# Biak language

Biak (wós Vyak or 'Biak language'; wós kovedi or 'our language'; Indonesian: bahasa Biak), also known as Biak-Numfor, Noefoor, Mafoor, Mefoor, Nufoor, Mafoorsch, Myfoorsch and Noefoorsch, is an Austronesian language of the South Halmahera-West New Guinea subgroup of the Eastern Malayo-Polynesian languages.
According to Ethnologue, it is spoken by about 70,000 people in Biak and Numfor and numerous small islands in the Schouten Islands, located in Papua province of Western New Guinea, northeastern Indonesia.

## Dialects

There are a number of different dialects of Biak spoken on various different islands, the most well-known being Biak-Numfoor, spoken on the island of Numfoor. These dialect differences are minor and mostly limited to slight regular sound changes. The vast majority of Biak speakers are also fluent in the local variety of Malay, but not all of them are proficient in standard Indonesian.
Geographical distributions of Biak dialects within Raja Ampat Regency (Ronsumbre 2020):

### Betew dialect

* Waigeo Selatan District: Saonek, Saporkren, Yenbeser, Yenwaupur, Sawinggrai, Kapisawar, and Arborek villages.
* Waigeo Barat District: Mutus, Biantsyi, Waisilip, Manyaifun, Meos Manggara, and Pam villages.
* Kofiau District: Deer, Balal, and Tolobi villages.
* Misool District: Pulau Tikus, Solol, Meos Kapal, and Umkabu villages.
* Samate District: Jefman village.
* Teluk Manyalibit District: Mumes village.

### Kafdaron dialect

* Samate District: Yensawai, Amdui, Yenanas, and Aresi villages

### Karon dialect

* Sausapor District: Sausapor village
* Bikar (Biak Karon) District, Tambrauw Regency

### Usba dialect

* Waigeo Utara District: Rauki village.
* Ayau District: Dorekar and Meosbekwan villages.

### Wardo dialect

* Waigeo Timur District: Yensner, Urbinasopen, Yembekaki, and Puper villages.
* Waigeo Utara District: Menir, Warwanai, Boni, Asukweri, and Kabare villages.
* Ayau District: Rutung, Reni, and Yenkawir villages.

## Sociolinguistic situation

Despite the comparatively high number of speakers compared to some other Austronesian languages, Biak is still in danger of extinction. Within the main towns, the generation of speakers aged between 20 and 50 have only passive knowledge of the language and rarely use the language actively, instead preferring to use Malay. Younger generations do not even generally have passive knowledge of the language. Biak is only actively used as a spoken language by members of the community over 50 years of age or so and even they regularly code switch into Malay. However, within the villages further from town there are still children who are fluent in Biak. Songs in Biak are also very popular throughout the islands.
There is a strong initiative to promote the use of the Biak language, with translations of various books and teaching manuals as well as a radio station and a number of church services throughout the year being conducted solely in Biak. Since 2002, there has also been an initiative to introduce Biak being taught formerly in schools on the islands.

## Phonology

Biak has a phoneme inventory consisting of 13 consonants and 5 vowels, in which vowel length is phonemic. In the orthography long vowels are written with an acute accent. The phoneme /t/ is very infrequent in its use and some older speakers still realise it as [s] in loanwords.
Consonants :
| | Bilabial | Labiodental | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar |
| Nasal | m | | n | | |
| Plosive | p b | | t d | | k |
| Fricative | β | f | s | | |
| Lateral | | | l | | |
| Trill | | | r | | |
| Semivowel | w | | | j | |
Vowels :
| | Front | Central | Back |
| Close | i iː | | u uː |
| Mid | e eː | | ɤ ɤː |
| Open | | a aː | |
The vowel /u/ is the only rounded vowel in Biak; the other four are unrounded.

## Morphology
### Pronouns and person markers

In Biak pronouns and articles are morphologically related, with both situating a given participant by indicating their relative discourse or spatial (e.g. directional or motional) status. This is not uncommon for Austronesian Languages. Pronouns in Biak are marked for number and clusivity.
Free Pronouns :
| | | Singular | Dual | Paucal | Plural |
| 1st person | exclusive | aya | nu | | inko |
| 1st person | inclusive | aya | ku | | ko |
| 2nd person | 2nd person | aw | mu | | mko |
| 3rd person | 3rd person | i | su | sko | si (alienable) na (inalienable) |
Free personal pronouns in Biak share their main distributional properties with nouns; however, they are somewhat more restricted. They can be used as a complement of a predicate or preposition but they cannot be used as subjects. In the example below, the use of the first-person personal pronoun aya can be seen to complement a verb, while the second example shows how a free personal pronoun, in this clause third-person i, cannot be used as a subject:
Badir
2SG.announce
i
3SG
ve
to
aya
1SG
Badir i ve aya
2SG.announce 3SG to 1SG
'Make it known to me.'
* i
3SG
d-ores
3SG-stand
{* i} d-ores
3SG 3SG-stand
'He stood.'

