| Also Known As: Barue,Barawahing,Namatalaki,Abui
Description:
Abui is a language of the Alor Archipelago. It belongs to the Trans–New Guinea family spoken approximately by 16,000 speakers in the central part of the Alor Island in Eastern Indonesia, East Nusa Tenggara province. The native name is Abui tanga which literally translates as 'mountain language'.
The term ‘Abui’ is an Abui word that means ‘mountains’ or alternatively ‘enclosed place’. This word is also used in Alorese Malay to refer to Abui speakers who refer to their language as Abui tanga ‘mountain language’ and to themselves as Abui loku ‘the mountain people’.
According to Abui oral tradition, Abui people settled in Alor in ancient times and did not find other settlers there. Later some of them moved to the Kabola peninsula.
The same tradition accounts that they dwelled in caves in the mountains in the Mainang area. In this area also some rock art is found. Abui refer to neighbouring tribes as ‘younger siblings’ or as ‘new arrivals’. However, the oral tradition in Alor serves too often as a political instrument. The oral tradition has not been verified by archaeological research yet.
Abui speakers are mainly farmers, just like other inhabitants of Alor. However, in mountainous..... full article at Wikipedia |
