Bali–Sasak–Sumbawa languages explained

Bali–Sasak–Sumbawa
Region:Bali and West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia
Familycolor:Austronesian
Fam2:Malayo-Polynesian
Fam3:Malayo-Sumbawan (?)
Glotto:bali1277
Glottorefname:Bali–Sasak–Sumbawa
Map:Bali-Sasak-Sumbawan languages.svg
Mapcaption:Distribution of Bali-Sasak-Sumbawa languages: Balinese (blue), Sasak (red), and Sumbawa (orange).

The Bali–Sasak–Sumbawa languages are a group of closely related languages spoken in Indonesia in the western Lesser Sunda Islands (Bali and West Nusa Tenggara). The three languages are Balinese on Bali, Sasak on Lombok, and Sumbawa on western Sumbawa.[1]

These languages have similarities with Javanese, which several classifications have taken as evidence of a relationship between them. However, the similarities are with the "high" registers (formal language/royal speech) of Balinese and Sasak; when the "low" registers (commoner speech) are considered, the connection appears instead to be with Madurese and Malay. (See Malayo-Sumbawan languages.)

The position of the Bali–Sasak–Sumbawa languages within the Malayo-Polynesian languages is unclear. Adelaar (2005) assigned them to a larger "Malayo-Sumbawan" subgroup, [2] but this proposal remains controversial.[3] [4]

Languages

LanguageNative nameHistorical scriptModern scriptdata-sort-type="number" Number of speakers (in millions)Native region
BalineseBalinese: Basa Bali
Balinese: ᬩᬲᬩᬮᬶ
Balinese scriptLatin script3.3 (2000)
SasakSasak: Base Sasak
Sasak: ᬪᬵᬲᬵᬲᬓ᭄ᬱᬓ᭄
Balinese scriptLatin script2.7 (2010)Lombok
Sumbawaᨈᨘ ᨔᨆᨓ
Basa Samawa
Lontara scriptLatin script0.3 (1989)Sumbawa

Notes and References

  1. Book: Adelaar, K. Alexander . 2005 . The Austronesian languages of Asia and Madagascar: a historical perspective . Adelaar, K. Alexander . Himmelmann, Nikolaus . The Austronesian languages of Asia and Madagascar . London . Routledge . 1–42.
  2. K. Alexander Adelaar . Adelaar . Alexander . 2005 . 3623345 . Malayo-Sumbawan . Oceanic Linguistics . 44 . 2 . 357–388.
  3. Blust . Robert . 2010 . The Greater North Borneo Hypothesis . Oceanic Linguistics . 49 . 1 . 44–118 . 10.1353/ol.0.0060 . 40783586.
  4. Smith . Alexander D. . The Western Malayo-Polynesian Problem . December 2017 . Oceanic Linguistics . University of Hawai'i Press . 56 . 2 . 435–490 . 10.1353/ol.2017.0021.