Reading and writing Ron

A proposal for writing the Ron language

Trial edition Inviting your comments and suggestions

Reading and writing Ron

INTRODUCTION The purpose of this little booklet is to teach you how to read and write the Ron language. It is designed in such a way that it can be studied individually, but also used as a course book for a workshop or an evening class. The only prerequisite is that one should already know how to read and write English or Hausa and speak one of the varieties of the Ron language. The chapters build up on one another: after an introduction on Ron and its dialects you will learn about vowels, simple and complex consonants and finally about tone marking. In the appendix, you will find some samples like proverbs and short stories in order to show the words of the language in context. We have also put there the numbers 1-10 in different Ron group languages. We hope that all the readers of this little booklet will find it useful in their effort to learn how to read and write the Ron language. We wish to thank all the people who have contributed in one way or another to the collection and the developing of this material. Among these, we want to name Mr. Mafulul Lek, Mr. Machif Malau (), and Mr. Amos Emanuel from Daffo, Mr. Akila Mandiu and Pastor Joseph Nggyak from Bokkos, Pastor Benjamin Matawal from Marit, Mr. Mark Julson from Maikatako, as well as Mr. Samuel Bangas and Pastor Dauda from Hurti. Above all, we thank the Almighty God for providing us with the strength and means to do this work and ask for His blessing.

Reading and writing Ron

This book is dedicated to the Ron people and to their rich and beautiful language. May it continue to thrive for years to come!

Ron and its closest relatives The language called Ron is one of several closely related languages which form a group within the Chadic family of languages. The following languages and dialects are known to be part of the Ron group: Ron proper Sha Mundat Karfa Mangar Kulere Fyer Tambas

For Ron proper, three major dialects have been identified: The term Lis ma Run refers to the dialect spoken in and around lie in Bokkos L.G.A., and also part of Gashish and Mazat, which lie in Barakin Ladi L.G.A. Butura, Daffo, Bargesh, Kunduk, Mbar, and Mangor, all of which

Reading and writing Ron

The term Alis i Run refers to the dialect spoken in and around L.G.A. Then there is another dialect spoken in the Monguna disctrict of Bokkos LGA which could be called the Monguna dialect. While all the examples in this little booklet are taken from Lis ma for the other Ron group languages, too.

Bokkos in Bokkos L.G.A., and also Marit, which lies in Barakin Ladi

Run and Alis i Run, the letters and spelling rules may well be used

The difference between the dialects There is a big difference between the Ron language as it is spoken in Bokkos, Monguna, or Butura, Mbar and Daffo. There is a small difference between the Ron varieties of Butura, Mbar and Daffo. People from Bargesh and Kunduk, again, speak a bit different from the latter three. In these different places, there are a number of things that are not said in exactly the same way. In some cases, the words are similar or resemble each other, in other cases they are totally different. Compare e.g. Lis ma Run Alis i Run Monguna meaning head tongue laugh

hai lis sisal

hai alis musas

hai ales ligat

Reading and writing Ron

There are also differences in the grammar, e.g. in the way noun plurals or different verb forms are formed in the different dialects. Then, parts of a word may be elided in one dialect, which are found beginning of words, e.g. in the others. E.g. in Daffo, the sound m tends to be elided at the

ya asai

"I do" (cf. Butura i masai)

In Butura, the sound r is often elided at the end of words and instead a long vowel is found, e.g

wuu
Daffo people.

"house" (cf. Daffo wur)

This will call for adjustments, most especially by the Butura and When writing, one should not write any way he feels like, rather one should write in a way which does not discourage the speakers of the other dialects from reading it. This makes it necessary to spell out a few rules that will guide us as we try to write the language in a way which is readable and acceptable to all. In the following chapters, these rules will be explained to you.

Reading and writing Ron

CHAPTER 1 VOWELS The vowel sounds of Ron can be written using letters which are also used in English and Hausa:

a, e, i, o and u.
Here are some words which show the different vowels: Lis ma Ron Alis i Ron

auf bang ca er re bim ji bom ro ujush bum nafu

outside feather food river hands to swim to cook to shout to move group of stars to save woman

afut bang a lef hure in i som ro uet pun u

ashes wall to do to cut ten to fight to cook people work debate to finish to open

Note: At the beginning of words, only the vowels a and u can be found.

