{{Short description|Ramu family languages of New Guinea}} {{Infobox language family |name = Keram |altname = Keram River |region = Keram River watershed, Papua New Guinea |familycolor = Papuan |fam1 = Ramu–Keram |child1 = East |child2 = West (Mongol–Langam) |glotto = none |glottorefname = }}
The '''Keram languages''' of New Guinea are part of the Ramu family. They are the Mongol–Langam languages and a pair of languages sometimes thought to belong to the Grass family. (See Grass languages for the history of classification.)
Foley (2018) classifies most of them in the Grass branch of the Ramu family,<ref name="Foley-Sepik">{{cite book |last=Foley |first=William A. |authorlink=William A. Foley |editor1-last=Palmer |editor1-first=Bill |date=2018 |title=The Languages and Linguistics of the New Guinea Area: A Comprehensive Guide |chapter=The Languages of the Sepik-Ramu Basin and Environs |series= The World of Linguistics |volume=4 |location=Berlin |publisher=De Gruyter Mouton |pages=197–432 |isbn=978-3-11-028642-7}}</ref> while Usher classifies them as coordinate with the Ramu family, leaving a reduced number of languages in the Grass branch.<ref>[https://sites.google.com/site/newguineaworld/families/keram-and-ramu-rivers/keram-river/west-keram-river West Keram River – NewGuineaWorld]</ref>
They are named for the Keram River.
==Languages== *East Keram River **Ambakich (Aion) **Ap Ma (Kambot) *West Keram River (Mongol–Langam) **Mwakai (Mongol) **Pondi (Langam) **Ulwa (Yaul)
==Pronouns== Usher (2020) reconstructs the pronouns of East Keram and West Keram as follows:<ref name=ngw>[https://sites.google.com/site/newguineaworld/families/keram-and-ramu-rivers/keram-river/east-keram-river East Keram River], [https://sites.google.com/site/newguineaworld/families/keram-and-ramu-rivers/keram-river/west-keram-river West Keram River]</ref>
:{| {{table}} ! !!colspan=2|East Keram !!colspan=2|West Keram |- ! !!sg!!pl!!sg!!pl |- ! 1 |*ni || *anɨ || *ni || *an |- !2 | *[o/u] || *[o/u]nɨ || *u || *un |- !3 | *ma || *aLɨ || *mɨ, *ma- || *ndɨ |}
==See also== *Grass languages *Keram River
==References== {{Reflist}}
== External links == * Timothy Usher, New Guinea World, [https://sites.google.com/site/newguineaworld/families/keram-and-ramu-rivers/keram-river/east-keram-river Proto–East Keram River] *(ibid) [https://sites.google.com/site/newguineaworld/families/keram-and-ramu-rivers/keram-river/west-keram-river Proto–West Keram River]
{{Ramu–Lower Sepik languages}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Keram languages Category:Ramu languages