Tetun language

Tetun (Tetun; Indonesian: Bahasa Tetun; Portuguese: Tétum) is an Austronesian language spoken on the island of Timor. It is one of the official languages of Timor-Leste and it is also spoken in Belu Regency and Malaka Regency, which form the eastern part of IndonesianWest Timor adjoining Timor-Leste.

There are two main forms of Tetun as a language:

• Tetun Terik, which is a more indigenous form of Tetun marked by different word choice, less foreign influence and other characteristics such as verb conjugation
• Tetun Prasa ('market Tetun', from the Portuguese word praça meaning 'town square') or Tetun Dili (given its widespread usage in the capital Dili). This is the form of Tetun (heavily influenced by Portuguese) that developed in Dili during colonial rule as local Tetun speakers came into contact with Portuguese missionaries, traders and colonial rulers. In Timor-Leste, Tetun Dili is widely spoken fluently as a second language.

Ethnologue classifies Tetun Terik as a dialect of Tetun. However, without previous contact, Tetun Dili is not immediately mutually intelligible, mainly because of the large number of Portuguese origin words used in Tetun Dili. Besides some grammatical simplification, Tetun Dili has been greatly influenced by the vocabulary and to a small extent by the grammar of Portuguese, the other official language of Timor-Leste.