Federated States of Micronesia Languages

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Federated States of Micronesia

Languages

Description

Micronesians speak English plus a native tongue. English is the official language of the government and of commerce.

There are eight indigenous languages in the Federated States of Micronesia.

• Yapese - spoken by the people on the island of Yap.
• Ulithian - spoken on Ulithi Atoll and neighboring islands.
• Woleaians - main language on the island of Woleai and surrounding smaller islands.
• Chuukese (also known at Trukese) - spoken primarily on the islands of Chuuk.
• Pohnpeian - spoken on the island of Pohnpei.
• Kosraeans (sometimes rendered Kusiaean) - spoken on the islands of Kosrea.
• Nukuoro - spoken on the Nukuoro Atoll and on Pohnpei
• Kapingamarangi - closely related to the Nukuoro language.

NOTE: many elderly people are fluent in Japanese.

The records are in Spanish, German, English, or the native tongue, depending on the time period and the island or island group.

Word List(s)

For word lists and help researching in Federated States of Micronesia records, see:

• Spanish Genealogical Word List
• German Genealogical Word List

Language Aids and Dictionaries

Language Aids

• Chuukese language - Wikipedia
• Kapingamarangi language - Wikipedia
• Pohnpeian language - Wikipedia
• Ulithian language - Wikipedia
• Yapese language - Wikipedia