Reading and writing Ron

Short and long vowels Vowels can be both short and long. Here are a few examples of long vowels: Lis ma Ron Alis i Ron

aa caan naa hee nziing boon kpoo fuul buu

goat chicken mother intestines still backpack small food container autumn much

baal kaa beeng dee yiing wii foon

shoulder grandmother cob father mortar inside rain

uum takmbuu

warm type of tree

Apart from aa, the number of words with long vowels is quite small. Nevertheless, it is important to write long vowels with two letters in order to make a distinction between words like:

mba dash

to examine and

mbaa daash

quietly

and also between different forms of a verb: beat and always beat

Reading and writing Ron

Vowel combinations Finally, in some words there are combinations of different vowel sounds with i and u: Lis ma Ron Alis i Ron

hai

head

boi maawei lau ziu

Exercise 1

marsh truth hunger to dive

ai kaitat amai

once rule this

marei dau jijiu

male bag to be(come) red

Write down words in your own dialect of Ron which contain the vowels a, e, i, o, and u at the beginning, middle and end of words. Next, try to also find words with long vowels and with the vowel combinations ai, ei, oi, au, and iu.

Reading and writing Ron

CHAPTER 2 SIMPLE CONSONANTS Compared to the vowels, writing the consonant sounds of the Ron language requires some more practice. Some consonants can be written using letters which are also found in English or Hausa: b, , c, d, , f, g, h, j, k, l, m, n, p, r, s, t, v, w, z, Some consonants can be written using combinations of the above letters: gb, kp, ny, ng, and sh Still other combinations of consonants will be discussed in Chapter 3 (Complex Consonants). The following examples from Lis ma Run and Alis i Run show consonants which are also found in English or Hausa: Lis ma Run Alis i Run

bang kabok ak kaa ca kocok

feather to beg to break basket food elder

bang kabuk in hueng caran kacak

wall to pray to fight hoe fingernail to gnaw

Reading and writing Ron

dash nadon am poak fasa nafos ref gam ligit ham huhul ja Ujush kat bakam tok la fulul ful mot kamo ham
to beat jealousy

dang tidam
Alis i Run

to cheat elephant

Lis ma Run thing toad sky breathe women to look for beer water bug to pound group of stars to remain knife to run neck night two' die rabbit water

am kaok fisel lafos lef got kiga ha mahoreng jak kalaju kaa kikis kapak luk kala lul mal ama som

thing toad road 'breathe' cut custom to yawn to take mosquito anthill baby grandmother smoke cheek to fly chameleon to ask gift salt people

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ni sunat hon
to say dream to leave

naya funat kin

world corpse to put

Lis ma Run

Alis i Run

pas sapa gip ra bara mar saf fasa fis tek motan mat vo kavit wash kawa yang siyo

arrow to clean part arm, hand thunder child chief sky to jump beans disease to receive to close blood to cry farm dispute

pun kapor boop ro ara for som fisel mas tal atat at

to finish gravel pigeon work river to kill people road back to pay three to walk to jump bird to fry sword bush grave

vis winnowing tray avush wang awal ya fiyai

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Reading and writing Ron

zut to beat mazalang boy-friend fata
shirt zul azan to pull ram morning

bule

The letter occurs mostly at the end of words and needs to be written in order to distinguish words like:

fo mouth ho cry la neck

and and and

fo ho la

acca, egg, granary (Lis ma Run) forest (Alis i Run)

It may also occur in the middle of words, whenever they take plural or other endings, like in:

hoai

eggs and

hoan

big.

Consonants which are written with a combination of two letters Some simple consonants are written with a combination of two letters. gb, kp, ny, ng, and sh They are not two sounds (i.e. g + b, n + g, etc.) following each other, but rather they represent one sound. The consonant sound written with ng is also found in English (as e.g. in sing). However, in English it occurs only in the middle or at the end of words, whereas in Ron it may occur at the beginning of a word, too.

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The consonant sound written with sh is also found in English (as e.g. in fish) and Hausa (as e.g. in kashe kill). The consonant sounds written with ny, kp and gb are found neither in Hausa nor in English. Here are some examples: Lis ma Run Alis i Run

gbaf magbor kpo sakpak nga gongai lung nyesh nyinyesh sho gushe dash
Notes:

wrong deed womens festival small food container sandal hill valley pot to burn to play to drink fish to beat

gbum completely malagbok type of kpala cukpak ngarat angash afung nye binyis shit ashil wash
black kite

grasshopper

jump with one leg crown-bird mountain stone become fat end of rainy season eye storage place blood

1. The letters b, , c, d, , g, gb, h, j, kp, ny, v, w, y, and z do not occur at the end of a word. One may occasionally hear an h-like

