Lamu language

Last updated
Lamu
Native toChina
Region Yunnan
Ethnicity300 (2007) [1]
Native speakers
120 (2007) [2]
Language codes
ISO 639-3 llh
Glottolog lamu1257
ELP Lamu

Lamu (Lamo; autonym: la21 mu33) is a highly endangered Loloish language of northeastern Binchuan County, Yunnan. According to Bradley (2007), the Lamo language is similar to Lisu and Lipo, although the speakers are classified by the Chinese government as ethnic Lahu. There are only about 100 speakers left, all of whom are also first-language speakers of Lipo. Lamo speakers were located by Bradley in 1999.

Demographics

Lamu is spoken in 5 villages of Zhongying Township 钟英傈僳族乡 in the northeastern corner of Binchuan County, Dali Prefecture, Yunnan, China. [3] In all 5 villages, the Lipo (officially classified as Lisu) are the majority while the Lamu are the minority. There are also some Lolo speakers (officially classified as Yi) in the area. [3] Most Lamu speakers have non-Lamu spouses. According to Bradley (2004), the Central Ngwi homeland may be in the Lamu area. [3]

Related Research Articles

Lisu is a tonal Tibeto-Burman language spoken in Yunnan, Northern Burma (Myanmar) and Thailand and a small part of India. Along with Lipo, it is one of two languages of the Lisu people. Lisu has many dialects that originate from the country in which they live. Hua Lisu, Pai Lisu and Lu Shi Lisu dialects are spoken in China. Although they are mutually intelligible, some have many more loan words from other languages than others.

Qiangic is a group of related languages within the Sino-Tibetan language family. They are spoken mainly in Southwest China, including Sichuan, Tibet and Yunnan. Most Qiangic languages are distributed in the prefectures of Ngawa, Garzê, Ya'an and Liangshan in Sichuan with some in Northern Yunnan as well.

Naxi, also known as Nakhi, Nasi, Lomi, Moso, Mo-su, is a Sino-Tibetan language or group of languages spoken by some 310,000 people, most of whom live in or around Lijiang City Yulong Naxi Autonomous County of the province of Yunnan, China. Nakhi is also the ethnic group that speaks it, although in detail, officially defined ethnicity and linguistic reality do not coincide neatly: there are speakers of Naxi who are not registered as "Naxi" and citizens who are officially "Naxi" but do not speak it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lolo-Burmese languages</span> Sino-Tibetan language group of Southeast Asia

The Lolo-Burmese languages of Burma and Southern China form a coherent branch of the Sino-Tibetan family.

The Loloish languages, also known as Yi and occasionally Ngwi or Nisoic, are a family of fifty to a hundred Sino-Tibetan languages spoken primarily in the Yunnan province of China. They are most closely related to Burmese and its relatives. Both the Loloish and Burmish branches are well defined, as is their superior node, Lolo-Burmese. However, subclassification is more contentious.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tibeto-Burman languages</span> Group of the Sino-Tibetan language family

The Tibeto-Burman languages are the non-Sinitic members of the Sino-Tibetan language family, over 400 of which are spoken throughout the Southeast Asian Massif ("Zomia") as well as parts of East Asia and South Asia. Around 60 million people speak Tibeto-Burman languages. The name derives from the most widely spoken of these languages, Burmese and the Tibetic languages, which also have extensive literary traditions, dating from the 12th and 7th centuries respectively. Most of the other languages are spoken by much smaller communities, and many of them have not been described in detail.

David Bradley is a linguist who specializes in the Tibeto-Burman languages of Southeast Asia. Born in the United States, Bradley was educated at the SOAS, University of London. He has spent most of his career in Australia and is currently professor emeritus at La Trobe University. Bradley has been an invited lecturer and keynote speaker many times and throughout the world, in particular the Himalayan Languages Symposium and the International Conference on Sino-Tibetan Languages and Linguistics.

The Northern Loloish languages, also known as Northern Ngwi, are a branch of the Loloish languages that includes the literary standard of the Yi people. In Lama's (2012) classification, it is called Nisoid (Nisu–Lope), which forms the Nisoish branch together with the Axi-Puoid languages.

The Lipo language, also known as eastern Lisu, is a language of the Lisu people of China, similar to but not intelligible with the Lisu language proper. Some Lipo are classified by the government as Lisu, others as Yi. In some areas, the people prefer the name Lolopo.

The Lisoish languages are a branch of the Loloish languages proposed by Ziwo Lama (2012) that includes Lisu and several of the Yi languages. David Bradley (1997) considers Lisoish languages to be part of the Central Loloish branch.

Micha, or Miqie, is a Loloish language of Yunnan. Its usage is declining.

Tanglang, or Tholo, is a Loloish language spoken by 947 people in 8 villages of southern Tai'an Township 太安乡, Lijiang County, Yunnan, including in Hongmai 红麦 and Shuijing 水井村 villages. Tanglang has been in long-term contact with Bai, and is also in contact with Naxi. The speakers' name for the language is.

Tagu 塔古 is a Loloish language spoken in parts of Dongshan and Sina townships in southeastern Yongsheng County by at least 2,000 people.

Talu is a Loloish language spoken by just over 10,000 speakers in Yongsheng and Huaping counties. Zhou (2004) focuses on the Talu dialect of Liude Township 六德乡. Bradley (2004) reports that Talu is spoken in Yongsheng, Ninglang and Huaping counties by 10,138 people, mainly in 4 villages of Liude Township 六德乡 in northeastern Yongsheng County. There are also Talu speakers in adjacent parts of Ninglangping Township, southern Ninglang County, and Tongda Township 通达傈僳族乡 in northeastern Huaping County. Talu has voiceless nasals as also the voiceless lateral. It is related to Lolopo.

The Central Loloish languages, also known as Central Ngwi, is a branch of Loloish languages in Bradley (1997). It is not used in Lama's (2012) classification. Central Loloish is also not supported in Satterthwaite-Phillips' (2011) computational phylogenetic analysis of the Lolo-Burmese languages.

Lang’e 崀峨 is a Loloish language spoken in 12 villages of Lang’e village cluster in Changhai Township, southwestern Yongsheng County by about 2,500 people.

Naruo 纳若 is a Loloish language cluster spoken by the Yi people of Yunnan, China.

The Burmo-Qiangic or Eastern Tibeto-Burman languages are a proposed family of Sino-Tibetan languages spoken in Southwest China and Myanmar. It consists of the Lolo-Burmese and Qiangic branches, including the extinct Tangut language.

Lawu is a highly endangered unclassified Loloish language of Yunnan, China. It has about 50 elderly speakers in Jiuha village 旧哈村, Shuitang district 水塘镇, Xinping County, Yuxi Prefecture, Yunnan Province. There are possibly also some speakers in Jiujia District 九甲乡, Zhenyuan County, Pu'er Prefecture, Yunnan Province. Lawu speakers are currently classified by the Chinese government as Lahu, but were formerly classified as Yi.

Taloid is a cluster of languages in the Lisoish branch of Lolo–Burmese.

References

  1. ↑ ISO change request
  2. ↑ Lamu at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  3. 1 2 3 Bradley, David. 2004. Endangered Central Ngwi Languages of Central Yunnan . Keynote Presentation, 37th International Conference on Sino-Tibetan Languages and Linguistics, Lund University, Sweden.
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