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The Timor–Alor–Pantar (TAP) languages are a family of Papuan (non-Austronesian) languages spoken in Timor, Kisar, and the Alor archipelago in Southern Indonesia. Holton and Klamer (2018) classify Timor–Alor–Pantar as an independent language family, since they find links with Trans-New Guinea too unconvincing.
The languages are demonstrably related, with the Alor–Pantar languages forming a distinct subgroup.[1][2] The following conservative classification is from Ross (2005), Schapper et al. (2012), and Holton et al. (2012).
The list given above is conservative, without any undemonstrated groups.
Bunak and the Alor–Pantar languages are sometimes grouped together as "West Timor", while Bunak and East Timor have been grouped as "Timor–Kisar". Although the Alor–Pantar languages are clearly related, as are the Timor–Kisar languages and the two groups to each other, until comparative work is done on all languages simultaneously it will not be clear whether Bunak is closer to East Timor or to Alor–Pantar, or whether Alor–Pantar is a valid node. Kaiping and Klamer (2019), though, found Bunak to be the most divergent Timor-Alor-Pantar language, splitting off before East Timor and Alor-Pantar did.[3]
Languages in Central and East Alor are generally more agglutinative than languages in Pantar and Timor, which are more isolating.[4]
Despite their geographic proximity, the Papuan languages of Timor are not closely related, and demonstration of a relationship between any of them is difficult, apart from the clearly related Alor–Pantar languages on the islands neighboring Timor.
Arthur Capell first proposed that the Timor languages were a family in 1941, and Watuseke & Anceaux did the same for Timor–Alor–Pantar in 1973. Both units have been broken up in more recent classifications, though their ultimate relationship is generally accepted.[5]
In 1957 HKL Cowan linked the Timor languages to the West Papuan family. However, when Stephen Wurm expanded Trans–New Guinea in 1975, he decided Timor–Alor–Pantar belonged there, and he linked it to the South Bird's Head languages in a South Bird's Head – Timor–Alor–Pantar branch of that phylum. Wurm noted similarities with West Papuan, a different family, but suggested this was due to substratum influence.
Ross (2005) classifies Timor–Alor–Pantar with the West Bomberai languages, the two groups forming a branch within West Trans–New Guinea. Based on a careful examination of new lexical data, Holton & Robinson (2014) find little evidence to support a connection between TAP and TNG.[6] However, Holton & Robinson (2017) concedes that a relationship with Trans-New Guinea and West Bomberai in particular is the most likely hypothesis, though they prefer to leave it unclassified for now.[7]
The Timor–Alor–Pantar languages have been in considerable contact with these Austronesian languages:[8]
Proto-Timor–Alor–Pantar consonants are:[4]
p | t | k | q | |
b | d | g | ||
m | n | |||
s | ||||
w | j | |||
l, r, ʀ |
In contrast, proto-Alor-Pantar has the voiceless uvular stop /q/, which is absent in proto-Timor–Alor–Pantar.[4]
Proto-Timor–Alor–Pantar pronouns as reconstructed by Ross (2005) are:
sg | pl | |
---|---|---|
1excl | *ani~na | *ini |
1incl | *api | |
2 | *ai | *i |
3 | *ga | (*gi) |
Ross (2005) suggest these pronouns reflect proto-Trans–New Guinea 1st person *na, *ni and 2nd person *ga, *gi, and possibly the pTNG dual/inclusive *-pi-, but this has not been demonstrated to the satisfaction of other linguists, many of whom view Timor–Alor–Pantar as a distinct family.[9] In particular the pronoun relationships requires positing a "flip-flop" in which TNG 2nd person corresponds to TAP 3rd person pronouns.
