North Vanuatu languages

North Vanuatu
Northern Vanuatu
Geographic distribution	Northern Vanuatu
Linguistic classification	Austronesian Malayo-Polynesian Oceanic Southern Oceanic North-Central Vanuatu North Vanuatu
Language codes
Glottolog	nort3205

The North Vanuatu languages form a linkage of Southern Oceanic languages spoken in northern Vanuatu.

Languages

Clark (2009)

Clark (2009) ^[1] provides the following classification of the North Vanuatu languages, divided into two main geographic areas (Torres–Banks–Maewo–Ambae–Pentecost and Santo). Outlier (aberrant) languages identified by Clark (2009) are in italics. ^[2]

The South Pentecost languages, Ske, Apma, and Saa, are also often classified as Central Vanuatu languages.

• North Vanuatu
  • Northern (Torres–Banks–Maewo–Ambae–Pentecost)
    • Torres–Banks languages
      • Torres Islands : Hiw, Lo-Toga (“Loh”)
      • Banks Islands : Lehali–Löyöp (“Ureparapara”), Mwotlap–Volow (“Mwotlav”), Lemerig–Vera’a (“Vera'a”), Vurës–Mwesen (“Vurës”), Mota, Nume, Dorig–Koro–Olrat (“South Gaua”), Lakon  (“Lakona”), Mwerlap (“Merlav”)
    • Maewo–Ambae–Pentecost
      • Maewo : Sun̄wadia, Sun̄wadaga, Baetora
      • Ambae : Duidui, Northeast Ambae
      • North Pentecost : Raga
      • South Pentecost : Ske (“Seke”); Apma , Sa
  • Espiritu Santo languages
    • Cape Cumberland (Nokuku); Tolomako
    • Wusi, Akei–Tasiriki–Tangoa–Araki (“SW Santo”), Tiale–Merei (“Central Santo”), Kiai, “South-central Santo”, M̈av̈ea (“Mafea”), Tutuba, Aore, Tamambo (“Tamabo”); Mores
    • Southeast Santo, Shark Bay; Sakao

François (2015)

The following list of 9 "Penama" North Vanuatu languages (Clark's Maewo-Ambae-Pentecost) is from François (2015:18–21). He also lists 17 Torres–Banks languages (2011:181) and 38 Espiritu Santo languages (2015:18–21).

No.	Language	Other names	Speakers	ISO 639-3	Region
18	Sungwadia	Marino, North Maewo	500	mrb	Maewo
19	Sungwadaga	Central Maewo	1400	mwo	Maewo
20	Baetora	South Maewo, Sungaloge	1330	btr	Maewo
21	East Ambae	Lolovoli, Aoba	5000	omb	Ambae
22	West Ambae	Duidui	8700	nnd	Ambae
23	Raga	Hano	6500	lml	Pentecost
24	Apma		7800	app	Pentecost
25	Ske	Seke	300	ske	Pentecost
26	Sa	Saa	3900}	sax	Pentecost

References

1. Clark, Ross (2009). Leo Tuai: A comparative lexical study of North and Central Vanuatu languages. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics. doi:10.15144/PL-603 (inactive 1 July 2025). hdl:1885/146751. ISBN   978-0-85883-600-6.
2. The language names used by Clark have often been superseded by other names; in that case, the glottonym used by Clark is indicated in brackets.

• François, Alexandre (2011), "Social ecology and language history in the northern Vanuatu linkage: A tale of divergence and convergence" (PDF), Journal of Historical Linguistics, 1 (2): 175–246, doi:10.1075/jhl.1.2.03fra, hdl: 1885/29283 .
• ——; Franjieh, Michael; Lacrampe, Sébastien; Schnell, Stefan (2015), "The exceptional linguistic density of Vanuatu" (PDF), in François, Alexandre; Lacrampe, Sébastien; Franjieh, Michael; Schnell, Stefan (eds.), The Languages of Vanuatu: Unity and Diversity, Studies in the Languages of Island Melanesia, Canberra: Asia Pacific Linguistics Open Access, pp. 1–21, ISBN   9781922185235 .