2026 · open round · C · 10 points

Sheninagans in Kogi

Devin Joe & Nina Stadermann · morphology · semantics · syntax · rule discovery

Kogi is a language spoken by around 10,000 people in Colombia. Two Kogi-speaking friends are talking to each other. The picture below shows an illustration of one situation where the phrase akhiengua nigukú might occur in their dialogue.

Two stick figures face each other. The left one has a speech bubble; a small mark near the right figure's feet suggests something on the ground. — akhiengua nigukú

Below are eight more excerpts of dialogue in Kogi and illustrations of situations in which they might occur, in arbitrary order.

No.	Excerpt	No.	Excerpt
1	akhiengua nagukú	5	kwisaté nagukú
2	akhiengua namagu	6	kwisaté nigukú
3	ga nigukú	7	mowi nagukú
4	ga nimagu	8	mowi nimagu

Eight panels labelled A to H, each showing two stick figures in conversation. Panels differ in who is speaking, who is gesturing, and what is happening around them.

TimerminutesOptional. Set whatever limit suits you.

Questions

0 of 11 correct

Some answers use letters your keyboard does not have. Type the closest plain spelling instead and it still counts, and you can leave accents off.

Match each excerpt of dialogue 1–8 to its corresponding situation A–H.

akhiengua nagukú

akhiengua namagu

ga nigukú

ga nimagu

kwisaté nagukú

kwisaté nigukú

mowi nagukú

mowi nimagu

Here are three more situations, shown in the panel above. Write the Kogi dialogue that would be appropriate for each.

Situation 9

Situation 10

Situation 11

Explanation

Try the questions first. Use the Hint button next to any part if you need a nudge.

Reading the explanation costs no XP. Worth 10 points in the real exam.