The Times ran another interesting piece on dying languages this weekend, this one full of examples from various near-dead languages. My favorite illustrated how the same construct can be used for different purposes in different languages. For example, in Rotokas, a language used in Papua New Guinea, doubling a word is used to indicate repetition:
tapa = to hit
tapatapa = to hit repeatedly
kopi = a dot
kopikopi = spotted
kavau = to bear a child
kavakavau = to bear many children
But in Eleme, a Nigerian language, a similar doubling pattern is used for negation:
moro = he saw you
momoro = he did not see you
rekaju = we are coming
rekakaju = we are not coming
You’ll also learn a variety of useful words for describing castrated reindeer. Worth a read.