka: ʔnnɜ:r tɜŋ sarɨŋ doŋ hajwhat REL making-noise in loft house our‘What is that making noise in the loft of our house?’

/na:w/ Who

na:w ma: pla: ki: ə:jʔwho REL bad that EXCL‘Who is it who is so bad?’

/nɒʔ/ Why, How

nɒʔ nɜ:ŋ tə: yuah lɒ:h sia te: ntoʔ ʔaki:why still not yet come-out from place there‘Why have you still not left that place?’

nɒʔ ma: daŋ seʔ taŋaj nɜj cə:…how REL know how-many days this already‘How can we know how many days already…?’

/ʔnlɛʔ/ or /lɛʔ/ Where

ɲɛʔ kɔ:n ɲɛʔ ʔakan tɛ: nlɛʔ bɨ:n ʔali:k, bɨ:n ʔasɛh, bɨ:n ʔntrɒ:ʔ, bɨ:n ʔntruəj te: all males all females from where have pigs, have horses, have cows, have chickens from lɛʔwhere‘All the animals are from where? There are pigs, horses, cows, and chickens from where?’

/bɔ lɛʔ/ or /ho:j lɛʔ/ When

ho:j lɛʔ məj rakɜ:jʔ kəp niaŋ ʔ anɜjwhen you marry with girl this‘When did you marry this girl?’

/…lɛ:ʔ/ Which

kuaj ʔalɛʔ doʔ tɜ:ʔ nik dɒʔ cə;ŋ krə:ŋ te: məj nɜjperson which usually come always put buy things from you here‘Which person always comes here to buy things from you?’

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4.1.3 Imperative sentencesImperative sentences frequently lack a subject, because the subject is understood to be the hearer. In most cases, however, they also include the modal auxiliary /kɔʔ/ ‘must’ or negative /co:j/ ‘don’t’. In some cases only the context and intonation indicate the statement is imperative.

sɛʔ co:j taʔ ʔŋkiʔplease don’t do that‘Please don’t do that!’

sanua məj taʔ doŋ saraj muəj naʔ məjnow you make house field one person you‘Now you work at home by yourself!

kɔn ə:j, pə:ʔ, pə:ʔ tɜ:p te: doŋ haj nɜjChild VOC go, go immediately from house us here‘Go, child, go immediately from our house!’

ɜw! kʰɜn ʔŋkiʔ, ki: kɔʔ ʔaɲia pə:ʔ ɲe:ŋ ci:m nə:oh if thus, CJ must you go see try huh‘Oh! If it’s like that, you must go and check, okay?’

ʔŋkiʔ ʔaɲia co:j krɒ:ʔ ŋkɒh ntrəwthus you don’t worry fear anything‘So then, don’t worry about anything.’

sanua ʔaɲia kɔʔ pə:ʔ la;h pə: ntoʔ pʰeːp ɲak ki: da:jh!now 2PL must go again DIR place creature that EXCL‘Now you must go back to the place of the Phep Nhac!’

4.1.4 Equational & Topic-Comment SentencesThe word /la/ functions in multiple ways, but one of these is as a copula in equational sentences or tointroduce the comment in topic-comment sentences. The word /kə:t/ ‘become’ sometimes also func-tions in this way

heʔ la: kalə:1PL COP friends‘We are friends.’

ʔalik heʔ cə:ŋ nɜj la: tɜ:r lɨʔpig 1PL buy this COP large very‘This pig we bought is very big.’

heʔ la: kə:t ravɛ:h ʔaləj, deh ʔaɲia kə:t ravɛh ʔaləj te:, kʰɜn ʔaləj bɨnwe COP become food they, even you become food they also, if they have‘We will become food for them, even you will become food for them too, if they get you.’

4.2 Complex sentences4.2.1 CoordinationIn some cases, clauses or phrases are simply joined as a series without grammatical marking, though sometimes in these cases the preposition /kəp/ indicates the final item.

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co:j ə:t tɜŋ ʔarɨ:jh, sarɨŋ sɒk, plə:m ca:, mia puh, ʔaʔi takɔh, kɜp ŋua parŋɛh.don’t stay in jungle vegetation choke, leech eat, rain beat, sickness fever, and sad lonely.‘Don’t stay in the jungle where the forest will choke you, leeches feed on you, rain beat on you, and you will have sickness and loneliness.’

The most frequently used conjunction, /kəp/ ‘and, with’, is used to join at all levels - word, phrase, clause and sentence.

caran nɜj bɨ:n ramɨh ʔnnɛʔ: pajuəl kɜp taju:animals these have names thus: payuol &tayu‘The animals had these names: Payuol and Tayu.’

ʔŋkiʔ bɨ:n saʔɨj lɨʔ tiaw kala:ŋ klɔ:k nɜj bək cu:l kɜp kuci:tthus have many very eagles this hurt injured and die‘So there were many eagles injured and dead.’

piəjʔ lɨʔ la ʔaləj kɔʔ bi: kəp kɔʔ ʔaləj kuci:t, ma: nɜ:ŋ kə:t tamɔ:ŋ ɲɛ:ʔ la:hcorrect very COP they must hurt and must they die, but still become live all again‘Really they should be hurt and they must die, but still all of them come to life again’

ʔŋkiʔ ta:w tɜ:ʔ tɜŋ taŋaj nɜj taju: lɨʔ ʔɒʔ nɜ:ŋ liəjh ʔan. kəp pajuəl la: lɨʔ tə: bɨ:n so until arrive in day this tayu INT 3SG lack tongue 3SG. And payuol COP INT not have bɨ:n nɜ:ŋ kanɛ:ŋ ʔanhave still teeth 3SG‘So until today Tayu (flying fox) has no tongue. And Payuol (anteater) has no teeth.’

Other prepositions show contrastive coordination /ma:/, optional coordination /tə: la:/, and inclusion /deh/.

ntrəw ʔaɲia e: bɨ:n la te:ʔ ʔaɲia pa:i, bi:ʔ tə: la saʔɨ:j ʔaɲia e: bɨ:n, ki: ʔɜw what 2PL FUT have COP can 2PL say, little or much 2PL FUT have, JCT EXCL ʔaɲia tiŋ pa:j2PL say ‘Whatever you want you can say, however little or much you want, Oh! You simply say it.’

heʔ sɜŋ cə: mah parna:j ʔaɲia ʔatə:ŋ heʔ ʔaʔɛ:m nɜj, ma: heʔ se:ʔ saʔə:n ʔaɲia 1PL hear already PL word 2PL tell 1PL yng-sib this but 1PL request thank 2PL lɨʔ saʔɨ:jINT much‘We heard what you told us (younger sibling), but we want to thank you very much.’ʔŋkiʔ ʔaləj ceʔ ntɜŋ lɨʔ, deh praʔ ye:ŋ, deh tariak e:n hə:.so 3PL sell heavy INT including silver gold, including buffalo addition also‘So they sell very expensively things such as silver and gold and buffalos also.