### Pronominal affixes

In Biak, pronominal affixes can combine with verbs in three possible inflection patterns (given in the table below), which are partly phonologically conditioned.
| | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 |
| 1SG | ya- | y- | ya- |
| 2SG | wa- | w- | ⟨w⟩ |
| 3SG | i- | d- | ⟨y⟩ |
| 1DU.I | ku- | ku- | ku- |
| 1DU.E | nu- | nu- | nu- |
| 2DU | mu- | mu- | mu- |
| 3DU | su- | su- | su- |
| 3PC | sko- | sk- | sko- |
| 1PL.I | ko- | k- | ko- |
| 1PL.E | (i)nko- | (i)nk- | (i)nko- |
| 2PL | mko- | mk- | mko- |
| 3PL.AN | si- | s- | s- |
| 3PL.INAN | na- | n- | n- |
The presence of a subject noun phrase in the same clause is optional. Thus the following sentence is still grammatical without NP Rusa nanine, while the verb has a pronominal affix that gives the same information.
(Rusa
deer
nan-i-ne)
GIV-3SG.SPC-this
d-ores
3SG-stand
(Rusa nan-i-ne) d-ores
deer GIV-3SG.SPC-this 3SG-stand
'This deer stood.'
These pronominal markers are person markers and are found in the final position of the noun phrase they determine. They attach to verbs along with a specifier that attaches after the pronominal affix; due to their distribution properties these markers should be considered clitics. There are two specificity markers, -ya and –i, where –ya can be used in all positions and -i is restricted to positions before pauses. In the example below the article attaches to the verb vebaya, rather than the verb ifrúr because it is the final verb in the noun phrase headed by for.
i-frúr
3SG-make
for
fire
ve-ba=ya
REL.big=3SG.SPC
i-frúr for ve-ba=ya
3SG-make fire REL.big=3SG.SPC
'He made a big fire.'
Nonspecificity, which refers to entities that do not yet exist in this world, or is used to question or deny the existence of an entity, is marked with the articles –o for singular and –no for plural noun phrases. This is shown in the examples below:

#### Non-specific

I-fúr
3SG-make
yuk=o
ukulele=NSPC.SG
fa
CONS
y-ún
1SG-take
i
3SG
ve
to
Waranda.
The.Netherlands
I-fúr yuk=o fa y-ún i ve Waranda.
3SG-make ukulele=NSPC.SG CONS 1SG-take 3SG to The.Netherlands
'He is making/will make a ukulele so that I can take it to the Netherlands'

#### Specific

I-fúr
3SG-make
yuk=ya
ukulele=3SG.SPC
fa
CONS
y-ún
1SG-take
i
3SG
ve
to
Waranda.
The.Netherlands
I-fúr yuk=ya fa y-ún i ve Waranda.
3SG-make ukulele=3SG.SPC CONS 1SG-take 3SG to The.Netherlands
'He has made a ukulele so that I can take it to the Netherlands'

