Table of Contents
East Mek
Timothy Usher, Santa Fe Institute
Situation
[under construction]
The East Mek family consists of two closely related languages, Ketengban and Una, spoken … Additionally, … Eipo substrate …
Subclassification
The internal classification of East Mek is as follows:
East Mek
Ketengban
Eipo substrate-Una
‡Eipo substrate
Una
Heeschen (1978: 9) provides lexicostatistical figures for eight East Mek dialects as follows:
| Eipo | Layre | Sirkai | Kinome | Ok Bab | Tanime | Bime | Kamume | |
| Eipo | — | 93.88 | 82.83 | 86.59 | 83.00 | 93.00 | 89.00 | 88.84 |
| Larye | 93.88 | — | 84.04 | 75.53 | 84.36 | 94.90 | 89.70 | 85.26 |
| Sirkai | 82.83 | 84.04 | — | 79.27 | 82.83 | 84.95 | 83.84 | 82.83 |
| Kinome | 86.59 | 75.53 | 79.27 | — | 80.72 | 87.95 | 91.57 | 83.13 |
| Ok Bab | 83.00 | 84.36 | 82.83 | 80.72 | — | 85.00 | 92.00 | 89.90 |
| Tanime | 93.00 | 94.90 | 84.85 | 87.95 | 85.00 | — | 93.00 | 89.90 |
| Bime | 89.00 | 89.70 | 83.84 | 91.57 | 92.00 | 93.00 | — | 95.96 |
| Kamume | 88.84 | 85.26 | 82.83 | 83.13 | 89.90 | 89.90 | 95.96 | — |
Additionally, De Kock's (1912) Mt. Goliath is calculated to share 78.95% with Larye and 68.42% with Eipo, but this isn't reliable, as Mt. Goliath and Larye are the same language, Una.
Sources
[under construction]
…
Historical phonology
[under construction]
Proto-East Mek had perhaps 19 consonants and 7 vowels as follows:
| *m | *n | *ɲ | *ŋ | |||
| *p | *t | *s | *c | *cʎ | *k | *kʷ |
| *b | *d | *ɟ | *g | *gʷ | ||
| *w | *l | *j | *ʎ |
| *i | *u | |
| *e̝ | *o̝ | |
| *ɛ | *ɔ | |
| *a |
In addition to the simple vowels given above, … diphthongs are found as follows:
| *e̝ⁱ | *o̝ᵘ |
| *ɛⁱ | *ɔᵘ |
| *aⁱ | *aᵘ |
| *aᵋ | *aᵓ |
…
…
…
…
…
| East Mek | Ketengban | Una | Eipo |
| Sims | Louwerse | Heeschen | |
| * | |||
Pronouns
[under construction]
…
…
…
…
…
…
Verbal morphology
[under construction]
… Eipo is not included in this section because, unlike its lexicon which is primarily from a language most closely related to Una(above,) the core of its grammar is West Mek in origin.
…
…
… present/future … In Louwerse’s Una present perfective, the class marke of the preceding verb is dropped. … Fowler, Fowler, Rule and Rule’s (1972: 30-35) designation of this set as “present, future” most likely referes to the forms of the subject rather than to their appearance without aspect markers, as they give the full present paradigm only with preceding /-am-/ (below.) ….
