Zabana is an Oceanic language spoken almost exclusively in the Kia district on the northern part of Santa Isabel Island in the Solomon Islands. Zabana is considered a developing language (Expanded Graded Intergenerational Disruption Scale – EGIDS – level 5) which means that the language is in vigorous use, with literature in a standardized form being used by some, though this is not yet widespread or sustainable.[1] It is one of the most spoken languages on Santa Isabel Island, competing with Cheke Holo. There is a 30% to 60% literacy rate in Zabana as a first language and a 25% to 50% literacy rate in Zabana as a second language.
| Zabana | |
| Also Known As: | Kia |
| States: | Central Solomon Islands |
| Region: | Santa Isabel Island |
| Speakers: | 3,400 |
| Date: | 2003 |
| Ref: | e18 |
| Familycolor: | Austronesian |
| Fam2: | Malayo-Polynesian |
| Fam3: | Oceanic |
| Fam4: | Northwest Solomonic |
| Fam5: | New Georgia – Ysabel |
| Fam6: | Ysabel |
| Fam7: | West Isabel |
| Nation: | Solomon Islands |
| Iso3: | kji |
| Glotto: | zaba1237 |
| Glottorefname: | Zabana |
| Map: | Lang Status 99-NE.svg |
Zabana is almost exclusively spoken on Santa Isabel Island, which is the largest island in the Isabel provenience and the third largest island in the Solomon Island chain. Zabana is one of the eight different languages spoken on Santa Isabel Island. Out of the other seven different languages spoken on the island, Zabana shares major similarities with Kokota and Cheke Holo (also known as Maringe.) A combination dialect of Zabana and Cheke Holo is also developed and widely spoken within the area.[2]
| Labial | Alveolar | Velar | Glottal | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | |||
| Plosive | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | |||
| pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | |||||
| Fricative | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | |||
| pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | ||||
| Lateral | pronounced as /ink/ | |||||
| Trill | pronounced as /ink/ | |||||
Zabana only contains open syllables, since there are no consonant clusters and geminate vowels in the language. Vocal stress on a single phoneme does not exist in Zabana; instead, certain syllables called penultimate syllables (the final syllable of a word that ends in a vowel) are stressed. When compared to the neighboring languages, Zabana has fewer phonemes than its neighbors, in particular Kokota.
| k 17% | l 13% | |
| p 12% | r 13% | |
| t 10% | k 11% | |
| s 10% | t 9% | |
| m 8% | n 7% | |
| b 7% | p 6% | |
| l 6% | s 6% | |
| r 5% | h 6% | |
| n 4% | m 5% | |
| h 4% | b 4% | |
| d 3% | g 4% | |
| v 3% | gh 4% | |
| f 3% | d 3% | |
| g 2% | v 3% | |
| gh 2% | ng 3% | |
| ng 2% | f 2% | |
| z 1% | z 1% |
| To see | fifini | |
| To drink | ketuhu | |
| To sleep | epu | |
| To fall | riufu/zɔɣu | |
| To eat | mahai | |
| To stand | tetu | |
| To sew | tena | |
| To vomit | mumuti | |
| To flow | ɔrɔ/kɔtɔrɔ | |
| To dig | hara |
| Mother | uke | |
| Father | mama | |
| House | suga | |
| Tooth | hiŋa- | |
| Blood | busaka- | |
| Eye | hiba- | |
| Egg | tediri | |
| Dog | meusu | |
| Rat | pururudu | |
| Fruit | fua- | |
| Fish | namari |
| Rotten | bɔe |
| Cold | kapɔ |
| Warm | daŋava |
| Red | busaka |
| Yellow | hekɔ |
| Green | dɔdɔli |
| Black | sisibe |
| Good | veha<nowiki>|</nowiki>na |