Saa Language - Dialects and Range

Dialects and Range

Sa has numerous dialects, with no well-established names or boundaries. At a meeting in 2008, speakers recognised four main dialects, with sub-dialectal variation and mixing of dialects in some areas.

The two central dialects are relatively similar to one another and are generally understood by all Sa speakers. Most writing and research in Sa has been in one of these dialects:

• A western dialect ("Saa" with a long a) is spoken on the west coast around Panas, Wali, Panngi and Ranputor.
• An eastern dialect ("Sa" with a short a) is spoken in the south-east around Ranwas. A variant of this dialect with longer vowels in certain words is spoken at Poinkros in the far south, and is used in the Bible Society's recent Gospel translations.

There are also two outlying dialects, which are highly distinctive and difficult for speakers of other dialects to understand:

• A northern dialect ("F dialect"), characterised by the presence of an f sound, is spoken in the north of the Sa area, at St Henri (Fatsare) and by some at Ran'gusuksu. It has close links with neighbouring Ske language and with Doltes, the extinct dialect of Hotwata village.
• A southern dialect ("Ha"), notable for the widespread replacement of s with h, is spoken in Bay Martelli (Harop) and Londar, and has close links with the languages of neighbouring Ambrym island.

The distinctive speech of villages such as Bunlap, Bay Barrier (Ranon) and Wanur appears to comprise mixtures of neighbouring dialects.

People in southern Pentecost remember the existence of additional dialects that are now extinct.