Alas language explained

Alas
Nativename:Batak Alas
States:Indonesia
Region:Sumatra
Ethnicity:
Date:2000 census
Ref:e18
Familycolor:Austronesian
Fam2:Malayo-Polynesian
Fam3:Northwest Sumatra–Barrier Islands
Fam4:Batak
Fam5:Northern
Iso3:btz
Glotto:bata1292
Glottorefname:Batak Alas-Kluet
Script:Latin
Batak
Agency:Badan Pengembangan dan Pembinaan Bahasa

Alas-Kluet, Alas, or Batak Alas is an Austronesian language of Sumatra. The three dialects, Alas, Kluet, and Singkil (Kade-Kade), may not constitute a single language; Alas may be closer to Karo, and the others closer to Dairi. By linguistic affiliation, Alas–Kluet belongs to the Batak subgroup. Ethnically, however, its speakers generally do not identify as Batak, mostly because of their religion, and also due to political reasons.[1]

Phonology

The phonology of Alas are as follows:[2]

!Labial!Alveolar!Palatal!Dorsal!Glottal
Nasalpronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/
Plosivepronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/
pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/
Fricativepronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/
Approximantpronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/
Trillʀ
Vowels!!Front!Central!Back
Closepronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/
Open-midpronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/
Openpronounced as /link/

See also

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. Book: Akifumi Iwabuchi. The People of the Alas Valley: A Study of an Ethnic Group of Northern Sumatra. 1994. Clarendon Press. 0-19-827902-7.
  2. Book: Akbar, Osra M. . Kamus Alas-Indonesia Seri K . Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan . 1985 . Jakarta . xv . id . 2021-08-15 . 2025-07-17 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210815093100/https://repositori.kemdikbud.go.id/1965/1/Kamus%20Alas%20Indonesia%20(1985).pdf . bot: unknown .