Maale language

Maale (also spelled Male) is an Omotic language spoken in the Omo Region of Ethiopia. The Maale people are vigorously maintaining their language despite exposure to outside pressures and languages. It is used for social, religious and local administrative purposes since most of its speakers are monolingual. There are plans to use the language as a medium of education as well.

Maale Language Phonology

Consonant Sounds

The Maale language has a rich array of consonant sounds. The consonant inventory includes:

* Plain Stops: /p/, /b/, /t/,/d/,/ts/,/c/, /j/, /k/, /ɡ/, /ʔ/
* Glottalized Stops: /ɗ/,/ɓ/,/s’/,/c’/,/k’/
* Nasals: /m/, /n/
* Spirants: /s/, /z/, /ʃ/, /ʒ/,/h/
* Liquids: /l/, /r/
* Glides: /w/, /y/

Vowel Sounds

The vowel system in the Maale language includes:

* Short Vowels: /i/, /e/, /a/, /o/, /u/
* Long Vowels: /ii/, /ee/, /aa/, /oo/, /uu/

Maale also distinguishes between high and low tones, adding a layer of phonological complexity.

Maale also distinguishes between high and low tones, adding a layer of phonological complexity.

Example

In maale, there are diphthongs and they are mainly; au, ai and oi. Of these three, ai and oi are the most frequent in the lexicon

Examples of words with diphthongs.

Word Order

The Maale language typically follows an SOV word order.

Subject-Object-Verb (SOV):

For example:

''ʔííní   ginʔ-á-ne''

3MS: NOM sleep-IPF-A:DCL

“He is sleeping.”

ʔííní  salítsi  zér-á-ne

3MS:NOM  sesame:ABS  sow-IPF-A:DCL

“He is sowing sesame.”

Pluralization

In Maale, pluralization is typically achieved by adding the suffixes such as;

-asti for definite nouns with a masculine gender marker.

Examples

-at(t)- for words which refer to close kin and pets and one (pejorative) term mani (potter)

Examples

There are some plural forms that don’t go the above mentioned pattern and these are the irregular plurals. These are formed by adding either suffix á or ó and sometimes they change form.

Examples

Adjectives:

In Maale, adjectives typically follow the noun they modify.

Examples:

ʔííní  deetsi bássi  bass-é-ne

3MS:NOM heavy load:ABS carry on back-PF -A:DCL

'He carried a heavy load'

ʔííní   ʔodossi mítsi   tik' -é-ne

3MS:NOM tall tree: ABS cut-PF-A:DCL

'He cut a tall tree'

However Maale adjectives are grouped into semantic types which are suggested in Dixon 1982 as seen below;

Dimension Adjectives:

-           Kúmútsi (full)

-           Dicci (stout)

-           Púúpi (big)

-           K’ulbe (deep)

-           Gúútsi (thin, slim)

Physical property

-           Wóʔʔi (wet)

-           Mízaɓi (beautiful)

-           Maasana (ugly)

-           Deetsi (heavy)

-           C’anci (bitter)

Colour

-           Zok’k’e (red)

-           Kártsi (black)

-           Boore (white)

-           ɓáɓi (unripe, green)

Age

-           gárci (old (of people) )

-           ʔákki (new)

-           ɗégge (young (of male) )

Human Propensity

-           dúúɗɗi (selfish)

-           Walli (healthy)

-           Béls’a (lazy)

-           ʔoso (difficult)

-           Báró (calm, patient)

Value

-           Kupi (poor)

-           Kóʃi (good)

-           ʔórgocci (rich)

-           Púrta (bad)

-           Wúdde (expensive)

Adverbs:

Maale has adverbs that modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs, indicating time, place, manner.

Examples:

Time Adverbs

·       hannó  (today)

-           ʔííní hannó  mukk-andá-ne

(he will come today)

·       hintó (day after tomorrow)

-           ʔízí hintó mukk-andá-ne

(He will come the day after tomorrow)

·       wánte (yesterday night)

-           ʔííní wánte mukk-é-ne

(He came yesterday night)

Manner Adverbs

·       pálle (to do something completely/ honestly)

-           ʔízí pálle máɗ-á-ne

(He works really good)

·       haccá (badly)

-           nu  ʔác’c’-á  haccá Mel-é-ne

(Our area became badly dry)

Place adverbs are derived from demonstrative.

Pronouns:

Maale has a set of independent subject pronouns that show characteristics that are not observed in nouns. They have their own paradigm for person and number as illustrated in the table below.

The Pronoun paradigm.

Examples:

              •             tá  ɓaʃk-é-ne  (I ran)

              •             nú ʔársa maʒʒ-á-ne (We are making a bed)

              •             né núú-na maɗ-andá-ne (“You will work for us”)

Negation:

Negation in Maale is typically marked by affixing -ibá- or -uwá- to the verb root. Where -ibá-  marks perfective aspects as well as negation and -uwá- simultaneously marks imperfective aspect and negation.

Examples:

ʔíyátá              ɓaʃk-é-ne

3PL:NOM        run-PF-A:DCL

‘they ran’

Negation;

ʔíyátá         ɓaʃk-ibá-se

3PL:NOM run-PF:NEG-N:DCL

‘They did not run’

ʔíyátá      ɓaʃk-uwá-se

3PL:NOM run-IPF:NEG-N:DCL

‘They do not run’

Numbers in Maale:

Maale has a decimal system. Thus the basic counting forms are;

    

From 11 to 19, the lower numerals are combined with the word for ten.

For multiple tens, this is how they are formed.

For 100, it is expressed with a morphologically simplex form as attested in many other Omotic languages, that is:

     s’ééta  hundred.

Notes

References

* Van Aswegen, Jacobus. 2008. ''Language Maintenance and Shift in Ethiopia: The Case of Maale.'' MA thesis, University of South Africa.

External links

* World Atlas of Language Structures information o
Maale

Languages of Ethiopia
North Omotic languages

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