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Wiyot

Algic family · Wiyot branch · North America

WALS records no dominant basic order of subject, object and verb for Wiyot, a group that holds 189 of the 1,376 languages it codes for this feature.

On Coding of Nominal Plurality, 6 of 7 other Algic languages coded have the value “Plural suffix”; Wiyot has “No plural”.

On Order of Adposition and Noun Phrase, WALS codes Wiyot as “More than one adposition type with none dominant”, a value held by 58 of the 1,184 languages coded, Yurok and Mandarin among them.

Wiyot: order of head and dependent in 6 constructions← beforeafter →verbsubject80%13%Order of Subject and Verb: Subject precedes verb (SV). Of 1,496 languages coded, 1,192 put the subject before the verb and 194 after it.verbobjectobjectno dominant order47%46%Order of Object and Verb: Both orders with neither order dominant. Of 1,518 languages coded, 712 put the object before the verb and 705 after it.adpositionnoun phrasenoun phraseno dominant order49%43%Order of Adposition and Noun Phrase: More than one adposition type with none dominant. Of 1,184 languages coded, 577 put the noun phrase before the adposition and 511 after it.noungenitive55%37%Order of Genitive and Noun: Genitive-noun (GenN). Of 1,249 languages coded, 685 put the genitive before the noun and 468 after it.nounadjective27%64%Order of Adjective and Noun: Modifying adjective follows noun (NAdj). Of 1,367 languages coded, 373 put the adjective before the noun and 879 after it.noundemonstrative45%48%Order of Demonstrative and Noun: Demonstrative word precedes noun (DemN). Of 1,225 languages coded, 551 put the demonstrative before the noun and 590 after it.
The order Wiyot uses in 6 pairings of a head word and its dependent. Bars: how all languages coded for each pairing split, before or after.

Contrast Wiyot with Yurok or with any other language

Uncommon values

Values that fewer than one in ten of the coded languages share with Wiyot, rarest first.

Inside the Algic family

Wiyot matches the most frequent Algic value on 24 of the 43 features where at least three other members of the family are coded (56%). Among the 5 Algic languages profiled here, that rate ranks fourth from the top.

Where Wiyot breaks with a clear majority of its relatives
FeatureWiyotMost relatives
Rhythm TypesAbsent: no rhythmic stressIambic: right-hand syllable in the foot is strong (4 of 5)

Closest profiles

Languages that share the most coded values with Wiyot; the count is out of the features both languages are coded for.

The rest of the profile

WALS codes Wiyot for 47 of the 144 profile features used on this site. The remaining 38 are listed here, grouped by topic; within each group the value Wiyot shares with the fewest languages comes first.

Sounds 13

FeatureValueLanguages sharing it
Weight-Sensitive StressUnbounded: Stress can be anywhere in the word54 of 500
Consonant-Vowel RatioModerately high102 of 564
Voicing in Plosives and FricativesNo voicing contrast182 of 567
Consonant InventoriesAverage201 of 563
Voicing and Gaps in Plosive SystemsOther242 of 567
Fixed Stress LocationsNo fixed stress (mostly weight-sensitive stress)220 of 502
Vowel Quality InventoriesAverage vowel inventory (5-6)287 of 564
ToneNo tones307 of 527
Glottalized ConsonantsNo glottalized consonants409 of 567
Presence of Uncommon ConsonantsNone449 of 567
Uvular ConsonantsNo uvulars470 of 567
Absence of Common ConsonantsAll present503 of 567
Front Rounded VowelsNone525 of 562

Word structure 1

FeatureValueLanguages sharing it
Prefixing vs. Suffixing in Inflectional MorphologyPredominantly suffixing406 of 969

Nouns and pronouns 3

FeatureValueLanguages sharing it
Definite ArticlesDemonstrative word used as marker of definiteness69 of 620
Position of Pronominal Possessive AffixesPossessive prefixes255 of 902
Position of Case AffixesCase suffixes452 of 1,031

Verbs: tense, mood, evidence 5

FeatureValueLanguages sharing it
Position of Tense-Aspect AffixesNo tense-aspect inflection152 of 1,131
The Morphological ImperativeSecond person number-neutral89 of 548
The ProhibitiveSpecial imperative + special negative146 of 496
Semantic Distinctions of EvidentialityNo grammatical evidentials181 of 418
Coding of EvidentialityNo grammatical evidentials181 of 418

Word order 6

FeatureValueLanguages sharing it
Position of Interrogative Phrases in Content QuestionsInterrogative phrases obligatorily initial264 of 902
Order of Object, Oblique, and VerbMore than one order with none dominant167 of 500
Order of Demonstrative and NounDemonstrative word precedes noun (DemN)542 of 1,225
Order of Genitive and NounGenitive-noun (GenN)685 of 1,249
Order of Adjective and NounModifying adjective follows noun (NAdj)879 of 1,367
Order of Subject and VerbSubject precedes verb (SV)1,192 of 1,496

Simple clauses 4

FeatureValueLanguages sharing it
Negative MorphemesNegative particle502 of 1,157
Symmetric and Asymmetric Standard NegationSymmetric and asymmetric standard negation: Type SymAsy130 of 297
Polar QuestionsQuestion particle585 of 955
Expression of Pronominal SubjectsPronominal subjects are expressed by affixes on verbs437 of 711

Vocabulary 6

FeatureValueLanguages sharing it
M in Second Person Singularm in second person singular78 of 230
Hand and ArmDifferent389 of 617
M in First Person SingularNo m in first person singular177 of 230
N-M PronounsNo N-M pronouns194 of 230
M-T PronounsNo M-T pronouns200 of 230
Finger and HandDifferent521 of 593