| East Mek | Una | Ketengban | Ketengban | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Bime, Tanime | Omban | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Heeschen | Sims | Fowler | ||
| pres. perf. | present | present | present | ||
| 1 sg. present | *-n | -Ø-n | -n ~ -n-ɛ | -n-ɛ | -n(-ɛ) |
| 2 sg. present | *-dəm | -Ø-ɾɪm | -ɾim | -ɾɛm-ɛ | -ɾɛm |
| 3 sg. present | *-d | -Ø-ɾ | -ɾ ~ -ɾ-ɛ | -ɾ-ɛ | -ɾ(-ɛ) |
| 1 pl. present | *-əp | -Ø-p | -ap | [-m-ɛɸ-ɛ] | -p(-ɛ) |
| 2 pl. present | *-do̝m | -Ø-ɾʊm | -ɾum | -ɾum-ɛ | -ɾum |
| 3 pl. present | *-əŋ | -Ø-ŋ | -aŋ | -ŋ-ɛ | -ŋ |
| 1 dl. present | *-nəm | -Ø-nɪm | -nim | -nɛm-ɛ | -nɛ -ɛ) |
| 2 dl. present | *-də-do̝m | -Ø-ɾʊ-ɾʊm | -ɾɛ-ɾum | [-ɾum-ɛ] | -ɾɛ-ɾum |
| 3 dl. present | *-d-əŋ | -Ø-ɾɪŋ | -ɾ-iŋ | -ɾ-uŋ-ɛ | -ɾɛ-ŋ |
… Louwerse calls both the present imperfective tense amd punctiliar aspect and the momentaneous aspect while Sims calls it the immediate future …
| East Mek | Una | Una | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Langda | Omban | ||
| Louwerse | Louwerse | Sims | ||
| pres. impf. | momentaneous | imm. fut. | ||
| 1 sg. … | *-ma-n | -C-ma-n | -n-ma-n | -ma-n-ɛ |
| 2 sg. … | *-ma-dəm | -C-ma-ɾɪm | -n-ma-ɾɪm | -ma-ɾɛm-ɛ |
| 3 sg. … | *-ma-d | -C-ma-ɾ | -n-ma-ɾ | -ma-ɾ-ɛ |
| 1 pl. … | *-ma-əp | -C-ma-p | -n-ma-p | -ma-ɸ-ɛ ~ -m-ɛɸ-ɛ |
| 2 pl. … | *-ma-do̝m | -C-ma-ɾʊm | -n-ma-ɾʊm | -ma-ɾum-ɛ |
| 3 pl. … | *-ma-əŋ | -C-ma-ŋ | -n-ma-ŋ | -ma-ŋ-ɛ |
| 1 dl. … | *-ma-nəm | -C-ma-nɪm | -n-ma-nɪm | -ma-nɛm-ɛ |
| 2 dl. … | *-ma-də-do̝m | -C-ɾma-ʊ-ɾʊm | -n-ɾma-ʊ-ɾʊm | -ma-ɾum-ɛ |
| 3 dl. … | *-ma-d-əŋ | -C-ma-ɾɪŋ | -n-ma-ɾɪŋ | -ma-ɾɪŋ |
… perfect 2 relative tense… present continuative tense …
| East Mek | Una | Una | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Langda | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Louwerse | Fowler | ||
| perfect 2 | pres. cont. | present | ||
| 1 sg. … | *-am-n | -C-a-n | -ɾ-a-n | -am-n-ɛ |
| 2 sg. … | *-am-dəm | -C-an-dɪm | -ɾ-an-dɪm | -am-ɾɛm |
| 3 sg. … | *-am-d | -C-an-da | -ɾ-an-da | -am-ɾ-ɛ |
| 1 pl. … | *-am-əp | -C-am-ɪp | -ɾ-am-ɪp | -am-ɛp |
| 2 pl. … | *-am-do̝m | -C-an-dʊm | -ɾ-an-dʊm | -am-ɾum |
| 3 pl. … | *-am-əŋ | -C-am-ɪŋ | -ɾ-am-ɪŋ | -am-ɛŋ |
| 1 dl. … | *-am-nəm | -C-a-nɪm | -ɾ-a-nɪm | -am-nɛm |
| 2 dl. … | *-am-də-do̝m | -C-an-dʊ-ɾʊm | -ɾ-an-dʊ-ɾʊm | -am-ɾɛ-ɾum |
| 3 dl. … | *-am-d-əŋ | -C-an-d-ɪŋ | -ɾ-an-d-ɪŋ | -am-ɾɛ-ŋ |
…
… Louwerse dubs near future, Sims imminent future and Fowler, Fowler, Rule and Rule today future …
| East Mek | Una | Ketengban | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Omban | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Sims | Fowler | ||
| near fut. | … fut. | today fut. | ||
| 1 sg. … fut. | *-k[ɔ/o̝]-n | -kʊ-n | -kɔ-n-ɛ | -kɔ-n |
