Documenting Ramari Hatohobei (literally the language of Tobi Island), a severely endangered Micronesian language
The Endangered Language Documentation Programme (ELDP) provides grants worldwide for the documentation of endangered languages and knowledge. Grantees create audiovisual collections with transcription and translations of endangered languages and practices. These collections are preserved and made freely available through the Endangered Languages Archive (ELAR).
Tobian (Ramari Hatohobei) (ISO 639-3: tox) is the language of Tobi, one of the Southwest Islands of the Republic of Palau, a Micronesian nation in the western Pacific. Severely endangered, Tobian is currently spoken by approximately 150 people. Tobian and the dialects of Sonsorol, Merir, and Pulo Anna, the other three Southwest Islands, are closely related to the languages spoken in the outer islands of Yap and Chuuk. Intensive work will be done with elderly Tobian speakers to document their language through collection of vocabulary, stories, poems, and songs in their relevant socio-cultural context before it is lost.
Primary investigator: Peter Black
Project Details
Location:
Organiser(s):
Endangered Languages Documentation Programme
Project partner(s): HOPE Hatohobei Organization for People & the Environment
Funder(s):
Arcadia
Funding received: £10,000.00
Commencement Date: 01/2009
Project Status: Completed
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