Page:An introduction to Indonesian linguistics, being four essays.djvu/355

Rh Rh 333. Under this head we must consider the relative accentuation of the several parts of the sentence, and especially the phenomena connected with the accentuation of the end of the sentence, for these are of great importance as characteristics of the IN languages.

334. Relative accentuation of the several parts of the sentence. " Toba only has accentuation of a syllable of a word. It does not employ word-stress, which we use in order to throw emphasis upon a particular word in the sentence " (Van der Tuuk). — " Busang accentuates the final syllable of the last word of the sentence ; but one can also accentuate any word in the sentence, if it contains a leading idea " (Barth). — " Accent in Javanese consists merely in this, that the last two syllables of each subdivision of a sentence are pronounced somewhat long and slowly, but both in an equally high tone. All the other syllables of a subdivision of a sentence are pronounced in a similar tone. If it is desired to throw special emphasis upon a word, it is given a position just before a break in the sentence, so that its last two syllables are as a matter of course pronounced more slowly, with the accent as defined above " (Roorda). — " In the Achinese entence it is not the several words that are the units for the purpose of accentuation, but rather groups of two or three words, linked together as one whole. In the phrase, ' a new-born child '= c. n. b. = anöq baro na, the na deprives the other two words altogether of any distinctive accent; they become, if one lies to put it that way, unaccentuated " (Snouck Hurgronje).

335. Relative accentuation of the end of the sentence. "The end of a Sundanese sentence is always pronounced long and in a singing (zangerig) tone, and the penultimate syllable of the sentence mostly receives a special emphasis " (Coolsma). — " The pronunciation of the Mantangay dialect of Dayak is much like that of the Pulopetak dialect, only the last word of each sentence is pronounced longer and louder " (Hardeland).