Malayo-Polynesian languages
Encyclopedia
The Malayo-Polynesian languages are a subgroup of the Austronesian languages
, with approximately 385.5 million speakers. These are widely dispersed throughout the island nations of Southeast Asia
and the Pacific Ocean
, with a smaller number in continental Asia
. Malagasy
is a geographic outlier, spoken in the island of Madagascar
in the Indian Ocean
.
Two morphological characteristics of the Malayo-Polynesian languages is a system of affix
ation and the reduplication
(repetition of all or part of a word, such as wiki-wiki) to form new words. Like other Austronesian languages they have simple phonologies
; thus a text has few but frequent sounds. The majority also lack consonant clusters (e.g., [str] or [mpt] in English). Most also have only a small set of vowels, five being a common number.
are spoken by 90 million people and include Tagalog
(Filipino
), Cebuano
, Ilokano
, Hiligaynon
, Bikolano
, and Kapampangan
, and Waray-Waray
, each with at least three million speakers.
The most widely spoken Bornean language
is Malagasy
, with 20 million speakers.
The Sunda–Sulawesi languages (Nuclear languages outside Central–Eastern) are spoken by about 230 million people and include Malay
(Indonesian
and Malaysian), Sundanese
, Javanese
, Balinese
, Acehnese
, Chamorro
of Guam, and Palauan
.
Central–Eastern includes the Oceanic languages with 2 million speakers, with mainly Western Oceanic
, Southern Oceanic
and Central Pacific
(Polynesian and Fiji languages), such as Kuanua
, Gilbertese
, Hawaiian
, Māori
, Samoan
, Tahitian
, or Tongan
.
, including the leveling of proto-Austronesian
*t, *C to /t/ and *n, *N to /n/, a shift of *S to /h/, and vocabulary such as *lima "five" which are not attested in other Formosan languages. However, it does not align with any one branch. A 2008 analysis of the Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database suggests the closest connection is with Paiwan
, though it only assigns that connection a 75% confidence level.
Malayo-Polynesian consists of a large number of small local language clusters, with the one exception being Oceanic, the only large group which has been reconstructed and is indisputably valid. All other large groups within Malayo-Polynesian are disputed. The family has traditionally been divided into Western
("Hesperonesian"), Central
, and Eastern
branches. However, there is little support for these groups; Central MP languages are distinctive because they are typologically Melanesian due to substratum
effects of the Papuan languages
of eastern Indonesia, as similarly are the Eastern MP languages, while the Western branch is simply the branches which have not undergone such extensive contact-induced change.
Wouk and Ross (2002) proposed a Nuclear Malayo-Polynesian
branch, based on a consistent simplification of the Austronesian alignment
in the syntax
of the proto-Malayo-Polynesian language, which is found throughout Indonesia apart from much of Borneo and the north of Sulawesi. Because Nuclear MP included some Western MP languages along with Central–Eastern MP, Wouk and Ross split Western MP into an "Inner" group on Sulawesi
and the Sunda Islands
, which together with Central–Eastern formed Nuclear Malayo-Polynesian, and an "Outer" group on Borneo
and the Philippines
. Both are remnant groups with negative definitions: Outer WMP (Borneo–Philippines) are those Malayo-Polynesian languages which are not Nuclear, while Inner WMP (Sunda–Sulawesi) are those Nuclear languages which are not Central–Eastern, which is itself a dubious group. Although Nuclear MP was defined using syntactic data, it finds moderate support from lexical data.
, including some languages of northern Sulawesi; Sama–Bajaw, of the Sulu Archipelago
between the Philippines and Borneo; and the Indo-Melanesian languages, being all the rest. It found moderate (75%) support for Sama–Bajaw forming a unit with the Philippine languages. Within Indo-Melanesian, it found moderate (75%) support for Nuclear Malayo-Polynesian, and lesser (65%) support for the Bornean languages
as a valid group.
Thus the internal structure of Malayo-Polynesian suggested by the 2008 study is,
An expanded tree (based on a 2008 analysis of basic vocabulary using the Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database) of the Malayo-Polynesian languages is given below.
Paiwanic (74%)
Austronesian languages
The Austronesian languages are a language family widely dispersed throughout the islands of Southeast Asia and the Pacific, with a few members spoken on continental Asia that are spoken by about 386 million people. It is on par with Indo-European, Niger-Congo, Afroasiatic and Uralic as one of the...
, with approximately 385.5 million speakers. These are widely dispersed throughout the island nations of Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
and the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
, with a smaller number in continental Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. Malagasy
Malagasy language
Malagasy is the national language of Madagascar, a member of the Austronesian family of languages. Most people in Madagascar speak it as a first language as do some people of Malagasy descent elsewhere.-History:...
is a geographic outlier, spoken in the island of Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
in the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
.
Two morphological characteristics of the Malayo-Polynesian languages is a system of affix
Affix
An affix is a morpheme that is attached to a word stem to form a new word. Affixes may be derivational, like English -ness and pre-, or inflectional, like English plural -s and past tense -ed. They are bound morphemes by definition; prefixes and suffixes may be separable affixes...
ation and the reduplication
Reduplication
Reduplication in linguistics is a morphological process in which the root or stem of a word is repeated exactly or with a slight change....
(repetition of all or part of a word, such as wiki-wiki) to form new words. Like other Austronesian languages they have simple phonologies
Phonology
Phonology is, broadly speaking, the subdiscipline of linguistics concerned with the sounds of language. That is, it is the systematic use of sound to encode meaning in any spoken human language, or the field of linguistics studying this use...