| 2 sg. … fut. | *-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -kʷɪn-dɪm | -kɔ-ɾɛm-ɛ | -kɔ-ɾɛm |
| 3 sg.… fut. | *-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -kʊ-ɾ | -kɔ-ɾ-ɛ | -kɔ-ɾ |
| 1 pl. … fut. | *-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -kʊ-p | -kɔ-ɸ-ɛ | -kɔ-p(-u) |
| 2 pl. … fut. | *-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -kʊn-dʊm | -kɔ-ɾum-ɛ | -kɔ-ɾum |
| 3 pl. … fut. | *-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -kʊ-ŋ | -kɔ-ŋ-ɛ | -kɔ-ŋ |
| 1 dl. … fut. | *-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -kʷɪ-nɪm | -kɔ-nɛm-ɛ | -kɔ-nɛm |
| 2 dl. … fut. | *-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -kʊn-dʊ-ɾʊm | — | -kɔ-ɾɛ-ɾum |
| 3 dl. … fut. | *-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -kʷɪn-d-ɪŋ | -kɔ-ɾ-uŋ-ɛ | -kɔ-ɾɛ-ŋ |
… Louwerse’s future durative aspect …
| East Mek | Una | |
| Langda | ||
| Louwerse | ||
| fut. dur. | ||
| 1 sg. | *-ab-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -ab-kʊ-n |
| 2 sg. | *-ab-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -ab-kʷɪn-dɪm |
| 3 sg. | *-ab-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -ab-kʊ-ɾ |
| 1 pl. | *-ab-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -ab-kʊ-p |
| 2 pl. | *-ab-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -ab-kʊn-dʊm |
| 3 pl. | *-ab-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -ab-kʊ-ŋ |
| 1 dl. | *-ab-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -ab-kʷɪ-nɪm |
| 2 dl. | *-ab-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -ab-kʊn-dʊ-ɾʊm |
| 3 dl. | *-ab-k[ɔ/o̝]- | -ab-kʷɪn-d-ɪŋ |
… future …
… Besides being somewhat of a logical consequence of the three paradigms which follow, remnants of this paradigm are found conflated into the hortative/future paradigms of several members of the West Mek family:
| East Mek | Ketengban | |
| Omban | ||
| Sims | ||
| near fut. | ||
| 1 sg. … fut. | *-uka-n | -ka-n-ɛ |
| 2 sg. … fut. | *-uka-dəm | -ka-ɾɛm-ɛ |
| 3 sg. … fut. | *-uka-d | -ka-ɾ-ɛ |
| 1 pl. … fut. | *-uka-əp | -ka-ɸ-ɛ |
| 2 pl. … fut. | *-uka-do̝m | -ka-ɾum-ɛ |
| 3 pl. … fut. | *-uka-əŋ | -ka-ŋ-ɛ |
| 1 dl. … fut. | *-uka-nəm | -ka-nɛm-ɛ |
| 2 dl. … fut. | *-uka-də-do̝m | — |
| 3 dl. … fut. | *-uka-d-əŋ | -ka-ɾuŋ-ɛ |
… Louwerse dubs regular future, Sims intermediate future and Fowler, Fowler, Rule and Rule near future …
| East Mek | Una | Ketengban | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Omban | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Sims | Fowler | ||
| reg. future | med. future | near future | ||
| 1 sg. near fut. | *-uka-ma-n | -kʷa-ma-n | -ka-ma-n-ɛ | -ka-ma-n |
| 2 sg.near fut. | *-uka-ma-dəm | -kʷa-ma-ɾɪm | -ka-ma-ɾɛm-ɛ | -ka-ma-ɾɛm |
