Chamling language

Last updated

Chamling
Rodong
चाम्लिङ
Chamling language.svg
The word "Chamling" written in Devanagari script
Native to Nepal
India (Sikkim, Darjeeling, Kalimpong)
Bhutan (southern areas)
Ethnicity Rodung Chamling
Native speakers
77,000 in Nepal (2011) [1]
Sino-Tibetan
Devanagari [2]
Language codes
ISO 639-3 rab
Glottolog caml1239
ELP Camling
This article contains IPA phonetic symbols. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Unicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see Help:IPA.

Chamling is one of the Kirati languages spoken by the Chamling (Dikhalichha, Mulihachha, Ditumachha, Mansungcha, Lipungchha, Malekungchha, Maidhung, kherasung, Rakhomi, Rodung, etc) of Nepal, India and Bhutan. Alternate renderings and names include Chamling, Chamlinge and Rodong. [1] It is closely related to the Bantawa (some Bantawa-speaking communities call their language "Camling") and Puma languages of the Kiranti language family in eastern Nepal, and it belongs to the broader Sino-Tibetan language family. [3] Chamling has SOV word order.

Contents

History

The Chamling language is one of the languages of the ancient Kiranti culture, which existed well before vedic period 3500–5000 in South Asia. [4] Important versions of the Mundum — the main religious text forming the religious foundation of the Kirant Mundum religion and the cultural heritage of the various Kirati people — are composed in Camling; such versions are distinctive to the Camling-speaking tribes and a guide to their distinctive religious practices and cultural identity. [5]

Distribution

The Chamling language is used by small communities in eastern Sagarmatha Zone, in central Khotang District, Bhojpur District and scattered areas in northern Udayapur District and a few more districts of eastern Nepal, the southeastern neighbour Indian state of Sikkim, the hill city of Darjeeling, Kalimpong in the Indian state of West Bengal and the kingdom of Bhutan. [3]

Demographics

Despite its geographic prevalence, the actual number of Chamling speakers is estimated to be 10,000, spread across small tribes and villages. [3] Many members of the Chamling ethnic and tribal communities are no longer fluent in the Chamling language, which is taught only in remote areas in the Udayapur District. [3] Like Bantawa, Chamling is an endangered language. Many people in these areas speak a variety of Chamling that is mixed with the Nepali language, which is the official language of Nepal. [3] Most Chamling-speaking people are Hindus or practitioners of Kiranti Mundum.

Phonology

Consonants [6]

Labial Dental Alveolar Dorsal Glottal
Nasal voiced m n ŋ
voiced aspirated mʱ nʱ
Plosive/
Affricate 		voiceless p t ts k
voiceless aspirated pʰ tʰ ts kʰ
voiced b d ( dz )( ɡ )
voiced aspirated bʱ dʱ ( dzʱ )( ɡʱ )
Rhotic r rʱ
Fricative f s h
Approximant w l lʱ j

Vowels

front central back
high i u
mid e ( ə ) o
low a ( ɒ )
  1. Phuima = pluck
  2. Toma = see, experience
  3. Ityu = brought from above
  4. Dhotyu-cyu' = assembled them
  5. Bhuima = pound
  6. Doma = close
  7. Idyu = gave him
  8. Dhodyu-cyu = stabbed them [7]

Bound Morphemes

chamlingexample wordmorphological rule
plural suffix/-ci/"challa-ci" = my brothersN —> N + plural /-ci/
"his"/m-/"m-tõ" = his ha1. irN —> /m/ + N
"my"/a-/"a-nicho" = my siblingN —> /a/ + N
"your"/kap-/"kap-tõ" = your hairN —> /kap/ + N

[6]

Chamling uses many bound morphemes, many of which denote possession or the change of possession of something.

Phrase Structure Rules

NP —> (D) N
VP —> (NP) (A) (Adv) V (Adv)
CP —> C S
S —> NP {VP, NP, CP}
ex:

anga

my

D

a-khim

my house

N

hinge

be

V

anga a-khim hinge

my {my house} be

D N V

"I have a house"

This is 3. an example of a sentence that is formed by an NP and a VP. The NP contains a determiner and a noun, and the VP contains a verb.

ex:

a-challa-ci

my brothers

N

oda

here

V

paina

not

Adverb

a-challa-ci oda paina

{my brothers} here not

N V Adverb

"my brothers are not here"

This is an example of a sentence that is formed by a NP and a VP. The NP contains a noun and a VP contains a verb and an adverb.

ex:

khamo

your

D

nung

name

N

de?

what

N

khamo nung de?

your name what

D N N

"what is your name?"