4.2.2 Relative ClausesRelative clauses in Bru are usually marked by /ka:/ or /ma:/. The former is by far the most frequent.

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ma: ta:w tɜ:ʔ doŋ ka: ɘ:t tɜŋ ʔarɨ:jh rɨŋ sarɨŋ...but until arrive house REL be in jungle...‘But until he came to the house which was in the jungle....’

ʔan ka: lɨʔ pla: hə:n nɜj tɜ:ʔ tɜŋ kruaŋ haj.3SG REL INT wicked more this arrive in country 2PL‘This one who is more wicked arrived in our country.’

lɨʔ tə: bɨ:n te: kɨʔ ma: ən ʔaləj taʔ ʔŋkiʔ cɔʔ ʔaɲia.INT not have from me REL order 3PL do this against you.‘Surely it was not I who told them to do this to you.’

4.2.3 Complement clauses Verbs such as ‘see’, ‘know’, ‘hear’, ‘say’, or ‘be possible’ may take complement clauses. These do not take any overt grammatical marker.

cə: tasuə nɜj hɨ:m nɜ:ŋ la:h muəj tʰro:ʔ ŋha:ŋ sɜŋ.then tasuo this saw still again one number bone only‘Then Tasuo saw that there were still only a few bones.’

ʔŋkiʔ to:p tiaw kala:ŋ klɔ:k nɜj cancəm pa:j la ʔan ʔa:j, ma: lɨʔ ʔan la to: taŋu:.thus group eagles this think say COP 3SG old-sib, but INT 3SG COP body Tangu‘So the group of eagles thought that he was the older sibling, but really he was Tangu himself.’

ʔŋkiʔ tɨ: niaŋ nɜj sɜŋ lɨʔ to:p tiaw kala:ŋ klɔ:k nɜj lɨʔ ʔe: kaci:t ciʔ kaja:k ʔan...thus when girls this heard INT group eagles this INT want kill IMP husband 3SG‘So when the girl heard that surely these eagles really wanted to kill her husband...’

ʔŋkiʔ ʔaləj daŋ ʔaɲa: tɜŋ vi:l cicuaʔ kuaj ka kʰɔjʔ kaci:t kəp pʰɛp ɲa:k ki:.thus 3PL know anha in village look-for person REL PST kill with creature that‘So they knew that Anha in the village was looking for the person who fought with those creatures.’

4.2.4 Adverbial Clauses 4.2.4.1 TimeTime in Bru is frequently indicated by a dependent clause typically at the start of a sentence, and is generally introduced by one of the following:

/mɜ:m/ ‘finished’/bɔ:/ ‘when, while’/ʔŋkeʔ/ ‘shortly’/nə: ra/ ‘in the future’/te: ʔmbɒʔ/. ‘long ago’/du:n/ ‘for a long time’/ɲuaŋ/ ‘before’/ʔntun/ ‘after’/ʔmbə:jʔ/ ‘just recently’/ho:j/ ‘when’/tɜ:ʔ/ ‘when’

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The main clause may then be preceded by either /ki:/ or /ʔŋkiʔ/.

ho:j cɛ:ʔ e: di: dɜw lɨʔ cə:…when near FUT midnight INT already‘When it was nearly midnight already…’

tɨ: mɜːm tasuə, a:j taŋu: nɜj. taʔ ciʔ ba:r lam caran nɜj chə:, when finish tasuo old-sib tangu this do IMP two CL animal this already,

ʔŋkiʔ ʔan par ʔaco:n tapu:n la:h ʔaʔɛ:m ʔan la: taŋu:.thus 3SG fly raise follow again yng-sib 3SG COP Tangu.‘When Tasuo, Tangu’s older brother, finished off the two animals, he flew up following his younger brother Tangu.’

An ongoing action is sometimes signalled by the pre-verb /ʔnto:m/

/ʔnto:m ca:/ ‘is currently eating’/ʔnto:m beʔ/ ‘is currently sleeping’/nto:m na:u pro:m pra:j ba:w ki:/ ‘they are currently gathering the citizens’

4.2.4.2 ConditionConditional clauses usually start with the preposition /kʰɜn/ ‘if’. Very often /ki:/ or /ʔŋkiʔ/ marks the beginning of the result clause

kʰɜn ho:j lɛʔ ʔa:i hɨ:m piar pə: məj nɜj ŋo:t, if whenever old-sib see flower DIR 2SG this wilt,

ki: kɨʔ ʔaʔɛ:m kʰɔjʔ bɨ:n ramɨh tuh ka:t cə:.that yng-sib PST have name difficult already…

‘If ever you (older brother) see this flower that is in your possession wilt, then I (younger brother) am in trouble.’

khɜn na:w daŋ haj kʰɔjʔ kə:t lakuəj kaja:k cə:, if 3IND know 1PL PST become wife husband already

ʔŋkiʔ haj ba:r naʔ nɜj la ʔaləj kaci:t ɲɛ:ʔ lɜ:ŋ.thus 1PL two CL this COP 3PL kill completely

‘If they know that we are married, they will kill both of us.’

kʰɜn jɔ:k ʔe: tamɔ:ŋ, ki: la:ŋ ʔasɛ:ŋ dajh te: ntoʔ ʔanɜj də:if want FUT live, CNJ go-down down EXCL from place here EMPH‘If you want to live, get down immediately from here.’

4.2.4.3 PurposeA purpose clause generally follows the main clause, and is marked by /dɒ:ʔ/ ‘put’ or /jo:n/ ‘give’ or a combination of these to mean ‘in order that’.

…ma: ʔan tɔ:ʔ ʔmpe:r ki: tɜ:p dɒ:ʔ tutuajʔ te: doŋ cu: saraj…but 3SG hid around that IMMED PURP spy about house DIR field‘...but he hid close by in order to spy out the house in the field.’

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haj bɨ:n doŋ su: la dɒ:ʔ jo:n yəw baj clah cləː ʔəjʔ.we have house-shelter COP PURP give friend visit ESCL‘We have a home so that our friends can come and visit!’

4.2.4.4 ConcessionTwo markers are generally used with concessive clauses. These are /lɨʔ pa:j/ or /ta:m/ to mean ‘al-though’. Very often the main clause is then preceded by /ma/ or /la/.