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sound at the end of some words (e.g. Alis i Run syah 'hair'), but generally h will be written only at the beginning and the middle of words. like in Hausa ci eat, not with ch, like in English chief. 2. Words like ca food and cif money are written only with a c, 3. The letter ng should be used to represent only the sound which is

represent the sound in the middle of the English word finger. This sound, which is also found in Ron, will require a different way of writing, as we will see in the next chapter. Exercise 2 Write down words in your own dialect of Ron which contain the different simple consonants at the beginning, middle and end of money and ng only in words like gongai. words. Make sure you use only c, and not ch in words like cif

found at the end of the English word song. It shouldnt be used to

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CHAPTER 3 COMPLEX CONSONANTS Up to now we have only dealt with simple consonants, which do not give us much difficulty in writing. But there are three types of more complex consonants in Ron, which we will now have to look at.

Prenasalised consonants Prenasalised consonants are combinations of some simple consonants (b, d, g, gb, j, v, and z) with a very short nasal sound, mouth where the consonants are formed. They are not two sounds (i.e. m + b, n + d, etc.) following each other, but rather they represent one sound. Here are some examples: Lis ma Run Alis i Run which can be written with m, n or ng according to the place in the

mbar oil kambong cocoyam ndok randong

to be enough cow

mbakam humbil ndak andek nggor anggur mgbiring

jaw dry season fall one to bite tooth mute

nggal termite munggaa lizard sp. mgbang

big

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Reading and writing Ron

nju tanjo finvan nzek sinza
to pound bat sp. eye-brows dry up to wash

njan cunjo nvung finvan nzof munza

twin kettle type of cereal eye-brows shrew daughter-in-law

Labialised consonants Labialised consonants are combinations of simple consonants with the sound represented by the letter w. The effect is that the consonant is pronounced with rounded lips. Here are some examples: Lis ma Run Alis i Run

bwish we cwai dwon wakat fwash gwir hwam

flower sun eat spear marshland bad drum ear

bwalan cwa tudwar fwal agwir hwet jwak

kunu

food lip plug

to beg drum to untie to hit

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Reading and writing Ron

kwai lwa mwan nwen pwet rwan swe shwar twen vwash ywash
today second self fire gall bladder to escape head-tie hair big owl sp. needle breast to spend time

akwep lweshesh mumwer mapwet rurwan swel ashwa tutwi avwash mazwat

wild date tree hard bat

life head-tie pipe town sheep soup

valley

Palatalised consonants Palatalised consonants are combinations of simple consonants with the sound represented by the letter y. They are not two sounds (i.e. b + y, d + y, etc.) following each other, but rather they represent one sound. Here are some examples: Lis ma Run Alis i Run

bwish bya

flower first

bwalan byam

kunu to swim

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Reading and writing Ron

yar dya fiyol fyau gyok hyau kyas lyau myak puryat sya bityau kavyong
palatalised: fe hek to fetch fat salt to wait to be beautiful bone saliva spear stick kick cold bottle gourd Rufus nile rat to limp to fill dirt tear time seven

tidya ya afya agyak hya kikyau filya myan pyoron

type of cocoyam hair type of snake ulcer

musya vyam

tree sp.

tyangkash hedgehog
to seize

In Ron, simple consonants followed by the vowel e tend to become children to kill fye hyek

However, because some readers could be tempted to read the word without y, it may still be written.

This is predictable and therefore the y doesn't have to be written.

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Combinations of all three features The consonant features of prenasalisation, labialisation, and palatalisation can be found in different combinations, i.e. a consonant may be both prenasalised and labialised or palatalised, or it may be both labialised and palatalised. Here are some examples for the different combinations: Prenasalised + labialised/palatalised Lis ma Run Alis i Run to chase to play

mbwish ndwish nggwa nggyulul njwal nvya nzyau

mbwa ndwesh ndyolok nggwam nggyal ya cunjwang nvya nzyalmut

to cheat to play to dive riding-whip break guinea-fowl arrow toad

knuckle mantis poison arrow blind

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Reading and writing Ron

Labialised + palatalised Lis ma Run Alis i Run bird to pick grave cattle egret flute hole

lwyash gbwya fwyai kapwya vwyar swyai

Notes:

gwyak kukwya nggupwya nwyai swyai

to tear rock hirax (H. rema) cattle egret field hole

1. Complex consonants can be found only at the beginning and in the middle of words, but never at the end of words. 2. People are used to writing ng instead of ngg, e.g. in names like between ng and ngg, since this is the only way to distinguish between words like:

Mangai. It is important, however, to make a distinction in writing

nga langash
Exercise 3

hill pots

and and

ngga to chase away, or langgash grasshopper.

