Discussion
There are conflicting reports concerning the vitality of the Topoiyo language. In the mid-1980s it was reported to be a vigorous, locally dominant language that was spreading to neighboring villages. and that even an émigré group of Bada speakers, numbering between one and two thousand, had switched to the Topoiyo language (Valkama 1987a:107). As recently as 2002, a field report still described Topoiyo as “bahasa dominan di Kecamatan Topoyo” (the dominant language of Topoyo District) (Manda, Yamaguchi and Nakashima 2002:67). On the other hand, a survey conducted in the year 2000 reported only 400 to 500 Topoiyo speakers, all of whom were forty years of age or older (Nurhayati, Yamaguchi and Nakashima 2002:2).
Following the assessment of Manda, Yamaguchi and Nakashima (2002), we rate Topoiyo as 3/Definitely Endangered. In recent years the Topoiyo area has experienced an influx of outsiders from elsewhere in Sulawesi (Mandar, Mamuju, Bugis and Enrekang) and from Java. Owing to the presence of these outsiders, who now outnumber the Topoiyo more than five to one, it appears that their once-vigorous language is in decline.
What Others Have Written
Valkama (1987:107)
The Topoiyo language was originally spoken by only one village on the Budong-Budong river in Kecamatan Budong-Budong. At present it has spread to the neighboring Tobada village … It is also spoken in the Tangkou village. So, even though a small language, it seems to be vigorous.
Nurhayati, Yamaguchi and Nakashima (2002:2)
Desa Topoiyo terdiri atas tiga dusun, yaitu Ngapaboa, Topoiyo, dan Bayor… Desa Topoiyo merupakan bekas transmigrasi dari Jawa dan lokal. Penduduk terdiri atas suku Topoiyo, Bugis, Enrekang, Jawa, dan Mandar...
Di antara 3.000 jiwa di Desa Topoiyo, suku Topoiyo hanya 100 kepala keluarga (400–500 jiwa). Dan orang yang dapat berbahasa Topoiyo hanya yang umur 40 tahun ke atas. Anak-anak Topoiyo menggunakan bahasa campuran antara bahasa Bugis, Enrekang, Jawa, Mamuju, Mandar, dan Indonesia. Di SD setempat pun digunakan bahasa Indonesia sejak kelas I.
References
Manda, Marthen L.; Masao Yamaguchi, and Hirotaka Nakashima. 2002. Kosakata dasar bahasa Panasuan serta tata bahasa ringkas bahasa Panasuan dan kosakata dasar bahasa Tangkou serta tata bahasa ringkas bahasa Tangkou. (Endangered Languages of the Pacific Rim, A3-010.) Osaka: ELPR.
Nurhayati; Masao Yamaguchi, and Hirotaka Nakashima. 2002. Kosakata dasar bahasa Topoiyo serta tata bahasa ringkas bahasa Topoiyo. (Endangered Languages of the Pacific Rim, A3‑009.) Osaka: ELPR Project.
Valkama, Kari. 1987. Kabupaten Mamuju. UNHAS-SIL South Sulawesi sociolinguistic surveys, 1983–1987 (Workpapers in Indonesian Languages and Cultures, 5), edited by Timothy Friberg, 99–117. Ujung Pandang: Summer Institute of Linguistics.