### Demonstratives

Biak has identical forms in adnominal and pronominal demonstratives, which is common in Austronesian languages. In Biak, demonstratives can be used as part of complex articles containing demonstrative roots and also motion markers and directionals. Complex articles, however, do not have both a directional and a motion marker.
3SG complex articles :
| | | giv | person- SPC | dir | motion marker | dm | meaning |
| bare demonstrative article | close S:ne | | i | | (ma/fa/ra) | ne | 'this' |
| bare demonstrative article | close A:ya~yi | | i | | (ma/fa/ra) | ya ~yi | 'that' |
| bare demonstrative article | not S/A:wa~wu | | i | | (ma/fa/ra) | wa ~wu | 'that over there' |
| demonstrative article, given | close S:ne | an | i | | (ma/fa/ra) | ne | 'this' |
| demonstrative article, given | close A:ya~yi | an | i | | (ma/fa/ra) | ya | 'that' |
| demonstrative article, given | not S/A:wa~wu | an | i | | (ma/fa/ra) | wa | 'that over there' |
| (given) demonstrative- directional article | close S:ne | (an) | i | pur | ? | ne | 'this at the back' |
| (given) demonstrative- directional article | close A:ya~yi | (an) | i | pur | ? | ya | 'that at the back' |
| (given) demonstrative- directional article | not S/A:wa~wu | (an) | i | pur | ? | wa | 'that at the back over there' |
The table above restricts person-SPC to 3SG marker for an explanation, but i- 3SG marker can be replaced sui- (DU), skoi- (TR), and si- (PL.AN) or na- (PL.INAN). Also, it is important to note that the corpus contains no example of complex articles containing both a directional and a motion marker. Furthermore, yi and wu are used as allomorphs of ya and wa, respectively, but attested in article-final position only.
In Biak, the relationship between the third-person pronouns and demonstratives are unrelated to demonstratives, which is uncommon in Austronesian languages. However, Biak follows the worldwide trend in terms of the relationship.
Moreover, depending on the speaker's relative distance, Biak has three-way distance contrasts of adnominal demonstratives, which is common in Austronesian languages. The comparison is restricted to only adnominal use because some languages do not express the same distance contrasts in adnominal and pronominal demonstratives.
If a complex article contains a demonstrative, the demonstrative is preceded by person-SPC, as illustrated by i-ne '3SG.SPC-this' and i-wa '3SG.SPC-over.there', respectively. Also, in the below examples, situational use of demonstratives is shown.
Rwa
r<w>a
<2SG>go
ma
ma
to.here
wákors
w-ák-ors
2SG-also-stand
ra
ra
along
var
var
side
ine.
i-ne
3SG.SPC-this
Rwa ma wákors ra var ine.
r<w>a ma w-ák-ors ra var i-ne
<2SG>go to.here 2SG-also-stand along side 3SG.SPC-this
'Come here and stand at this side too.'
Mov
mov
place
iwa
i-wa
3SG.SPC-over.there
snori
sno-ri
name-POS.SG
Mnubei
Mnubei
Mnubei
Mov iwa snori Mnubei (...)
mov i-wa sno-ri Mnubei (...)
place 3SG.SPC-over.there name-POS.SG Mnubei
'The place over there its name is Mnubei (...)'
The paradigm for complex articles sets the basis for deictic nouns, predicative pronouns, and locative-existentials.

#### Deictic nouns

Deictic nouns are formed by applying the formative di 'place' at the position preceding demonstratives, as illustrated by di-pur-wu 'place-back-over.there' and di-ne 'place-here.'
Skovark
sko-vark
3.PAU-lie
ro
ro
LOC
dipurwu.
di-pur-wu
place-back-over.there
Skovark ro dipurwu.
sko-vark ro di-pur-wu
3.PAU-lie LOC place-back-over.there
'They live over there.'
Mankroder
mankroder
frog
ine
i-ne
3SG.SPC-this
dúnuk
d-ún-uk
3SG-take-in.two
ro
ro
LOC
dine.
di-ne
place-here
Mankroder ine dúnuk ro dine.
mankroder i-ne d-ún-uk ro di-ne
frog 3SG.SPC-this 3SG-take-in.two LOC place-here
'This frog has passed through here.'
The situational use of demonstratives is seen in (9). On the other hand, (10) shows -ne 'this' as the situational use of demonstratives and -ne 'here' as the anaphoric use of demonstratives.

#### Predicative pronouns

Predicative pronouns are formed by using the inflected predicative is 'PRED' at the position otherwise occupied by the marker of givenness an. This is illustrated by is-i-ne '3SG.PRED-SPC-this' in both (11) and (12).
Isine
is-i-ne
3SG.PRED-SPC-this
indya
indya
so
mámel.
mám
2SG.see
Isine indya mámel.
is-i-ne indya mám
3SG.PRED-SPC-this so 2SG.see
'Here it (the sago porridge) is, so look!'
Betaweya
betawe=ya
cassava=3SG.SPC
isine.
is-i-ne
3SG.PRED-SPC-here
Betaweya isine.
betawe=ya is-i-ne
cassava=3SG.SPC 3SG.PRED-SPC-here
'This here is a cassava.'
In (11), it depends on the context whether situational or anaphoric use of the demonstrative is. Situational use of the demonstrative is given in (12).

#### Locative-existentials

Locative-existentials is different from predicative pronouns because they do not possess a specificity marker, which is illustrated by i-is-wa '3SG.PRED-over.there'.
Karuiya
karui=ya
stone=3SG.SPC
i-is-wa
is-wa
3SG.PRED-over.there
kaker.
kaker
still
Karuiya i-is-wa kaker.
karui=ya is-wa kaker
stone=3SG.SPC 3SG.PRED-over.there still
'The stone is still there.'
In (13), the use of the demonstrative depends on the context.