Write down words in your own dialect of Ron which contain the different complex consonants. They can be found at the beginning one with ngg, not ng. and in the middle of words. Make sure you write words like anggat

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Reading and writing Ron

CHAPTER 4 THE RON ALPHABET Here now is the full list of letters that should be used to write the sounds of Ron, and their proposed order:

a b c d e f g gb h i j k kp l m n ng ny o p r s sh t u v w y z

Remember that some Ron sounds are written with combinations of letters. This includes some simple consonants: gb, kp, ng, ny, and sh; the long vowels: aa, ee, ii, oo, and uu; the combined vowels: ai, oi, ei, au, and iu;

as well as the complex consonants, which are written as different combinations of simple consonants with the letters m, n, ng, w, and y.

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These letters can be used to represent the sounds of most Ron dialects. In some dialects, additional letters may be needed. For example, in the Sha language, there is a very peculiar sound, which is not found in other Ron varieties, and which could be represented with the letter : yaai ago 'eye teeth CHAPTER 5 TONE Like most Nigerian languages, Ron is what is called a tone language. This means that every word in Ron has a tone pattern which is as much part of it as its consonants and vowels. Some words will be pronounced with a low tone, as e.g. in the Ron greeting: lo welcome. One can put the accent [ ` ] on top of the vowel to mark this word as carrying a low tone: l. word: lo meat. Other words will be pronounced with a high tone, as e.g. in the Ron One can put the accent [ ] on top of the vowel to mark this word as carrying a high tone: l. Then, there are words which are pronounced on a tone level which

ur to bury.

lies between the low tone and the high tone, as e.g. in the Ron word

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One can put the accent [ ] on top of the vowel to mark this word as carrying a mid tone: r. In some words one can hear a movement from one level of tone to another: from low to high, as in kaang quickly from high to low, as in fash roast from mid to high, as aa goat from mid to low, as in es also.

These tones could be marked by using combinations of the accents we have just introduced:

kng fsh es

quickly roast goat also

However, there are only a few words which differ only by tone, e.g.

l (low tone)

welcome

l (high tone)

meat

r (mid tone) to bury

r (high tone) war

In some cases, a difference in tone will indicate a grammatical difference, e.g. between the singular and the plural of some nouns:

(mid-high tone) goat

(mid tone) goats

Most of the time, when reading Ron sentences, the tone of words can be inferred from the context. Therefore, like in Hausa, tone doesnt have to be represented in the orthography of Ron.

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In some cases, however, it may still be useful to mark tones. One area are the tones of pronouns referring to different persons. In the Daffo variety of Lis ma Run, the pronoun used for the second person singular (if it is a male) and the third person singular (he) differ only by tone: you (referring to a male) he

In this case, one could mark the high tone and leave the low tone unmarked. This would help distinguish between yes tami? a yes tami? when did you come? and when did he come?

Of course, in a story the context will help to find out the correct reading. But tone marks could help a reader to get along with his reading much faster and also prevent misunderstandings.

Exercise 4 Write down some nouns and verbs in your own dialect of Ron and try to group them according to their tones. How many different patterns do you find? Can you think of any words which differ only by tone? In your opinion, should the tone be marked in those cases where it would help the reader?

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CHAPTER 6 PRONOUNS AND OTHER SMALL WORDS We have just seen that marking the tone on the pronoun you (male) could be useful to facilitate reading. In the present chapter, we want to talk a little more about pronouns and how best to write them. We will also talk about some other small, but very important words of the language. In Ron, for pronouns referring to persons, like the personal and the possessive pronouns, ten different forms can be distinguished: The pronouns for the second and third person singular differ according to the gender of the person referred to. For the first person plural, there are also two different forms according to whether the speaker includes (incl.) or excludes (excl.) the person he is speaking to when he says "we". In addition there is a special (dual) form when this "we" includes the speaker and a single person he is talking to ("the two of us"). There are different types of pronouns in Ron.

Independent pronouns Independent Pronouns can stand by themselves and form an answer to a question like e.g. Who came? He. They are also used in a noun phrase like e.g. He and I. Here is what they look like in Lis

ma Run and Alis I Run:

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Lis ma Run I you (male) you (female) he she we (dual) we (incl.) we (excl.) you (pl.) they Alis i Run

yin ha shish yis yit cin can nin hun sin

yin ha shish yis yit kun kan nin hun sin

Subject pronouns Subject pronouns refer to the subject of a sentence. They cannot stand by themselves, but are always followed by a verb. Here is one type of subject pronoun: Lis ma Run I you (male) you (female) he she (h)a Alis i Run

shi a ti

i ha shi ti

--*

*(--) Stands for the absence of a pronoun.