| 3 sg.near fut. | *-uka-ma-d | -kʷa-ma-ɾ | -ka-ma-ɾ-ɛ | -ka-ma-ɾ |
| 1 pl. near fut. | *-uka-ma-əp | -kʷa-ma-p | -ka-ma-ɸ-ɛ | -ka-ma-p |
| 2 pl. near fut. | *-uka-ma-do̝m | -kʷa-mʊ-ɾʊm | -ka-ma-ɾum-ɛ | -ka-ma-ɾum |
| 3 pl. near fut. | *-uka-ma-əŋ | -kʷa-ma-ŋ | -ka-ma-ŋ-ɛ | -ka-ma-ŋ |
| 1 dl. near fut. | *-uka-ma-nəm | -kʷa-ma-nɪm | -ka-ma-nɛm-ɛ | -ka-ma-nɛm |
| 2 dl. near fut. | *-uka-ma-də-do̝m | -kʷa-ma-ɾʊ-ɾʊm | — | -ka-ma-ɾɛ-ɾum |
| 3 dl. near fut. | *-uka-ma-d-əŋ | -kʷa-ma-ɾ-ɪŋ | -ka-ma-ɾ-uŋ-ɛ | -ka-ma-ɾ-ɛŋ |
… remote future …
| East Mek | Una | Ketengban | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Omban | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Sims | Fowler | ||
| rem. fut. | far fut. | far fut. | ||
| 1 sg. rem. fut. | *-uka-am-n | -kʷ-a-n | -k-am-n-ɛ | -k-am-n-ɛ |
| 2 sg. rem. fut. | *-uka-am-dəm | -kʷ-an-dɪm | -k-am-ɾɛm-ɛ | -k-am-ɾɛm |
| 3 sg. rem. fut. | *-uka-am-d | -kʷ-an-da | -k-am-ɾ-ɛ | -k-am-ɾ-ɛ |
| 1 pl. rem. fut. | *-uka-am-əp | -kʷ-am-ɪp | -k-am-ɛɸ-ɛ | -k-am-ɛp |
| 2 pl. rem. fut. | *-uka-am-do̝m | -kʷ-an-dʊm | -k-am-ɾum-ɛ | -k-am-ɾum |
| 3 pl. rem. fut. | *-uka-am-əŋ | -kʷ-am-ɪŋ | -k-am-ŋ-ɛ | -k-am-ɛŋ |
| 1 dl. rem. fut. | *-uka-am-nəm | -kʷ-a-nɪm | -k-am-nɛm-ɛ | -k-am-nɛm |
| 2 dl. rem. fut. | *-uka-am-də-do̝m | -kʷ-an-dʊ-ɾʊm | — | -k-am-ɾɛ-ɾum |
| 3 dl. rem. fut. | *-uka-am-d-əŋ | -kʷ-an-d-ɪŋ | -k-am-ɾ-uŋ-ɛ | -k-am-ɾ-ɛŋ |
Attested only for Una is a paradigm which nevertheless likely dates to proto-East Mek, in which the future aspect marker /*-uka-/ is followed by /*-ab-/ … and /*-ma-/ … prior to the present/future subject markers.. In Louwerse (1978: xxiii) this is given as future perfect relative tense 2, but in Louwerse (1998: 44-45) it is given as the regular future. Based upon Ketengban analogs to the latter as well as its simpler morphological structure, we believe the previous designation of future perfect is likely closer to the truth:
| East Mek | Una | |
| Langda | ||
| Louwerse | ||
| fut. perfect 2 | ||
| 1 sg. fut. perf. | *-uka-ab-ma-n | -kʷ-ab-ma-n |
| 2 sg .fut. perf. | *-uka-ab-ma-dəm | -kʷ-ab-ma-ɾɪm |
| 3 sg. fut. perf. | *-uka-ab-ma-d | -kʷ-ab-ma-ɾ |
| 1 pl. fut. perf. | *-uka-ab-ma-əp | -kʷ-ab-ma-p |
| 2 pl. fut. perf. | *-uka-ab-ma-do̝m | -kʷ-ab-ma-ɾʊm |
| 3 pl. fut. perf. | *-uka-ab-ma-əŋ | -kʷ-ab-ma-ŋ |
| 1 dl. fut. perf. | *-uka-ab-ma-nəm | -kʷ-ab-ma-nɪm |
| 2 dl. fut. perf. | *-uka-ab-ma-də-do̝m | -kʷ-ab-ma-ɾʊ-ɾʊm |
| 3 dl. fut. perf. | *-uka-ab-ma-əŋ | -kʷ-ab-ma-ɾɪŋ |
… hortative …
… Louwerse calls continuous tense … the class marker is droppred … immediate imperative/hortative mode … Folwer, Fowler, Rule and Rule present customary … Una /-(n)/ class verbs in the continuous tense pattern with the near past continuative for the purpose of this chart because /-n-/ does not appear in either.