## Semantics
### Demonstratives

Use of demonstratives, where Viewpoint (V)= speaker(S), R= Relatum, A=addressee :
| form | gloss | used to refer to entities conceived as: | Levinson's terminology |
| ne | this | close to S, but not closer to A than to S | close to V (usually S) =R |
| ya~yi | that | relatively close to S (and A), but not closer to S than to A | Relatively close to V (usually S) =R1, not closer to V than to R2 (usually A). |
| wa~wu | that over there | away from shared area of both S and A | Away from R1 (usually S) and R2 (usually A) |
For the semantic characterization of demonstratives, a part of Levinson's terminology should be known to grasp the difference between the Figure and the Ground or the Relatum. The Figure refers to an entity positioned somewhere in Space, while the Ground or the Relatum designate the entity in terms of where the entity is.
As additional information, there are three essential points about Levinson's terminology. First, the 'frame of reference' can be classified as an intrinsic frame of reference, a relative frame of reference, and an absolute frame of reference. Second, it is crucial to grasp the origo of the coordinate system. The deictic centre called origo is approximately equal to the speaker's position. Third, it is vital to comprehend deixis. For spatial deixis, the interpretation of spatial linguistics elements is defined by the location of extra-linguistic entities.
Regarding the demonstratives usage, it may be followed by pointing, such as lip-pointing, head pointing, or finger pointing.

## Syntax
### Demonstratives

From a perspective of syntax, Deictic nouns typically set the complement of a preposition. This is clear from the form di-ne 'place-here,' di-wa 'place-over.there' in (14) and (15), respectively. However, the demonstrative locational nouns are used on their own, without a preceding preposition. This is illustrated by di-ne 'place-here' in (16).
Ivyovr
i-vyovr
3SG-sweep
ve
ve
to
dine
di-ne
place-here
myáse.
m-yás
to.here-up
Ivyovr ve dine myáse.
i-vyovr ve di-ne m-yás
3SG-sweep to place-here to.here-up
'It (the big wave) swept towards this place here upwards.'
Ikun
i-kun
3SG-burn
si
si
3PL.ANIM
ro
ro
LOC
diwa.
di-wa
place-over.there
Ikun si ro diwa.
i-kun si ro di-wa
3SG-burn 3PL.ANIM LOC place-over.there
'He burnt them (his skin) over there.'
Dine,
di-ne
place-here
randakya
randak=ya
beginning=3SG.SPC
karui
karui
stone
veba.
ve-ba
REL-big
Dine, randakya karui veba.
di-ne randak=ya karui ve-ba
place-here beginning=3SG.SPC stone REL-big
'Here, in the beginning there were big stones.'
In (14), (15), and (16), these contain the situational use of demonstratives.

## Possession

Similar to other Austronesian languages, Biak makes a grammatical distinction between alienable and inalienable for possession.

### Alienable possession

In alienable possession, a possessive pronominal is formed with the possessive marker ve to signify the person, number and gender of the possessor, and is followed by a pronominal article marking the gender and number of the possessed. The pronominal article contains the specificity markers -i and -ya, with -i being used only in pre-pausal positions. The following table illustrates the possessive pronominal construction.
| Possessed-> Possessor: | SG | DU | TR | PL.AN | PL.INAN |
| 1SG | (a)ye=d-i/=d-ya | (a)ye=su-ya/-i | (a)ye=sko-ya/-i | (a)ye=s-ya/-i | (a)ye=na |
| 2SG | be=d-i/=d-ya | be-=su-ya/-i | be=sko-ya/-i | be=s-ya/-i | be=na |
| 3SG | v<y>e=d-i/=d-ya | v<y>e=su-ya/-i | v<y>e =sko-ya/-i | v<y>e =s-ya/-i | v<y>e =na |
| 1DU.INCL | Ku-ve=d-i/=d-ya | ku-ve=su-ya/-i | ku-ve=sko-ya/-i | ku-ve=s-ya/-i | ku-ve=na |
| 1DU.EXC | nu-ve=d-i/=d-ya | nu-ve=su-ya/-i | nu-ve=sko-ya/-i | nu-ve=s-ya/-i | nu-ve=na |
| 2DU | mu-ve=d-i/=d-ya | mu-ve=su-ya/-i | mu-ve=sko-ya/-i | mu-ve=s-ya/-i | mu-ve=na |
| 3DU | su-ve=d-i/=d-ya | su-ve=su-ya/-i | su-ve=sko-ya/-i | su-ve=s-ya/-i | su-ve=na |
| 3PC | sko-ve=d-i/=d-ya | sko-ve=su-ya/-i | sko-ve=sko-ya/-i | sko-ve=s-ya/-i | sko-ve=na |
| 1PL.INCL | ko-ve=d-i/=d-ya | ko-ve=su-ya/-i | ko-ve=sko-ya/-i | ko-ve=s-ya/-i | i ko-ve=na |
| 1PL.EXC | (i)nko-ve=d-i/=d-ya | (i)nko-ve=su-ya/-i | (i)nko-ve=sko-ya/-i | (i)nko-ve=s-ya/-i | (i)nko-ve=na |
| 2PL | mko-ve=d-i/=d-ya | mko-ve=su-ya/-i | mko-ve=sko-ya/-i | mko-ve=s-ya/-i | mko-ve=na |
| 3PL.AN | se=d-i/=d-ya | se=su-ya/-i | se=sko-ya/-i | se=s-ya/-i | se=na |
| 3PL.INAN | nbe=d-i/d-ya | nbe=su-ya/-i | nbe=sko-ya/-i | nbe=s-ya/-i | nbe=na |
Typically, Biak follows a possessor-possessum structure for alienable possessive construction, with the possessive pronominal in the adnominal position:
ikak
snake
an-i-ne
GIV-3SG.SPC-this
snonsnon
name
v<y>e=d-ya
<3SG>POSS=3SG-SPC
Kormsamba
Kormsamba
ikak an-i-ne snonsnon v<y>e=d-ya Kormsamba
snake GIV-3SG.SPC-this name <3SG>POSS=3SG-SPC Kormsamba
'The Snake’s name was Kormsamba'
However, alienable possession can also be formed in the order of possessum-possessor, though this is much less frequent:
romawa
son
inai
daughter
manseren
Lord
v<y>e=s-ya
<3SG>POSS=3PL.AN-SPC
romawa inai manseren v<y>e=s-ya
son daughter Lord <3SG>POSS=3PL.AN-SPC
'The Lord's sons and daughters'