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we (dual) we (incl.) we (excl.) you (pl.) they

ci ca ni hu si

ku ka ni hu si

Although subject pronouns cannot stand by themselves, in writing they should not be connected to the following verb. Here are some sentence examples that illustrate writing the subject pronouns*: Lis ma Run

ambus ti laang a sam ma tang ti ku ti nggor ha kwa.

Alis i Run

The insect that bites you doesn't come from another room.

si ru ta kel ima si wa muor kel ta

they reached the place where they were going to descend

*The above listed subject pronouns are used with some forms of the verb only, with other forms of the verb they look slightly different. Space doesnt allow us to go into further detail here.

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Object pronouns Object pronouns refer to the person or thing something is done to. They also cannot stand by themselves, but always follow by a verb. Here is what they look like:

Lis ma Run I you (male) you (female) he she we (dual) we (incl.) we (excl.) you (pl.) they

Alis i Run

sen / -en ha / -a shi / -esh sis / -is set / -et cin / cin can /can nin / nin hun /-u sis / -is

-un -a -ush -us -ut kun kan nin -u -us

In Alis i Run, the object pronouns which start with a vowel should should be written seperately from the verb:

be connected to the verb while the ones which start with a consonant

fe i shiken si ingut

the goats children saw her

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In Lis ma Run, there are two types of object pronouns. Again, the verb, while the ones which start with a consonant should be written seperately from the verb:

object pronouns which start with a vowel should be connected to the

Ta shuris gandiri, ta niis ngaratashi si wun sis

he greeted the lizard and said to him the crownbirds warned him

Subject pronouns which look like object pronouns Sometimes verbs are conjugated with a subject pronoun in front of them and a pronoun which looks like an object pronoun following them. This pronoun, however, also refers back to the subject: Lis ma Run

ta wis a swyai ma mer

Alis i Run

he climbed in a hole in a tree

shiken ti pisut ya ti titalut

Possessive pronouns

the goat jumped off and ran away

The last type of pronoun we want to mention here is the possessive pronoun. It has two different forms: masculine gender nouns in the singular have one form, feminine gender nouns in the singular have

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another form. For the plural of both masculine and feminine gender nouns, the form of the masculine gender nouns is used: Lis ma Run masc+pl / fem I you (male) you (female) he she we (dual) we (incl.) we (excl.) you (pl.) they Alis i Run masc+pl / fem

mmin/ nzin mma / nza mmish / nzish mmis / nzis mmit / nzit mmicin / njicin mmican / njican mminin / njinin mmu / nzu mmis / nzis

amen / asun ama / asa amish / asush amit / asus amit / asut amukun / asukun amukan / asukan aminin / asinin amu / asu amis / asus

Some nouns mostly those referring relatives use a different type of possessive pronoun which is attached to the noun as a suffix: Alis i Run

si wa ti tital, si lak nasus

they went quickly and told their mother

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The marking of definiteness In English, if a noun has been mentioned before or is otherwise presumed to be known, it will usually be preceded by the definite article the: I saw the boy. (mentioned before) He looked at the sun. (presumed to be known) In Ron, definiteness is marked by a marker -i which is attached at the end of a noun or noun phrase: Alis i Run

Shiken ta mat kambongi.

Lis ma Run

The goat received the cocoyam. (mentioned before)

Ta shuris gandiri.

He greeted the lizard (mentioned before) The marker of definiteness has the form -hi when it follows a noun which ends in a vowel:

Ta shuris nafuhi.

He greeted the woman (mentioned before)

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CHAPTER 7 SOME SPECIAL RULES FOR LIS MA RUN In Lis ma Run, there are several words which people usually all write as ma:

ma of , as in Lis ma Run language of the Ron ma he, as in ma ti ama kwa He doesnt have anything. ma your, as in cif ma your money ma when, as in Ma a yes When he comes

Then there is also the short form ma of mama which, as in am ma

a shitai the thing which he saw

the following rule:

In order to distinguish between the different types of ma, we propose

The one with the meaning of should be written ma:

Lis ma Run language of the Ron m ti ama kwa He doesnt have anything. cif mma your money Mm a yes When he comes am mm a shitai the thing which he saw

The one with the meaning he should be written m:

The one with the meaning your should be written mma:

The other two should be written mm:

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This rule will facilitate the reading and help to avoid

misunderstandings. Actually, if one listens carefully, in those cases somewhat longer m sound at the beginning of the word.

