Dera language


Dera Mangguar and Kamberataro is a Senagi language of Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. In Papua New Guinea, it is primarily spoken in Kamberataro village, Amanab Rural LLG, Sandaun Province.

Dialects

There are two dialects, namely Dla proper and Menggwa Dla. Dla proper is spoken in the three main villages of Kamberatoro Mission in Papua New Guinea, Amgotro Mission in West Papua, and Komando village in West Papua. Komando village was formerly a Dutch border post. Other Dla proper speaking villages in Papua New Guinea are Tamarbek, Akamari, New Kamberatoro; Old Kamberatoro, ‘Border Village’, Nimberatoro, Nindebai, Mamamora, Yamamainda, Orkwanda, and Lihen. West Papua, Indonesia has the Dla villages of Amgotro, Komando, Indangan, Mongwefi, Buku, and Agrinda, which are mostly located in Yaffi District, Keerom Regency.
Menggwa Dla, the less populous of the two dialects, is spoken in five villages located between Kamberatoro Mission and Komando village, which are Menggau, Wahai, Ambofahwa, Wanggurinda in Papua New Guinea, and Menggwal in West Papua.

Status

Dla speakers are shifting to Tok Pisin and Papuan Malay. De Sousa reports that the younger generation born in the 1990s or later usually cannot speak Dera fluently, whereas the older generation remains fluent.

Phonology

Dera has 14 consonants, which are:
Dera has 5 vowels, which are: