Tobian is the language of Tobi

Tobi (island)

Tobi is an island in the Palauan state of Hatohobei. With a population of about 30, it holds all of the state's people, with the exception of a weather base on another island. Most of the inhabitants live on the island's west side and speak Tobian...

, one of the Southwest Islands

Southwest Islands (Palau)

The Southwest Islands of Palau are several small islands spread across the Pacific Ocean, about 600 km from the main island chain of Palau. The nearshore islands to the southwest of the main island of Palau , which belong to the states of Koror, Peleliu and Angaur and to the unincorporated Rock...

 of Palau, and the main island of Hatohobei

Hatohobei

Tobi Island, or Hatohobei , is the southernmost of Palau's sixteen states, consisting of Tobi Island and uninhabited Helen Reef. The total land area is about 0.88 km²...

 state. Tobian is a Micronesian language

Micronesian languages

The family of Micronesian languages is a branch of the Oceanic languages. It consists of twenty languages, the nineteen Micronesian Proper languages and Nauruan...

 spoken by approximately 150 people.

Tobian and the dialects of Sonsorol

Sonsorol

Sonsorol is one of the sixteen states of Palau. The administrative center is Dongosaru on Sonsorol island. The inhabitants speak Sonsorolese, a local Trukic language, and Palauan....

, Merir

Merir

Merir or Melieli is a small outlying island of the Palau group, in the western Pacific Ocean. The island measures 0.90 km² and was home to five people in 2000. The main village is in the north-west of the island and has a radio station....

, and Pulo Anna, the other inhabited Southwest Islands, are closely related to the languages spoken in the Federated States of Micronesia

Federated States of Micronesia

The Federated States of Micronesia or FSM is an independent, sovereign island nation, made up of four states from west to east: Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae. It comprises approximately 607 islands with c...

 outer islands of Yap

Yap

Yap, also known as Wa'ab by locals, is an island in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean. It is a state of the Federated States of Micronesia. Yap's indigenous cultures and traditions are still strong compared to other neighboring islands. The island of Yap actually consists of four...

 and Truk Lagoon

Truk Lagoon

Truk Lagoon, also known as Chuuk, is a sheltered body of water in the central Pacific. North of New Guinea, it is located mid-ocean at 7 degrees North latitude. The atoll consists of a protective reef, around, enclosing a natural harbour 79 by 50 kilometres , with an area of . It has a land...

.

These days most Tobian speakers live in Echang, a hamlet of Koror

Koror

Koror is the state comprising the main commercial centre of the Republic of Palau. It consists of several islands, the most prominent being Koror Island ....

, the former capital of Palau. Tobian and Sonsorolese

Sonsorolese language

The Sonsorolese language is a Micronesian language spoken in Palau, originally on the islands composing the state of Sonsorol, but nowadays mostly by immigrants in the rest of the country...

are very close, and appear to be gradually merging towards a new dialect called "Echangese".

Examples

• animal = mar
• coconut palm = ruh
• goodbye = sabuho
• language = ramarih
• soldierfish = red

Counting

• one = sewo
• two = huwou
• three = soruo
• four = fauwo

This is only base counting. There are different numerals for a lot of different objects.

External links

• Tobian language at Friends of Tobi Island