OUTOFPAPUA database: Lexicons of the West Papuan language area

Variants: *olaroN

•  deep.

Note: MRN (Muthalib, Pattiasina, et al. 1983:23): olaro ‘deep’ (water); KUL, BNGₕ: olaro; WAWₕ: ondaro; MRB (Esser 1927:22): ondalo; MRA (Esser 1927:22), PAD (Esser 1927:22): onalo; TOL: olano. The Wawonii form ondaro appears to be a merger of olaro and ondaro. Loss of d must have preceded metathesis in Tolaki, that is ondalo > onalo > olano. The initial *o-is tentatively regarded as a shortening of the verbal prefix mo-; one TOLₕ wordlist has retained molano. [PAN *Dálem ‘inside, deep’ (Dyen & McFarland 1970 202)] See also *laroN ‘inside’.