; thus a text has few but frequent sounds. The majority also lack consonant clusters (e.g., [str] or [mpt] in English). Most also have only a small set of vowels, five being a common number.
Languages
The Philippine languagesPhilippine languages
The Philippine languages are a 1991 proposal by Robert Blust that all the languages of the Philippines and northern Sulawesi—except Sama–Bajaw and a few languages of Palawan—form a subfamily of Austronesian languages...
are spoken by 90 million people and include Tagalog
Tagalog language
Tagalog is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a third of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by most of the rest. It is the first language of the Philippine region IV and of Metro Manila...
(Filipino
Filipino language
This move has drawn much criticism from other regional groups.In 1987, a new constitution introduced many provisions for the language.Article XIV, Section 6, omits any mention of Tagalog as the basis for Filipino, and states that:...
), Cebuano
Cebuano language
Cebuano, referred to by most of its speakers as Bisaya , is an Austronesian language spoken in the Philippines by about 20 million people mostly in the Central Visayas. It is the most widely spoken of the languages within the so-named Bisayan subgroup and is closely related to other Filipino...
, Ilokano
Ilokano language
Ilokano or Ilocano is the third most-spoken language of the Republic of the Philippines....
, Hiligaynon
Hiligaynon language
Hiligaynon, often referred to as Ilonggo, is an Austronesian language spoken in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines.Hiligaynon is concentrated in the provinces of Iloilo, Negros Occidental and Capiz but is also spoken in the other provinces of the Panay Island group, including Antique,...
, Bikolano
Bikol language
Central Bicolano , is one of the individual languages of the Bikol languages. It belongs to Coastal Bikol. It is spoken in Bicol Region of the Philippines .-Bikol-Naga:...
, and Kapampangan
Kapampangan language
The Pampangan language, or Kapampangan , is one of the major languages of the Philippines. It is the language spoken in the province of Pampanga, the southern half of the province of Tarlac and the northern portion of the province of Bataan. Kapampangan is also understood in some barangays of...
, and Waray-Waray
Waray-Waray language
Wáray-Wáray or Samarnon is a language spoken in the provinces of Samar, Northern Samar, Eastern Samar, and in some parts of the Leyte and Biliran in the Philippines...
, each with at least three million speakers.
The most widely spoken Bornean language
Bornean languages
The Bornean languages are the Austronesian language families indigenous to the island of Borneo, with the exclusion of Ibanic and other Malayic languages....
is Malagasy
Malagasy language
Malagasy is the national language of Madagascar, a member of the Austronesian family of languages. Most people in Madagascar speak it as a first language as do some people of Malagasy descent elsewhere.-History:...
, with 20 million speakers.
The Sunda–Sulawesi languages (Nuclear languages outside Central–Eastern) are spoken by about 230 million people and include Malay
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
(Indonesian
Indonesian language
Indonesian is the official language of Indonesia. Indonesian is a normative form of the Riau Islands dialect of Malay, an Austronesian language which has been used as a lingua franca in the Indonesian archipelago for centuries....
and Malaysian), Sundanese
Sundanese language
Sundanese is the language of about 27 million people from the western third of Java or about 15% of the Indonesian population....
, Javanese
Javanese language
Javanese language is the language of the Javanese people from the central and eastern parts of the island of Java, in Indonesia. In addition, there are also some pockets of Javanese speakers in the northern coast of western Java...
, Balinese
Balinese language
Balinese or simply Bali is a Malayo-Polynesian language spoken by 3.3 million people on the Indonesian island of Bali, as well as northern Nusa Penida, western Lombok and eastern Java...
, Acehnese
Acehnese language
Acehnese or Aceh is a Malayo-Polynesian language spoken by Acehnese people natively in Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia...
, Chamorro
Chamorro language
Chamorro is a Malayo-Polynesian language, spoken on the Mariana Islands by about 47,000 people Chamorro (Chamorro: Fino' Chamoru or simply Chamoru) is a Malayo-Polynesian (Austronesian) language, spoken on the Mariana Islands (Guam, Rota, Tinian, and Saipan) by about 47,000 people Chamorro...
of Guam, and Palauan
Palauan language
Palauan is one of the two nationally recognized official languages spoken in the Republic of Palau...
.
Central–Eastern includes the Oceanic languages with 2 million speakers, with mainly Western Oceanic
Western Oceanic languages
The Western Oceanic languages is a linkage of Oceanic languages, proposed and studied by .-Attempt at phylogenetic representation:A reduced form of the family was fully supported by a 2008 analysis of the Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database.The 2008 study concluded that Schouten did not lie...
, Southern Oceanic
Southern Oceanic languages
The Southern Oceanic languages are a branch of Oceanic proposed by Lynch, Ross, and Crowley in 2002 and supported by later analysis.-Composition:A 2008 analysis of the Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database supports the following classification...
and Central Pacific
Central Pacific languages
The family of Central Pacific languages, also known as Fijian–Polynesian, are a branch of the Oceanic languages.-Classification:Analysis of the Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database gave full support to the unity of Central Pacific, of a primary split with Bau , a secondary split with Rotuman +...
(Polynesian and Fiji languages), such as Kuanua
Kuanua language
The Tolai language, or Kuanua, is spoken by the Tolai people of Papua New Guinea, who live on the Gazelle Peninsula in East New Britain Province. The Tolai language, or Kuanua, is spoken by the Tolai people of Papua New Guinea, who live on the Gazelle Peninsula in East New Britain Province. The...
