Micronesia is found across the Western Pacific Ocean. It comprises 600 islands, and it is made up of 4 island states: Kosrae, Chuuk, Pohnpei, and Yap. The country is known for its palm-shaded beaches, ancient ruins, and wreck-filled dives. Polynesia is one of the sub-regions of Oceania, which is made up of more than 1000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. The people who inhabit Polynesia are known as Polynesians. Let’s look at some of the languages spoken on the Pacific Islands.
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Bismala
Bismala is mainly used by Muslims, especially before they start a good deed, for example, before they start the daily prayer. In the places where the population follows Islam as the official language, Bismala is used in over half of the constitutions of countries. Bismala is a phrase recited mostly before each chapter of the Qur’an except the ninth one.
Chuukese
Chuukese is the Trukic language of the Austronesian language family that is spoken primarily on the Island of Chuuk in Caroline Island in Micronesia. Other communities on the Island speak Chuukese, such as Guam, Pohnpei, and Hawaii. According to estimates, there are about 45,900 speakers of Chuukese in Micronesia.
Carolinian
Carolinian is another Austronesian language. It originates in the Caroline Island, but it is spoken in Northern Mariana Island. Carolinian is the official language of the Carolinian people. Also, Carolinian is a threatened language according to the catalog given of the Endangered languages. It has approximately 3100 native speakers in the world.
Marshallese
Marshallese language is spoken by 44,000 people in Marshall Island, which makes it the principal language of the country. Marshallese is one of the Micronesia languages spoken in the Marshall Island in the North Pacific. There are other 6,000 speakers of Marshallese outside the Marshall, including the ones in Nauru and the United States.
Pohnpeian
Pohnenian is the indigenous language of the island of Pohnpei in Caroline Island. It is also a Micronesian language. Pohnpeian language is estimated to have approximately 30,000 speakers living in Pohnpei, and it is the second most spoken language in the Federated States of Micronesia.
Woleanian
It is a Trukic language and the primary language of the Island of Woleai. It is spoken by approximately 1700 speakers on the Island of Woleai and the surrounding small island in the State of Yap of Micronesia.
Kiribati
Kiribati is an independent island nation that is found in the central Pacific Ocean. According to the census of 2020, Kiribati has a permanent population of over 119,000 and more and a half who live on Tarawa Atoll. The official languages of Kiribati are both English and Gilbertese.
Korean
Korean language is another Micronesian language spoken by the people of Kosrae. According to the 2005 census, there were around 6,620 speakers of the language in Micronesia and 1,100 speakers in all other countries.
There are many languages in Pacific Island which could be mentioned, but the above are just among the many spoken languages in Pacific Island. Other languages include Samoan, Maori, Chamorro, Yapese, Ulithian, Niuean, Toni, among the many others spoken in different parts of the Pacific Island.