The Minahasan languages are a subgroup of the Austronesian languages spoken by the

Minahasa people The Minahasans (alternative spelling: Minahassa) are an ethnic group native to the North Sulawesi province of Indonesia, formerly known as North Celebes. The Minahasa people sometimes refer to themselves as Manado people. Although the Minahasan p ...

in northern Sulawesi,

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

. They belong to the

Philippine The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

subgroup. Considerable lexical influence comes from

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

, and

Ternate Ternate is a city in the Indonesian province of North Maluku and an island in the Maluku Islands. It was the ''de facto'' provincial capital of North Maluku before Sofifi on the nearby coast of Halmahera became the capital in 2010. It is off the ...

, a historical legacy of the presence of foreign powers. The Minahasan languages are distinct from the

Manado Malay Manado Malay, or simply the Manado language, is a creole language spoken in Manado, the capital of North Sulawesi province in Indonesia, and the surrounding area. The local name of the language is , and the name Minahasa Malay is also used, afte ...

(Minahasa Malay) language, which is Malayic in origin, and has been displacing the indigenous languages of the area.

Classification

The languages are

Tonsawang Tonsawang, also known as Tombatu, is an Austronesian language of the northern tip of Sulawesi, Indonesia. It belongs to the Minahasan branch of the Philippine languages. Location According to linguist James Sneddon, the language is "one of the ...

Tontemboan Tontemboan is an Austronesian language, of northern Sulawesi, Indonesia. It is a Minahasan language, a sub-group of the Philippine languages. Name and dialects Other names and dialect names are: Makela'i-Maotow, Makelai, Matana'i-Maore', Mat ...

, Tondano,

Tombulu Tombulu, also known as Minahasan language, is an Austronesian language of northern Sulawesi in Indonesia. It is a Minahasan language, a sub-group of the Philippine languages. It is a local language of the Minahasa people spoken in the city of ...

and Tonsea. The Minahasan languages are classified as a branch of the

subgroup. The

Bantik Bantik is an endangered Austronesian language, perhaps a Philippine language, of North Sulawesi, Indonesia. It is the traditional language of the Bantik people, who are now switching to Manado Malay (the local variety of Malay) as their lang ...

Ratahan Ratahan (also Toratán) is an Austronesian language spoken in North Sulawesi North Sulawesi ( id, Sulawesi Utara) is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the Minahasa Peninsula of Sulawesi, south of the Philippines and southeast of S ...

, and

Ponosakan Ponosakan is an Austronesian language spoken in the vicinity of the town of , North Sulawesi, Indonesia. This language is almost extinct, with only four fluent speakers left as of November 2014. Classification The locals in North Sulawesi oft ...

languages, although also spoken in the Minahasa region, are more distantly related, thus not covered by the term in a genealogical sense.

Reconstruction

Proto-Minahasan (PMin) has been reconstructed by Sneddon (1978). The comparison table (a small selection from ) illustrates the correspondences between the Minahasan languages, including inherited vocabulary as well as Minahasan innovations.

References

Notes

Bibliography

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External links