What language is mostly spoken in Timor Leste?
What language is mostly spoken in Timor Leste?
Timor-Leste’s two official languages are Portuguese and Tetum, and its two working languages are English and Indonesian.
How do you say hello in Timor Leste?
Key to abbreviations: m = said by men, f = said by women….Useful phrases in Tetum.
| English | Lia-Tetun (Tetum) |
|---|---|
| Hello (General greeting) | Elo Hi |
| How are you? | Diak ka lai? O di’ak ka lae? |
| Reply to ‘How are you?’ | Hau diak. Obrigadu. Ita mo’s di’ak? (m) Hau diak. Obrigada. Ita mo’s di’ak? (f) |
| Long time no see | Kleur ona la hetan ita |
What language do Dili speak?
In East Timor Tetun Dili is widely spoken fluently as a second language….Tetum language.
| Tetun Dili | |
|---|---|
| Native to | East Timor |
| Native speakers | 390,000 (2009) L2: 570,000 in East Timor |
| Language family | Austronesian Malayo-Polynesian Central–Eastern Timoric Tetumic Tetun Dili |
| Dialects | Belunese (Tetun Belu) Terik (Tetun Terik) |
Does East Timor still speak Portuguese?
DILI (Reuters) – Portuguese is one of the two official languages in East Timor, but you can hardly hear it spoken in the streets of the young nation. The tiny country was a Portuguese colony for more than three centuries, but only an estimated 5 percent of its one million people now speak the European language.
Why does East Timor speak Portuguese?
Timorese Portuguese is a legacy of Portuguese rule of Timor-Leste (called Portuguese Timor) from the 16th century. It had its first contact during the Portuguese discoveries of the East, but it was largely exposed to Portuguese Timor in the 18th century after its division from the rest of the island by the Netherlands.
How do you say Merry Christmas in Timor-Leste?
Other families will visit relatives and friends who weren’t able to make it for Christmas Eve to wish them Boas Festas do Natal (merry Christmas). It is also a tradition for parents to take their kids to visit their Inan-aman sarani (God parents) and give gifts such as money, chicken, fruits and cake.
Why Timor-Leste official language is Portuguese not English?
The lingua franca and national language of East Timor is Tetum, an Austronesian language influenced by Portuguese, with which it has equal status as an official language.