Editing Carolinian language (section)

{{Short description|Austronesian language of the Northern Mariana Islands}}
{{Infobox language
|name = Carolinian
|altname = 
|nativename = {{lang|cal|Refaluwasch}}
|states = [[Northern Mariana Islands]]
|region = Saipan, Anatahan, and Agrihan islands, Marianas
|ethnicity = [[Carolinian people|Carolinians]]
|speakers = {{sigfig|3100|2}}
|date = 2000
|ref = e18
|familycolor = Austronesian
|fam2 = [[Malayo-Polynesian languages|Malayo-Polynesian]]
|fam3 = [[Oceanic languages|Oceanic]]
|fam4 = [[Micronesian languages|Micronesian]]
|fam5 = Nuclear Micronesian
|fam6 = [[Chuukic languages|Chuukic]]
|nation = {{flag|Northern Mariana Islands}}
|iso3 = cal
|glotto = caro1242
|glottorefname = Carolinian
}}

'''Carolinian''' is an [[Austronesian language]] originating in the [[Caroline Islands]], but spoken in the [[Northern Mariana Islands]]. It is an official language (alongside English) of the [[Carolinian people]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Carolinian Language|url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/cal|website=Ethnologue|access-date=31 May 2016}}</ref> Carolinian is a threatened language according to the [[Catalogue of Endangered Languages|Catalogue of Endangered Languages (ELCat)]], but available data is scarce. There are approximately 3,100 native speakers in the world.<ref>{{cite web|title=Carolinian|url=http://www.endangeredlanguages.com/lang/4155|website=The Endangered Language Project|access-date=24 June 2016}}</ref> Carolinian has 95% lexical similarity with [[Satawalese language|Satawalese]], 88% with [[Woleaian]] and [[Puluwat language|Puluwatese]]; 81% with [[Mortlockese]]; 78% with [[Chuukese language|Chuukese]], 74% with [[Ulithian]].<ref name="Ellis 2012">{{Cite thesis |last=Ellis |first=S. James |title=Saipan Carolinian, one Chuukic language blended from many |date=2012 |degree=Ph.D. |publisher=University of Hawaii at Manoa |url=http://www.ling.hawaii.edu/graduate/Dissertations/JimEllisFinal.pdf |hdl=10125/100894 |hdl-access=free |access-date=2015-08-02 |archive-date=2019-04-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190412072712/http://www.ling.hawaii.edu/graduate/Dissertations/JimEllisFinal.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>