### Inalienable possession

Inalienable possessive construction differs from alienable in that there is no system of pronominal possessives, only a set of affixes located on the possessum. In contrast to alienable possession, inalienable possession can only take the order of possessor-possessum. Biak contains three subsets of inalienability: body parts, Kinship, and locational.

#### Body parts

Not all body parts are considered inalienable. Those that are form the stem words from which to derive other body parts through the method of compounding. For example, the alienable 'knee' is formed through the inalienable stem we ('leg') and the compounding pur ('back') to form wepur. Possessive construction for alienable body parts follows the same pattern as other alienable terms. The inflectional system for inalienable body parts is as follows:
Vru 'head' :
| | SG | DU | TR | PL |
| 1SG | Vru-ri | - | - | - |
| 2SG | Vru-m-ri | - | - | - |
| 3SG | Vru-ri | - | - | - |
| 1DU.INCL | - | ku-vru-s-na | | |
| 1DU.EXC | - | nu-vru-s-na | | |
| 2DU | - | mu-vru-m-s-na | | |
| 3DU | - | su-vru-s-na | | |
| 3TR | - | sko-vru-s-na | | |
| 1PL.INCL | - | ko-vru-s-na | | |
| 1PL.EXC | - | nko-vru-s-na | | |
| 2PL | - | mko-vru-m-s-na | | |
| 3PL.AN | - | si-vru-s-na | | |
Unusual for Austronesian languages of the area, Biak contains a partial prefix system for inflecting inalienable body parts. For the plural forms, suffix -s reflects plurality and animateness of possessor and suffix na expresses plurality and inaninameteness of the possessum. As stated above, inalienable possession is formed via a possessor-possessum structure:
sne-ri
belly-POSS.SG
i-ba
3SG-big
sne-ri i-ba
belly-POSS.SG 3SG-big
'She was pregnant (her belly was big)'

#### Kinship terms

Similarly to body parts, not all kinship terms are inalienable. The alienable kinship terms are formed through the same compounding method as alienable body parts, and follow the same possessive construction rules as other alienable terms. This table illustrates the inflectional system for inalienable kinship words:
Me 'cross-uncle' :
| | SG | DU | TR | PL |
| 1SG | imem(=i) | imem(=su) | imem(=sko) | - |
| 2SG | me-m(=i) | me-m(=su) | me-m(=sko) | - |
| 3SG | me-r(=i) | me-r(=su) | me-r(=sko) | - |
| 1DU | - | - | - | - |
| 2DU | - | - | - | - |
| 3DU | - | - | - | - |
| 3TR | - | - | - | - |
| 1PL | - | - | - | - |
| 2PL | - | - | - | - |
| 3PL | - | - | - | - |
All nouns that follow the table's procedure have an idiosyncratic form for the first person, using a shorter term for the second and third person. (REF pg. 244) Here is an example of the usage of inalienable kinship inflection:
s<y>éwar
<3SG>seek
kma-r=i
father-POSS.3SG=3SG
s<y>éwar kma-r=i
<3SG>seek father-POSS.3SG=3SG
'He looked for his father'

