Kovai (Kobai, Kowai) is a Papuan language spoken on Umboi Island, halfway between mainland Papua New Guinea and the island of New Britain, and mostly within the caldera of that volcanic island.
Kovai | |
---|---|
Native to | Papua New Guinea |
Region | Umboi Island, Morobe Province |
Native speakers | 6,000 (2011)[1] |
Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 | kqb |
Glottolog | kova1243 |
Front | Central | Back | |
---|---|---|---|
Close | i | u | |
Mid | e | o | |
Open | a |
Labial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Plosive | voiceless | p | t | k | |
voiced | b | ɡ | |||
Nasal | m | n | ŋ | ||
Fricative | voiceless | s | |||
voiced | z | ||||
Trill | r | ||||
Approximant | w | l | j |