'Are'are language
| 'Are'are | |
|---|---|
| Areare | |
| Native to | Solomon Islands |
| Region | southern Malaita, Solomon Islands |
|
Native speakers
|
18,000 (1999) |
| Dialects |
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | |
| Glottolog | area1240 |
The 'Are'are language is spoken by the 'Are'are people of the Solomon Islands. It is spoken by about 18,000 people, making it the second-largest Oceanic language in the Solomons after the Kwara'ae (also from Malaita). The literacy rate for 'Are'are is somewhere between 30% and 60% for first language speakers, and 25%–50% for second language learners. There are also translated Bible portions into the language from 1957–2008.
The language is spoken mainly by the 'Are'are people, on the southern part of Malaita island, as well as nearby South Malaita Island and the eastern shore of Guadalcanal (the Marau Sound, 60 km away), in the Solomon Islands archipelago. The speakers live as hunters and agriculturalists.
The language is divided into two dialects, 'Are'are proper and Marau, spoken at Marau Sound in eastern Guadalcanal. Marau is sometimes counted as a separate language.
The language uses a subject–verb–object word order.
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