Schapper, et al. (2017: 141-143) reconstruct the following proto-Timor-Alor-Pantar, proto-Alor-Pantar, and proto-Timor forms, demonstrating the relatedness of the Timor and Alor-Pantar languages.[10]
gloss | proto-Timor-Alor-Pantar | proto-Alor-Pantar | proto-Timor |
---|---|---|---|
bamboo | *mari | *mari | *mari |
banana | *mugul | *mogol | *mugu |
bark, call | *lVu | *le(k)u(l) | |
bat | *madel | *madel | *maTa |
bathe | *weLi | *weli | *weru |
bird | *(h)adul | *(a)dVl | *haDa |
bite | *ki(l) | *(ta)ki | *(ga)gel |
blood | *waj | *wai | *waj |
bone | *se(r, R) | *ser | *(se)sa(r, R) |
breast | *hami | *hami | *hami |
child | *-uaQal | *-uaqal | *-al |
clew | *ma(i)ta(r) | *maita | *matar |
coconut | *wata | *wata | *wa(t, D)a |
crawl | *er | *er | *er |
crouch | *luk(V) | *luk(V) | *luk |
die | *mV(n) | *min(a) | *-umV |
dirty | *karV(k) | *karok | *gari |
dream | *(h)ipar | *hipar | *ufar(ana) |
ear | *-waRi | *-uari | *-wali |
eat | *nVa | *nai | *nua |
excrement | *(h)at(V) | *has | *a(t, D)u |
face | *panu | *-pona | *-fanu |
far | *le(t, d)e | *lete | *eTar |
fire | *hada | *hada | *haTa |
fish | *habi | *habi | *hapi |
flat | *tatok | *tatok | *tetok |
garden | *magad | *magad(a) | *(u, a)mar |
girl | *pan(a) | *pon | *fana |
give | *-(e, i)na | *-ena | *-inV |
grandparent | *(t, d)ama | *tam(a, u) | *moTo |
green | *lugar | *(wa)logar | *ugar |
hand | *-tan(a) | *-tan | *-tana |
hear | *mage(n) | *magi | *mage(n) |
inside | *mi | *mi | *mi |
itchy | *iRak | *(i)ruk | *ilag |
laugh | *jagir | *jagir | *jiger |
leg | *buta | *-bat | *buta |
low | *po | *po | *ufe |
mat | *bit | *bis | *biti |
meat | *isor | *iser | *seor |
moon | *hur(u) | *wur | *huru |
mountain | *buku | *buku | *bugu |
name | *-en(i, u) | *-nej | |
new | *(t, s)iba(r) | *siba(r) | *(t, s)ipa(r) |
new place | *lan | *lan | *lan |
nose | *-mVN | *-mim | *-muni |
one | *nukV | *nuk | *uneki |
other | *abe(nVC) | *aben(VC) | *epi |
Pterocarpus indicus | *matar | *matar | *ma(t, D)ar |
path | *jega | *jega | *jiga |
person | *anV(N) | *anin | *anu |
pig | *baj | *baj | *baj |
pound | *tapa(i) | *tapai | *tafa |
price | *boL | *bol | *bura |
rain | *anu(r, R) | *anur | *ine(r, R) |
rat | *dur(a) | *dur | *Dura |
ripe | *tena | *tena | *tena |
run | *tipar | *tiara | *tifar |
scorpion | *pV(r, R) | *pVr | *fe(r, R)e |
scratch | *karab | *karab | *gabar |
sea | *tam(a) | *tam | *mata |
shark | *sibar | *sib(a, i)r | *supor |
sit | *mit | *mis | *mit |
six | *talam | *talam | *tamal |
sleep | *tia(r) | *tia | *tia(r) |
spit | *puRV(n) | *purVn | *fulu(k, n) |
spoon | *suRa | *surV | *sula |
stand | *nat(er) | *nate(r) | *nat |
star | *jibV | *jibV | *ipi(-bere) |
stone | *war | *war | *war |
sugarcane | *ub(a) | *huːba | *upa |
sun | *wad(i, u) | *wadi | *waTu |
taboo | *palu(l, n) | *palol | *falu(n) |
tail | *-oRa | *-ora | *-ula(ʔ) |
tongue | *-lebuR | *-lebur | *-ipul |
tooth | *-wasin | *-uasin | *-wasin |
tree | *hate | *tei | *hate |
vagina | *-ar(u) | *-ar | *-aru |
wake | *tan(i) | *-ten | *Tani |
walk (1) | *lak(Vr) | *laka | *lagar |
walk (2) | *lamV | *lam(ar) | *male |
water | *jira | *jira | *ira |
weave | *sine(N) | *sine(N) | *sina |
yellow | *bagur(V) | *bagori | *gabar |
1pi | *pi | *pi- | *fi |
1sg | *na- | *na- | *n- |
3 | *gie | *ge | *gie |
3poss | *ga- | *ga- | *g- |
Pawley and Hammarström (2018) list the following probable reflexes of Proto-Timor-Alor-Pantar (pTAP) and proto-Alor-Pantar (pAP; reconstructions drawn from Holton and Klamer 2018) from proto-Trans-New Guinea (pTNG; reconstructions from Pawley and Hammarström 2018).[4][11]
However, Holton and Robinson (2014) classify Timor-Alor-Pantar as an independent language family, rather than as part of Trans-New Guinea.