#### Locational nouns

Locational nouns are the last distinction of inalienability found in Biak. Locational nouns refer to locations that are ‘inherently connected to an entity’. For example, a tree in Biak is referred to as having an 'upper part' and a 'lower part', and a canoe a 'front', a 'middle' and a 'back'. The following table exhibits the inflectional system for inalienable locational nouns:
bo ‘upper part/ area above’ :
| | SG | DU | TR | PL.ANIM | Pl.INAN |
| 1 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2 | bo-m-ri | - | - | - | - |
| 3 | bo-ri | bo-n-su | bo-n-sko | bo-n-si | bo-n-na |
The suffix -n expresses the plurality and inanimateness of the possessum (REF pg. 250). The locational noun possessive structure is illustrated in this example:
bal
ball
i-ne
3SG.SPC-this
v<y>ark
<3SG>lie
ro
LOC
karui=su-ya
stone=3DU-SPC
bonsu
upside-NSG.INAN-3DU
bal i-ne v<y>ark ro karui=su-ya bonsu
ball 3SG.SPC-this <3SG>lie LOC stone=3DU-SPC upside-NSG.INAN-3DU
'This ball lies on top of two stones'

## Negation

Biak distinguishes between factual and imperative negation (prohibitive). The marker for factual negation is va. For prohibitive it is awer.

### Factual negation: va

The negator va occurs clause-finally in intransitive and transitive clauses.

#### Intransitive

Isyor
i-syor
3SG-low.tide
va.
va
NEG
Isyor va.
i-syor va
3SG-low.tide NEG
'It's not low tide'

#### Transitive

Dan
d-an
3SG-eat
(i)mbyefya
(i)mbyef=ya
banana=3SG.SPC
va.
va
NEG
Dan (i)mbyefya va.
d-an (i)mbyef=ya va
3SG-eat banana=3SG.SPC NEG
'S/he does not eat the banana.'
Yafár
ya-fár
1SG-tell
kám
kam
all
i
i
3SG
va.
va
NEG
Yafár kám i va.
ya-fár kam i va
1SG-tell all 3SG NEG
'I have not told all of it.'
Roma
romawa
son
vyanine
v<y>=an-i-ne
<3SG>POS=GIV-3SG.SPC-this
dóve
d-óve
3SG-say
bapak
bapak
father
isne
is-ne
3SG.PRED-this
va,
va
NEG
yakramu
ya-kram=u
1SG-store=U
seno
sen=o
cent=NSPC.SG
va.
va
NEG
Roma vyanine dóve bapak isne va, yakramu seno va.
romawa v<y>=an-i-ne d-óve bapak is-ne va ya-kram=u sen=o va
son <3SG>POS=GIV-3SG.SPC-this 3SG-say father 3SG.PRED-this NEG 1SG-store=U cent=NSPC.SG NEG
'His son said "father isn't here, I do not have a penny." '
In clauses with non-core arguments, va follows directly the argument it negates.
Denf
d-enf
3SG-sleep
ro
ro
LOC
dine
di-ne
place-this
va.
va
NEG
Denf ro dine va.
d-enf ro di-ne va
3SG-sleep LOC place-this NEG
'He does not sleep here' (but somewhere else).
Denf
d-enf
3SG-sleep
va
va
NEG
ro
ro
LOC
dine.
di-ne
place-this
Denf va ro dine.
d-enf va ro di-ne
3SG-sleep NEG LOC place-this
'He does not sleep here' (but does something else here).
Va is also used to negate nominal clauses.
Guruno
guru=no
teacher=NSPC.NSG
va.
va
NEG
Guruno va.
guru=no va
teacher=NSPC.NSG NEG
'There are no teachers.'