ʔŋkiʔ tɜŋ muəj sadɜw ki, lɨʔ pa:j ʔan sɜŋ nɜ:r saʔɨ:j tro:, la: ʔan tə: bɨ:n taʔ bo:ʔ nɜ:ŋ.Thus in one night that, although 3SG hear noise many tie, COP 3SG NEG do mouth still.‘So during that night, although he heard a noise many time, he didn’t say anything.’

lɨʔ pa:j heʔ tə: bɨ:n ə:t ʔndoŋ, la: tə: bɨ:n ntrəw ka: taʔ kalə: ə:j.although 1PL NEG at home, COP NEG anything REL do friend VOC‘Even though we are not at home, it doesn’t matter at all, friend.’

ʔŋkiʔ te:ʔ ʔaɲia ʔi:t da:w nɜj dɨ:ŋ ʔacu:, ta:m ʔaɲia ʔe: taʔ.thus also 2PL take sword this bring back, whatever 2PL want do.‘So you can take this sword and bring it home, whatever you want to do.’

4.3 DeixisBru has a well developed series of deictics which play an important role in the grammar of the lan-guage. They distinguish three levels of distance and in a more abstract way, they may refer to a situ-ation or to a speech act. The table below gives the more common deictics:

The following table shows the deictic markers used in a Bru text.

Near Far FartherDeictic nɜj ‘this’ ki: ‘that’ tih ‘that over there’Demonstrative ʔanɜi ‘this one’ ʔaki: ‘that one’ ʔatih ‘that one over there’Locative ʔnnɜj ‘here’ ʔŋki: ‘there’Abstract ʔnnɛ:ʔ ‘like this’ ʔŋki:ʔ ‘thus’

In addition to the usual meaning of ‘this’ and ‘that,’/nɜj/ and /ki:/ have discourse functions on a num-ber of levels as discussed in (Miller 2001:19). With some other words also the location marker /tɜŋ/ can be shortened to a nasal consonant prefix. (e.g. ʔndoŋ/ ‘at home’. /ʔnɛ:ʔ/ is commonly used to in-troduce lists or to introduce direct quotation. /ʔŋkiʔ/ is frequently used clause initially to mean ‘so’ or ‘therefore’.

4.4 Noun phrasesIn a 1961 article, C. Miller describes the fully expanded Noun Phrase as Numeral, Classifier, Noun Head, Modifier, Demonstrative, Possessor, Location. She notes that the fully expanded phrase rarely occurs in text, but is more commonly broken into two phrases or clauses. The only required item is the Noun Head, which is omitted only if it is understood from the context. The Noun Head may be a classifiable or non-classifiable noun or pronoun (5.1.1,2, or 3).

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ɲɛ:ʔ tapɜ:t tapu:l lam ʔali:kall six seven CL pigAll six or seven pigs

ɲɛ:ʔ ʔaləj ki:all 3PL thereAll of them

mah kuaj…PL personPeople

ɲɛ:ʔ naʔ heʔall CL 1PLWe all

The modifier position may be filled by one or more adjectives/stative verbs, a dependent verb phrase describing state, location, time, or instrument, or by a modifier plus relative phrase or clause. Deic-tics & location markers also occur in this position. The possessor may be given by a noun or pronounwith or without the overt possessor marker /khɔŋ/. A personal pronoun or name as the noưn head cannot be possessed.

doŋ tɜ:r kʰɔŋ kɨʔ…House big POSS 1SG‘My big house…’

ɲɛ:ʔ tapɜ:t tapu:l ʔali:k kuci:t ki…all six seven pigs dead those…‘All six or seven of those dead pigs…’

mah ʔali:k ʔmpi: kɨʔ siəm ki:...PL pigs mother 1SG feed those‘Those pigs my mother is feeding there…’

5. WORD CLASSESIn his 1964 article, J. Miller gives 27 different word classes in Bru. He defines these primarily by co-occurrence possibilities and describes the major classes of Nouns, Verbs and Modifiers. He groups others words into categories of Adverbials, Nominal Subordinates, and Connectives and presents some particles and interjections.

5.1 NounsNouns are further subdivided as those which can be classified or not. Those not able to occur with a classifier include countable and non-countable nouns.

5.1.1 Classifiable nounsNouns which may occur with a classifier are a very large class. These tend to be discrete in nature. E.g /ahɔ:/ ‘bamboo’, /cɜ:jʔ/ ‘paper’, /kuaj/ ‘person’, /ayə:/ ‘blanket’, etc.

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5.1.2 Non-classifiable nounsNon-classifiable nouns include those which are non-discrete or non-segmentable. Some can be counted, such as /kumɔ:/ ‘year’ or /ʔaca:ŋ/ ‘armspan’, and some, such as /də:ʔ/ ‘water’, or /pʰiak/ ‘smoke’ cannot. Words of measure and quantity fit in this category.

5.1.3 Pronouns Common Bru pronouns are given in the chart below. Since there is no passive verb form in Bru, the 3ʳᵈ person plural indefinite form of the pronoun functions in cases where an actor is unspecified or unknown.

Singular Plural 1st kɨʔ hɛʔ (exclusive)

hai (inclusive)2nd məj ʔanhia3ʳᵈ ʔan ʔaləi (definite)

na:w (indefinite)

5.1.3.1 Indefinite PronounsMiller (1988) lists a group of words which can be used either as indefinite pronouns or as interrogatives. Examples of these are the words /ntrəw/ ‘what’, /lɛʔ/ ‘where’, /na:w/ ‘who’.E.g ʔntrəw məj taʔ ‘What are you doing?’ kɨʔ tə: bɨn taʔ ʔntrəw ‘I am not doing anything.’ pə: lɛʔ məj pə:ʔ ‘Where are you going? kɨʔ tə: bɨn pə:ʔ pə: lɛʔ ‘I am not going anywhere.’

5.1.4 Names and Terms of AddressBru names generally reflect the status of a person. Children are given a name which is often preceded by /ʔa:j/ if it is a boy and /ʔamɒʔ/ if it is a girl. For a young man newly married, the term ofaddress is /kʰə:j/ often followed by the name of the village where he took a wife. The term of address for the young woman is/kan tamaj/. When the couple has a child, their names change to /ʔmpa:ʔ/ ‘father’ and /ʔmpi:ʔ/ ‘mother’ followed by the name of their child. Similarly with the first grandchild, the names become /ʔacuajh/ ‘grandfather’ and /ʔaya:ʔ/ ‘grandmother’ followed by the name of the child. Still later, if they live long enough, they may become /ʔace:h/ ‘great-grandfather’ and /ʔaje:/ ‘great-grandmother’ of their first great-grandchild.

