Sangtam language

Sangtam
Thukumi, Sangtam Naga
Lophomi
Native to	Nagaland, India
Region	East-central Nagaland, Tuensang and Khiphire districts
Ethnicity	Sangtam
Native speakers	76,000 (2011 census) [1]
Language family	Sino-Tibetan Tibeto-Burman Central Tibeto-Burman (?) Kuki-Chin–Naga Central Naga Sangtam
Language codes
ISO 639-3	nsa
Glottolog	sang1321

Sangtam, also called Thukumi, Isachanure, or Lophomi, is a Naga language spoken in northeast India. It is spoken in Kiphire District and in the Longkhim-Chare circle in Tuensang district, Nagaland, India.

Dialects

Ethnologue lists the following dialects of Sangtam.

• Kizare
• Pirr (Northern Sangtam)
• Phelongre
• Thukumi (Central Sangtam)
• Photsimi
• Purr (Southern Sangtam)

The standardized dialect of Sangtam is based on the Tsadanger village speech variety.

Phonology

Sangtam is unusual in having two stops with bilabial trilled release, /t̪͡ʙ,t̪͡ʙ̥ʰ/. ^[2]

Consonants ^[2]

		Labial	Dental	Alveolar	Retroflex	Palatal	Velar	Glottal
Nasal		m		n		ɲ	ŋ
Plosive	plain	p	t̪		ʈ	c	k	ʔ
	aspirated	pʰ	t̪ʰ		ʈʰ	cʰ	kʰ
Affricate	plain	t͡ʙ		t͡s		t͡ʃ
	aspirated	t͡ʙ̥ʰ		t͡sʰ		t͡ʃʰ
Fricative	voiceless	( f )		s		ʃ	x	h
	voiced	( v )		( z )
Approximant				l	ɻ	j

• All phonemes with /t/ are dental.
• /ʈ/ is realised like [ʈʵ].

Vowels ^[2]

		Front	Back
Close		i	u
Close-mid		e	o
Open/ Open-mid		a	ʌ

All vowels can have high, mid, or low tone

References

1. "Statement 1: Abstract of speakers' strength of languages and mother tongues - 2011". www.censusindia.gov.in. Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
2. Coupe, Alexander (2015). "Prestopped bilabial trills in Sangtam". Proceedings of the 18th International Congress of Phonetic Sciences, Glasgow, 10–14 August 2015. Glasgow: University of Glasgow. ISBN   978-0-85261-941-4. Paper no. 0734.1–5.