This is an example of two NP's forming a sentence. One NP contains "khamo nung" ("your name") and the second NP contains "de" ("what").

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rai people</span> Kiranti ethnic group Nepal, India and Bhutan

The Rai are ethnolinguistic groups belonging to the Kirat family and primarily Tibeto-Burman linguistic ethnicity. They mainly reside in the eastern parts of Nepal, the Indian states of Sikkim, West Bengal and in southwestern Bhutan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sunuwar people</span> Ethnic group in South Asia

The Sunuwar or Koinch are a Tibeto-Burman ethnic group. a Kirati tribe native to Nepal, parts of India and southern Bhutan. They speak the Sunuwar language. According to the 2001 census of Nepal, 17% of the tribe follow the Kirant religion and adopt the Mundhum (Kiranti) culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bhojpur District, Nepal</span> District in Koshi Province, Nepal

Bhojpur District is one of 14 districts of Koshi Province of eastern Nepal. The district's area is 1,507 km2 with a population of 182,459 (2011). The administrative center is Bhojpur. It is surrounded by Dhankuta and Sankhuwasabha in the east, Khotang in the west, again Sankhuwasabha in north-east, Solukhumbu in the north-west and Udayapur in the South.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jhapa District</span> A district in eastern Nepal

Jhapa District is a district of Koshi Province in eastern Nepal named after a Rajbanshi Surjapuri language word "Jhapa", meaning "to cover" (verb). The 2021 Nepal Census, puts the total population of the district at 994,090. The total area of the district is 1,606 square kilometres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khotang District</span> District in Koshi Province, Nepal

Khotang District is one of 14 districts of Koshi Province of eastern Nepal. The district, with Diktel as its district headquarters, covers an area of 1,591 km2 (614 sq mi) and has a population (2021) of 206,312. The district is bordered by Bhojpur District in the east, Udayapur District in the south, Okhaldhunga District in the west and Solukhumbu District in the North. In this district there are 2 municipalities and 8 rural/urban municipalities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sankhuwasabha District</span> District in Koshi Province, Nepal

Sankhuwasabha District is one of 14 districts of Koshi Province of eastern Nepal. The district's area is 3,480 km2 with a population of 159,203 in 2001 and 158,742 in 2011. The administrative center is Khandbari.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Udayapur District</span> District in Koshi Province, Nepal

Udayapur District (Nepali: उदयपुर जिल्ला, is one of the 14 districts of Koshi Province in eastern Nepal. The district, with Triyuga as its district headquarters, covers an area of 2,063 km2 and in 2001 had a population of 287,689, in 2011 of 317,532, in 2021 of 342,773

Iman Xin Chemjong Limbu, or Iman Singh Chemjong Limbu; was a Limbu historian, writer, linguist, lexicographer, folklorist, and philosopher of Nepal. Chemjong devoted his entire life to studying and documenting various facets of Kirat Limbu tradition and culture at a time when such activities were frowned upon and even punished by the Nepalese ruling elite as being subversive and "anti-national". Chemjong's research into and publication of Kirant history and culture challenged perceptions of the Nepalese official doctrine that showcased Nepal as a Hindu cultural monolith devoid of alternative narratives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rai language</span> Topics referred to by the same term

Rai language may refer to:

Wambule is a Kiranti language language spoken by the Wambule Rai, one of the Rai groups belonging to the Kiranti (किरान्ती) ethnolinguistic family of eastern Nepal. Wambule is spoken by more than 5000 people living around the confluence of the Sunkosi (सुनकोसी) and Dudhkosi (दूधकोसी) rivers near Kui-Bhir Hill. The Wambule-speaking area comprises the southernmost part of Okhaldhunga district, the westernmost part of Khotang district, the northernmost part of Udayapur district, and the northeasternmost part of Sindhuli district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirati people</span> Indigenous ethnic groups of the Himalayas

The Kirati people, also spelled as Kirant, are Sino-Tibetan ethnolinguistic groups and indigenous peoples of the Himalayas, mostly the Eastern Himalaya extending eastward from Nepal to Northeast India (predominantly in the Indian States of Sikkim and Darjeeling & Kalimpong hills of northern West Bengal

Khaling is a Kiranti language spoken in Solukhumbu district, Nepal and Sikkim, Darjeeling, and Kalimpong in India. It is one of the few Kiranti languages with tonal contrasts, which are of secondary origin.

