Alune people

Alune people
Sapalewa people / Sapolewa people
A group of men and women of Ahiolo.
Total population
21,300[1]
Regions with significant populations
 Indonesia (Seram Island)
Languages
Alune language (Malayo-Polynesian), Indonesian language
Religion
Christianity (predominantly), Islam, Animism
Related ethnic groups
Wemale people

The Alune (sometimes Sapalewa or Sapolewa) people are one of the long-established ethnic groups of Seram Island, Indonesia. They number about 21,300 and live in 27 villages of the western-central area of the island. Like the Wemale, they originated in a common group called Patasiwa.[2]

The Alune speak a language of Malayo-Polynesian origin. It is also known as Sapalewa or Patasiwa Alfoeren and, despite the small number of speakers, it has a few dialects. The most prestigious dialect is the Rambatu speech variety.[3] The Hainuwele legend is an origin myth from the Alune and Wemale folklore.[4] It was recorded by German ethnologist Adolf Ellegard Jensen in a 1937–8 expedition to the Maluku Islands.[5]

  1. ^ "Alune people in Indonesia". Joshua Project. Retrieved 2014-09-17.
  2. ^ Jensen, Adolf E. and Herman Niggemeyer, Hainuwele ; Völkserzählungen von der Molukken-Insel Ceram (Ergebnisse der Frobenius-Expedition vol. I), Frankfurt-am-Main 1939, Pg. 59–64
  3. ^ Ethnologue - Alune language
  4. ^ The Oxford Companion to World Mythology - Hainuwele
  5. ^ Adolf Ellegard Jensen: Hainuwele. Volkserzählungen von der Molukken-Insel Ceram. Vittorio Klostermann, Frankfurt am Main 1939