| Also Known As: Vonun,Bunan,Bubukun,Vunung,Vunum,Vunun,Bunum,Bunti
Description:
The Bunun language (布農語) is spoken by the Bunun people of Taiwan. It is one of the Formosan languages, a geographic group of Austronesian languages, and is subdivided in five dialects: Isbukun, Takbunuaz, Takivatan, Takibaka and Takituduh. Isbukun, the dominant dialect, is mainly spoken in the south of Taiwan. Takbunuaz and Takivatan are mainly spoken in the center of the country. Takibaka en Takituduh both are northern dialects. A sixth dialect, Takipulan, went extinct in the 1970s.
The Saaroa and Kanakanabu, two smaller minority groups who share their territory with an Isbukun Bunun group, have also adopted Bunun as their vernacular.
Bunun is a verb-initial language and has an Austronesian alignment system or focus system. This means that Bunun clauses do not have a nominative-accusative or absolutive-ergative alignment, but that arguments of a clause are ordered according to which participant in the event described by the verb is 'in focus'. In Bunun, four distinct roles can be in focus:
Which argument is in focus is indicated on the verb by a combination of prefixes and suffixes .
Many other languages with a focus system have different marking for patients, instruments and..... full article at Wikipedia |
