Tobian (, literally "the language of Tobi") is the language of Tobi, one of the Southwest Islands of Palau, and the main island of Hatohobei state. Tobian is a Micronesian language spoken by approximately 150 people, about 22 are native speakers. The speakers are located in either the island of Tobi or in Echang, a hamlet of Koror, the former capital of Palau. Tobian and Sonsorolese are very close, and appear to be gradually merging towards a new dialect called "Echangese". Earlier in the 20th century, about 1000 people lived on the island. Shortly before and during the First World War, those numbers dropped severely due to an abundance of disease. Classification Tobian and the dialects of Sonsorol, Merir, and Pulo Ana, the other inhabited Southwest Islands, are closely related to the languages spoken in the Federated States of Micronesia outer islands of Yap and Chuuk Lagoon. These include Ulithi and the Central Carolines. Altogether, these languages form a sub-group within the Micronesian languages. The names of these dialects are the terms that are commonly used in European terms. Below are the native names as compared to the common names: Tobi is the basis of a local pidgin. Examples animal = mar coconut palm = ruh goodbye = sabuho language = ramarih soldierfish = red Counting one = sewo two = huwou three = soruo four = fauwo This is only base counting. There are different numerals for a lot of different objects. Phonology Vowels "œ" is used rarely and sounds similar to the French "eu" but the lips do not round out at the end of the sound and has critical meaning in words. There is a central low vowel that sounds like the "u" in "but", but it does not have semantic value and it has very rare occurrence. Diphthongs There are a lot of diphthongs in Tobian and according to Capell, "several of them are difficult for Europeans". äe as in mäe: breadfruit äi fäivi: woman aḛ wa′ŋaḛt: then ai maik: swordfish a:i ms:il, forehead decoration ao̯ wao̯: top au jau: needle, sauruai: my friend a:u sa:u: piece ei lei: agent of action oʉ woʉ: rather of house øi røi: coconut oil øʉ Pannøʉ: Palau Homonyms and Near Homonyms Like most other languages, Tobian has examples of homonyms but they are not as abundant. Meanings can vary solely on vowel length. Also small differences in sounds can