, Gilbertese
Gilbertese language
-External links:**** with Gilbertese – English Translations from – The Rosetta Edition**...
, Hawaiian
Hawaiian language
The Hawaiian language is a Polynesian language that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language of the state of Hawaii...
, Māori
Maori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
, Samoan
Samoan language
Samoan Samoan Samoan (Gagana Sāmoa, is the language of the Samoan Islands, comprising the independent country of Samoa and the United States territory of American Samoa. It is an official language—alongside English—in both jurisdictions. Samoan, a Polynesian language, is the first language for most...
, Tahitian
Tahitian language
Tahitian is an indigenous language spoken mainly in the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is an Eastern Polynesian language closely related to the other indigenous languages spoken in French Polynesia: Marquesan, Tuamotuan, Mangarevan, and Austral Islands languages...
, or Tongan
Tongan language
Tongan is an Austronesian language spoken in Tonga. It has around 200,000 speakers and is a national language of Tonga. It is a VSO language.-Related languages:...
.
Classification
The Malayo-Polynesian languages share several phonological and lexical innovations with the eastern Formosan languagesFormosan languages
The Formosan languages are the languages of the indigenous peoples of Taiwan. Taiwanese aborigines currently comprise about 2% of the island's population. However, far fewer can still speak their ancestral language, after centuries of language shift...
, including the leveling of proto-Austronesian
Proto-Austronesian language
The Proto-Austronesian language is the reconstructed ancestor of the Austronesian languages, one of the world's major language families. However, Ross notes that what may be the most divergent languages, Tsou, Rukai, and Puyuma, are not addressed by the reconstructions, which therefore cannot...
*t, *C to /t/ and *n, *N to /n/, a shift of *S to /h/, and vocabulary such as *lima "five" which are not attested in other Formosan languages. However, it does not align with any one branch. A 2008 analysis of the Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database suggests the closest connection is with Paiwan
Paiwan language
Paiwan is a native language of Taiwan, spoken by the Paiwan people, one tribe of the Taiwanese aborigines. Paiwan is a Formosan language of the Austronesian language family...
, though it only assigns that connection a 75% confidence level.
Malayo-Polynesian consists of a large number of small local language clusters, with the one exception being Oceanic, the only large group which has been reconstructed and is indisputably valid. All other large groups within Malayo-Polynesian are disputed. The family has traditionally been divided into Western
Western Malayo-Polynesian languages
The Western Malayo-Polynesian languages, also known as the Hesperonesian languages, are those Malayo-Polynesian languages which are not in the Central–Eastern branch. Since there are no features which define these languages positively as a group, recent classifications have abandoned it...
("Hesperonesian"), Central
Central Malayo-Polynesian languages
The Central Malayo-Polynesian linkage is an erstwhile branch of Austronesian languages. The languages are spoken in the Lesser Sunda and Maluku Islands of the Banda Sea, in an area corresponding closely to the Indonesian provinces of East Nusa Tenggara and Maluku and the nation of East Timor , but...
, and Eastern
Eastern Malayo-Polynesian languages
The Eastern Malayo-Polynesian languages form a putative subgroup of the Malayo-Polynesian languages consisting of over 500 languages. Their relationship is not supported by much linguistic data: per Malcolm Ross, there is "essentially no evidence" that the Halmahera–Cenderawasih and Oceanic...
branches. However, there is little support for these groups; Central MP languages are distinctive because they are typologically Melanesian due to substratum
Substratum
In linguistics, a stratum or strate is a language that influences, or is influenced by another through contact. A substratum is a language which has lower power or prestige than another, while a superstratum is the language that has higher power or prestige. Both substratum and superstratum...
effects of the Papuan languages
Papuan languages
The Papuan languages are those languages of the western Pacific which are neither Austronesian nor Australian. The term does not presuppose a genetic relationship. The concept of Papuan peoples as distinct from Melanesians was first suggested and named by Sidney Herbert Ray in 1892.-The...
of eastern Indonesia, as similarly are the Eastern MP languages, while the Western branch is simply the branches which have not undergone such extensive contact-induced change.
Wouk and Ross (2002) proposed a Nuclear Malayo-Polynesian
Nuclear Malayo-Polynesian languages
The Nuclear Malayo-Polynesian languages are a branch of the Austronesian family, proposed by Wouk & Ross , that are thought to have dispersed from a possible homeland in Sulawesi. They are called nuclear because they are the conceptual core of the Malayo-Polynesian family, including both Malay and...
branch, based on a consistent simplification of the Austronesian alignment
Austronesian alignment
Austronesian alignment, commonly known as the Philippine- or Austronesian-type voice system, is a typologically unusual morphosyntactic alignment that combines features of ergative and accusative languages...
in the syntax
Syntax
In linguistics, syntax is the study of the principles and rules for constructing phrases and sentences in natural languages....
of the proto-Malayo-Polynesian language, which is found throughout Indonesia apart from much of Borneo and the north of Sulawesi. Because Nuclear MP included some Western MP languages along with Central–Eastern MP, Wouk and Ross split Western MP into an "Inner" group on Sulawesi
Sulawesi
Sulawesi is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Maluku Islands. In Indonesia, only Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua are larger in territory, and only Java and Sumatra have larger Indonesian populations.- Etymology :The Portuguese were the first to...
and the Sunda Islands
Sunda Islands
The Sunda Islands are a group of islands that form part of the Malay archipelago.They are further divided into the Greater Sunda Islands and the Lesser Sunda Islands.-Administration:...