Parents-in-law are not addressed by the singular pronouns used to address other people. Plural pronouns are used for oneself and the parent-in-law. Older people say this is true of very respected figures of authority, such as the king, but since there is very little chance now of addressing such a personage in Bru, this is known only through folk stories.

The chart below shows Bru address terms from most respectful to most common:More formal/polite Less formal/polite1ST SG ʔabɒh hɛʔ hɛʔ kinship term kɨʔ2ND SG/ PL na:w karsa:j na:w ʔan ʔaɲia kin term (+)

3rd SGməj

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5.1.5 Kinship terms

J. Miller (1964) described in some detail the kinship system of Bru. Following are some of the more common kinship terms used in Bru as they relate to a male ego /kɨʔ/:

Grandfather ʔacuajhGrandmother ʔaja:ʔMother ʔmpi:ʔFather ʔmpa:ʔOlder brother/older male cousin ʔa:jOlder sister/older female cousin ʔə:jYounger brother or sister ʔaʔe:mWife lakuəjWife’s mother jaka:nWife’s father jaku:nChild kɔ:nDaughter-in-law kumɜnSon-in-law partiamGrandchild cɜwNiece/nephew ramɔ:n

5.2 Verbs5.2.1 Intransitive verbs (See 4.1.1)Intransitive verbs are those which cannot take an object such as:/taku:/ ‘sit’/tajɨŋ/ ‘stand’/ɲiam/ ‘cry’, etc. Included in this category are directional verbs such as: /pə:ʔ/ ‘go’/luh/ ‘run’/ʔə:t/ ‘stay’

5.2.2 Transitive verbs (See 4.1.1)Transitive verbs are those which may take an object such as:/hɨ:m/ ‘see’/taʔ/ ‘make’/tɜ:n/ ‘hit’/uat/ ‘sing’.

5.2.3 Ditransitive verbsDitransitive verbs are those which can take an indirect object as well as a direct object. Examples of this are: /jo:n/ ‘give’/na:p/ ‘count, consider’/tah/ ‘discard’.

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As noted earlier, most of the verbs that are semantically ditransitive involve the use of the verb /jo:n/ ‘give’ to mark the beneficiary, such as:/taq jo:n/ ‘do for’/apah jo:n/ ‘show for’

5.2.4 Existential verbsThe most common existential verb in Bru is /bɨ:n/ ‘have, be’. Also functioning in this capacity is the verb /kə:t/ ‘become’.

5.3 AdverbialsAdverbials consist of words that modify in some way the verb or verb phrase. These include time, manner, negativity, frequency, etc.

5.3.1 TimeTime is often indicated by markers within the main action clauses of the text. The following chart notes some of these and examples are given below. The relative frequency of their use in one text is shown below. (Miller 2001)

Perfective action NP VP cəə : 662 occurrencesFuture action NP ʔe: VP

cu: ma:t NP VP138 occurrences1 occurrence

Completed action NP kʰɔjʔ VP 136 occurrencesUnrealized action NP (tə:) juahVP

NP VP (tə:) juah22 occurrences16

Immediate action NP VP tɜ:p 40 occurrencesPreliminary action NP VP va:j 27 occurrencesAccompanying action ʔntə:n NP…ʔntə:n NP 5 occurrencesImminent future ʔŋkeʔ NP VP

ʔnto:m NP e: VPNP cɛ: ʔe: VP

5 occurrences5 occurrences4 occurrences

Consecutive action ʔntu:n NP VPvət NP VPNP ta:w tɜ:ʔ VP

5 occurrences2 occurrences7 occurrences

Very frequently the marker for completed action and the marker for perfective action occur together as: /kʰɔjʔ VP cəə :/. The future marker /ʔe:/ often has an intentional or desiderative meaning (‘want to’), which is made explicit in 60 of the 138 occurrences noted above by an accompanying /jɔ:k/ ‘want’

Times relative to the present are expressed by a word which follows the word /taŋaj/ ‘day’.

/taŋaj nɜj/ ‘today’/taŋaj parnəː/ ‘tomorrow’/taŋaj praː/ ‘day after tomorrow’/taŋaj praːj/ ‘three days from now’/taŋaj prɛh/ ‘four days from now’/taŋaj prɨt/ ‘five days from now’/taŋaj pruat/ ‘six days from now’

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/taŋaj mahaj/ ‘yesterday’/taŋaj ʔntria/ ‘day before yesterday’/taŋaj ʔntraːj/ ‘two days ago’/taŋaj ʔntreːh/ ‘three days ago’/taŋaj ʔntroːn/ ‘four days ago’

Within the day, time is marked by the position of the /manda:ŋ/ ‘sun’.

/mandaːŋ rə:ʔ/ ´first light/mandaːŋ lɒːh/ ‘sunrise’/mandaːŋ coːn/ ‘early morning’/mandaːŋ cah (kɛː)/ ‘mid-morning/maːndaːŋ kuːvəː tɜːŋ/ ‘nearly noon’/maːndaːŋ tɜːŋ/ ‘noon’/maːndaːŋ viːh tɜːŋ/ ‘early afternoon’/maːndaːŋ priaŋ/ ‘mid afternoon’/maːndaːŋ raːlɔh/ ‘late afternoon’/maːndaːŋ taːhoːr/ ‘almost sunset’/maːndaːŋ ŋeːt/ ‘sun going down’/maːndaːŋ pɜt/ ‘sunset complete’

More general expressions for time are:/tarɨp/ ‘morning’/tabɨʔ/ ‘ afternoon, evening’/sadɜw/ ‘night’/didɜw/ ‘midnight’

5.3.2 Indefinite adverbsThe interrogative use of these adverbs was shown in Section 4.1.2. But they also function as idefinite adverbs as shown below.

/nɒʔ/ ‘how,why’

ma heʔ təː daŋ nɒʔ eː taʔ but we not know how want do'But we don't know what to do.'

/malɛʔ/ or /mah lɛʔ/ ‘how much’

ŋkiʔ aləj təː bɨːn ŋkɒh malɛʔ nɜːŋso they not have fear much still'So they were not much afraid any longer.'

/naa: w/ ‘who’

cəː naːw tɔː laːh samɨ kithen they add again string that'Then they stretched out again that string.'

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5.3.2 Preverbs (including negatives)Preverbs include the negative imperative /co:j/ ‘don’t’ and the negative /tə:/ or /tə: bɨ:n/ ‘not’. Other preverbs /e:ʔ/ ‘want to’ and / kə:j/’usually’ can also occur following the negative and preceding the verb.

