EARLY ACCESS - Place names and inter-island trade in Eastern Indonesia: Abui coastal toponymic interface

Frantisek Kratochvil; Benidiktus Delpada; Francesco PERONO CACCIAFOCO; Shiyue WU

doi:10.1057/s41599-026-06864-2

EARLY ACCESS - Place names and inter-island trade in Eastern Indonesia: Abui coastal toponymic interface

Frantisek Kratochvil^*
, Benidiktus Delpada
, Francesco PERONO CACCIAFOCO^*
, Shiyue WU

^*Corresponding author for this work

Department of Applied Linguistics

Palacký University Olomouc
Nanyang Technological University
Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University
University of Hawai'i at Mānoa

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

This paper investigates coastal and trade-related names in the Abui community of Takalelang in the Alor-Pantar Archipelago of Eastern Indonesia. The area has supplied forest products, spices, and food to the archipelago's trade network for at least 2000 years. The paper triangulates evidence from toponymy, historical sources, material culture, and oral tradition to understand the name-giving process and its historical and cultural context. The method unveils how trade affected the coastal toponymic interface, but also how the surrounding area developed to supply trade commodities and integrate new arrivals. The results reveal that the Abui coast is not a ‘hard edge’, but an ‘interface’, a place of contact and exchange, recounting origins, alliances, and past encounters. The structure of the Abui toponymy documents the Abui economic activities and agency in the face of pre-colonial and colonial powers.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1-34
Number of pages	34
Journal	Humanities and Social Sciences Communications
Volume	Collection
Issue number	"Toponymy and toponomastics"
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-026-06864-2
Publication status	Published - 23 Mar 2026

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SDG 1 No Poverty
SDG 2 Zero Hunger
SDG 4 Quality Education
SDG 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities
SDG 15 Life on Land

Keywords

Language Documentation
Historical Linguistics
Field Linguistics
Toponymy
Toponomastics

Access to Document

10.1057/s41599-026-06864-2Licence: CC BY-NC-ND

Cite this

@article{3f345baa8a044bb4ac9ff15dc88a6e4d,

title = "EARLY ACCESS - Place names and inter-island trade in Eastern Indonesia: Abui coastal toponymic interface",

abstract = "This paper investigates coastal and trade-related names in the Abui community of Takalelang in the Alor-Pantar Archipelago of Eastern Indonesia. The area has supplied forest products, spices, and food to the archipelago's trade network for at least 2000 years. The paper triangulates evidence from toponymy, historical sources, material culture, and oral tradition to understand the name-giving process and its historical and cultural context. The method unveils how trade affected the coastal toponymic interface, but also how the surrounding area developed to supply trade commodities and integrate new arrivals. The results reveal that the Abui coast is not a {\textquoteleft}hard edge{\textquoteright}, but an {\textquoteleft}interface{\textquoteright}, a place of contact and exchange, recounting origins, alliances, and past encounters. The structure of the Abui toponymy documents the Abui economic activities and agency in the face of pre-colonial and colonial powers.",

keywords = "Language Documentation, Historical Linguistics, Field Linguistics, Toponymy, Toponomastics",

author = "Frantisek Kratochvil and Benidiktus Delpada and \{PERONO CACCIAFOCO\}, Francesco and Shiyue WU",

note = "Kratochv{\'i}l, F., Delpada, B., Perono Cacciafoco, F. et al. Place names and inter-island trade in Eastern Indonesia: Abui coastal toponymic interface. Humanit Soc Sci Commun (2026). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-026-06864-2",

year = "2026",

month = mar,

day = "23",

doi = "10.1057/s41599-026-06864-2",

language = "English",

volume = "Collection",

pages = "1--34",

journal = "Humanities and Social Sciences Communications",

issn = "2662-9992",

publisher = "Springer Nature",

number = "{"}Toponymy and toponomastics{"}",

}

EARLY ACCESS - Place names and inter-island trade in Eastern Indonesia: Abui coastal toponymic interface. / Kratochvil, Frantisek; Delpada, Benidiktus; PERONO CACCIAFOCO, Francesco et al.
In: Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Vol. Collection, No. "Toponymy and toponomastics", 23.03.2026, p. 1-34.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