, which together with Central–Eastern formed Nuclear Malayo-Polynesian, and an "Outer" group on Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. Both are remnant groups with negative definitions: Outer WMP (Borneo–Philippines) are those Malayo-Polynesian languages which are not Nuclear, while Inner WMP (Sunda–Sulawesi) are those Nuclear languages which are not Central–Eastern, which is itself a dubious group. Although Nuclear MP was defined using syntactic data, it finds moderate support from lexical data.
Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database (2008)
The 2008 analysis found three branches of Malayo-Polynesian with full support of the lexical data. These were the Philippine languagesPhilippine languages
The Philippine languages are a 1991 proposal by Robert Blust that all the languages of the Philippines and northern Sulawesi—except Sama–Bajaw and a few languages of Palawan—form a subfamily of Austronesian languages...
, including some languages of northern Sulawesi; Sama–Bajaw, of the Sulu Archipelago
Sulu Archipelago
The Sulu Archipelago is a chain of islands in the southwestern Philippines. This archipelago is considered to be part of the Moroland by the local rebel independence movement. This island group forms the northern limit of the Celebes Sea....
between the Philippines and Borneo; and the Indo-Melanesian languages, being all the rest. It found moderate (75%) support for Sama–Bajaw forming a unit with the Philippine languages. Within Indo-Melanesian, it found moderate (75%) support for Nuclear Malayo-Polynesian, and lesser (65%) support for the Bornean languages
Bornean languages
The Bornean languages are the Austronesian language families indigenous to the island of Borneo, with the exclusion of Ibanic and other Malayic languages....
as a valid group.
Thus the internal structure of Malayo-Polynesian suggested by the 2008 study is,
- Malayo-Polynesian (100%)
- Sulu–Philippines (75%)
- Sama–Bajaw (100%)
- PhilippinesPhilippine languagesThe Philippine languages are a 1991 proposal by Robert Blust that all the languages of the Philippines and northern Sulawesi—except Sama–Bajaw and a few languages of Palawan—form a subfamily of Austronesian languages...
(100%)
- Indo-Melanesian (98%)
- BorneanBornean languagesThe Bornean languages are the Austronesian language families indigenous to the island of Borneo, with the exclusion of Ibanic and other Malayic languages....
(65%) - Nuclear Malayo-PolynesianNuclear Malayo-Polynesian languagesThe Nuclear Malayo-Polynesian languages are a branch of the Austronesian family, proposed by Wouk & Ross , that are thought to have dispersed from a possible homeland in Sulawesi. They are called nuclear because they are the conceptual core of the Malayo-Polynesian family, including both Malay and...
(75%)
- Bornean
- Sulu–Philippines (75%)
An expanded tree (based on a 2008 analysis of basic vocabulary using the Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database) of the Malayo-Polynesian languages is given below.
Paiwanic (74%)
- Malayo-Polynesian (100%)
- Sulu–Philippines (75%)
- Sama–Bajaw
- Sulu–Borneo languages
- Borneo – Coast Bajaw
- Inner Sulu – Sama
- Western Sulu – Sinama
- Sulu–Borneo languages
- PhilippinePhilippine languagesThe Philippine languages are a 1991 proposal by Robert Blust that all the languages of the Philippines and northern Sulawesi—except Sama–Bajaw and a few languages of Palawan—form a subfamily of Austronesian languages...
–Gorontalo (100%)- Gorontalo–Mongondow languages
- Philippine proper
- Northern PhilippineNorthern Philippine languagesThe Northern Philippine languages are the languages of central and northern Luzon, and the small islands between Luzon and Formosa, including Ilokano, Pangasinan, Kapampangan, and the Yami language of Taiwan....
- Batanic languagesBatanic languagesThe Batanic languages are a dialect cluster which form a group of the Philippine branch of the Austronesian language family...
(also Bashiic languages) - Central Luzon languagesCentral Luzon languagesThe Central Luzon languages are a group of languages spoken in the Philippines. One of them, Kapampangan, is the major language of the Mount Pinatubo area...
- Northern Luzon languagesNorthern Luzon languagesThe Northern Luzon languages are one of the few established large groups of languages in the Philippines, with over forty closely languages in and around the Cordillera Central of northern Luzon.-Classification:...
(also Cordilleran languages)
- Batanic languages
- Central–Southern Philippine
- Central–Palawanic
- Central PhilippineCentral Philippine languagesThe Central Philippine languages are the most geographically widespread demonstrated group of languages in the Philippines, being spoken in southern Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao, and Sulu. They are also the most populous, including Tagalog , Bikol, and the major Visayan languages Cebuano, Hiligaynon,...
- TagalogTagalog languageTagalog is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a third of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by most of the rest. It is the first language of the Philippine region IV and of Metro Manila...
- Bikol–Visayan (80%)
- BikolBikol languagesThe Bikol languages are a group of Central Philippine languages spoken particularly on the Bicol Peninsula on the island of Luzon and parts of Catanduanes and Burias Island, Masbate Province...
- Visaya–Mansakan
- VisayanVisayan languagesThe Visayan languages of the Philippines, along with Tagalog and Bikol, are part of the Central Philippine languages...
