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Kayan (Kajan, Kayan proper) is a dialect cluster spoken by the Kayan people of Borneo. It is a cluster of closely related dialects with limited mutual intelligibility, and is itself part of the Kayan-Murik group of Austronesian languages.

Baram Kayan is a local trade language. Bahau is part of the dialect cluster, but is not ethnically Kayan.

Internal classification

Glottolog v4.8 classifies the Kayan dialect cluster as follows:

Phonology

The following is based on the Baram dialect:

Consonants

• /r/ can be heard as either a tap or a trill in free variation.
• /k/ can be heard as when in free fluctuation with in word-medial position.
• /ɲ, ŋ/ can be realized as more fronted when preceding high vocoids.
• /dʒ/ may also be heard as a palatalized stop in free fluctuation.
• /s/ may also be heard as in free variation, and may also fluctuate to a stop sound .

Vowels

• Length is said to occur in free variation or in word-final position.
• /i/ can be heard as in initial or medial positions, or in free variation with .
• /ə/ can also be heard as in word-medial position.
• /a/ can be heard as before a medial or final /ʔ/ or /h/.
• /ɔ/ can be heard as when before a /ʔ/ or /h/, or in fluctuation with .

External links

1. Kayan Mahakam at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
   Baram Kayan at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
   Busang Kayan at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
   Kayan River Kayan at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
   Mendalam Kayan at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
   Rejang Kayan at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
   (Additional references under 'Language codes' in the information box)
2. Cubit, L. E. (1964). Kayan phonemics. Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde 120. pp. 409–423.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

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