<研究ノート>北・中央ヴァヌアツ諸語の嚮数法とその分布について

Abstract

Overcounting is a system of counting. In Ostyak (Uralic), for example, 'eighteen' is expressed as 'eight twenty', meaning 'eight' that goes toward 'twenty'. This system is seen in some Uralic languages, Mayan languages, Turkic languages, and Austronesian languages of Taiwan and the Philippines. The overcounting construction in these languages consists of two parts: a decade and a digit. In addition to these languages, some languages in North-Central Vanuatu are known to have overcounting but with a different construction. It is composed of three parts: a decade, an ordinal expression of the next decade, and a digit (e.g. twenty, thirtieth, one "21"). This phenomenon has been known since the earliest study, but it seems that no attempt has been made to clarify the geographical distribution of overcounting in North-Central Vanuatu. This study describes the structure of overcounting in North-Central Vanuatu, identifies six languages with overcounting—Tutuba, Tamambo, a language in Ambae, Tangoa, Akei and Big Nambas—and shows that these languages are spoken in the area enclosed by southern Espiritu Santo, northern Malakula, and Ambae. This study also shows that overcounting is used for numerals higher than twenty one, except that Tamambo starts the overcounting from eleven, which indicates that Tamambo retains the old system of overcounting in this area.