where the word ma is written with two m, one could hear a The same rule should be also applied to the other possessive pronouns with m at the beginning: mmin my, mmis his, etc. have a different form: amen my, ama your, etc. In Alis i Run, this rule doesnt need to be applied, since the pronouns The second special rule helps to distinguish between the verbs to

say, and to become, to turn into. Both are mostly written as ni. In order to distinguish between the two, we propose to write the verb to say ni, and the verb to become, turn into with a low tone

accent: n. When a pronoun is attached, the forms will look like this:

a niis he said to him si nis yo murum

they turned into hyenas

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APPENDIX Some Proverbs in Lis ma Run and Alis i Run

Lis ma Run

Ca haar won ka mwan kwa. Honey cannot be collected without fire. Success comes after struggle. ambus ti laang a sam ma tang ti ku ti nggor ha kwa. The insect that bites you doesn't come from another room. Your closest friends and family members are those that betray you most. A bwaam cira ta ku ta nggor ha. The dog you saved will bite you afterwards. There is no gratitude to be found in this world. Ha mwaan anggat, ha mun yo maafal kwa. One person alone is not a complete person. Two are better than one.

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Alis i Run

Kyara nggwaar sik kwa. A dog doesnt bite without a reason. Things dont happen to you without any reason. Murum taang lo kel kwa. A hyena has no choice of its prey. When you have no alternative, take what you are offered. Arof si dwaan arya kwa. Women will always have enough men. A good thing will always be desired. Motan ti hwaan eng kwa. Disease will affect every man. Nobody is spared of the hardships of this life. Na ha bum bum kpet, ha bum afun kwaani. If you know how to help, go ahead and help a stone. Dont go about bragging about your achievements.

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Animal tales in Ron

Alis i Run Findel i kurunggwa hu shiken by Joseph M. Nggyak Ai hwer kurunggwa hu shiken sin ti myatat. Saa ti myatat ames si lak ti nyai na eng ames cu wufer ta kel i niin mwesi kan lulus myan ima yis cwai ti cwa kwa. Hwem lang ta ashwai hai, shiken ti tyoot wa' cwa. Ti wa kel i kurunggwa, ti lul nyai: A cam, ahun shi ti kambong niin na ya? Hof shi na, i i fe ameni ka si ndok si mwaat ti hwem. Kurunggwa ti ro al amet i u yes ti kambong niin, u fa camsut shiken. Ali yes ti kambongi fa shiken. Shiken ta mat kambongi ti wa ti wur, ti i fe ameti. Yit hu fe amet si cu cwa ndyalam mweni. Mwen niin ta sa ti mukonan ima hwem lang ta kurunggwa ti yes wur i shiken lul ti kambong amet. Myan ima ti kat ndyong i muru, fe i shiken si ingut, si wa ti tital, si lak nasus. Shiken ti masi kang, ti suut fe amet ta fo i mahom, si lang here' ti

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fwai fwai ames. Myan ima kurunggwa ti ru, ti wisus sin here' ti fwai ames. Ti lak shiken, ti ni: A cam, i yes i i lul kambong amen. I ingi hu yu cwai ti cwa, ii wa wur ak i yes akan. Kurunggwa ti wa sa apil i hai, ti wyasus sin hyere' ti fwai. Myan ima kurunggwa wa ma aras wis shiken sin here' ti fo hu fe amet unai te mangra shok na fo yis ing ti ama i lum na fo. Unai nyut: Waa'! A shiken. I ni ahon ufal si layush ii shiken-o? Shi maas atini, shi ti shingati ka' sun ya? A mweni myatat ames mbitus.

Shiken, tutwi hu kyara si wa a'at by Benjamin Dapel Matawal Si ni maele niin, ai lak u ni a at ti ka' loha i ya ima si ni sufat i wur. Unai si rang ta mbiri, sin wa. Si ndok ta kel niin al i mbirii lul cef ima ati, tutwi ti tal amet, kyara hwak tal ames, yis kof hai asus a macef, fa cef hyang a si fas ashen ya, shiken ti lak al ma mbirii, ti ni, Ha ingi kel ti hya ima yun na mbelet, hona na ka ru ta kel muor kel i wa fasa cef ama.

