| Betsileo | |
|---|---|
| Native to | |
| Ethnicity | Betsileo |
Austronesian
| |
| |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-1 | mg |
| ISO 639-3 | plt |
| Glottolog | bets1235 |
| Linguasphere | 31-LDA-aj |
Betsileo is a dialect of Malagasy1234 spoken in the homeland of Betsileo people.5
Classification
Betsileo is an Austronesian language part of the Plateaux branch of Malagasy language.6
Geographic distribution
The Betsileo dialect is widely spoken in the regions of Amoron'i Mania and Matsiatra Ambony.7 It is the primary dialect spoken in the cities of Fianarantsoa, Ambositra, and Ambalavao.8
Vocabulary
| # | Gloss | Standard Malagasy | Betsileo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pronouns & Numbers | |||
| 1 | One | Iray | Iraika |
| 2 | One (last night) | Iray halina | Iray haligna |
| 3 | I / Me | Izaho / Aho | Aho / A |
| 4 | He / She / Him / Her | Izy | Izy/Ihy |
| 5 | We | Izahay / Isika | Agnay / Atsika |
| 6 | You | Anao / Anareo | Agnao / Agnareo |
| Negation & Intensity | |||
| 7 | All | Avy | Aby |
| 8 | Not | Tsy | Tsa |
| 9 | Really / Very | Tena | Tegna |
| 10 | Too much | Be loatra | Be loatsa |
| Grammar & Concepts | |||
| 11 | That | no | ro |
| 12 | Question | Fanontaniana | Fanontanena |
| 13 | To say | Miteny | Mitarogna |
| Daily Life | |||
| 14 | Family | Fianakaviana | Fianakavena |
| 15 | Fear | Tahotra | Tahotsa |
References
References
- Grimes, Barbara F. (2000). Ethnologue: Languages of the World (14th ed.). Summer Institute of Linguistics. p. 293. ISBN 9780883128152.
- Nielssen, Hilde (2012). Ritual Imagination: A Study of Tromba Possession among the Betsimisaraka in Eastern Madagascar. Studies of Religion in Africa, vol. 40. Leiden; Boston: Brill. p. 301. ISBN 9789004215245.
- McElroy, Colleen J. (1999). Over the Lip of the World: Among the Storytellers of Madagascar. University of Michigan Press. p. xxii.
- "The Antananarivo Annual and Madagascar Magazine". The Antananarivo Annual and Madagascar Magazine (4): 124. 1878.
- "ethnicLists – Dictionnaire et Encyclopédie malgaches". motmalgache.org. Retrieved 29 April 2025.
- "OLAC resources in and about the Plateau Malagasy language". olac.ldc.upenn.edu. Retrieved 2026-04-23.
- "Translations - Islands Mission".
- Molet, Louis (1957). Little Guide to Malagasy Toponymy (PDF) (in French). Tananarive: Scientific Research Institute of Madagascar, Department of Human Sciences. pp. map (unnumbered) + p. 7.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link) The map is placed before the numbered pages