#### Factual negation in complex clauses

In complex clauses with fa, a conjunction expressing result, it seems that the negator va always occurs last in the sentence. In the corpus of spontaneous speech collected by van den Heuvel, there are no examples with va appearing at the end of the first clause.
Mansren
Manseren
Lord
Yesus
Yesus
Jesus
ipok
i-pok
3SG-able
fa
fa
CONS
vyefarander
v<y>e-farander
<3SG>VBZ-forget
ko
ko
1PL.INCL
va.
va
NEG
Mansren Yesus ipok fa vyefarander ko va.
Manseren Yesus i-pok fa v<y>e-farander ko va
Lord Jesus 3SG-able CONS <3SG>VBZ-forget 1PL.INCL NEG
'The Lord Jesus cannot forget us.'
In other complex clauses the negator may follow the first or final clause.
Dár
d-ár
3SG-cry
ve
ve
as
randip
randip
pig
va
va
NEG
voi,
voi
but
dár
d-ár
3SG-cry
ve
ve
as
snonkaku.
snonkaku
human.being
Dár ve randip va voi, dár ve snonkaku.
d-ár ve randip va voi d-ár ve snonkaku
3SG-cry as pig NEG but 3SG-cry as human.being
'It did not cry as a pig but as a human being.'
Sansun
sansun
clothes
vyena
v<y>e=na
<3SG>POS=3PL.INAN.SPC
naisya
na-is-ya
3PL.INAN-PRED-that
voi,
voi
but
dáknayu
d-ák-na-yu
3SG-also-have-YU
sarako
sarak=o
bracelet=NSPC.SG
va.
va
NEG
Sansun vyena naisya voi, dáknayu sarako va.
sansun v<y>e=na na-is-ya voi d-ák-na-yu sarak=o va
clothes <3SG>POS=3PL.INAN.SPC 3PL.INAN-PRED-that but 3SG-also-have-YU bracelet=NSPC.SG NEG
'His clothes were there, but he did not (also) have a bracelet.'
Vyeurus
v<y>e-urus
<3SG>VBZ-arrange
pyum
pyum
good
bakn
bakn
body
vyedine
v<y>e=d-i-ne
<3SG>VBZ=3SG-SPC-this
va
va
NEG
rao isofro
rao isofro
until
dármaker.
d-ármakr
3SG-scabies
Vyeurus pyum bakn vyedine va {rao isofro} dármaker.
v<y>e-urus pyum bakn v<y>e=d-i-ne va {rao isofro} d-ármakr
<3SG>VBZ-arrange good body <3SG>VBZ=3SG-SPC-this NEG until 3SG-scabies
'He did not take care of his body very well, until he got scabies.'

#### With bukan

Bukan is a loan from Malay/Indonesian. In Indonesian, the use of bukan, outside its function of negating noun phrases, expresses emphasis. The use of bukan in Biak also appears to express emphasis – in the examples given by van den Heuvel, it use occurs when a contrast is given. Bukan is used in combination with va. Bukan precedes the first verb and va is in its usual place at the end of the clause.
Indya
indya
so
bukan
bukan
NEG
kokain
ko-kain
1PL.INCL-sit
kofafyár
ko-fafyár
1PL.INCL-tell
biasa
biasa
usual
va.
va
NEG
Indya bukan kokain kofafyár biasa va.
indya bukan ko-kain ko-fafyár biasa va
so NEG 1PL.INCL-sit 1PL.INCL-tell usual NEG
'So we are not (just) sitting and telling here (but have a serious meeting)'
Pendeta
pendeta
minister
dóve
d-óve
3SG-say
"a,
a
a
bukan
bukan
NEG
yakofn
ya-kofn
1SG-speak
ve
ve
to
ko
ko
1PL.INCL
vape
vape
but
yakofn
ya-kofn
1SG-speak
ve
ve
to
warga
warga
member
jemaatsi.
jemaat=s-i
church=3PL.ANIM-SPC
Pendeta dóve "a, bukan yakofn ve ko vape yakofn ve warga jemaatsi.
pendeta d-óve a bukan ya-kofn ve ko vape ya-kofn ve warga jemaat=s-i
minister 3SG-say a NEG 1SG-speak to 1PL.INCL but 1SG-speak to member church=3PL.ANIM-SPC
'The minister said "Ah, I did not say that to us, but to the members of the church!"'

### Imperative negation: awer

The prohibitive marker awer is used to negate arguments in 1st, 2nd and 3rd person.

#### 1st person

Voi
voi
but
komyof
ko-myof
1PL.INCL-defend
setengah
setengah
half
awer
awer
PROH
i
i
3SG
voi
voi
but
komyof
ko-myof
1PL.INCL-defend
kaku
kaku
true
i
i
3SG
kám
kám
all
fa…
fa
CONS
Voi komyof setengah awer i voi komyof kaku i kám fa…
voi ko-myof setengah awer i voi ko-myof kaku i kám fa
but 1PL.INCL-defend half PROH 3SG but 1PL.INCL-defend true 3SG all CONS
'And let us not defend half of it, but let's really defend all of it, so that …'

#### 2nd person

Wenf
w-enf
2SG-sleep
awer!
awer
NEG
Wenf awer!
w-enf awer
2SG-sleep NEG
'Do not sleep!'

#### 3rd person

Ipok
i-pok
3SG-can
vyunk
v<y>unk
<3SG>wipe.off
awer
awer
not
mnor
mnor
mucus
vyena.
v<y>e=na
<3SG>POS=3PL.INAN.SPC
Ipok vyunk awer mnor vyena.
i-pok v<y>unk awer mnor v<y>e=na
3SG-can <3SG>wipe.off not mucus <3SG>POS=3PL.INAN.SPC
'He is not allowed to wipe off his mucus.'

