Samoan
A language of Samoa
| Population | 199,000 in Samoa (1999). Population total all countries: 369,957. |
| Region | Also in American Samoa, Fiji, New Zealand, Tonga, United States. |
| Dialects | No significant dialect variation, but important register-based distinctions in phonology. Lexical similarity: 70% with Wallisian [wls], 67% with Rarotongan [rar], 66% with Tongan [ton], 62% with Paumotu. |
| Classification | Austronesian, Malayo-Polynesian, Central-Eastern, Eastern Malayo-Polynesian, Oceanic, Central-Eastern Oceanic, Remote Oceanic, Central Pacific, East Fijian-Polynesian, Polynesian, Nuclear, Samoic-Outlier, Samoan |
| Language use | Official language. |
| Language development | Dictionary. Bible: 1855–1970. |
| Writing system | Latin script. |
| Comments | VSO. Agriculturalists. Christian. |
Also spoken in:
American Samoa
| Language name | Samoan |
| Population | 56,700 in American Samoa (1999). |
| Language use | National language. Most also use English. |
| Comments | Fishermen; canning. Christian. |
Ethnologue: Web |
Ethnologue: Print |
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