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Unai si ru ta kel ima si wa muor kel ta, mbirii ti te kat ya, shiken ti pisut ya ta sang kel ti titalut, ti wit fweng tutwi ti orut kel es. Unai kyara lang gbaram, a si fas ashen ames, unai al ma mbirii ni, I nyai hu wa a'at ta kel andek hu shiken ho? wa ha mat ta kel amet. Kyara ni, Mute ti fut nin kwa, gung ti fut nin kwa, i wa kel eng i mat ama ta kel mes kwa. Uet hu shaal ti lang kyara hai hu al ma mbirii, anggum i sufati si lak mawus ti mbirii myan mayus wa a u ros ta kaang, si wa hal ti findel i kyara ni ata mi shiken ti wa yes ti talus ya. Shiken ti ti wayut, ak si ingut ale? Unai tutwi ti orut kel es, kyara cu fo, ra ti mat fo, mawus ti mbirii dul mbiri sus yus wa, unai kyara ha lang ti fai kong, tital hal alis lang ya na sang kel lyau sin wo ya yis hai ta nyai, a si fas ashen ames. Tital lo' hanus, unai hon tital ti fai ti mbirii, hum kel a u wa kel shiken hu tutwi, wa wis a tutwi je, unai lul mushok hai andi timi le ya? Tutwi ti ni tiya wa mute na a nggasi ha? Unai kyara ni, Teshi kun na fisel, mwash si hum kel, i wa mat ti ashen amen a kpak. A yis nai tutwi tima raakan ta fisel, hai ta nyai ti tal cef amet tiyut es, a si mat kyara ashen ames ayis nai kyara ma fo titalan ti fai ti

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mbiri, a si fas ashen ames, shiken yit ti mween mbiri fo fwet; ayis nai nna shiken ti ing mbiri yit yes ti tital ti te i manggasi kwa. Kyara ni mbwesh i yang tutwi ta, sin hu ma a i ing shiken ta. Ayis nai shiken ti mween mbiri fo, tutwi ti tyayut es ta fisel, kyara yis tital kol ti fai ti mbiri, ur ti ashen ames.

Lis ma Run

Gandir si kamo by Mafulul Lek Ren iin Gandir ndee a sho ligit ti manzonet, ta fil, ta dash nyorong ti lwyashash, ta taret kura la. Nai ti yu ti findeli a nan ta Saf Kukum. Saf nai ta ni, si kai gandiri, si kulis. Mma si ni, mi kayi, ta tok, ta wis a swyai ma mer ma bwaan iin. Mma a shit la holeng, eng a nggaas kwa, ta ku ta or la mawan a gam ca. amani nai si masai, a si kai, si masai wet. Nai kukum ta lal aam ma lan shak, ta niis: Ca masai tite, ca kai gandir sani? Ta niis, naaf mama a kai gandir sai, ta kulis, ma wis a

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no' ram, ta mun yo saf ma gandyar. Kamo' mar ma ungguryat nai ta ni, yit mawan, ta kulis gandiri. Ta yu a nggong ma mer mama gandiri ma ti, yit ti aa, ka cira, ka mar ma lo ma kukwa iin a ra. Ta shuris gandiri, ta niis: Kabok, a nisin, aa si cira sani ma mwa mi, i gon. Hon i no'a shen na a nani, a i yu a rik kaang, i ma yes ndai. Nai ta no' aa a te'e, ta tek lo, ta kiret fo. Ta no' cira a te'e, ta mbuk shala', ta shwis fo. Gandir yit a shyaatayi ta ti a fa mer, ta sisal, ta niis: Mimai nai ha masayi? Kamo' ta niis: Fat mihi? Gandir ta niis: Ha tek lo, ha faret aa, ha tek shala', ha faris cira, yo tite ndayi? Kamo' ta niis: akwai i masai tite ti ak, kabok ha yes, a nisin, ha gofen ti! Haling ma gandir nai awei ta or ta ti a fa mer mawis Mar ma Ungguryat wa' a gof ti amani. Nai ta tek shala' taa fo ta cira, ta kulet aa, ta ni, ma tek lo taa fo ta aa, a ta kulis cira kong, mar ma ungguryat ta kon a ranggul mmis kong, ta nyai wa kpuf ti. Gandir ta lang, sakwar si shambar. Ta mun a sakat-sakat, kamo' ta tek manggi', ta no' ti rangkang, ta mbuk yit ti. Ta yu, ta kiris Saf Kukum a ndik, ta niis: Madish ma gandiri man! Taa tei Saf

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Kukum ta tof aam ma lan, ta no'is Kamo' saramat ti ram ma gandyar. Ha halet ti Mar ma Ungguryati kong.

