Mian language
Mian is an Ok language spoken in the Telefomin district of the Sandaun province in Papua New Guinea by the Mian people. It has some 3,500 speakers spread across two dialects: West Mian, with approximately 1,000 speakers in around Yapsiei, and East Mian, with approximately 2,500 speakers in and around Timeilmin, Temsakmin, Sokamin, Gubil, Fiak and Hotmin.
Phonology
Phonologically, Mian is very similar to other Papuan languages in the size of its phoneme inventory, but it nevertheless has some peculiarities, such as its contrast between a plain and a pharyngealized . It is also a tonal language.Vowels
Mian has six vowels, including the pharyngealized open front vowel.| Front | Back | |
| Unrounded | Rounded | |
| Close | i | u |
| Close-mid | o | |
| Open-mid | e | |
| Open | a aa |
Mian also has four diphthongs:
| Ending with | Ending with |
| ai | au |
| ei | ou |
/ɛ/ is realized as in word-initial low-tone syllables, elsewhere.
/a/ is realized as in unaccented syllables, in word-initial low-tone syllables beginning with a consonant, elsewhere.
/o/ is realized as in word-initial low-tone syllables and in syllables ending in a voiceless plosive or, elsewhere.
/u/ is realized as in word-initial low-tone syllables, elsewhere.
Consonants
Mian has 16 consonants:is realized as word-initially, or syllable-finally, elsewhere.
/t/ is realized as before vowels, or syllable-finally.
/k/ is realized as before vowels, or syllable-finally, sometimes between vowels, before .
/ɡ/ is realized as word-initially, elsewhere.
/ɡʷ/ is realized as word-initially, elsewhere.
Tones
Mian has five tonemes, which apply at the word-stem level:| Tone | Example |
| Low | am house |
| High | án arrow |
| Low-High | ǎam Pandanus species |
| High-Low | hâs hat |
| Low-High-Low | aam older sister |
The tones of Mian are very complex, as they are subject to various phonological processes, and furthermore, they can be used for indicating various grammatical aspects, especially in connection with verbs, where the tones are crucial for understanding.
Consider the two verb forms below, being non-hodiernal and imperfective respectively: