Languages Spoken in Palau: Palauan, English & Japanese Influence

Palau has two official languages: Palauan and English. Palauan is the most widely spoken; English dominates government, education, commerce, and tourism. Japanese persists as a legacy of the colonial era (1914–1944).

Palauan (Tekoi er a Belau)

• Family: Austronesian → Malayo-Polynesian → Micronesian.
• Relatives: Chamorro (Guam/CNMI), Gilbertese (Kiribati), Marshallese, Carolinian.
• Speakers: ~17,000 (nearly all residents + diaspora).
• Dialects: Minor variation across islands (Kayangel, Ngerchelong, Koror, Peleliu, Angaur, Sonsorol, Hatohobei). Sonsorolese/Tobi sometimes considered separate languages.
• Writing: Latin alphabet (orthography standardized 1970s). 20 letters: a b ch d e i k l m ng o r s t u w y + glottal stop (').
• Status: Vigorous; used in homes, churches, local government, radio. Taught in schools alongside English.

English

• Role: Medium of instruction (all levels), legislation, courts, business, tourism, international relations.
• Proficiency: High—near-universal among educated Palauans; many speak it natively.
• Variety: Pacific/US-influenced; code-switching with Palauan common.

Japanese

• History: South Seas Mandate (1914–1944); heavy immigration (peak 1930s: 25,000+ Japanese vs. 6,000 Palauans).
• Current: Spoken by elders (80+), some middle-aged. Taught as elective in high school. Tourism signage often trilingual (Palauan/English/Japanese).
• Loanwords: Hundreds in Palauan (e.g., daijobu "okay", benjo "toilet", sensei "teacher", denwa "phone").

Other Languages

• Filipino/Tagalog: Large OFW community (~4,000); used in households, churches.
• Chinese (Mandarin/Hokkien): Business community, recent migrants.
• Korean: Growing tourism/business presence.

Language Policy

• Constitution (1981): Palauan & English official.
• Education: Bilingual (Palauan medium early grades, English medium later).
• Preservation: Palau Community College, Belau National Museum run documentation programs.

For visitors: English works everywhere. Learning "Alii" (hello), "Ke kmal mesaul" (thank you), "Bo kebesengei" (goodbye) earns smiles. Japanese helps with older locals and some signage.