Waic languages

Last updated
Waic
Ethnicity Wa people
Geographic
distribution
Burma, China
Linguistic classification Austroasiatic
Glottolog waic1245

The Waic languages are spoken in Shan State, Burma, in Northern Thailand, and in Yunnan province, China.

Contents

Classification

Gérard Diffloth reconstructed Proto-Waic in a 1980 paper. His classification is as follows (Sidwell 2009). (Note: Individual languages are highlighted in italics.)

The recently discovered Meung Yum and Savaiq languages [1] [2] of Shan State, Burma also belong to the Wa language cluster.

Other Waic languages in Shan State, eastern Myanmar are En and Siam (Hsem), [3] [4] which are referred to by Scott (1900) [5] as En and Son. Hsiu (2015) [6] classifies En, Son, and Tai Loi in Scott (1900) as Waic languages, citing the Waic phonological innovation from Proto-Palaungic *s- > h- instead of the Angkuic phonological innovation from Proto-Palaungic *s- > s-.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Katuic languages</span> Subgroup of the Austroasiatic language family

The fifteen Katuic languages form a branch of the Austroasiatic languages spoken by about 1.3 million people in Southeast Asia. People who speak Katuic languages are called the Katuic peoples. Paul Sidwell is the leading specialist on the Katuic languages. He notes that Austroasiatic/Mon–Khmer languages are lexically more similar to Katuic and Bahnaric the closer they are geographically. He says this geographic similarity is independent of which branch of the family each language belongs to. He also says Katuic and Bahnaric do not have any shared innovations, so they do not form a single branch of the Austroasiatic family, but form separate branches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palaungic languages</span> Subgroup of the Austroasiatic language family

The nearly thirty Palaungic or Palaung–Wa languages form a branch of the Austroasiatic languages.

The Pakanic languages constitute a branch of two Austroasiatic languages, Bolyu and Bugan. They are spoken in Guangxi and Yunnan provinces of southern China. Mang was formerly included, but is now considered by Paul Sidwell to form its own separate branch within Austroasiatic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karenic languages</span> Language family

The Karen or Karenic languages are tonal languages spoken by some 4.5 million Karen people. They are of unclear affiliation within the Sino-Tibetan languages. The Karen languages are written using the Karen script. The three main branches are Sgaw, Pwo and Pa'O. Karenni and Kayan are a branch of Karen languages. They are unusual among the Sino-Tibetan languages in having a subject–verb–object word order; other than Karen, Bai and the Chinese languages, Sino-Tibetan languages have a subject–object–verb order. This is likely due to influence from neighboring Mon and Tai languages.

Rawang, also known as Krangku, Kiutze (Qiuze), and Ch’opa, is a Sino-Tibetan language of India and Burma. Rawang has a high degree of internal diversity, and some varieties are not mutually intelligible. Most, however, understand Mutwang (Matwang), the standard dialect, and basis of written Rawang.

Kayan, also known as, Padaung or Padaung Karen) is a Karen language of Burma, spoken by the Kayan people. The Kayan dialects share more than 90% lexical similarity. Padaung is 71% to 76% lexically similar to Lahta.

Riang is a Palaungic language of Burma and China. Speakers are culturally assimilated with the Karen, but are Palaung by ancestry and their language is unrelated. Riang Lang and Riang Lai (Yinchia) are sometimes considered distinct languages.

Danau, also spelt Danaw, is a Mon–Khmer language of Myanmar (Burma). It is the most divergent member of the Palaungic branch. Danau is spoken by about 5,000 people near Aungban, Kalaw Township, Shan State. Danaw was classified as a "critically endangered" language in UNESCO's 2010 Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger.

Lahta, or Zayein, is a Karenic language of Burma.

Geko is a Karen language of Burma. Yinbaw is reportedly a variety. Speakers of Geko and Yinbaw are ethnically Kayan, as are speakers of Lahta and Padaung.

Mok, also known as Amok, Hsen-Hsum, and Muak, is a possibly extinct Angkuic language spoken in Shan State, Myanmar and in Lampang Province, Thailand. In Lampang, 7 speakers were reported by Wurm & Hattori (1981).

Tai Loi, also known as Mong Lue, refers to various Palaungic languages spoken mainly in Burma, with a few hundred in Laos and some also in China. Hall (2017) reports that Tai Loi is a cover term meaning 'mountain Tai' in Shan, and refers to various Angkuic, Waic, and Western Palaungic languages rather than a single language or branch. The Shan exonym Tai Loi can refer to:

Koki, or Koki Naga, is an unclassified Sino-Tibetan language spoken in Burma. Speakers are included under the wider Naga ethnicity. It has been documented in Shintani (2018).

Meung Yum is a Waic language spoken by about 8,000 people in Kunlong Township, Shan State, Myanmar.

Savaiq is a Waic language spoken in Kunlong Township, Shan State, Burma.

The Angkuic languages are spoken in Yunnan province, China and Shan State, Burma.

Tadahiko Shintani is a Japanese linguist and Professor Emeritus of the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, specializing in the phonology of New Caledonian languages and Southeast Asian languages.

The Bisoid (Phunoi) languages belong to the Southern Loloish (Hanoish) branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family. Most Bisoid languages are spoken in Phongsaly Province, northern Laos, with smaller numbers of speakers living in China (Yunnan), Vietnam, Myanmar, and northern Thailand.

Proto-Karenic or Proto-Karen is the reconstructed ancestor of the Karenic languages.

Blimaw is a Karenic language of Myanmar.

References

  1. Myint Myint Phyu (2013). A Sociolinguistic Survey of Selected Meung Yum and Savaiq Varieties (PDF) (MA thesis). Payap University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-01-29.
  2. Phung Wei Ping (2013). A Phonological Description of Meung Yum and Phonological Comparison of Meung Yum with Three Wa Dialects in China (PDF) (MA thesis). Payap University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-01-29.
  3. Shintani Tadahiko. 2016. The Siam (Hsem) language. Linguistic survey of Tay cultural area (LSTCA), 107. Tokyo: ILCAA.
  4. Shintani Tadahiko. 2016. The Va (En) language. Linguistic survey of Tay cultural area (LSTCA), 108. Tokyo: ILCAA.
  5. Scott, J. G. 1900. Gazetteer of Upper Burma and the Shan States. Superintendent, Government Printing, Rangoon.
  6. Hsiu, Andrew. 2015. The Angkuic languages: a preliminary survey. Paper presented ICAAL 6 (6th International Conference on Austroasiatic Linguistics), Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Further reading