| East Mek | Una | Una | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Langda | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Louwerse | Fowler | ||
| continuous | imper./hort. | pres. cust. | ||
| 1 sg. | *-nu-n | -Ø-nʊ-n | -C-nʊ-n | -nu-n |
| 2 sg. | *… | -Ø-ɾʊm | -C-dʊm | -ɾum |
| 3 sg. | *-du-d | [-Ø-ɾʊ-t] | -C-dʊ-ɾ | -ɾu-ɾ |
| 1 pl. | *-nu-əp | -Ø-nʊ-p | -C-nʊ-p | -nu-p |
| 2 pl. | *… | [-Ø-nda-ɾʊ-t] | [-C-da-ɾʊ-t] | -ɾum |
| 3 pl. | *-nu-əŋ | -Ø-nʊ-ŋ | -C-nʊ-ŋ | -nu-ŋ |
| 1 dl. | *… | -Ø-nʊ-nʊm | -C-nʊ-nʊm | -num |
| 2 dl. | *… | -Ø-ɾʊ-ɾʊm | -C-dʊ-ɾʊm | -ɾɛ-ɾum |
| 3 dl. | *-du-d-əŋ | -Ø-ɾʊ-ɾ-ʊŋ | -C-ɾʊ-ɾ-ʊŋ | -ɾɛ-n-uŋ |
… Louwerse's near future imperative …
| East Mek | Una | |
| Langda | ||
| Louwerse | ||
| near fut. imp. | ||
| 1 sg. | *… | -kʊ-nʊ-n |
| 2 sg. | *… | -kʊn-dʊm |
| 3 sg. | *… | -kʊn-dʊ-ɾ |
| 1 pl. | *… | -kʊ-nʊ-p |
| 2 pl. | *… | [-kʊn-da-ɾʊ-t] |
| 3 pl. | *… | -kʊ-nʊ-ŋ |
| 1 dl. | *… | -kʊ-nʊ-nʊm |
| 2 dl. | *… | -kʊn-dʊ-ɾʊm |
| 3 dl. | *… | -kʊn-dʊ-ɾ-ʊŋ |
… Louwerse regular future imperative mode … Fowler, Fowler, Rule and Rule near future customary …
| East Mek | Una | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Fowler | ||
| reg. fut. imp. | near fut. cust. | ||
| 1 sg. | *-uka-ma-… | -kʷa-ma-nʊ-n | -ka-ma-nu-n |
| 2 sg. | *-uka-ma-… | -kʷa-ma-ɾʊm | -ka-ma-ɾum |
| 3 sg. | *-uka-ma-… | -kʷa-ma-ɾʊ-t | -ka-ma-ɾu-ɾ |
| 1 pl. | *-uka-ma-… | -kʷa-ma-nʊ-p | -ka-ma-nu-p |
| 2 pl. | *-uka-ma-… | [-kʷa-ma-nda-ɾʊ-t] | -ka-ma-ɾum |
| 3 pl. | *-uka-ma-… | -kʷa-ma-nʊ-ŋ | -ka-ma-nu-ŋ |
| 1 dl. | *-uka-ma-… | -kʷa-ma-nʊ-nʊm | -ka-ma-num |
| 2 dl. | *-uka-ma-… | -kʷa-ma-ɾʊ-ɾʊm | -ka-ma-ɾɛ-ɾum |
| 3 dl. | *-uka-ma-… | -kʷa-ma-ɾʊ-ɾ-ʊŋ | -ka-ma-ɾɛ-ɾ-uŋ |
… Louwerse remote future imperative mode … Fowler, Fowler, Rule and Rule far future customary …
| East Mek | Una | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Fowler | ||
| rem. fut. imp. | far fut. cust. | ||
| 1 sg. | *-uk[a]-am-… | -kʷ-a-nʊ-n | -k-am-nu-n |
| 2 sg. | *-uk[a]-am-… | -kʷ-an-dʊm | -k-am-ɾum |
| 3 sg. | *-uk[a]-am-… | -kʷ-an-dʊ-ɾ | -k-am-ɾu-ɾ |
| 1 pl. | *-uk[a]–am-… | -kʷ-a-nʊ-p | -k-am-nu-p |
| 2 pl. | *-uk[a]-am-… | [-kʷ-an-da-ɾʊ-t] | -k-am-ɾum |
| 3 pl. | *-uk[a]-am-… | -kʷ-a-nʊ-ŋ | -k-am-nu-ŋ |
| 1 dl. | *-uk[a]-am-… | -kʷ-a-nʊ-nʊm | -k-am-num |
| 2 dl. | *-uk[a]-am-… | -kʷ-an-dʊ-ɾʊm | -k-am-ɾɛ-ɾum |
| 3 dl. | *-uk[a]-am-… | -kʷ-an-dʊ-ɾ-ʊŋ | -k-am-ɾɛ-ɾ-uŋ |
… recent past …
