WHAT SINAMA LANGUAGE IS THIS? LANGUAGE FEATURES AND SIMPLE METHODS TO HELP THE NON-LINGUIST NAVIGATE THE SINAMA LANGUAGES AND DIALECTS

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Luke Schroeder

Abstract

The Sama have proven over and over again difficult to classify. Non-Sama have called them Badjaw, Samal, and Siyamal. Some Sama have refused to identify with the name Sama and call themselves only by the name of their places of origin. Others have found benefit to identify with the names given them by outsiders. Others have blended in with the Tausug people. As the Sama people have spread across the Philippines and Malaysia, Sama groups may experience reduced contact with other once neighboring or intermingled Sama groups. This paper gives practical though imperfect litmus test examinations that are of use to a cultural observer or those of Sama heritage in identifying which language and dialect of Sinama a conversant or text is written in. The paper focuses on giving meaning to four Sama-Badjaw language classifications and identifying surface level differences that exist among these languages as well as helping to pinpoint various dialects and under which language classification they fit best. The four languages are Northern, Central, Western, and Southern Sinama. Differences in vowel sounds, pronoun usage, language affixation and vocabulary are used to identify language category as well as give insight into what dialect of a language is being spoken. The paper is intentionally abbreviated and simplified in order to make it possible for non-linguists and even those with very simple knowledge of Sinama to make use of its findings. 


Keywords: Sama, Sinama languages, Sinama dialects

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Author Biography

Luke Schroeder, Graduate Institute of Applied Linguistics (Dallas International University), U.S.A, Kauman Sama Online

Graduate Institute of Applied Linguistics (Dallas International University), U.S.A
Kauman Sama Online