Cenderawasih Bay Yaur-Yerisiam Umar Kamholz (2014) presumes the homeland of proto-SHWNG to be the southern coast of the Cenderawasih Bay. Typology At least six SHWNG languages, namely Ma'ya, Matbat, Ambel, Moor, Yaur, and Yerisiam, are tonal. Klamer, et al. (2008) suggest that tone in these SHWNG languages originated from contact with Papuan languages of the Raja Ampat Islands that are now extinct. There are few lexical similarities with present-day Papuan languages, except for a few words such as 'sago' that are shared with the two tonal Papuan isolates Abun and Mpur (both spoken on the north coast of the Bird's Head Peninsula):biH (Ma'ya)bei (Abun)biL (Mpur) However, Arnold (2018) traces this etymology to proto-Malayo-Polynesian *Rambia 'sago palm'. Arnold (2018) reconstructs tone for proto-Ma'ya-Matbat and proto-Ambel, but not for proto-SHWNG. Other than tonogenesis, these proto-languages had also gone through monosyllabization. The VRK Mutation is characteristic of most SHWNG languages (except for the RASH languages), where the phonemes /ß/, /r/, and /k/ surface as the prenasalized voiced stops [mb], [nd], and [ŋg] in various cluster environments. The mutation is found in the Ambai, Ansus, Biak, Busami, Dusner, Kurudu, Marau, Meoswar, Moor, Munggui, Papuma, Pom, Roon, Roswar (possibly equivalent to Meoswar), Serewen (possibly a dialect of Pom), Serui-Laut, Umar, Wamesa, Warembori, Waropen, Wooi, Yaur, Yerisiam, and Yoke languages. Kamholz notes that SHWNG languages have relatively low lexical retention rates from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian, pointing to significant influence from non-Austronesian languages. References Kamholz, David. 2014b. South Halmahera–West New Guinea: The history of Oceanic's closest relative''. LSA Annual Meeting. Minneapolis, MN. Languages of western New Guinea Cenderawasih Bay Halmahera