… simple recent past … Louwerse calls the regular past perfective tense and near past continuative tense and Fowler, Fowler, Rule and Rule call the near past … Louw erse’s regular past perfective and near past continuative differ in that the former retains the verb class marker while the latter drops it . Una /-(n)/ class verbs in the regular past perfective pattern with the near past continuative for the purpose of this chart because /-n-/ does not appear in either. Because neither Sims nor Fowler, Fowler, Rula and Rule illustrate how the near past combines with verb stems and class markers, it is not easy to say with which Una tense it is most immediately comparable. This, however, has no impact on the reconstruction of the desinences:
| East Mek | Una | Una | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Langda | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Louwerse | Fowler | ||
| near past cont. | reg. past perf. | near past | ||
| 1 sg. | *… | -Ø-n-ʷ-a | -C-n-a | -n-u |
| 2 sg. | *… | -Ø-m-ː-a | -C-ʊm-ː-a | [-m-um] |
| 3 sg. | *… | -Ø-ᵘ ~ -Ø-u | -C-ʷ-a ~ -Ø-ᵘ | -u |
| 1 pl. | *… | -Ø-b-ʷ-a | -C-ʊb-ʷ-a | -p-u |
| 2 pl. | *… | [-Ø-nda-ᵘ] | [-C-da-ᵘ] | -ɾum |
| 3 pl. | *… | -Ø-ŋ-ʷ-a | -C-ʊŋ-ʷ-a | -ŋ-u |
| 1 dl. | *… | -Ø-nʊm-ː-a | -C-nʊm-ː-a | -num-u |
| 2 dl. | *… | -Ø-ɾʊ-ɾʊm-ː-a | -C-dʊ-ɾʊm-ː-a | -ɾɛ-ɾum |
| 3 dl. | *… | -Ø-ɾ-ʊŋ-ʷ-a | -C-d-ʊŋ-ʷ-a | -ɾɛ-ŋ-u |
… Louweree calls both the regular past imperfective tense and Sims calls the near past … /*-ma-/ …:
| East Mek | Una | Ketengban | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Omban | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Sims | Fowler | ||
| reg. past impf. | near past | near past | ||
| 1 sg. | *-ma-… | -m-ɔn-ʷ-a | -ma-n-u-ɛ | — |
| 2 sg. | *-ma-… | -m-ɔm-ː-a | -ma-um-ɛ | -m-um |
| 3 sg. | *-ma-… | -m-ɔ | -ma-ᵘ-ɛ | — |
| 1 pl. | *-ma-… | -m-ɔb-ʷ-a | -ma-p-ː-ɛ | — |
| 2 pl. | *-ma-… | [-ma-nda-ᵘ] | -ma-ɾum-ɛ | — |
| 3 pl. | *-ma-… | -m-ɔŋ-ʷ-a | -ma-ŋ-u-ɛ | — |
| 1 dl. | *-ma-… | -ma-nʊm-ː-a | -ma-nɛm-ɛ | — |
| 2 dl. | *-ma-… | -ma-ɾʊ-ɾʊm-ː-a | [-ma-ɾum-ɛ] | — |
| 3 dl. | *-ma-… | -ma-ɾ-ʊŋ-ʷ-a | -ma-ɾ-ɛŋ-u-ɛ | — |
… Louwerse’s regular past continuative tense …
| East Mek | Una | |
| Langda | ||
| Louwerse | ||
| reg. past cont. | ||
| 1 sg. | *-am- | -a-nʷ-a |
| 2 sg. | *-am- | -am-ʊm-ː-a |
| 3 sg. | *-am- | -am-ʷ-a |
| 1 pl. | *-am- | -am-ʊb-ʷ-a |
| 2 pl. | *-am- | -a-nda-ᵘ |
| 3 pl. | *-am- | -am-ʊŋ-ʷ-a |
| 1 dl. | *-am- | -a-nʊm-ː-a |
| 2 dl. | *-am- | -an-dʊ-ɾʊm-ː-a |
| 3 dl. | *-am- | -an-dʊŋ-ʷ-a |
… Louwerse calls the near past perfective … /*-ab-/ …
| East Mek | Una | |
| Langda | ||
| Louwerse | ||
| near past perf. | ||
| 1 sg. | *-ab-… | -ab-n-Ø-a |
| 2 sg. | *-ab-… | -ab-ʊm-ː-a |
| 3 sg. | *-ab-… | -ab-Ø-ʷ-a |
| 1 pl. | *-ab-… | -ab-ʊb-ʷ-a |
| 2 pl. | *-ab-… | [-ab-da-ᵘ] |
| 3 pl. | *-ab-… | -ab-ʊŋ-ʷ-a |
| 1 dl. | *-ab-… | -ab-nʊm-ː-a |
| 2 dl. | *-ab-… | -ab-dʊ-ɾʊm-ː-a |
| 3 dl. | *-ab-… | -ab-dʊŋ-ʷ-a |
… Louwerse’s past durative aspect … /*-ab-/ … and /*-ma-/ …:
| East Mek | Una | |
| Langda | ||
| Louwerse | ||