- MansakanMansakan languagesThe Mansakan languages are a group of languages spoken in the Philippines. Davawenyo is the principal native language of the Davao region, though there is a high degree of bilingualism in Cebuano.-Overview:The Mansakan languages are:*Davawenyo*Eastern...
- Visayan
- Bikol
- Tagalog
- PalawanicPalawanic languagesThe Palawanic languages are the languages spoken on the islands of Mindoro, Palawan, and nearby islets in the Philippines.The languages are,*South Mangyan*Kalamian–Palawan**Kalamian**Palawan...
- South Mangyan languagesSouth Mangyan languagesThe South Mangyan languages are one of two small clusters of languages spoken by the Mangyan people of Mindoro Island in the Philippines.The languages are Buhid, Tawbuid, and Hanuno'o....
- Kalamian–Palawan
- Palawan languagesPalawan languagesThe Palawan languages are the languages of the island of Palawan and nearby islets in the Philippines.They are Palawano , Aborlan Tagbanwa , Palawan Batak and Cuyonon, originating in the nearby island of Cuyo.A 2008 analysis of the Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database found moderate...
- Kalamian languagesKalamian languagesThe Kalamian languages are a small cluster of languages spoken in the Philippines, grouping together Kalamian Tagbanwa and Agutaynen. These are among the few languages of the Philippines which continue to be written in indigenous scripts, though mostly for poetry.-Classification:Adelaar and...
- Palawan languages
- South Mangyan languages
- Central Philippine
- Mindanao languagesMindanao languagesThe Mindanao or Southern Philippine languages are one of the few established large groups of languages in the Philippines, with two dozen closely languages of Mindanao....
(including South MindanaoSouth Mindanao languagesThe South Mindanao languages are a group of languages spoken by the Bagobo, B'laan, T'boli, and Tiruray peoples of the southern coast of Mindanao Island in the Philippines. The languages are,*Bagobo *Bilic: Blaan, Tboli*Tiruray...
)- Danao languagesDanao languagesThe Danao languages are a group of languages spoken in the Philippines. They are Maguindanao and Maranao, each with approximately a million speakers.Each language has a dialect called Iranun; the Maranao Iranun is spoken in Borneo, in Malaysian Sabah....
(including MaguindanaoMaguindanao languageMaguindanaon is an Austronesian language spoken by majority of the population of Maguindanao Province in the Philippines. It is also spoken by sizable minorities in different parts of Mindanao such as the cities of Zamboanga, Davao, and General Santos, and the provinces of North Cotabato, Sultan...
and MaranaoMaranao languageMaranao is an Austronesian language spoken by the Maranao people in the provinces of Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur in the Philippines.-External links:*, Maranao Dictionary...
) - South Mindanao languagesSouth Mindanao languagesThe South Mindanao languages are a group of languages spoken by the Bagobo, B'laan, T'boli, and Tiruray peoples of the southern coast of Mindanao Island in the Philippines. The languages are,*Bagobo *Bilic: Blaan, Tboli*Tiruray...
(including Bilic languages such as T'boli) - Subanun–Manobo
- SubanunSubanun languageThe Subanen language is a dialect cluster spoken in the Philippines. The varieties are Lapuyan, Maligay, Central, Salugnon, Malindang, Sibugay, Dumanquilas, Tuboy, Sindangan, Kolibugan, and Siocon. Most go by the name of Subanen or Kolibugan or both, and there is limited mutual intelligibility...
- Manobo languagesManobo languagesThe Manobo languages are a group of languages spoken in the Philippines. All go by the name 'Manobo' or 'Banobo'.-Languages:*Central**East: Dibabawon, Rajah Kabunsuwan, Agusan**South: Ata-Tigwa , Obo**West: Western Bukidnon, Ilianen...
- Subanun
- Danao languages
- Central–Palawanic
- Northern Philippine
- Sama–Bajaw
- Indo-Melanesian (98%)
- BorneanBornean languagesThe Bornean languages are the Austronesian language families indigenous to the island of Borneo, with the exclusion of Ibanic and other Malayic languages....
(65%)- SabahanSabahan languagesThe Sabahan languages are a group of Austronesian languages centered on the Bornean province of Sabah.-Languages:The constituents from Blust mentioned explicitly in Adelaar & Himmelmann are,*Banggi *Dusunic *Paitanic *Ida’an...
(at least MuruticMurutic languagesThe Murutic languages are a family of half a dozen closely related Austronesian languages, spoken in the northern inland regions of Borneo by the Murut people.The languages are:...
and Ida’anIda'an languageThe Ida'an language is a Malayo-Polynesian language spoken by the Ida'an people of Sabah, Malaysia.Begak is threatened with extinction, as younger speakers are switching to Malay.-Phonology:-Vowels:-Consonants:-External links:*...
) - Greater Barito (55%)
- Land DayakLand Dayak languagesThe Land Dayak languages are a putative group of dozen or so languages spoken by the Bidayuh Land Dayaks of Borneo.-Languages:The unity of Land Dayak as a group is dubious...
I (includes Bekatiq) - Land Dayak II (includes Jagoi)
- BaritoBarito languagesThe Barito languages are a score of Dayak languages of Borneo, and most famously Malagasy, the national language of Madagascar. They are named after the Barito River....
- East BaritoEast Barito languagesThe East Barito languages are a group of a dozen Dayak languages of Borneo, and most famously Malagasy, the national language of Madagascar. They are named after the Barito River.The languages are,*Central–South**Dusun Deyah...
