Languages
The Sunda–Sulawesi languages are spoken by about 230 million people and include Malay (Indonesian and Malaysian), Sundanese, Javanese, Balinese, Acehnese, Chamorro (of the Mariana Islands), and Palauan.
The Philippine languages are spoken by 90 million people and include Tagalog (Filipino), Cebuano, Ilokano, Hiligaynon, Bikolano, Waray-Waray, and Kapampangan each with at least three million speakers.
The most widely spoken Bornean language is Malagasy, with 20 million speakers.
Central–Eastern includes the Oceanic languages with 2 million speakers, with mainly Western Oceanic, Southern Oceanic and Central Pacific (Polynesian and Fiji languages), such as Kuanua, Gilbertese, Hawaiian, Māori, Samoan, Tahitian, or Tongan.
Read more about this topic: Malayo-Polynesian Languages
Famous quotes containing the word languages:
“No doubt, to a man of sense, travel offers advantages. As many languages as he has, as many friends, as many arts and trades, so many times is he a man. A foreign country is a point of comparison, wherefrom to judge his own.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“The less sophisticated of my forbears avoided foreigners at all costs, for the very good reason that, in their circles, speaking in tongues was commonly a prelude to snake handling. The more tolerant among us regarded foreign languages as a kind of speech impediment that could be overcome by willpower.”
—Barbara Ehrenreich (b. 1941)
“People in places many of us never heard of, whose names we can’t pronounce or even spell, are speaking up for themselves. They speak in languages we once classified as “exotic” but whose mastery is now essential for our diplomats and businessmen. But what they say is very much the same the world over. They want a decent standard of living. They want human dignity and a voice in their own futures. They want their children to grow up strong and healthy and free.”
—Hubert H. Humphrey (1911–1978)