Most government and aid documents are transitioning from ‘East Timor’ to ‘Timor-Leste’. But in reference to its peoples, I’m still seeing East Timorese. Is there a form for Timor-Leste? Or is East Timorese still appropriate. If it matters, the audience is hyper-pedantic and if something can bother them—especially where a name is concerned—it will.
According to the CIA World Factbook, the people of Timor-Leste are referred to as Timorese (both noun and adjective).
The Timorese government’s own website also refers to the people as Timorese.
:smack:
Thanks for Googling that for me!
No, really, thanks – I should have gone there first, but thanks!
Also, sites in Portuguese seem to just give timorense (Timorese).
And if you really need to stipulate that they are from East Timor rather than the island of Timor then you can refer to them as East Timorese.
East Timor is an odd case, in that people insist on translating a common English word in the state’s name. I can’t think of any other cases where this is done. It’s as bizarre as if people started referring to the Central African Republic as Centrafricaine Replublic, or if the French actually called the USA “United States of America”.
Mystifying.
Not that weird, there are a few of these. Côte d’Ivoire is one that comes to mind immediately - that’s the official name in English. Belarus has been unsuccessfully trying to get languages to stop calling them the local equivalent of “White Russia.” English is one of the few languages in compliance.
Or Timorese-Leste!
Timorous?
I have a feeling this is the Leste of their problems.
Leste-Timorense, I think, to be hyper-pedantic.
The whole exercise is a little odd since “Timor” means east to begin with.