| Lovono | |
|---|---|
| Alavana | |
| Native to | Solomon Islands |
| Region | Vanikoro |
Native speakers | 4 (2012)[1] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | vnk |
| Glottolog | vano1237 |
| ELP | Vano |
 Lovono is classified as Critically Endangered by theUNESCOAtlas of the World's Languages in Danger. | |
Lovono (Vano,Alavano,Alavana) is a nearly extinct language of the island ofVanikoro in the easternmost province of theSolomon Islands. As of 2012, it is only spoken by four speakers;[1] it has beenreplaced by the island's dominant language,Teanu.
The language name makes reference to an ancient village in the northwest of the islandBanie.[3] In the language Lovono, which was once the dominant one in that area, the village wascalledAlavana. In Teanu, which is now the only language spoken by the modern population, the same village iscalledLovono. Thislanguage shift is reflected in the people's preference to use the Teanu form (i.e.Lovono) both for the village name and for the ancient language that used to be associated with it.
The same village – and hence the language – has been also spelledWhanou orVano in the scientific literature, possibly reflecting an older pronunciation of the word.
Some information on the languages of Vanikoro, including Lovono, can be found inFrançois (2009) for the grammar, and François (2021) for the lexicon.[4]
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