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Language name and location: Ngaing, Papua New Guinea [Refer to Ethnologue]
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1. kai |
21. eik kai abaiŋ kai ~ dʒawiŋ |
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2. iri ~ irisak |
22. eik kai abaiŋ iri |
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3. atbusak |
23. eik kai abaiŋ atbusak |
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4. iri abaiŋ iri (litː ''two again two'') |
24. eik kai abaiŋ iri abaiŋ iri |
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5. adi kai (litː ''hand one'') |
25. eik kai abaiŋ adi kai |
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6. adi kai abaiŋ kai |
26. eik kai abaiŋ adi kai abaiŋ kai |
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7. adi kai abaiŋ iri |
27. eik kai abaiŋ adi kai abaiŋ iri |
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8. adi kai abaiŋ atbusak |
28. eik kai abaiŋ adi kai abaiŋ atbusak |
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9. adi kai abaiŋ iri abaiŋ iri |
29. eik kai abaiŋ adi kai abaiŋ iri abaiŋ iri |
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10. adi iri mut (litː ''hands two meet'') |
30. eik kai abaiŋ adi iri mut |
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11. adi iri mut abaiŋ kai |
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12. adi iri mut abaiŋ iri |
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13. adi iri mut abaiŋ atbusak |
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14. adi iri mut abaiŋ iri abaiŋ iri |
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15. adi iri mut abaiŋ tameniŋ |
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16. adi iri mut abaiŋ tameniŋ kai+1 |
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17. adi iri mut abaiŋ tameniŋ kai+2 |
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18. adi iri mut abaiŋ tameniŋ kai+3 |
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19. adi iri mut abaiŋ tameniŋ kai +4 |
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20. adi iri abaiŋ tameniŋ iri ~ eik kai |
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Linguist providing data and dateː Ms. Barbara Hodgkinson through Miss
Joyce Wood,
提供资料的语言学家: Ms. Barbara Hodgkinson, 2008 年 9 月 26 日. |
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Other comments: Ngaing is spoken by approximately 2,000 speakers in foothills from coast to Finisterre Range, Madang province, Papua New Guinea. The Ngaing people do not really have numbers beyond 20, although they have suggested that they could say eik kai 'man one' for the number twenty, and continue counting, theoretically as far as 220. I tried this as an experiment with 'naive' village people, but the expression becomes too confusing, too long and unwieldy for most people to follow the meaning. If there is more than 20, the people just say dʒawiŋ 'many' or dʒawiŋ wariŋ 'many very'. Over the years since Tok Pisin and English education were introduced to the area many people no longer use the Ngaing language numbers beyond five, preferring the shorter Tok Pisin or English numbers. Another even simpler method we are trying is to just write the numerals, not spell it out, particularly when it is more than 5. This allows the people themselves to decide how they will say it, and avoids a problem of vernacular terms becoming obsolete in just a few years. |
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