Bemé: Difference between revisions

{{infobox language

| name = Bemé

| image = File:Poccasin.svg

| imagesize = 250px

| creator = User:Jukethatbox

| created = 2025

| speakers = 15 million

| date = 2025

| stand1 = ''[[#Tak vs kriyal|Bemetak]]''

| dia1 = [[Bijun Creole]]

| notice = ipa

}}

==Etymology==

===''Beme'' vs ''Bemé''===

In contrast, ''Bemé'', (/[[Help:IPA|bəˈmeɪ̯]]/ ''buh-MAY'') with an accent, is exclusively used in English to refer to the Bemé language. However, in Bemé itself, both ''bemeh'' "nation" and ''bemeh'' "Bemé" are homophones and homonyms, and their differing meanings is only discerned by context, such as:

===''Kriyal''===

The word ''kriyal''(sometimes spelt ''kriyel'' in [[Columbé|Columban]]) is also used by [[Columbé]] and [[Bijun Creole]] speakers to refer to their own varieties of Bemé.

However, a key difference between older and younger speakers is the presence of [[w:Situational code-switching|code-switching]]; younger speakers are much more likely to be adept at code-switching between ''tak'' and ''kriyal'' depending on context, as opposed to older, traditionally less educated speakers who can't code-switch and as such whose speech may be permanently considered ''kriyal''. This factor has been considered one of many causes of [[w:Ageism|ageism]] in the Poccasin workforce, where older job applicants who exclusively speak in what is considered ''kriyal'' may be discriminated against compared to younger job applicants who are capable of speaking in more formal ''tak''.

==Orthography==

{|

|-

/ɲ/ is the only consonant that cannot appear in a coda position; typically, this is circumvented by adding /ɛ/ or /a/ postpositionally, so ''{{bm|grin}}'' becomes ''{{bm|grinyeh}}''.

====Nasal assimilation====

{| class=wikitable style="text-align: center;"

! rowspan=2 colspan=2 | !! colspan=14 | Obstruents

|-

|-

! rowspan=3 | Nasal

! Bemé

|-

! Bijun

|-

! Columbé

| colspan=2 | /n/ || colspan=2 | /ɲ/ || -

|}

===Vowels===

There are only three diphthongs in Bemé: /ei̯ oi̯ ou̯/, written ⟨ey, oi, ow⟩ respectively. However, although these diphthongs may roughly match with similar English diphthongs /eɪ̯ oɪ̯ oʊ̯/, these diphthongs rarely match; diphthongs in general are rare in Bemé, but even with words derived from English words with diphthongs, the diphthongs are often replaced with monophthongs, e.g. ''sh'''e'''k'' [[IPA for Bemé|[ʃek]]], compared to English sh'''a'''ke /[[w:Help:IPA/English|ˈʃeɪ̯k]]/. In ''kriyal'' varieties diphthongs may be entirely replaced by monophthongs, so words like ''sk'''ey''''' [[IPA for Bemé|[skei̯]]] become [[IPA for Bemé|[skɛ]]].

====''Leleh''====

==Grammar==

Bemé does not mark grammatical [[w:Grammatical number|number]], [[w:Grammatical gender|gender]] or [[w:Grammatical case|case]] in most places.

{| class=wikitable style="text-align: center;"

! rowspan=2 | !! colspan=2 | Proximal !! colspan=2 | Distal

|}

Demonstratives in Bemé only inflect on number as [[w:Pronoun|pronouns]]; demonstrative [[w:Determiner|determiners]] are not inflected on anything apart from proximity.

{| class=wikitable style="text-align: center;"

! colspan=2 | !! Singular !! Paucal !! Plural*

|}

<nowiki>*</nowiki>Plural pronouns are written in order from common in ''tak'' to common in ''kriyal''.

"Paucal" pronouns refer to groups of people, as in ''wi kri'' would mean "some of us", ''yu kri'' means "some of you all", etc. Paucal pronouns are thought to have been borrowed from [[Dadaareg]], constructed by a combination of pronoun + ''kri'' (lit. "three"), as is typical for paucal pronouns in Dadaareg(''tanuk'', ''penuk'', ''lolonuk''). The third-person paucal pronoun, ''imim''/''emem'', is thought to have been derived via [[Ketaserang]] reduplication, a feature typical of Ketaserang for forming plural pronouns.

''Tuka'', ''ka'', ''tukeh'' and ''keh'' are all taken from the [[Yabo]] languages, all of which have pronouns along the lines of ''toka'' or ''tokeq''.

===Numerals===

Bemé numerals from 0-9 are as follows:

! Number !! Bemé !! English translation

|-

|-

|-

|-

| 50 || ''pateng'' || fifty

|}

===Verbs===

The Bemé verbal paradigm, shown on the regular verb ''{{bm|it}}'' is as follows:

!rowspan=2 | !! colspan=2 | Indicative !! colspan=2 | Continuous !! colspan=2 | Conditional

|-

|-

! Present

====Copula====

The Bemé copula is ''bi'', from English ''be'', though this can be turned into an existential verb by placing ''eh'' before the copula. In ''kriyal'' varieties, it is customary to omit the copula in most cases, especially before an adjective. However, the copula is never omitted in ''tak''.

===Polysemants===

<small>''See'' [[:Category:Bemé polysemants]] ''for a full list of polysemants.''</small><br>

|big=big

|long=long

|heavy=ebig

|small=na big

|short=na long

|woman=jal

|man (adult male)=mwoi

|fall=tamel

|give=gib

|squeeze=krish

|rub=rob

|rain=rey

|river=long wateh

|sea=big desi

|salt=sal

==Example texts==

===Historical texts===

====The Lord's Prayer====

<poem>

''Wey Abo ni skey, yu neym bi bles.''

===Seventh Linguifex Relay===

==See also==

* [[:Category:Bemé words]]

[[Category:Bemé]] [[Category:Conlangs]] [[Category:Languages]] [[Category:Creole languages]]