Kei

Introduction

Kei is a language of Indonesia. It is spoken in Southeast Maluku Province, about 207 villages on 10 islands. Kei island group west of Aru islands; Kecil, Besar, and surrounding islands; also, Kur islands, lying west and northwest of Kei group.

Dialects

Kei Besar, Kei Kecil, Ta’am, Tanimbar Kei (Atnebar), Tayando. Kei Kecil is the prestigious urban dialect. Kei Besar speakers usually also know Kei Kecil, but not vice versa. Kei Besar is more similar to Fordata (See: Fordata?) than other Kei dialects. Tanimbar Kei is spoken in only one village. Lexical similarity: 60% with Fordata (See: Fordata?).

The Kei Verb

Verblist

• [t]nar -- to say
• [u]ká -- to know, be knowledgeable
• āβun -- to burn
• baku -- to hit
• bobar -- to fear
• bor -- to steal
• bu:k, toʔ -- to suck
• denar -- to hear
• dir[ṿ] -- to stand
• dolaŋ -- to vomit
• duk -- to sit
• el na:m -- to breathe
• fa'a -- to buy
• fakβinik -- to hide
• falo tetaŋ -- to lie down
• -fan -- to shoot
• fedan -- to kill
• fhoar -- to sew
• fikir -- to think
• fil -- to choose
• fo -- to plant
• frek -- to blow
• ftuk -- to spit
• futar -- to turn
• ha'aʔ -- to pound, beat
• hafat -- to cut, hack
• haʔa -- to stab, pierce
• humak -- to sniff, smell
• k|móa|t -- to yawn
• kakṿ -- to split
• kal, kear -- to dig
• katam -- to squeeze
• keat -- to tie up, fasten
• ker -- to hold
• ker -- to scratch
• kik -- to bite
• lek -- to fall
• liʔik -- to see
• malit -- to laugh
• mat -- to die, be dead
• mel -- to grow
• mif -- to dream
• mti -- to walk
• n|bar -- to swell
• n-ma -- to come
• ṇʔór -- to fly
• ót [unat] -- to work
• rat -- to climb
• ron -- to cry
• s|nan -- to swim
• steʔe -- to hunt
• sβakṿ -- to flow
• t|en -- to drink
• ta|ʔan -- to eat
• teβṿ -- to throw
• tub -- to sleep
• waŋ -- to count
• βak -- to cook
• βaku -- to open, uncover
• βat -- to live, be alive