Ainu
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Fact corner
- Language: Ainu
- Alternate names: アイヌ イタク, aynu itak, アイヌ語 [ainu-go], Аину Итак
- SIL-code: Ethnologue:ain
- Language family: Isolate
- Number of speakers: 15
- Script: -
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Introduction
Ainu is spoken by a couple of people of the Ainu ethnic group on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaidō. The last speaker of Sakhalin dialect died in 1994. There were at least 19 dialects.
The verb
Sample verb: いたっ (itak)
Formal
| sg.1 | itak-an | いたっあん |
| sg.2 | e-itak | えいたっ |
| sg.3 | itak | いたっ |
| pl.1 | itak-an | いたっあん |
| pl.2 | eci-itak | えcいいたっ |
| pl.3 | itak-pa | いたっぱ |
Informal
| sg.1 | ku-itak | くいたっ | ||
| sg.2 | e-itak | えいたっ | ||
| sg.2 honorific | itak-an | いたっあん | ||
| sg.3 | itak | いたっ | ||
| sg.3 honorific | itak-pa | いたっぱ | ||
| pl.1 exclusive | itak-pa-as | いたっぱあっ | ||
| pl.1 inclusive | itak-pa-an | いたっぱあん | ||
| pl.2 | eci-itak-pa | えcいいたっぱ | ||
| pl.2 honorific | itak-pa-an | いたっぱあん | ||
| pl.3 | itak-pa | いたっぱ | ||
| pl.3 honorific | itak-pa-pa | いたっぱぱ |
References
- Ainu-Grammatik. Otto Harrassowitz. edition. Wiesbaden. 1989.