Thao language
| Thao | |
|---|---|
| Sao | |
| Thau a lalawa | |
| Native to | Taiwan |
| Ethnicity | 820 Thao (2020) |
Native speakers | 4 (2021) |
Austronesian
| |
| Dialects |
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | ssf |
| Glottolog | thao1240 |
| ELP | Thao |
Map of Formosan languages | |
Thao is classified as Critically Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger. | |
Thao (/θaʊ/; endonym: Thau a lalawa), also known as Sao, is an Austronesian language. It is the nearly extinct language of the Thao people, an indigenous people of Taiwan from the Sun Moon Lake region in central Taiwan. It is a Formosan language of the Austronesian family; Barawbaw and Shtafari are dialects.