/tə:/ or / tə: bɨ:n/ ‘not’ (before a Verb)/tə: kə:n/ ‘isn’t’ (before a Noun)/tə: juah/ ‘not yet’/co:j/ ‘don’t’/kɔʔ/ ‘must’/e: or e:ʔ/ ‘want to, going to’/kə:j/ ‘usually’/doʔ/ ‘frequently’/lə:ʔ/ ‘seldom’/lə:/ ‘accidentally’

Time markers for completed action /kʰɔ:iʔ/, continuing action /ʔnto:m/. and simultaneous action /ʔntə:n…ʔntə:n/ also occur in preverb position.

5.3.4 PostverbsA number of time words occur in post verb position. These include the following:/klajh/ ‘early’/saliaʔ/ ‘late’/chə:/ ‘already’/tʰaŋ/ ‘completely’/te:/ ‘also’/ʔe:n/ ‘in addition’

In a category by itself is the intensive word /lɨʔ/. It can occur after the verb to mean ‘very’. It can occur before the very to mean ‘truly’. It can have a carry a future sense in a discourse with the meaning of ‘will surely’.

/kadi:t lɨʔ/ ‘very poor’/kʰɜm lɨʔ/ ‘very tightly’/lɨʔ pə:ʔ/ ‘really went’

ʔan ka: lɨʔ ?acuajh3S REL INT grandfather‘The one who was really the grandfather…’

kʰɜn ʔaɲia sɛ:ʔ, lɨʔ ʔan jo:nif 2P ask, INT 3S give‘If you ask him, surely he will give it.’

5.4 PrepositionsWords which are used to introduce phrases and clauses include the following:/kəp/ ‘and, with’/nɨŋ/ ‘with’/jo:n/ ‘for’/cɔʔ/ ‘toward’

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/te:/ ‘from’/tɜ:ʔ/ ‘toward’/pə:/ ‘to’/na/ ‘through’/ɲəə :/ ‘because of, thanks to’/juaʔ/ ‘because of (neutral)’/ko: tian/ ‘because of (negative)’/tɜŋ/ ‘in’

Those which indicate position or place include:/ɲɨ:p/ ‘underneath’/pə:ŋ/ ‘above’/pɨ:n/ ‘under’/ka:h/ ‘beside’/kli:/ ‘behind’/kloŋ/ ‘inside’/ʔmpɨŋ/ ‘in the middle of’/tiah/ ‘outside’

Some can indicate either time or position, such as:/ʔntu:n/ ‘after’/ɲuaŋ/ ‘before’/cɛ:ʔ/ ‘close to/nearly’

5.5 ClassifiersJ. Miller (1964:52-55) gives thirty-six different classifiers in Bru. Some of the more common of these are:/lam/ ‘for the widest variety of things’/naʔ/ ‘for people’/ʔɒk/ ‘for small objects’/pla:h/ ‘for blankets or clothing’/kʰle:k/ ‘for paper, boards, or sheets of things’/to:p/ ‘for groups’

5.6 QuantifiersQuantifiers include numerals such as:/muəi/ ‘one’/ba:r/ ‘two’/paj/ ‘three’/po:n/ ‘four’/sə:ŋ/ ‘five’/tapɜ:t/ ‘six’/tapu:l/ ‘seven’/takual/ ‘eight’/take:h ‘nine’/muəi cit/ ‘ten’/kulam/ ‘hundred’/ŋi:n/ ‘thousand’/tri:w/ ‘million’

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More general quantifiers include:/ɲɛ:ʔ/ ‘all’/du:/ ‘enough’/ku:/ ‘every’/klɨŋ/ ‘many (people)’/saʔɨ:j/ ‘many (general)’/bi:ʔ/ ‘few’/biaʔ/ ‘few’/ kʰam/ ‘sufficient’/pɛʔ/ ‘enough’/kalɨ:j/ ‘more than enough’/ʔoŋ/ ‘only’

5.7 Particles5.7.1 VocativesShown below are Bru vocative expressions arranged along more formal/polite to less formal/polite continuum.More formal/polite

Less formal/polite

ʔə:j ʔə:jh ʔə: ɜw ʔo:

5.7.2 Particles eliciting response.Some particles are used at the end of a sentence to request verification or agreement. These are shown below along more formal/polite to less formal/polite continuum.More formal/polite

Less formal/polite

nəː nuː nɜŋ bəː dəː baː

5.7.3 Exclamations Some of the sentence final exclamations found in Bru texts are:/ʔə:jʔ/ showing strong feeling/ʔɜm/ showing sarcasm/mɒ/ giving emphasis/dajh/ showing surprise

Other exclamations are sentence initial or stand alone./ʔɜw/ Oh!/ʔə:ʔ showing agreement/piəjʔ/ Right!/tʰo:j/ Whatever!

7. Appendix 1: SAMPLE GLOSSED TEXT 8. Appendix 2: SHORT LEXICON 9. Appendix 3: RESOURCES ON BRU TRI LANGUAGE

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Hoang Van Ma & Ta Van Thong 1998Tieng Bru-Van Kieu, Nha Xuat Ban Khoa Hoc Xa Hoi, Ha Noi.Miller, Carolyn 1964 The substantive phrase in Brou. Mon-Khmer Studies 1.63-80.Miller, John 1964 Word classes in Brou. Mon-Khmer Studies 1.41-62._____1967 An acoustical study of Brou vowels. Phonetica 17:149-177._____1972 Bru kinship. Southeast Asia: An International Quarterly 2:1.62-70._____1993 Evaluation of the Wordlist Used in a Mon-Khmer Research Project in Northeast Thailand.Mon-Khmer Studies 23.67-81.Miller, John & Carolyn 2001 The Tiger Mother’s Child and the Cow Mother’s Child: A Preliminary Look at a Bru Epic, in Collected papers on Southeast Asian and Pacific languages, ed. R.S. Bauer, pp. 111-139. Australian National Univ., Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies.Vuong Huu Le 1999 A New Interpretation of the Bru Van Kieu Vowel System, Mon-Khmer Studies 29.97-106.Watson, Richard 1980, A grammar of Two Pacoh texts. Arlington: The University of Texas at Arlington.

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Appendix 1: Grasshopper & Mantis

Written by M. Ayooq around 1985

Bai Nsuar te Lam láq-cáq cơp Lam Ralôi

baːj ʔnsuar teː laːm laʔcaʔ kəp laːm raloj

story about Grasshopper and Mantis

'The story of the Grasshopper and the Mantis'

Lam láq-cáq atỡng cunâi, pai:

laːm laʔcaʔ ʔatəːŋ kunaj paːj

Grasshopper tell rat say

'Grasshopper said to the rat:

"Alooq bĩng-bũang mới chỗi mut nơ, nâi ơi, nhi nâi.

