Pagi language

Pagi, or Bembi, is a Papuan language spoken by 2,000 people in five villages in Sandaun Province and in Vanimo District of Papua New Guinea, near the border with Indonesian Papua.

Pagi
Native toPapua New Guinea
RegionSandaun Province
Native speakers
2,100 (2003)[1]
Border
  • Bewani Range
    • Poal River
      • Pagi
Dialects
  • Bewani (Western)
  • Imbinis (Eastern)
  • Bembi
  • Eastern Pagi & Western Pagi
  • Pagei[2]
Language codes
ISO 639-3pgi
Glottologpagi1244
ELPPagi[3]

Etymology

The name "Bewani" attributes to the mountains that form a boundary between the Vanimo and Amanab Districts. The several languages spoken are:

  • Kilmeri: spoken in Kiliwis village.
  • Tok Pisin
  • Ainbai: spoken in Ainbai nad Elis villages.
  • Imbinis:dialect of Pagi, spoken in Imbinis and Imbio villages.
  • Ossima: dialect of Kilmeri, spoken around Ossima station.
  • Isi: dialect of Kilmeri, spoken in Isi village.

Usage

Pagi is spoken near the Bewani Station, Idoli and Amoi villages. The Tok Pisin is generally used by the government officials and in families where husband and wife belong to communities speaking different indigenous languages. However, the region is influenced by English and is the main language used in schools of the region, accompanied occasionally by Tok Pisin.[4][5]

References
  1. Pagi at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
  2. Language descriptions - Pagi
  3. Endangered Languages Project data for Pagi.
  4. Sociologistic survey of Pagi and Kilmeri (1981) : Robert Brown (PDF)"BROWN, Robert, author. 1981. A sociolinguistic survey of Pagi and Kilmeri. Workpapers in Papua New Guinea Languages 29. Ukarumpa: Summer Institute of Linguistics."
  5. Survey archive on Summer Institute of Linguistics International
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