Waropen is an
Austronesian language spoken at the Geelvink Bay of
Indonesian Papua. It is fairly closely related to the
Yapen languages.
Dialects are Waropen Kai, Napan, and Ambumi.
Phonology
Sounds /w, j/ can be heard as vowels
Š, ɪwhen after vowel sounds.
Distribution
In
Papua province
Papua is a province of Indonesia, comprising the northern coast of Western New Guinea together with island groups in Cenderawasih Bay to the west. It roughly follows the borders of Papuan customary region of Tabi Saireri. It is bordered by the ...
, it is spoken in
Mamberamo Raya Regency
Mamberamo Raya Regency is one of the regencies (''kabupaten'') in Papua Province, Indonesia; it was created on 15 March 2007 from parts of Sarmi Regency and Waropen Regency. It covers an area of 23,813.91 km2, and had a population of 18,365 at th ...
and
Waropen Regency
Waropen Regency is one of the regencies (''kabupaten'') in Papua Province, Indonesia. The Regency covers an area of 10,847.97 km2, and it had a population of 24,639 at the 2010 Census and 33,943 at the 2020 Census. The official estimate as at mid ...
. The Ambumi dialect is spoken in the south Waropen Bay area. Waropen is also spoken southwest to the Rombak River mouth.
References
South Halmahera–West New Guinea languages
Languages of western New Guinea
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