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Ethnologue > Web version > Country index > Pacific > Solomon Islands > Cheke Holo

Cheke Holo

A language of Solomon Islands

ISO 639-3: mrn

Population	10,800 (1999 SIL), increasing. 1,500 monolinguals.
Region	Central Santa Isabel Island, on Maringe side, Gnulahaghe village southeast to Kuma’ihaui; Kia District, Hograno coast villages; Gao-Bughotu region, scattered villages.
Language map	Solomon Islands
Alternate names	A’ara, Holo, Kubonitu
Dialects	Maringe (Maringhe), Hograno (Hogirano).
Classification	Austronesian, Malayo-Polynesian, Central-Eastern, Eastern Malayo-Polynesian, Oceanic, Western Oceanic, Meso Melanesian, New Ireland, South New Ireland-Northwest Solomonic, Santa Isabel, East
Language use	Trade language. Vigorous. L2 of many other language speakers. Literature could be used by Blablanga and Gao, Kokota, and Zazao. Used in kindergartens, religious services, commerce. Proud of Cheke Holo. Others recognize it and Bughotu [bgt] as the major languages of the island. Also use Bughotu.
Language development	Literacy rate in L1: 50%. Literacy rate in L2: 30%–35%. 5,500 can read and write. Dictionary. Grammar. NT: 1993.
Writing system	Latin script.
Comments	Agriculturalists; fishermen; government workers; church workers. Christian.

Entries from the SIL Bibliography about this language:

Academic Publications

BOSWELL, Freddy, author. 2001. Cheke Holo orthography: local tradition clashes with a linguist’s concerns.

BOSWELL, Freddy, author. 2002. "The genres of ’shouted speech’ in Cheke Holo."

BOSWELL, Freddy, author. 2011. Cheke Holo orthography: Ethnic language community decision-making and the role of trained linguists.  

Vernacular Publications

Life in our village: Short stories from Nareabu, Santa Isabel, Solomon Islands. 1981.