| past durative | ||
| 1 sg. | *-ab-ma-… | -ab-m-ɔn-ʷ-a |
| 2 sg. | *-ab-ma-… | -ab-m-ɔm-ː-a |
| 3 sg. | *-ab-ma-… | -ab-m-Ø-ɔ |
| 1 pl. | *-ab-ma-… | -ab-m-ɔb-ʷ-a |
| 2 pl. | *-ab-ma-… | [-ab-ma-nda-ᵘ] |
| 3 pl. | *-ab-ma-… | -ab-m-ɔŋ-ʷ-a |
| 1 dl. | *-ab-ma-… | -ab-ma-nʊm-ː-a |
| 2 dl. | *-ab-ma-… | -ab-ma-ɾʊ-ɾʊm-ː-a |
| 3 dl. | *-ab-ma-… | -ab-ma-ɾʊŋ-ʷ-a |
… remote past …
… Louwerse’s remote past perfective tense … also called perfective aspect and indicative/deictic mode …
| East Mek | Una | Ketengban | Ketengban | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Bime, Tanime | Omban | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Sims | Heeschen | Fowler | ||
| rem. past perf. | remote past | far past | far past | ||
| 1 sg. | *-si | -s-a | -si | -s-ɛ | -si |
| 2 sg. | *… | -ʊm-ː-a ~ -mː-a | [-ɾum] | [-m-um-ɛ] | [-m-um] |
| 3 sg. | *… | -ʷ-a ~ -u | -u | -u | -u |
| 1 pl. | *… | -ɔᵘb-ʷ-a ~ -bʷ-a | -(u)b-u | -ɸu | -p-u; [-m-ɛp] |
| 2 pl. | *… | [-da-ᵘ ~ -nda-ᵘ] | -ɾum | [-ma-ɾum-ɛ] | -ɾum |
| 3 pl. | *… | -ɪ ~ -ⁱ | -i | -i ~ -j-ɛ | -i |
| 1 dl. | *… | -nʊm-ː-a | -num-ʷ-ɛ | -numːu | -nɛm-u |
| 2 dl. | *… | -dʊ-ɾʊmː-a -ɾʊ-ɾʊmː-a | -ɾɛ-ɾum | [-ɾum-ɛ] | -ɾɛ-ɾum |
| 3 dl. | *… | -dɛ-ⁱ ~ -ɾɛ-ⁱ | -ɾɛ-ⁱ | -ɾɛ-ⁱ | -ɾɛ-ⁱ |
… Louwerse’s remote past imperfective … also called imperfective aspect and narrative mode … Sims’ immediate past … /*-ma-/ …
| East Mek | Una | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Omban | ||
| Louwerse | Sims | ||
| rem. past imprf. | imm. past | ||
| 1 sg. | *-ma-… | -ma-s-a | -ma-s-ɛ |
| 2 sg. | *-ma-… | -m-ɔm-ː-a | -m-um-ɛ |
| 3 sg. | *-ma-… | -m-ɔᵘ | -ma-ᵘ-ɛ |
| 1 pl. | *-ma-… | -m-ɔᵘb-ʷ-a | -ma-ɸu- ~ -ma-pk-ɛ |
| 2 pl. | *-ma-… | [-ma-nda-ᵘ] | -ma-ɾum-ɛ |
| 3 pl. | *-ma-… | -ma-ⁱ | -ma-ⁱ-ɛ |
| 1 dl. | *-ma-… | -ma-nʊm-ː-a | -ma-nɛm-u ~ -ma-numŋ-ɛ ~ -ma-numː-ɛ |
| 2 dl. | *-ma-… | -ma-ɾʊ-ɾʊm-ː-a | [-ɾum-ɛ] |
| 3 dl. | *-ma-… | -ma-ɾɛ-ⁱ | -ma-ɾɛ-ⁱ |
… Louwerse’s remote past continuative … also called continuative aspect … perfect 1 relative tense … in that the former replaces the class marker of the stem wuth / ɾ/, while /*-(b)/ class verbs drop their class markers entirely in the perfect 1 …
| East Mek | Una | Una | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Langda | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Louwerse | Fowler | ||
| perfect 1 | rem. past cont. | past | ||
| 1 sg. | *-am-si | -C-an-s-a | -ɾ-an-s-a | -am-si |
| 2 sg. | *-am-… | -C-am-ʊm-ː-a | -ɾ-am-ʊm-ː-a | -am-um-ɛ |
| 3 sg. | *-am-… | -C-am-ʷ-a | -ɾ-am-ʷ-a | -am-u |
| 1 pl. | *-am-… | -C-am-ɔᵘb-ʷ-a | -ɾ-am-ɔᵘb-ʷ-a | -am-ɛp-u |
| 2 pl. | *-am-… | -C-a-nda-ᵘ | -ɾ-a-nda-ᵘ | -am-ɾum |
| 3 pl. | *-am-… | -C-amnʲ-ɪ | -ɾ-amnʲ-ɪ | -am-i |
| 1 dl. | *-am-… | -C-a-nʊm-ː-a | -ɾ-a-nʊm-ː-a | -am-nɛm-u |
