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Torba Province
Torba (or ''TorBa'') is the northernmost and least populous province of Vanuatu. It consists of the Banks Islands and the Torres Islands. The province's name is derived from the initial letters of "''TORres''" and "''BAnks''". Population The province has a population of 9,359 and an area of . Its capital is Sola on Vanua Lava. Islands These are the main islands of Torba Province, excluding smaller and uninhabited islets. ;Banks Islands ;Torres Islands Languages The Torba province has seventeen languages, all Oceanic — from north to south: Hiw, Lo-Toga, Lehali, Löyöp, Volow, Mwotlap, Lemerig, Vera'a, Vurës, Mwesen, Mota, Nume, Dorig, Koro Koro may refer to: Geography *Koro Island, a Fijian island * Koro Sea, in the Pacific Ocean * Koro, Ivory Coast *Koro, Mali * Koro, Wisconsin, United States, an unincorporated community Languages *Koro language (India), an endangered language spo ..., Olrat, Lakon, Mwerlap. François ''et al.'' (2015). With 550 spea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Torba In Vanuatu
Torba may refer to: Places *Torba, Bodrum, a village in Turkey *Torba Province, Vanuatu *Torba, a village in Măgherani Commune, Mureș County, Romania *Torba, a frazione of Gornate Olona, Varese, Italy Other uses *Torba, a cement-like material used for example in the construction of the Skorba Temples, Malta *''Torba'', a 2015 album by the hip hop group EarthGang See also *Tarbha, Orissa, India {{Disambiguation, geo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hiw Island
Hiw (sometimes spelled ''Hiu'') is the northernmost island in Vanuatu, located in Torba Province. Name The island's name ''Hiw'' is taken from the local Hiw language; it is known as ''Hiu'' in neighboring Lo-Toga. Etymologically, these forms reflect Proto-Torres-Banks *''siwo'', from Proto-Oceanic *''sipo'' “(go) down”, understood here in its geocentric sense of “located northwest”. Geography Hiw is the largest island in the Torres Islands in Torba Province. It is situated east of the Torres Trench, south of Vanikoro in the Solomon Islands. It has an area of . The highest point is Mount Wonvara (. Hiw's climate is humid tropical. The average annual rainfall is about 4000 mm. The island is subject to frequent cyclones and earthquakes. ''Vewoag Point'' (locally called ''Ngrë Twome''), the northern cape of Hiw, is the northernmost point of land of Vanuatu. of Hiw is a submerged coral reef, ''Ngwey Gakwe'' (formerly ''Recif Giraudeau''), over which the waves br ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mwotlap Language
Mwotlap (pronounced ; formerly known as ''Motlav'') is an Oceanic language spoken by about 2,100 people in Vanuatu. The majority of speakers are found on the island of Motalava in the Banks Islands, with smaller communities in the islands of Ra (or ''Aya'') and Vanua Lava, as well as migrant groups in the two main cities of the country, Santo and Port Vila. Mwotlap was first described in any detail in 2001, by the linguist Alexandre François. Volow, which used to be spoken on the same island, may be considered a dialect or a separate language. The language Name The language is named after the island. Geographic distribution Mwotlap is spoken by about 2,100 people in the Banks Islands, in the North of Vanuatu. Among them, 1,640 live on the island of Mota Lava and its neighbor island, Ra. It is also spoken by a few hundred people living elsewhere in Vanuatu: * Vanua Lava, particularly in the northeast * Several other northern Vanuatu islands including Ureparapara, Gaua, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Volow Language
Volow (formerly known as ''Valuwa'' or ''Valuga'') is an Oceanic language variety which used to be spoken in the area of Aplow, in the eastern part of the island of Motalava, in Vanuatu. Name The name ''Volow'' is originally a placename: it corresponds to the area known as Aplow, but in the local language Volow rather than in Mwotlap. This form, pronounced , is derived from Proto-Torres-Banks *''βaluwa''. In neighboring Mwotlap, the same area is called ''Aplow'' (with locative prefix ''a-''), and in Mota, it is called ''Valuwa'' . Both of these are nowadays used as alternative names for the area. Sociolinguistics Volow has receded historically in favour of the now dominant language Mwotlap. It is now only remembered by a single passive speaker, who lives in the village of Aplow — the new name of what was previously known as Volow. The similarity of Volow with Mwotlap is such that the two communalects may be considered dialects of a single language. Phonology Volo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Löyöp Language
Löyöp (formerly known as ''Lehalurup'') is an Oceanic language spoken by about 240 people, on the east coast of Ureparapara Island in the Banks Islands of Vanuatu.List of Banks islands languages François (2012). It is distinct from Lehali, the language spoken on the west coast of the same island. The language was originally native to the , having been brought to Urepapapara around the 1930s when a tsunami struck the Reef Islands and forced the speakers to relocate. < ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lehali Language
Lehali (previously known as ''Teqel'') is an Oceanic language spoken by about 200 people, on the west coast of Ureparapara Island in Vanuatu.List of Banks islands languages It is distinct from Löyöp, the language spoken on the east coast of the same island. Name The language is named after the village where it is spoken, natively referred to as ''Loli'' . The name ''Lehali'' does not have any etymological value, other than being a corruption of the native name.Phonology Lehali phonemically contrasts 16 |
Lo-Toga Language
