Apart from Mansim (Borai), formerly listed as a dialect, Hatam is not closely related to any other language, and though Ross (2005) tentatively assigned it to the West Papuan languages, based on similarities in pronouns, Ethnologue and Glottolog list it as a language isolate[1] or small independent family.[2]
Ross, Malcolm (2005). "Pronouns as a preliminary diagnostic for grouping Papuan languages". In Andrew Pawley; Robert Attenborough; Robin Hide; Jack Golson (eds.). Papuan pasts: cultural, linguistic and biological histories of Papuan-speaking peoples. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics. pp. 15–66. ISBN0858835622. OCLC67292782.
Reesink, Ger P. (1999). A Grammar of Hatam: Bird's Head Peninsula, Irian Jaya. Pacific Linguistics: Series C, 146. Canberra: Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, The Australian National University. hdl:1885/146620. ISBN978-0-85883-497-2.