| 2 dl. | *-am-… | -C-an-dʊ-ɾʊm-ː-a | -ɾ-an-dʊ-ɾʊm-ː-a | -am-ɾɛ-ɾum |
| 3 dl. | *-am-… | -C-an-dɛ-ⁱ | -ɾ-an-dɛ-ⁱ | -am-ɾɛ-ⁱ |
We now turn to two minority paradigms which share a common tense suffix /*-e̝/ and have clear cognate paradigms in the West Mek family/
… potential/optative … Louwerse’s desiderative & abilitative mode … Fowler, Fowler, Rule and Rule’s abilitative …
| East Mek | Una | Ketengban | |
| Langda | Ok Bab | ||
| Louwerse | Fowler | ||
| abilitative | abilitative | ||
| 1 sg. | *… | -tɪ-nʲ-ɪ | -tɛ-nʲ-ɛ |
| 2 sg. | *… | -t-ʊm | -t-um-ɛ |
| 3 sg. | *… | -tɪ-Ø -ᵘtɪ-Ø | -t-u-ɛ |
| 1 pl. | *… | -tɛ-ⁱbʲ-ɪ | -tɛ-pʲ-ɛ |
| 2 pl. | *… | [-da-ᵘtɪ ~ -nda-ᵘtɪ] | -t-um-ɛ |
| 3 pl. | *… | -tɪ-ŋ | -tɛ-ŋ-ʲ-ɛ |
| 1 dl. | *… | -tɪ-nɪmn-ʲ-ɪ | -tɛ-nɛm-ʲ-ɛ |
| 2 dl. | *… | -tʊ-ɾʊ-ɾʊm | -ɾɛ-t-um-ɛ |
| 3 dl. | *… | -tɪ-ɾ-ɪŋ | -ɾɛ-t-ɛŋ-ʲ-ɛ |
… medial sequential … Louwerse’s … conditional (time) mode, further defined as “consecutive events, “when so & so has happened, or happens, then …”” and “consecutive events, “at the time when …”” as well as conditional (reason) mode “reason-result, “because … therefore”…” … avolitional mode … actual/factual conditional mode …The subject indicators are folowed by /-a/ which is not the augment While here attested only for Una, its status as proto-East Mek is comfirmed by clear analogs in the West Mek family:
| East Mek | Una | Una | Una | |
| Langda | Langda | Langda | ||
| Louwerse | Louwerse | Louwerse | ||
| cond. (time) | avolitional | cond. (act) | ||
| 1 sg. | *… | -n-ʲ-a | -n-ʲ-a-ʲ | -n-ʲ-ʊɾ-a |
| 2 sg. | *… | -mɪn-ʲ-a | -mɪn-ʲ-a-ʲ | -mɪn-ʲ-ʊɾ-a |
| 3 sg. | *… | -t-ʲ-a | -t-ʲ-a-ʲ | -t-ʲ-ʊɾ-a |
| 1 pl. | *… | -ɪb-ʲ-a | -ɪb-ʲ-a-ʲ | -ɪb-ʲ-ʊɾ-a |
| 2 pl. | *… | -mʊn-ʲ-a | -mʊn-ʲ-a-ʲ | -mʊn-ʲ-ʊɾ-a |
| 3 pl. | *… | -ɪŋn-ʲ-a | -ɪŋn-ʲ-a-ʲ | -ɪŋn-ʲ-ʊɾ-a |
| 1 dl. | *… | -nɪmn-ʲ-a | -nɪmn-ʲ-a-ʲ | -nɪmn-ʲ-ʊɾ-a |
| 2 dl. | *… | -dʊ-ɾʊmn-ʲ-a | -dʊ-ɾʊmn-ʲ-a-ʲ | -dʊ-ɾʊmn-ʲ-ʊɾ-a |
| 3 dl. | *… | -d-ɪŋn-ʲ-a | -d-ɪŋn-ʲ-a-ʲ | -d-ɪŋn-ʲ-ʊɾ-a |
…Louwerse’s conditional (time) mode, further defined as “consecutive events, “after I have, had …””. /*-am-/ with the replacement of the usual class markers by /ɾ/ … This construction is found also in (at least) Eipo and thus dates to proto-Mek. As with the paradigms presented in the previous chart, the subject indicators are folowed by /-a/ which is not the augment:
| East Mek | Una | |
| Langda | ||
| Louwerse | ||
| cond. (time) | ||
| 1 sg. | *-am-… | -ɾ-a-n-ʲ-a |
| 2 sg. | *-am-… | -ɾ-a-mɪn-ʲ-a |
| 3 sg. | *-am-… | -ɾ-an-t-ʲ-a |
| 1 pl. | *-am-… | -ɾ-am-ɪb-ʲ-a |
| 2 pl. | *-am-… | -ɾa-mʊnː-ʲ-a |
| 3 pl. | *-am-… | -ɾ-am-ɪŋ-ʲ-a |
| 1 dl. | *-am-… | -ɾ-a-nɪmn-ʲ-a |
| 2 dl. | *-am-… | -ɾ-an-dʊ-ɾʊmn-ʲ-a |
| 3 dl. | *-am-… | -ɾ-an-d-ɪŋn-ʲ-a |