Lo-Toga is an Oceanic language spoken by about 580 people on the islands of Lo and Toga, in the Torres group of northern Vanuatu. The language has sometimes been called ''Loh'' (''sic'') or ''Toga'', after either of its two dialects. Name The language is named after the two islands where it is spoken: Lo and Toga. Situation and dialects Its 580 speakers live mostly in Lo and Toga, the two main islands in the southern half of the Torres group. The same language is also spoken by the small populations of the two other islands of Linua and Tegua. Lo-Toga is itself divided into two very close dialects, ''Lo'' (spoken on Lo island) and ''Toga'' (spoken on Toga). The inhabitants of northern Vanuatu generally don't draw a distinction between dialects and languages. Conversely, Lo-Toga is a distinct language from the other language of the Torres group, Hiw. Phonology The Lo dialect of Lo-Toga phonemically contrasts 16 consonants and 13 vowels. François (2021). Consonants V ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hiw Language
Hiw (sometimes spelled ''Hiu'') is an Oceanic language spoken on the island of Hiw, in the Torres Islands of Vanuatu. With about 280 speakers, Hiw is considered endangered. Hiw is distinct from Lo-Toga, the other language of the Torres group. All Hiw speakers are bilingual in Bislama, and most also speak Lo-Toga. Name The language is named after the island. Phonology Vowels Hiw has 9 phonemic vowels. These are all short monophthongs : François (2021). The three central vowels are all rounded. becomes a glide whenever it's followed by another vowel. The high back rounded vowel occurs, but only as an allophone of and after labio-velar consonants. always becomes after a labio-velar, while only becomes in pre-tonic syllables, and then only optionally. Consonants Hiw has 14 consonants. All plosives are voiceless. Hiw is the only Austronesian language whose consonant inventory includes a prestopped velar lateral approximant ; this complex segment is Hiw's only ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oceanic Languages
The approximately 450 Oceanic languages are a branch of the Austronesian languages. The area occupied by speakers of these languages includes Polynesia, as well as much of Melanesia and Micronesia. Though covering a vast area, Oceanic languages are spoken by only two million people. The largest individual Oceanic languages are Eastern Fijian with over 600,000 speakers, and Samoan with an estimated 400,000 speakers. The Gilbertese (Kiribati), Tongan, Tahitian, Māori, Western Fijian and Tolai (Gazelle Peninsula) languages each have over 100,000 speakers. The common ancestor which is reconstructed for this group of languages is called Proto-Oceanic (abbr. "POc"). Classification The Oceanic languages were first shown to be a language family by Sidney Herbert Ray in 1896 and, besides Malayo-Polynesian, they are the only established large branch of Austronesian languages. Grammatically, they have been strongly influenced by the Papuan languages of northern New Guinea, but they ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Torres–Banks Languages
The Torres–Banks languages form a linkage of Southern Oceanic languages spoken in the Torres Islands and Banks Islands of northern Vanuatu. Languages François (2011) recognizes 17 languages spoken by 9,400 people in 50 villages, including 16 living (3 of which are moribund) and one extinct language. François (2011). The 17 languages, ranked from northwest to southeast, are: : Comparative studies A. François has published several studies comparing various features of the Torres–Banks languages: * François (2005): Inventories of vowel systems, and their historical development; * François (2007): Systems of noun articles, and their historical development; * François (2009): How several languages grammaticalized a set of light personal pronouns into markers for “aorist” aspect; * François (2011): How Torres–Banks languages tend to show structural isomorphism, yet lexical diversity; * François (2013): Etymological reconstruction of spiritual terms in Torres–B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toga (island)
Toga is an island in the Torres group, within the Torba Province of Vanuatu. Geography Toga Island is the most southern of the Torres Islands. The island's size is 6 km by 4.5 km. The estimated terrain elevation above sea level is 104 meters. Toga is surrounded by a narrow fringing reef quickly dropping off into deep water. The summit of the island is Mt Lemeura (locally ''Lēmere'' ) located on the western side of the island. The climate on Toga is humid tropical. The average annual rainfall is about 4000 mm. The island is subject to frequent cyclones and earthquakes. Population Toga is the most populated island in the Torres Islands, with about 250 people. They speak the ''Toga'' dialect of the Lo-Toga language. The population lives in two villages: ''Liqal'' and ''Litew'' . An ancient village, now abandoned, was called ''Qururetaqō'' . Fauna Barn owls are known to live in the area. Many samples of the owl's bones were found in a cave in Toga, which were rev ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tegua
Tegua is an island in Vanuatu's Torres Islands chain, located in Torba Province. Geography The island spans 7 km by 6.5 km; on the eastern side of the island is Lateu Bay indented 1.8 km. Ngwel Island is located 600 meters off the west coast of Tegua Island. Population The only village is Lateu, with a population of 58. About 100 residents of Tegua were evacuated by the government because rising sea levels were flooding their island. One geological study found that of four islands in the group, Tegua had the slowest inferred uplift rate at 0.7 mm/yr for southeastern Tegua. A "narrow E-W trending block has been down-dropped relative to the rest of the isle. Name The name ''Tegua'' comes from the Mota language, which was used as the primary language of the Melanesian Mission. Locally, the island is called ''Tugue'' in Lo-Toga, and ''Töyö'' in Hiw. These names all come from a Proto-Torres-Banks form *''Teɣua''. References External links “The Myst ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