ʔalɔːʔ biːŋ-buaŋ məj coːj muːt nəː nɜj əːj ɳi nɜj

baboo tube cut on the slant you don't enter, okay rat, uncle rat

'If you see a bamboo tube cut on the slant, don't enter it, okay uncle rat.

Aluang cooc mới chỗi doiq nơ, nâi ơi, nhi nâi.

ʔaluaŋ kɔːk məj coːj dɔːjʔ nðː nɜj əːj ɳi nɜj

tree crooked you don't climb, okay rat, uncle rat

If you see a crooked branch, don't climb it, okay uncle rat.

Toiq mới chỗi yễl nơ, nâi ơi, nhi nâi."

tɔjʔ məj coːj jeːl nəː nɜj əːj ɳi nɜj

garlic you don't lick, okay rat, uncle rat

If you see garlic, don't lick it, okay uncle rat.

Ngkíq cunâi ki sâng croŏq láq-cáq atỡng án ŏc nâi.

ʔŋkiʔ kunɜj kiː sɜŋ krɔːʔ laʔcaʔ ʔatəːŋ ʔan ʔɒk nɜj

so rat that feel fear hear grasshopper tell him thing that

So the rat felt afraid hearing the grasshopper tell him that.

Chơ cunâi ki tapáh láq cáq tâng rêng báng.

cəː kunɜj kiː tapah laʔcaʔ tɜŋ reːŋ baŋ

then rat that strike grasshopper on cheek

Then the rat struck the grasshopper on his cheek.

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Ngkíq lam láq-cáq nâi cỡt dang chíq tỗ án toau sanua.

ʔŋkiʔ laːm laʔcaʔ nɜj kəːt daːŋ ciʔ toː ʔan taːw sanua

So grasshopper became narrow immediately body his until now

So the grasshopper has a pinched face until now.

Chơ ntun ki lam ralôi ễn atỡng cunâi pai:

cəː ʔntuːn ki laːm raloːj ʔeːn ʔatəːŋ kunɜj paːj

then after that mantis in addition say to rat

Then later the mantis told the rat:

"Alooq bĩng-bũang ki mới mut nơ, nâi ơi, nhi nâi.

ʔalɔːʔ biːŋ-buaŋ kiː məj muːt nəː nɜj əːj ɳi nɜj

baboo tube cut on the slant you enter, okay rat, uncle rat

'If you see a bamboo tube cut on the slant, you enter it, okay uncle rat.

Aluang cooc mới doiq nơ, nâi ơi, nhi nâi.

ʔaluaŋ kɔːk məj dɔːjʔ nðː nɜj əːj ɳi nɜj

tree crooked you climb, okay rat, uncle rat

If you see a crooked branch, you climb it, okay uncle rat.

Toiq mới yễl nơ, nâi ơi, nhi nâi."

tɔjʔ məj jeːl nəː nɜj əːj ɳi nɜj

garlic you lick, okay rat, uncle rat

If you see garlic, you lick it, okay uncle rat.

Ngkíq cunâi ki sâng bui lam ralôi atỡng án ŏc nâi.

ʔŋkiʔ kunɜj kiː sɜŋ buːj laːm raloːj ʔatəːŋ ʔan ɒk nɜj

so rat that feel happy mantis tell him thing this

So the rat felt happy that the mantis told hm this.

Chơ cunâi nâi ỡt apir níc-níc mieiq lam ralôi ki.

cəː kunɜj nɜj əːt ʔapiːr nik-nik miəjʔ laːm raloːj kiː

then rat this stroke always face mantis that

The the rat kept stroking the face of the mantis.

Mieiq lam ralôi nâi cỡt siel bráh o lứq toau sanua.

miəjʔ laːm raloːj nɜj kəːt siːəl brah ʔɔː taːw sanua

face mantis this become smooth clean good very until now

The mantis's face became smooth and beautiful until now.

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Ngkíq cunâi nâi sâng bui lứq tâng mứt pahỡm án tễ ŏc ki.

ʔŋkiʔ kunɜj nɜj sɜŋ buːj lɨʔ tɜŋ mɨt pahəːm ʔan teː ɒk kiː

So rat this feel happy very in heart his about thing this

So the rat felt very happy about this.

Chơ ntun ki cunâi nâi pỡq chuaq cha pỡ arưih ki.

cəː ʔntuːn kiː kunɜj nɜj pəːʔ cuaʔ caː pəː ʔarɨːjh kiː

then after that rat this go look for food in forest that

Then the rat went to look for food in the forest.

Án ramóh crơng sana noau prán chóq dŏq tâng cutŏng ki tỡ la tâng acáp nâi.

ʔan ramɔh krəːŋ sanaː naːw pran cɔʔ dɒːʔ tɜŋ kutɒŋ kiː təː laː tɜŋ ʔakap nɜj.

he found food they bait put in that deadfall or in trap this

He found some food someone had put as bait in a deadfall or trap there.

Ngkíq án mut cha crơng sana ki. Chơ án cỡt cuchĩt tâng cutŏng nâi tỡ la acáp ki.

ʔŋkiʔ ʔan muːt caː krəːŋ sanaː kiː cəː ʔan kəːt kuciːt tɜŋ kutɒŋ nɜj təː laː ʔakap kiː

so he enter eat food that. Then he become dead in deadfall this or trap that

So he went in and ate that food. Then he died in that deadfall or trap.

Catát tỡ la sarớt án.

katat təː laː sarət ʔan

fall or catch him.

It fell on him or caught him in a noose.

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Appendix 2: SIL SOUTHEAST ASIA WORDLIST for Bru Tri

(Revised 1980) Adapted Swadesh list used for Mon-Khmer Languages.

S indicates status as described in paper: "Evaluation of the Wordlist Used in a Mon-KhmerResearch Project in Northeast Thailand." John Miller in Mon-Khmer Studies 23. 1994 i =inclusion, e = exclusion, p = problematic.