### Other negators

To express 'not yet', Biak uses the marker vanim/vaim. For 'not any more' wer va is used.
Ono
ono
INDEF.PL
sibur
si-bur
3PL.ANIM-leave
ve
ve
to
movo
mov=o
place=NSPC.SG
movo
mov=o
place=NSPC.SG
vaím
vaím
not.yet
kám
kám
all
vo
vo
SIM
Ono sibur ve movo movo vaím kám vo (…)
ono si-bur ve mov=o mov=o vaím kám vo
INDEF.PL 3PL.ANIM-leave to place=NSPC.SG place=NSPC.SG not.yet all SIM
'There were not yet any people at all who had left to other places and (….)'
Sikafkif
si-kaf~kif
3PL.AN-REDUP~pick
fa
fa
CONS
sséwar
s-séwar
3PL.AN-seek
sarak
sarak
bracelet
ini.
i-ne
3SG.SPC-this
Ma
ma
and
sisrow
si-srow
3PL.AN-find
i
i
3SG
vanim.
vanim
not.yet
Sikafkif fa sséwar sarak ini. Ma sisrow i vanim.
si-kaf~kif fa s-séwar sarak i-ne ma si-srow i vanim
3PL.AN-REDUP~pick CONS 3PL.AN-seek bracelet 3SG.SPC-this and 3PL.AN-find 3SG not.yet
'They (the chickens) pick to find this bracelet. And they have not found it yet.'
Bukuno
buku=no
book=NSPC.NSG
vaíme.
vaím-e
not.yet
Bukuno vaíme.
buku=no vaím-e
book=NSPC.NSG not.yet
'There are no books yet'.
Isyor
I-syor
3SG-low.tide
wer
wer
again
va.
va
not
Isyor wer va.
I-syor wer va
3SG-low.tide again not
'It is not low tide any more.'

### Typological perspectives

In Austronesian languages, the negator commonly precedes the predicate. Thus Biak, with clause final negation, is atypical in this feature. Clause final negation, however, is a common feature in the region of the Eastern Bird's Head Peninsula, in both Austronesian and Papuan languages. It appears to be of Papuan origin.

## Numerals

Biak numerals :
| | Biak |
| 1 | eser/oser |
| 2 | suru |
| 3 | kyor |
| 4 | fyak |
| 5 | rim |
| 6 | wonem |
| 7 | fik |
| 8 | war |
| 9 | siw |
| 10 | samfur |
| 11 | samfur sesr oser |
| 20 | samfur di suru |
| 100 | utin |
| 1000 | syáran |

## Glossary

| ANIM | animate |
| CONS | consecutive |
| GIV | given |
| INAN | inanimate |
| INCL | inclusive |
| INDEF | indefinite |
| LOC | locative |
| NEG | negator |
| NSG | non-singular |
| NSP | nonspecific |
| PL | plural |
| POS | possessive marker |
| PRED | predicate |
| REL | relativiser |
| SG | singular |
| SIM | simultaneous |
| SPC | specific |
| U | ‘filler’ |
| VBZ | verbaliser |
CONS:consecutive SPC:specific NSPC:nonspecific NSG:non-singular GIV:given SIM:simultaneous U:'filler' YU:-yu

## Footnotes

* ↑ Biak at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022)
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 7.
* ↑ Ronsumbre, Adolof (2020). Ensiklopedia Suku Bangsa di Provinsi Papua Barat. Yogyakarta: Penerbit Kepel Press. ISBN 978-602-356-318-0.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 5.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 6.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 11.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 21.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 26.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 27.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, pp. 64–66.
* 1 2 van den Heuvel 2006, p. 67.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 66.
* 1 2 3 4 van den Heuvel 2006, p. 68.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 71.
* 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 van den Heuvel 2006, p. 332.
* 1 2 3 van den Heuvel 2006, p. 327.
* 1 2 van den Heuvel 2006, p. 333.
* 1 2 3 4 van den Heuvel 2006, p. 336.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 84.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 230.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 231.
* 1 2 van den Heuvel 2006, p. 232.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, pp. 232–234.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 238.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 239.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 235.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, pp. 243–245.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 243.
* 1 2 3 van den Heuvel 2006, p. 251.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 250.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 129.
* 1 2 van den Heuvel 2006, p. 28.
* 1 2 3 Steinhauer 2005.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 146.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 440.
* 1 2 van den Heuvel 2006, p. 211.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 130.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 289.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 221.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 400.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 409.
* ↑ Sneddon 2010, p. 202.
* 1 2 3 4 van den Heuvel 2006, p. 131.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 442.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 132.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 147.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 98.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 255.
* ↑ Reesink 2002, pp. 29–30.
* ↑ van den Heuvel 2006, p. 140.