Malayic languages

The Malayic languages are a branch of the Malayo-Polynesian subgroup of the Austronesian language family. The most prominent member is Malay, a pluricentric language given national status in Brunei and Singapore while also providing the basis for national standards Malaysian in Malaysia and Indonesian in Indonesia. The Malayic branch also includes local languages spoken by ethnic Malays (e.g. Jambi Malay, Kedah Malay), further several languages spoken by various other ethnic groups of Sumatra, Indonesia (e.g. Minangkabau) and Borneo (e.g. Banjarese, Iban) even as far as Urak Lawoi in the southwestern coast of Thailand. In addition, the Malayic languages have been also used as lingue franche throughout Eastern Indonesia, such as Sulawesi, Nusa Tenggara Islands, Maluku Islands, and Papua. The most probable candidate for the urheimat of the Malayic languages is western Borneo prior to spread in Sumatra.