English S Bru Tri/Van Kieu

1. sky i palɒ:ŋ

2. cloud i ramɨl

3. sun i ma:t manda:ŋ

4. moon i rliaŋ kasɜj

5. star i manto:r

6. wind i kuja:l

7. rain i mia

8. rainbow p preŋ ka:ŋ

9. mist i taluk

10. night i sadɜw

11. day i tangaj

12. year i kumɔ:

14. snow e pre:l prɨl

13. hail i pre:l

15. freeze e do: / do:ŋ

16. water i də:ʔ

17. river e kro:ŋ

18. lake e klɔŋ

19. sea e də:ʔ mɨ:t

20. earth i kute:ʔ

21. stone p tamaw

22. sand i cuah

23. mud p luʔ

24. dust e breh

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25. gold e yɛ:ŋ

26. silver i praʔ

27. mountain i kɔh

28. tree i aluang

29. forest e ʔarɨ:jh

30. leaf i sala:

31. bark i ʔndɒ:h

32. flower i piar

33. root i re:h

34. fruit i palɜj

35. seed i ʔɒk

36. grass i bat

37. stick e du:j

38. banana i priat

39. rattan e kraj

40. areca i pana:ŋ

41. papaya i ʔahoŋ

42. coconut i laʔu:

43. bird i cəm

44. wing i kʰla:p

45. feather e sɔk cəm

46. fly i pɜr

47. egg i tare:l

48. tail i sɔ:j / dɒŋ

49. claw i kre:h

50. horn i takɔ:j

51. animal e caran

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52. dog i ʔacɔ:

53. pig i ʔali:k

54. chicken i ntruəj

55. duck i ʔatia

56. fish i siaʔ

57. snake i kusɜn

58. rat i kunɜj

59. rabbit e kata:j

60. monkey p tamɨr

61. deer p jə:t

62. tiger i kula:

63. buffalo i tariak

64. cow e ntrɒ:ʔ

65. elephant i ʔaciaŋ

66. (elephant) tusk i paluak

67. worm e lu:j

68. scorpion e poŋ katiaŋ

69. spider i ʔapiaŋ

70. louse i ʔnci:

71. mosquito i rajɔ:ŋ

72. a fly i ruəj

73. nose i muh

74. eye i ma:t

75. ear i kutu:r

76. head i plə:

77. mouth i bo:ʔ

78. tooth i kane:ŋ

79. tongue i liəjh

30


80. hair i sɔk

81. neck i takɔ:ŋ

82. shoulder i ʔapa:l

83. chest e ʔapə:m

84. back i klɔ:ŋ

85. heart e kɜ:l pahə:m

86. abdomen i puŋ

87. intestine i ruajʔ

88. liver i luam

89. hand i ʔati:

90. palm i tala:ŋ ʔati:

91. nail e kre:h

92. leg e ʔnlu:

93. foot i ʔajɨ:ŋ

94. knee i rakəl

95. thigh i ʔnlu:

96. calf i ʔnluaŋ

97. blood i ʔaha:m

98. bone i ʔŋha:ŋ

99. skin i ʔŋkɜr

100. flesh i sɜjʔ

101. fat i ʔnse:ŋ

102. live e tamɔ:ŋ

103. die i kuci:t

104. sick e ʔaʔi:

105. breathe i taŋɨh

106. hear e sɜŋ

107. see i hɨ:m

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108. speak e taʔ ʔntə:ŋ

109. laugh i kacaŋ

110. weep i ɳiam

111. suck e pu:

112. spit (v) i kucɔh

113. blow e tʱo:r

114. bite p kap

115. eat i ca:

116. drink i ŋuajʔ

117. drunk i bu:l

118. vomit i kuta:

119. smell e hu:n

120. think i cancəm

121. know i daŋ

122. count i na:p / ŋi:h

123. afraid i ʔŋkɔh

124. want e jɔ:k

125. sleep e beʔ

126. lie i beʔ

127. stand i tajɨŋ

128. sit i taku:

129. walk i tajah

130. come e tɜ:ʔ

131. enter i mu:t

132. return e cu:

133. turn e pih

134. swim i lo:j

135. float e do:jh

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136. flow i hɔ:j

137. push i kutəl

138. pull i ti:

139. throw e wa:ŋ

140. fall e dəm

141. give i jo:n

142. take i ʔi:t

143. wash i ʔariaw

144. launder i pɔ:h

145. split i pah

146. tie i cɒʔ

147. wipe i cu:t

148. rub e tia

149. hit i tɜ:n

150. cut e kɨt

151. stab i ca:t

152. dig i piʔ

153. scratch i piəjʔ

154a. squeeze e pɜt

154b. wring i tawiat

155. man i samiaŋ

156. woman i mansɛ:m

157. person i kuaj

158. father i ʔmpa:ʔ

159. mother i ʔmpi:ʔ

160. child e kɔ:n

161. husband i kaja:k

162. wife i lakuəj

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163. brother i ʔa:j

164. sister i ʔə:j

165. younger sibling i ʔaʔɛ:m

166. name i ramɨh

167. I i kɨʔ

168. you sg i məj

169. he, she e ʔan

170. we (include) e haj

171. you pl e ʔaɳia

172. they e ʔaləj

173. field rice i sarɔ:

174. pounded rice i rakaw

175. cooked rice i do:j

176. corn i sapua

177. salt i bɔ:j

178. red pepper i tiəw kusɜw

179. betel chew e laba:ʔ

180. pestle i ʔntri:

181. mortar i tapal

182. to steam e kʰo:j

183. firewood i ʔu:jh

184. fire e ʔu:jh

185. burn e ka:t

186. ashes i bɒ:h

187. smoke i pʰiak

188. road i rana:

189. house i doŋ

190. roof i ʔmpuəl

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191. cord p ʔnsɜj

192. sew i ji:h

193. clothing e tampɜk

194. loincloth e sarla:j

195. work i taʔ

196. play i lə:jʔ

197. sing e ʔuat

198. dance i puən

199. drum p sakə:r

200. gong p parnɔh

201. buy i cə:ŋ

202. crossbow i tamiaŋ

203. arrow i sarah

204. spear p kɔ:jh

205. shoot i pan

206. hunt e pupan

207. kill i kaci:t

208. fight e racil

209. one i muəj

210. two i ba:r

211. 3 i paj

212. 4 i po:n

213. 5 i sə:ŋ

214. 6 i tapɜ:t

215. 7 i tapu:l

216. 8 i takual

217. 9 i take:h

218. 10 i muəj cit

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219. 20 e ba:r cit

220. 100 i muəj kula:m

221. all i ɳɛ:ʔ

222. many p saʔɨ:j

223. some e ---

224. few e bi:ʔ

225. big i tɜ:r

226. small i kət

227. long i kuti:

228. tall i sarə:jh

229a. short (length) p ŋkɛh

229b. low (height) p dɛ:n

230. round p vɨl

231. smooth i siəl

232. thick i kubɜn

233. thin i kada:

234. wide i laʔa:

235. narrow i hɛ:p

236. black i ku:m

237. red i kusɜw

238. white i klɔ:k

239. green i ramɔ:ŋ

240. yellow i rariaʔ

241. dry e kʰo:

