| Kambot | |
|---|---|
| Ap Ma | |
| Native to | Papua New Guinea |
| Region | East Sepik Province |
Native speakers | 10,000 (2010)[1] |
Ramu–Keram
| |
| Dialects |
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | kbx |
| Glottolog | apma1241 |
| ELP | Ap Ma |
Kambota.k.a.Ap Ma (Ap Ma Botin, Botin, alsoKaraube), is aKeram language ofPapua New Guinea. Compared to its nearest relative,Ambakich, Kambot drops the first segment from polysyllabic words.[2]
Kambot is spoken in Kambot village (4°16′54″S144°08′22″E / 4.281558°S 144.139582°E /-4.281558; 144.139582 (Kambot Comm/School)),Keram Rural LLG,East Sepik Province.[3][4]
Kambot was assigned to theGrass family within Ramu byLaycock and Z'graggen (1975). Foley (2005) finds the data does not support this assignment, but re-adds them to the Grass family in 2018.[5] Foley and Ross (2005) agree that the language belongs to theRamu – Lower Sepik family.[6] Usher restores it to the Ramu family, but closer to theMongol–Langam languages.
Ap Ma consonants are:[5]
| p | t | k | |
| ᵐb | ⁿd | ᶮʤ | ᵑg |
| m | n | ɲ | ŋ |
| s | |||
| r ~ l | |||
| w | j |
Foley (1986) proposed that Kambot had borrowed its pronouns from theIatmul language of theSepik family (Ndu languages). His suggestion was thatnyɨ 'I' (1sg),wɨn 'thou' (2sg), andnun 'ye' (2pl) are taken from Iatmulnyɨn 'thou',wɨn 'I', andnɨn 'we', with a crossover of person. That is, the Iatmul may have called the Kambotnyɨn "you", and they then used that pronoun for themselves, resulting in it meaning "I". However, Ross (2005) and Pawley (2005) show that the pronoun set has not been borrowed. The Kambot pronouns are indigenous, as they have apparent cognates in Ramu languages. Similarly, the Iatmul pronouns have not been borrowed from Kambot, as they have cognates in other Ndu languages.[6]
| PN | Kambot | Kambaramba | Banaro | Langam | Arafundi |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | nyɨ | ni | (uŋɡu) | ñi | ñiŋ |
| 2sg | wɨn | wɨ | u | wo | (nan) |
| 2pl | nun | (wɨni) | nu | (wuni) | nuŋ |