TY - JOUR

T1 - EARLY ACCESS - Place names and inter-island trade in Eastern Indonesia

T2 - Abui coastal toponymic interface

AU - Kratochvil, Frantisek

AU - Delpada, Benidiktus

AU - PERONO CACCIAFOCO, Francesco

AU - WU, Shiyue

N1 - Kratochvíl, F., Delpada, B., Perono Cacciafoco, F. et al. Place names and inter-island trade in Eastern Indonesia: Abui coastal toponymic interface. Humanit Soc Sci Commun (2026). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-026-06864-2

PY - 2026/3/23

Y1 - 2026/3/23

N2 - This paper investigates coastal and trade-related names in the Abui community of Takalelang in the Alor-Pantar Archipelago of Eastern Indonesia. The area has supplied forest products, spices, and food to the archipelago's trade network for at least 2000 years. The paper triangulates evidence from toponymy, historical sources, material culture, and oral tradition to understand the name-giving process and its historical and cultural context. The method unveils how trade affected the coastal toponymic interface, but also how the surrounding area developed to supply trade commodities and integrate new arrivals. The results reveal that the Abui coast is not a ‘hard edge’, but an ‘interface’, a place of contact and exchange, recounting origins, alliances, and past encounters. The structure of the Abui toponymy documents the Abui economic activities and agency in the face of pre-colonial and colonial powers.

AB - This paper investigates coastal and trade-related names in the Abui community of Takalelang in the Alor-Pantar Archipelago of Eastern Indonesia. The area has supplied forest products, spices, and food to the archipelago's trade network for at least 2000 years. The paper triangulates evidence from toponymy, historical sources, material culture, and oral tradition to understand the name-giving process and its historical and cultural context. The method unveils how trade affected the coastal toponymic interface, but also how the surrounding area developed to supply trade commodities and integrate new arrivals. The results reveal that the Abui coast is not a ‘hard edge’, but an ‘interface’, a place of contact and exchange, recounting origins, alliances, and past encounters. The structure of the Abui toponymy documents the Abui economic activities and agency in the face of pre-colonial and colonial powers.

KW - Language Documentation

KW - Historical Linguistics

KW - Field Linguistics

KW - Toponymy

KW - Toponomastics

UR - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-026-06864-2

U2 - 10.1057/s41599-026-06864-2

DO - 10.1057/s41599-026-06864-2

M3 - Article

SN - 2662-9992

VL - Collection

SP - 1

EP - 34

JO - Humanities and Social Sciences Communications

JF - Humanities and Social Sciences Communications

IS - "Toponymy and toponomastics"

ER -

EARLY ACCESS - Place names and inter-island trade in Eastern Indonesia: Abui coastal toponymic interface

Abstract

UN SDGs

Keywords

Access to Document

Other files and links

Mapping the Languages of Indigenous Clans in the Eastern Spice Islands

Place Names and Cultural Identity: Toponyms and Their Diachronic Evolution among the Kula People from Alor Island

Polyglot Medical Heritage in Maritime Southeast Asia: Foundational Resources and Digital Tools

A First Systemised Collection of Unattested Kula (Tanglapui) Toponyms from Alor Island (Southeastern Indonesia)

From Mughal Royalty to National Symbol: A Qualitative Ethnographic Study of Nihari in Pakistan

Kula Toponyms: Preserving the Cultural–Linguistic Landscape of Eastern Alor

Place-names and Cultural Identity: Toponyms and Their Diachronic Evolution among the Abui People from Alor

Place Names and Cultural Identity: Toponyms and Their Diachronic Evolution among the Kula People from Alor Island (Research Grant)

Owner of the Story, Owner of the Places: Place Names and Oral Tradition in Alor Island

Cite this

EARLY ACCESS - Place names and inter-island trade in Eastern Indonesia: Abui coastal toponymic interface

Abstract

UN SDGs

Keywords

Access to Document

Other files and links

Projects

Research output

Activities

Cite this