(including MalagasyMalagasy languageMalagasy is the national language of Madagascar, a member of the Austronesian family of languages. Most people in Madagascar speak it as a first language as do some people of Malagasy descent elsewhere.-History:...
and Ma'anyanMa'anyan languageMa'anyan or Ma'anjan or Maanyak Dayak is an Austronesian language belonging to the East Barito languages. It is spoken by about 150,000 Ma'anyan people living in the central Kalimantan, Indonesia. It is closely related to Malagasy languages spoken in Madagascar...
) - West BaritoWest Barito languagesThe West Barito languages are a group of half a dozen Dayak languages of Borneo. They are named after the Barito River.The languages are,*North: Kohin, Dohoi , Siang*South: Bakumpai, Ngaju...
- MahakamMahakam languagesThe Mahakam or Barito-Mahakam languages are a couple closely related Dayak languages of Borneo:...
- East Barito
- North SarawakanNorth Sarawakan languagesThe North Sarawakan languages consist of several groups Austronesian languages spoken in the northeastern part of the province of Sarawak, Borneo....
(includes Kayan)
- Land Dayak
- Rejang–Sajau (?)
- Sabahan
- Nuclear Malayo-PolynesianNuclear Malayo-Polynesian languagesThe Nuclear Malayo-Polynesian languages are a branch of the Austronesian family, proposed by Wouk & Ross , that are thought to have dispersed from a possible homeland in Sulawesi. They are called nuclear because they are the conceptual core of the Malayo-Polynesian family, including both Malay and...
(75%)- Greater Malayo-SumbawanMalayo-Sumbawan languagesThe Malayo-Sumbawan languages are a group of languages identified by Adelaar that unites the Malayic and Chamic languages with the languages of Java and the western Lesser Sunda Islands, except for Javanese itself...
(60%)- Moklen–Chamic (70%)
- MoklenMoklen languagesThe Moklen languages are a pair of closely related languages spoken by the Moklen, of coastal Thailand, and the Moken "Sea Gypsies" off the coast of Burma. They are somewhat divergent from other Austronesian languages.-References:...
- Aceh–Chamic
- Moklen
- Bali–Malayic (75%)
- Bali–Sasak
- Batak–Malayic (85%)
- BatakBatak languagesThe Batak languages are spoken by Batak and Alas people of North Sumatra, Indonesia.Historically they were written using Batak script but the Latin alphabet is now used for most writing....
- Java–Malayic (75%)
- GayoGayo languageGayo Language is the spoken language of about 180,000 people in the mountain region of North Sumatra around Takengon, Gayo Lues, Bener Meriah, Southeast Aceh, Genteng, and Lokop. It is classified as belonging to the Western Malayo-Polynesian branch of the Austronesian languages, but is not closely...
- RejangRejang languageRejang is spoken by the Rejang people in Bengkulu, Indonesia. It is a Malayo-Polynesian language but has not been further classified. It has five major dialects...
- LampungicLampungic languagesThe Lampungic languages are a pair of dialect clusters at the southern tip of the Indonesian island of Sumatra. They are:-External links:*...
- JavaneseJavanese languageJavanese language is the language of the Javanese people from the central and eastern parts of the island of Java, in Indonesia. In addition, there are also some pockets of Javanese speakers in the northern coast of western Java...
- Sunda–Malayic (70%)
- Sunda–Madurese (75%)
- SundaneseSundanese languageSundanese is the language of about 27 million people from the western third of Java or about 15% of the Indonesian population....
- MadureseMadurese languageMadurese is a language of the Madurese people of Madura Island and eastern Java, Indonesia; it is also spoken on the neighbouring small Kangean Islands and Sapudi Islands, as well as from migrants to other parts of Indonesia, namely the Tapal Kuda area comprising Pasuruan, Surabaya, Malang until...
- Sundanese
- Banjar–Malayic (80%)
- BanjarBanjar languageBanjar language is the native language used by the Banjarese people of South Kalimantan, Indonesia. As many Banjarese are travelling merchants, they brought their language wherever they went all over Indonesia, even all over the world....
- MalayicMalayic languagesThe Malayic languages are a branch of the Sunda–Sulawesi languages of the Austronesian family. They include Malay, the national language of Malaysia, Indonesia, and Brunei; Minangkabau in central Sumatra; and Iban in northern Borneo....
proper (100%)- Malayan languagesMalayan languagesThe Malayan languages are a branch of the Malayic languages that spread from central Sumatra or possibly western Borneo. Malayic languages include "para"-Malay languages of central Sumatra such as Minangkabau, Aboriginal Malay languages such as Temuan, and the various Malay languages proper, such...
(including MinangkabauMinangkabau languageThe Minangkabau language is an Austronesian language, spoken by the Minangkabau of West Sumatra, the western part of Riau, South Aceh Regency, the northern part of Bengkulu and Jambi, also in several cities throughout Indonesia by migrated Minangkabau, who often trade or have a restaurant...
, MalayMalay languageMalay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
, IndonesianIndonesian languageIndonesian is the official language of Indonesia. Indonesian is a normative form of the Riau Islands dialect of Malay, an Austronesian language which has been used as a lingua franca in the Indonesian archipelago for centuries....