The Bantawa Language, is a Kiranti language spoken in the eastern Himalayan hills of eastern Nepal by Kirati Bantawa ethnic groups. They use a syllabic alphabet system known as Kirat Rai. Among the Khambu or Rai people of Eastern Nepal, Sikkim, Darjeeling and Kalimpong in India, Bantawa is the largest language spoken. According to the 2001 National Census, at least 1.63% of the Nepal's total population speaks Bantawa. About 370,000 speak Bantawa Language mostly in eastern hilly regions of Nepal (2001). Although Bantawa is among the more widely used variety of the Bantawa language, it falls in the below-100,000 category of endangered languages. It is experiencing language shift to Nepali, especially in the northern region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirat Mundhum</span> Indigenous religion of the Kirati

Kirat Mundum, also known as Kiratism, or Kirati Mundum, is an animistic folk religion of the Kirati ethnic groups of Nepal, Darjeeling and Sikkim, majorly practiced by Yakkha, Limbu, Sunuwar, Rai, Thami, Jirel, Hayu and Surel peoples in the north-eastern Indian subcontinent. The practice is also known as Kirat Veda, Kirat-Ko Veda or Kirat Ko Ved. According to some scholars, such as Tom Woodhatch, it is a blend of shamanism, animism, and Shaivism. It is practiced by about 3.17% of the Nepali population as of 2021.

The Kiranti languages are a major family of Sino-Tibetan languages spoken in Nepal and India by the Kirati people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kulung people</span>

The Kulung Rai also call Kulunge Rai/Rodu are one of the major subgroup of Rai people and indigenous communities of Nepal, as well as parts of northeastern Sikkim and Darjeeling district of India, having their own Kulung language, culture, history and tradition.

Dungmali, or Dungmali-Bantawa, is a Kiranti language spoken in Nepal. It is largely cognate with Bantawa language, but differs grammatically and phonologically.

Nachhiring is a Kirati language spoken mostly in the eastern hills of Nepal. It not merges into Kulung in the north and Sampang in the south. A follower of the Nachiring sub-caste

Panchkhapan (Nepali: पाँचखप्पन) is an urban municipality out of five urban municipalities of Sankhuwasabha District in Koshi Province of Nepal. It lies on 87°12'12" E to 87°26'45" E Longitude and 27°17'37.4" N to 27°24'38" N Latitude. The municipality was established on 3 March 2017 merging former VDCs: Syabun, Jaljala and Wana. The area of the municipality is 148.03KM2 and according to 2011 census of Nepal the population of the municipality is 17,521.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khuwalung</span> Sacred rock in Province No. 1 of Nepal

Khuwalung is a rock in the Saptakoshi river of Nepal sacred to the Kirati people. The rock lies at the confluence of Dudh Koshi, Arun, and Tamor rivers, near the Belaka municipality of Udayapur district. It is considered as one of the holiest site of the Kirati people. The name of the rock is uttered in the beginning and ending of every Kirat religious ritual.

References

  1. 1 2 Chamling at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. ↑ "Chamling". Ethnologue. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Ethnologue report on Camling
  4. ↑ Cemjoṅga, Īmāna Siṃha (2003). History and Culture of the Kirat People. Kirat Yakthung Chumlung. ISBN   99933-809-1-1.
  5. ↑ Monika Bock, Aparna Rao. Culture, Creation, and Procreation: Concepts of Kinship in South Asian Practice. Page 65. 2000, Berghahn Books.
  6. 1 2 Ebert, Karen (1997). Camling (Chamling). Mulnchen: LINCOM Europa.
  7. ↑ Phonology - The Rosetta Project Archived 23 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine

8.Rai, Tara Mani and Sizar Tamang (2014) A sociolinguistic survey of Chamling: A Tibeto-Burman language.https://cdltu.edu.np

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.