242. wet i yu:r

243. rotten i ʔnsɔʔ

244. swell e ʔajh

245. full (container) i pɜ:n

36


246. dirty e ɳə:p

247. sharp (blade) i bək

248. dull e lu:j

249. new i tamaj

250. hot e kutɜw

251. cold e lɛ:ŋ

252. heavy i ʔntɜŋ

253. straight i tana:ŋ

254. right (correct) i piəjʔ

255. good e ʔɔ:

256a. bad e sɜwʔ

256b. evil e sɜwʔ

257a. old (object) i tiaʔ

257b. old (person) i tʰɜw

258. far i jə:ŋ

259. near i cɛ:ʔ

260. rightside i ʔata:m

261. leftside i ʔave:r

262. same e macəŋ

263. different i ʔmpʰa:

264. here e ʔanɜj

265. there e ʔaki:

266. this i nɜj

267. that i ki:

268. when? e bɔ: lɛ:ʔ

269. where? i ʔnlɛ:ʔ

270. who? e na:w

271. what? i ʔntrəw

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272. and e kəp

273. with e kəp

274. at e pə:

275. because e juaʔ

276. how e lɛʔ

277. if e kʰɜn

278. in e tɜŋ

279. not i tə:

280. not yet e tə: juah

281. already i cə:

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APPENDIX 3: RESOURCES ON BRU TRIBarulin, A.N. & A. Iu. Efimov 1985 Vai van de ngu am tieng Van Kieu.Ho Xuan Kieu 1986 Buoc dau tim hieu ve hien tuong lay tieng Bru-Van Kieu.Hoang Tue et al 1986 Sach Hoc Tieng Bru-Van Kieu.Hoang Van Ma 1985 de yeu to yet hau mui trong tieng Van Kieu.Hoang Van Ma & Ta Van Thong 1998Tieng Bru-Van Kieu, Nha Xuat Ban Khoa Hoc Xa Hoi, Ha Noi.Miller, Carolyn 1964 The substantive phrase in Brou. Mon-Khmer Studies 1.63-80._____ & Nuan 1974 Bai hoc tieng Bru: Bru - Viet - Anh. Bru Language Lessons. Vien Chuyen Khao Ngu Hoc. Saigon._____1994 Perceptions of ethnolinguistic identity, language shift and language use in Mon-Khmer language communities of Northeast Thailand. Mon-Khmer Studies 23.83-101._____1996 Application of typologies for language maintenance and loss to southeast asial linguistic minorities: The case of the Bru-So and Kadazan-Dusun language continua. Paper presented at the Fourth International Symposium of Languages and Linguistics. Mahidol University at Salaya, Bangkok, Thailand. To be published in the conference procedings._____1999 Language Shift and Language Use Within Mon-Khmer Language Communities of Northeast Thailand, ?? Miller, John 1964 Word classes in Brou. Mon-Khmer Studies 1.41-62_____1967 An acoustical study of Brou vowels. Phonetica 17:149-177._____1972 Bru kinship. Southeast Asia: An International Quarterly 2:1.62-70._____& Thom 1973 Bru list for Vietnam comparative wordbook. SIL. Unpublished manuscript._____1994 Evaluation of the Wordlist Used in a Mon-Khmer Research Project in Northeast Thailand.Mon-Khmer Studies 23.67-81.Miller, John & Carolyn 1994 Preliminary observations on text comparison and the use of the computer for text adaptation within several Katuic Mon-Khmer language groups of Northeast Thailand. Unpublished manuscript._____1994 Comparative database of Katuic Mon-Khmer wordlists. Unpublished Ms._____1994 Comparative thesaurus database of seven Katuic Mon-Khmer languages, with Thai, Lao, Isan and English glosses. Unpublished Ms._____1994 Comparative database of grammar questionnaires in six Bru/So dialects, Thai and English. Unpublished Ms._____1994 Preliminary observations on text comparison and the use of the computer for text adaptation within several Katuic Mon-Khmer language groups of Northeast Thailand. Unpublished manuscript._____1994 Notes on Phonology and Orthography in Several Katuic Mon-Khmer Groups in Northeast Thailand, Mon-Khmer Studies 24:27-51._____1994 Comparative database of Katuic Mon-Khmer wordlists. Unpublished Ms._____1994 Comparative thesaurus database of seven Katuic Mon-Khmer languages, with Thai, Lao, Isan and English glosses. Unpublished Ms._____1994 Comparative database of grammar questionnaires in six Bru/So dialects, Thai and English. Unpublished Ms._____1996 Lexical comparison of Katuic Mon-Khmer Languages with special focus on So-Bru groups in Northeast Thailand. Mon-Khmer Studies 26:255-90.

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_____2001 The Tiger Mother’s Child and the Cow Mother’s Child: A Preliminary Look at a Bru Epic, ", in Collected papers on Southeast Asian and Pacific languages, ed. R.S. Bauer, pp. 111-139. Australian National Univ., Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies._____2003 Testing for Lao Script Orthography for Bru Van Kieu/Bru Hapool, ??:??.Nguyen Cong Oanh 2009 Parnai Yiang Sursi (Kinh Thanh Tieng Bru, Tan Uoc va Thi Thien).Nguyen Van Tai & Tran Giang Nam 1985 Ve mot vai phu to trong tieng Bru-Van KieuPiat, Martine 1962 Quelques correspondences entre le Khmer et le BruPhillips, Richard, John & Carolyn Miller 1976 The Bru vowel system: alternate analyses. Mon-Khmer Studies 5.203-17.Theraphan L. Thongkum 1979 The Distribution of the Sounds of Bruu MKSVIIIThomas, Dorothy 1967 A Phonological Reconstruction of Proto-East-Katuic.Trung Tam Hoc Lieu, Saigon, Doc Parnai Bru (volumes 1, 2, & 3) 1971 _____ 1986 Sach hoc tieng Bru Van Kieu ,UBND Tinh Binh Tri Thien, Ha Noi.Vuong Huu Le & Hoang Dung 1985 Tien am tiet tieng Bru-Van KieuVuong Huu Le 1991 Nhung am tieng Bru_____ 1997 A Bru-Vietnamese-English Dictionary, Nha Xuat Ban Thuan Hoa, Hue_____ 1999 A New Interpretation of the Bru Van Kieu Vowel System, Mon-Khmer Studies 29.97-106._____ 1999 72 Bai Hoc Tieng Bru Van Kieu, Nha Xuat Ban Thuan Hoa, Hue.Watson, Richard 1980, A grammar of Two Pacoh texts. Arlington: The University of Texas at Arlington.

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