) - Ibanic languagesIbanic languagesThe Ibanic or Malayic-Dayak languages are a branch of the Malayic languages indigenous to western Borneo. They are spoken by the Iban, Selako, Kendayan, and other Dayak peoples....
or Malayic Dayak (IbanIbanIBAN or Iban may refer to:People* Ibán Espadas , footballer* Iban Iriondo , bicycle racer* Iban Mayo , bicycle racer* Iban Mayoz , bicycle racer* Iban Nokan, anthropologist and ethnographer...
and related tongues)
- Malayan languages
- Banjar
- Sunda–Madurese (75%)
- Gayo
- Batak
- Moklen–Chamic (70%)
- TamanicTamanic languagesThe Tamanic languages are a small group of languages of Indonesian Borneo:The classification of the Tamanic languages, usually represented by Mbalo alone, is unclear. Long left unclassified, Adelaar and Himmelmann took the view that it was especially close to Buginese...
(Mbaloh) - Sulawesi–Polynesian (65%)
- SangirSangiric languagesThe Sangiric languages are a group of languages spoken in northern Sulawesi and several small islands to the north which belong to the Philippines.The languages are Sangir and a southern group of Bantik, Ratahan, Talaud....
–MinahasanMinahasan languagesThe Minahasan languages are a group of languages spoken by the Minahasa people in northern Sulawesi.-Classification:The languages are :*Tonsawang*North Minahasan**Tontemboan...
(80%)- Sangiric languagesSangiric languagesThe Sangiric languages are a group of languages spoken in northern Sulawesi and several small islands to the north which belong to the Philippines.The languages are Sangir and a southern group of Bantik, Ratahan, Talaud....
(4 languages of northernmost SulawesiSulawesiSulawesi is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Maluku Islands. In Indonesia, only Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua are larger in territory, and only Java and Sumatra have larger Indonesian populations.- Etymology :The Portuguese were the first to...
) - Minahasan languagesMinahasan languagesThe Minahasan languages are a group of languages spoken by the Minahasa people in northern Sulawesi.-Classification:The languages are :*Tonsawang*North Minahasan**Tontemboan...
(5 languages of north Sulawesi)
- Sangiric languages
- South SulawesiSouth Sulawesi languagesThe South Sulawesi languages are a group of languages spoken by the Bugis and related peoples of South Sulawesi province, Indonesia.-Languages:*Bugis**Buginese: Buginese, Campalagian**? Tamanic: Mbalo, Taman...
(100%)- BugisBuginese languageBuginese is the language spoken by about four million people mainly in the southern part of Sulawesi, Indonesia.-History:The word Buginese derives from the word Bahasa Bugis in Malay. In Buginese, it is called while the Bugis people are called...
- Makassar
- MandareseMandar languageMandar is an Austronesian language spoken by the group ethnic Mandar living in West Sulawesi province, Indonesia, especially in the sea side regencies like - Majene and Polewali-Mandar as well as few settlements in the islands of Pangkep District also known as Spermonde Archipelago and Ujung Lero,...
- Bugis
- Celebo-Polynesian (80%)
- CelebicCelebic languagesThe Celebic languages are a proposed group of Malayo-Polynesian languages spoken on the island of Sulawesi, formerly spelled Celebes. It would be the largest family of languages on that island.-Classification:...
(100%)- Saluan–Banggai
- Southeast Celebic (85% confidence)
- Pamona–Tolaki (90%)
- Kaili–PamonaKaili–Pamona languagesThe Kaili–Pamona languages are a group of Celebic languages spoken in central Central Sulawesi province, Indonesia.-Languages:Per Ethnologue 16, the languages are the following:*Northern...
- Bungku–Tolaki
- Kaili–Pamona
- Greater Muna–Buton (100%)
- Tukangbesi–Bonerate: Tukang BesiTukang Besi languageTukang Besi is an Austronesian language spoken in the Tukangbesi Islands in south-east Sulawesi in Indonesia by some 200,000 speakers.-Sounds:...
(Popalia), Bonerate - Muna–Wolio (75%)
- Wotu–Wolio
- Muna–Buton (including Cia-CiaCia-Cia languageThe Cia-Cia language , also known as South Buton, is an Austronesian language spoken principally around the town of Bau-Bau on the southern tip of Buton Island off the southeast coast of Sulawesi in Indonesia....
)
- Tukangbesi–Bonerate: Tukang Besi
- Pamona–Tolaki (90%)
- Greater Central–Eastern Malayo-Polynesian (85%)
- Northern Sumatran – Barrier IslandsNorthwest Sumatran languagesThe Northwest Sumatran languages are a putative group of languages spoken by the Batak and related peoples in the interior of northern Sumatra, and by the Nias, Mentawai, etc. on the barrier islands off the western coast of Sumatra.-Classification:The languages normally included in North Sumatran...
(Nias and also the Batak languagesBatak languagesThe Batak languages are spoken by Batak and Alas people of North Sumatra, Indonesia.Historically they were written using Batak script but the Latin alphabet is now used for most writing....
) - ChamorroChamorro languageChamorro is a Malayo-Polynesian language, spoken on the Mariana Islands by about 47,000 people Chamorro (Chamorro: Fino' Chamoru or simply Chamoru) is a Malayo-Polynesian (Austronesian) language, spoken on the Mariana Islands (Guam, Rota, Tinian, and Saipan) by about 47,000 people Chamorro...
- PalauanPalauan languagePalauan is one of the two nationally recognized official languages spoken in the Republic of Palau...