am mma a kir fi ti hur ti makaar by Amos Emmanuel Ndee ngarat iil si mun na ful yo ma cwai nggul shaat. Mma si or a fa nggul iin ka si tundwe' ngguli la ta ti a fa meri bwongolo. Mma si mun a cwai, si cu sut-sut wa' ka gip ma lwyashashi si ndok, si cu es. Mma si mun a cwai sin a rwai la a ndik. Ren sani hur a yu, a munis ti a nggong ma mer, yis a sho cile', ta shyaatai ngguli fo, ta gwaalai, ak ngaratashi si yes, si mashu ti a fa mer, si furai cwai. ak si rwai meri, nggul ti mashu a ndik fat ti mashwai tiryan. Hur ta ni, ahun ngaratashi si shitis ti ko miis a hwyaahan ti ti ngguli. Ta cu ngguli, ta kaf ti mawan a fo, ko ta shambara ko. Ta ti' la, ta lal ngaratashi, ta palangis a fa shitai shum nzis. Ta niis, itii ma fuk, ta mun yo mwis. Si fuk, si niis, sinii es mi fuk, si mun yo mwyas mmis. Si mun a fuk, a si lwaakis mawan a cwai

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nggul a iin kili, hur ta furai a lak tirim mmis. Ta niis, we ndee ti faris kuraash mma ta lwaak ti kwa, ta ni, itii a sun, a luk kwa ahun a u a fa myar. Ta niis, ma fuk, ta kul fai nzis, a luk ti ma wan a mbai wet. Ngaratashi si halai tirim mmis. Si mbi' mater tima ka si tek sis, si luk ti a fasa mawan. Si ni, mi wan a tek mer, a anggat ti kai sani gangi, anggat ta kai gang ma fuli, ti sakwar mmis. Si ni, hur ma wan a kai meri a sayi ti ti fo nzis. ak si wal mbi' mmis, si lakis hur, si niis: Mma can a luk ka ra' a ni ahun a wai fo a findel ahun a ni, ka bwukai la tikil kwa! Mma ha halai kwa, ka ho ti hai nza. Hur ta kinggit hai wa' awu halai, lwyashashi si tek, mawan ti fat kwai si laki. ak si luk a tura, shisher ti kai sis, ta ni, ma wai fo la, a ta findel. Ngaratashi si wun sis, si niis, ka ra' ta waa fo nzis kwa, ta gyok, si or la tawe. ak si mun a lukai ram iin hai mma naf mi gon aam ka goni la, naf si shitis, mayor ti kai sis. Si furai gwaa'an re fo, si ni: Mimai nai yo? Hu shitai ak ngaratashi kyani si tek hur! Huri ta shitai fat itii a wu ti a fa maluk nzis akul si lwyashashi. ak naf si tik a ju

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sisal a fa mbai a luk nzis wet, ko mmis ta furai yis a shar ti a tu, ta furai fuk, a ta findel. Ta ni, ma wai fo la, a ta ni: Mimai a kir huyuu naf mma hu shitai am, hu ndus fenshash mmu ma fwash kyai la kwahi? Hur ta ni, ma shitai kek, yis man a fur ta ti a fasa ti ti fi mayes a ndik, ta furai mwaatan ti a fasa ka ma a ndok ndiki. ak a he' a ndik ti manjeng, fi ti wop a aakan gosh-gosh. ak a wal mwaatan, ti nis hai fya. Ta tik a mbi' kwai ngaratash si tek sis a fasa, si niis ka ra' ta wai fo la, ta findel ahun ta bwuk kwa. ak a wai fo la, a ta findel, am ma kir a fur a ndik nai. Ngaratashi si kai mater nzis mawan ka mma si sor, si shitai am mma ma wis huri maus ti a ndik. am ma kir hur ma ti fi ti bakam nai.

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The numbers 1-10 in different Ron languages
one Lis ma Run Alis i Run Monguna Sha Mundat Karfa Mangar Kulere Fyer Tambas anggat andek ham ham ham handak ham ami giit yo six Lis ma Run Alis i Run Monguna Sha Mundat Karfa Mangar Kulere Fyer Tambas makong taan haram haram haram haram makong haram taan taayin wul wul lwat kwatang poo po seven melok pyoron melo melok myolok myelok hulul hondol puruwon twaanon yaapit natswatwit kul kun tat kun yoon yoon eight mafwara myarfu fuet maavur manvur andul manvur piit twit nine yelam karfu yelam gyalam gyalam nyalam yilam ngaatul yangaal kwang yo aya two fulal apil wul three yuhun atat kpan four pu aras pu fu fuud fud fur five hara hara hara haa haara hara tawon haara hawa aya ten hure hure hahara ai ri harahara hure hure hop kut

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