Foia Foia language

Foia Foia
Minanibai
Native to	Papua New Guinea
Native speakers	(180 cited 2000 census) 300 Minanibai reported 1980
Language family	Trans–New Guinea Fly River (Anim) Inland Gulf Foia Foia
Dialects	Mahigi †
Language codes
ISO 639-3	Either: ffi – Foia Foia mcv – Minanibai
Glottolog	mina1274  Minanibai mahi1249  Mahigi

Foia Foia (Foyafoya), or Minanibai, is a Papuan language of Papua New Guinea, spoken in an area near the Omati River mouth in Ikobi Kairi and Goaribari Census districts (Gulf Province).

Mahigi, a Foia Foia dialect documented in a word list by Cridland (1924), is now extinct.

Locations

Foia Foia is spoken in Bibisa village (7.666925°S 143.177088°E / -7.666925; 143.177088 (Bibisa)), Bamu Rural LLG, Western Province, Papua New Guinea, and in Moka (7.282409°S 143.461072°E / -7.282409; 143.461072 (Moka No. 1)) and Pepeha (7.655742°S 144.007263°E / -7.655742; 144.007263 (Pepeha)) villages of West Kikori Rural LLG, Gulf Province.

Phonology

Vowels

	Front	Central	Back
Close	i		u
Mid	e		o
Open		ä ⟨ā⟩	ɑ ⟨a⟩

Consonants

		Labial	Labiodental	Alveolar	Velar	Glottal
Stop	Voiceless	p		t	k	ʔ ⟨ʼ⟩
	Voiced	b		d	g
Fricative	Voiceless	ɸ ⟨f⟩	f	s		h
Approximant		w		l

Bibliography

Word lists

• Carr, Philip J. 1991 Foyafoya (Bibisa, W.P. at Kamusi), Hoyahoya (Matakaia, W.P. at Gagoro), Hoyahoya/Hoiahoia (Ukusi-Koperami, W.P. two young men visiting Torobina). Manuscript.
• Z’graggen, John A. 1975. Comparative wordlists of the Gulf District and adjacent Areas. In: Richard Loving (ed.), Comparative Wordlists I. 5–116. Ukarumpa: SIL-PNG. (Rearranged version of Franklin ed. 1973: 541–592) with typographical errors.)
• Franklin, Karl J. 1973. Appendices. In: Franklin (ed.), 539–592.
• Johnston, H. L. C. 1920. Vocabulary of Eme-Eme. British New Guinea Annual Report 1919–1920: 120.

External links

• Foia Foia. New Guinea World.