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Learn to speak — flashcards, sentences and counting
The sentences below are taken from Osada's A Course in Mundari and from Mundariversity lessons. Sentences marked † pattern are built from attested words and attested sentence patterns — check them with a speaker before printing them anywhere.
Flashcards — click the card to flip it
A first conversation
A special thing about names: every Munda child has two names — the 𞓛𞓕𞓢𞓚 𞓨𞓟𞓝𞓟𞓧 saki nutum (given at the cati ceremony, about a week after birth) and the 𞓖𞓕𞓨𞓕𞓧 𞓨𞓟𞓝𞓟𞓧 janam nutum (named after the day of birth — Monday, Tuesday…). That is why a boy born on Thursday is called Birsa, and a girl Birsi.
Everyday sentences
Counting — built on twenty (𞓞𞓚𞓛𞓚 hisi)
Mundari does not count in tens, it counts in twenties: 20 = 𞓧𞓚𞓡 𞓞𞓚𞓛𞓚 mid hisi (one twenty), 40 = 𞓗𞓕𞓣 𞓞𞓚𞓛𞓚 bar hisi (two twenties), 100 = 𞓧𞓐𞓨𞓤 𞓞𞓚𞓛𞓚 mone hisi (five twenties) or 𞓧𞓚𞓡 𞓛𞓕𞓟 mid sau. Both the counting form (𞓧𞓚𞓕𞓡 miad) and the shorter form used before a noun (𞓧𞓚𞓡 mid) are given — every number below is shown in Mundari Bani digits and words, with the Roman form beside it.
| Number | Counting form | Short form | Number | Counting form |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 𞓱1 | miad / moyod | mid / mod | 𞓱𞓱11 | gel miad |
| 𞓲2 | baria | bar | 𞓱𞓲12 | gel baria |
| 𞓳3 | apia | api | 𞓱𞓳13 | gel apia |
| 𞓴4 | upunia | upun | 𞓱𞓴14 | gel upunia |
| 𞓵5 | monea | mone | 𞓱𞓵15 | gel monea |
| 𞓶6 | turia | turui | 𞓱𞓶16 | gel turia |
| 𞓷7 | eea / eya | ee | 𞓱𞓷17 | gel eea |
| 𞓸8 | iralia | iral | 𞓱𞓸18 | gel iralia |
| 𞓹9 | area | are | 𞓱𞓹19 | gel area |
| 𞓱𞓰10 | gelea | gel | 𞓲𞓰20 | mid hisi / hisi |
| 𞓲𞓱21 | mid hisi miad | — | 𞓳𞓰30 | mid hisi gel |
| 𞓴𞓰40 | bar hisi | — | 𞓵𞓰50 | bar hisi gel |
| 𞓱𞓰𞓰100 | mid sau / mone hisi | — | 𞓱𞓰𞓰𞓰1000 | mid hazar |
Check yourself: 31 (𞓳𞓱) = 𞓧𞓚𞓡 𞓞𞓚𞓛𞓚 𞓦𞓤𞓒 𞓧𞓚𞓕𞓡 mid hisi gel miad (20 + 10 + 1), 41 (𞓴𞓱) = 𞓗𞓕𞓣 𞓞𞓚𞓛𞓚 𞓧𞓚𞓕𞓡 bar hisi miad (2×20 + 1). The digits in Mundari Bani are also on the Script page.