- Central–Eastern Malayo-Polynesian (80%)
- Sumba–Flores (100%)
- Core Central–Eastern Malayo-Polynesian (80%)
- Eastern Malayo-Polynesian languages (58%)
- Central MalukuCentral Maluku languagesThe Central Maluku languages are a putative group of fifty Austronesian languages spoken principally on the Seram, Buru, Ambon, Kei, Aru, and the Sula Islands...
(54%) - Yamdena–Bomberai (56%)
- Timor–Babar (including Tetum)
- Oceanic (100%)
- Admiralty IslandsAdmiralty Islands languagesThe Admiralty Islands languages are a group of some thirty Oceanic languages. They may include Yapese, which has proven difficult to classify.-Components:...
- Southern OceanicSouthern Oceanic languagesThe Southern Oceanic languages are a branch of Oceanic proposed by Lynch, Ross, and Crowley in 2002 and supported by later analysis.-Composition:A 2008 analysis of the Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database supports the following classification...
- TemotuTemotu languagesThe Temotu languages, named after Temotu Province of the Solomon Islands, are a branch of Oceanic languages proposed in Ross & Næss 2007 for the Reefs – Santa Cruz languages...
- Meso-MelanesianMeso-Melanesian languagesThe Bilur language, which is not closely related to other Melanesian languages, likely falls somewhere in the Bougainville–Northwest Solomonic group....
proper (84%) - MicronesianMicronesian languagesThe family of Micronesian languages is a branch of the Oceanic languages. It consists of twenty languages, the nineteen Micronesian Proper languages and Nauruan...
- Micronesian ProperMicronesian languagesThe family of Micronesian languages is a branch of the Oceanic languages. It consists of twenty languages, the nineteen Micronesian Proper languages and Nauruan...
(100%)- GilberteseGilbertese language-External links:**** with Gilbertese – English Translations from – The Rosetta Edition**...
(i-Kiribati) - Nuclear Micronesian (100%)
- KosraeanKosraean languageKosraean, also sometimes called Kusaiean, is the language spoken on the islands of Kosrae , Caroline Islands, and Nauru. In 2001 there were approximately 8,000 speakers....
- Ponapeic languagesPonapeic languagesThe Ponapeic languages are a dialect continuum of Micronesian languages, conventionally divided into three languages: Mokilese, Pingelapese and Pohnpeian....
- MarshalleseMarshallese languageThe Marshallese language is a Malayo-Polynesian language of the Marshall Islands, and the principal language of the country...
- Trukic languagesTrukic languagesThe Trukic languages are a dialect continuum of Micronesian languages, conventionally divided into a dozen languages.-Components:The database seems to say that Sonsorol is the most divergent of the Trukese languages. However, the results are defective and it is not clear that they support a Trukese...
- Kosraean
- Gilbertese
- NauruanNauruan languageThe Nauruan language is an Austronesian language spoken in Nauru. It is estimated that it has 7,000 speakers. Almost all speakers are bilingual in English....
(not included in the database)
- Micronesian Proper
- Fijian–Polynesian
- East Fijian languagesEast Fijian languagesThe East Fijian languages are a subgroup of the Central Pacific languages. They are four: Fijian, Gone Dau, Lauan and Lomaiviti all spoken within Fiji....
- West Fijian – Polynesian
- West Fijian – Rotuman languagesWest Fijian – Rotuman languagesWest Fijian – Rotuman languages are a language group that includes the West Fijian languages and the Rotuman language.-Components:*Rotuman*West Fijian languages**Namosi-Naitasiri-Serua**Western Fijian...
- Polynesian languagesPolynesian languagesThe Polynesian languages are a language family spoken in the region known as Polynesia. They are classified as part of the Austronesian family, belonging to the Oceanic branch of that family. They fall into two branches: Tongic and Nuclear Polynesian. Polynesians share many cultural traits...
- TonganTongan languageTongan is an Austronesian language spoken in Tonga. It has around 200,000 speakers and is a national language of Tonga. It is a VSO language.-Related languages:...
- SamoanSamoan languageSamoan Samoan Samoan (Gagana Sāmoa, is the language of the Samoan Islands, comprising the independent country of Samoa and the United States territory of American Samoa. It is an official language—alongside English—in both jurisdictions. Samoan, a Polynesian language, is the first language for most...
- TuvaluanTuvaluan languageTuvaluan is a Polynesian language of or closely related to the Ellicean group spoken in Tuvalu. It is more or less distantly related to all other Polynesian languages, such as Hawaiian, Maori, Tahitian, Samoan, and Tongan, and most closely related to the languages spoken on the Polynesian Outliers...
- Eastern PolynesianEastern Polynesian languagesThe dozen Eastern Polynesian languages are found on Pacific Islands from Hawaii in the north, to New Zealand in the southwest, to Easter Island in the southeast...
(12 languages)- Marquesic languagesMarquesic languagesMarquesic languages are a small but historically important subgroup of Central Eastern Polynesian languages:# Marquesan languages of the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia...
- Tahitic languagesTahitic languagesThe Tahitic languages are a group of Eastern Polynesian languages in the Central Eastern branch. ....
- Marquesic languages
- Tongan
- West Fijian – Rotuman languages
- East Fijian languages
- Admiralty Islands
- Central Maluku
- Eastern Malayo-Polynesian languages (58%)
- Northern Sumatran – Barrier Islands
- Celebic
- Sangir
- Greater Malayo-Sumbawan
- Bornean
- Sulu–Philippines (75%)