Timor–Alor–Pantar languages

Timor–Alor–Pantar
Geographic distribution	Timor and neighboring islands
Linguistic classification	Trans–New Guinea? Timor–Alor–Pantar
Subdivisions	Alor–Pantar East Timor Bunak
Language codes
Glottolog	timo1261

The Timor–Alor–Pantar (TAP) languages are a family of Papuan (non-Austronesian) languages spoken Timor, Kisar, and the Alor archipelago in Southern Indonesia.

Languages

The languages are demonstrably related, with the Alor-Pantar languages forming a distinct subgroup. The following conservative classification is from Ross (2005), Schapper et al. (2012), and Holton et al. (2012).

• East Timor (Oirata–Makasai) family
• Bunak
• Alor-Pantar family
• Teiwa
• Nedebang
• Kaera
• Western Pantar (Lamma)

Bunak and the Alor–Pantar languages are sometimes grouped together as "West Timor", while Bunak and East Timor have been grouped as "Timor–Kisar". Although the Alor–Pantar languages are clearly related, as are the Timor–Kisar languages and the two groups to each other, until comparative work is done on all languages simultaneously it will not be clear whether Bunak is closer to East Timor or to Alor–Pantar, or whether Alor–Pantar is a valid node. The list given above is conservative, without any undemonstrated groups.

Pronouns are:

	sg	pl
1excl	*ani~na	*ini
1incl		*api
2	*ai	*i
3	*ga	(*gi)

Ross (2005) suggest these pronouns reflect proto-Trans–New Guinea 1st person *na, *ni and 2nd person *ga, *gi, and possibly the pTNG dual/inclusive *-pi-, but this has not been demonstrated to the satisfaction of other linguists, many of whom view TImor-Alor-Pantar as a distinct family. In particular the pronoun relationships requires positing a "flip-flop" in which TNG 2nd person corresponds to TAP 3rd person pronouns.

History and classification

Despite their geographic proximity, the Papuan languages of Timor are not closely related, and demonstration of a relationship between any of them is difficult, apart from the clearly related Alor–Pantar languages on the islands neighboring Timor.

Arthur Capell first proposed that the Timor languages were a family in 1941, and Watuseke & Anceaux did the same for Timor–Alor–Pantar in 1973. Both units have been broken up in more recent classifications, though their ultimate relationship is generally accepted.

In 1957 HKL Cowan linked the Timor languages to the West Papuan family. However, when Stephen Wurm expanded Trans–New Guinea in 1975, he decided Timor–Alor–Pantar belonged there, and he linked it to the South Bird's Head languages in a South Bird's Head – Timor–Alor–Pantar branch of that phylum. Wurm noted similarities with West Papuan, a different family, but suggested this was due to substratum influence.

Ross (2005) classifies Timor–Alor–Pantar with the West Bomberai languages, the two groups forming a branch within West Trans–New Guinea. Based on a careful examination of new lexical data, Holton & Robinson (2014) find little evidence to support a connection between TAP and TNG.