Kra languages
| Kra | |
|---|---|
| Geyang (Chinese) | |
| Geographic distribution: | Southern China, Northern Vietnam |
| Linguistic classification: |
Tai–Kadai
|
| Proto-language: | Proto-Kra |
| Subdivisions: |
|
The Kra languages, called Gēyāng (仡央, short for Kláo–Bouxyaeŋz) in China, are a branch of the Tai–Kadai family spoken in southern China (Yunnan, Guangxi, Hainan) and in northern Vietnam. Out of the entire Tai–Kadai family, the Kra branch is the least studied. Individual Kra languages have only been recently described in any detail.
The name Kra comes from the word *kra C[1] "human", which appears as kra, ka, fa, ha in various Kra languages. Benedict (1942) used the compound Kra–Dai for the Kra and Hlai languages taken together, and the term Kadai or Kradai is sometimes used for the Tai-Kadai family as a whole.
Significance
Several Kra languages have consonant clusters and disyllabic words, whereas other Tai–Kadai languages only have single consonants. One such language, Buyang, has been used to support a proposed connection with the Austronesian family. (See Austro-Tai.) Unlike the Tai and Kam–Sui languages, most Kra languages, including Gelao and Buyang, have preserved the proto-Tai–Kadai numerical systems. The only other Tai–Kadai branch that preserves this is Hlai.[2] Most other Tai–Kadai languages adopted Chinese numbers over 1,000 years ago.
As noted by linguist Jerold A. Edmondson, the Kra languages contain words in metalworking, handicrafts, and agriculture that are not attested in any other Tai–Kadai language.[3] This suggests that the Kra peoples may have developed or borrowed many technological innovations independently of the Tai and Kam-Sui peoples.
Reconstruction
Classification
Morphological similarities suggest the Kra languages are closest to the Kam–Sui branch of the family. There are about a dozen Kra languages, depending on how languages and dialects are defined. The best known is perhaps the Gelao (Klao) dialect cluster, with about 8,000 speakers in China out of an ethnic population of approximately 500,000.
The internal classification below is from Ostapirat (2000), who splits the Kra branch into a total of 7 languages.
| Kra |
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According to Edmondson (2002), Laha is too conservative to be in Western Kra, and he makes it a branch of its own. Ethnologue mistakenly includes the Hlai language Cun of Hainan in Kra; this is not supported by either Ostapirat or Edmondson.
Demographics
The Kra languages have a total of about 22,000 speakers.[3] In Vietnam, officially recognized Kra peoples are the Cờ Lao (Gelao), La Chí (Lachi), La Ha (Laha), and Pu Péo (Qabiao). In China, only the Gelao people have official status. The other Kra peoples are variously classified as Zhuang, Buyi, Yi, and Han.
Within China, "hotspots" for Kra languages include most of western Guizhou, the prefecture-level city of Baise in western Guangxi, Wenshan Prefecture (文山壮族苗族自治州) in southeastern Yunnan, as well as Hà Giang Province in northern Vietnam. This distribution runs along a northeast-southwest geographic vector, forming what Jerold A. Edmondson calls a "language corridor."[3]
Multigualism is common among Kra language speakers. For example, many Buyang can also speak the Zhuang language.[4]
- Western
- Eastern
- Buyang 布央 dialect cluster – 2,000
- Paha 巴哈 (considered a separate language by Ostapirat; spoken in Yangliancun 央连村, Diyu Township, Guangnan County 广南县, Yunnan)
- Langjia 郎架 (spoken in Langjia 郎架, Funing County 富宁县, Yunnan along the Guangxi border)
- Ecun 峨村 (spoken in Ecun 峨村, Funing County 富宁县, Yunnan along the Guangxi border)
- Yalang 雅郎 (Yalhong; spoken in Rongtun 荣屯, Napo County 那坡县, Guangxi)
- Qabiao (Pubiao 普标, Pu Péo) – 700
- En (Nùng Vên; spoken in northern Vietnam) – 250
- Buyang 布央 dialect cluster – 2,000
Numerals
| Language | One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight | Nine | Ten |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (Proto-Austronesian) | *isa | *duSa | *telu | *Sepat | *lima | *enem | *pitu | *walu | *Siwa | *sa-puluq |
| Proto-Kra | *tʂəm C | *sa A | *tu A | *pə A | *r-ma A | *x-nəm A | *t-ru A | *m-ru A | *s-ɣwa B | *pwlot D |
| Buyang, Baha | tɕam˦˥ | θa˧˨ | tu˧˨ | pa˧˨ | m̥a˧ | nam˧˩ | ðu˧ | mu˧˩ | dʱa˧ | pʷat˥ |
| Buyang, Ecun | pi˥˧ | θa˨˦ | tu˨˦ | pa˨˦ | ma˦ | nam˨˦ | tu˦ | ma ðu˦ | va˥ | put˥ |
| Buyang, Langjia | am˧˥ | ɕa˥˦ | tu˥˦ | pa˥˦ | ma˧˩˨ | nam˥˦ | ðu˧˩˨ | ma ðu˧˩˨ | va˩ | put˥ |
| Buyang, Yerong | ɔm˥ | θau˥˧ | taːi˥˧ | po˥˧ | mo˦˧ | naːm˥˧ | təu˧˩ | ɬəu˦˧ | vo˥ | pɔt˥ |
| En (Nung Ven) | ʔam˧˨ | θa˨˦˧ | tu˨˦˧ | pa˧ | ma˨˦˧ | nəm˨˦˧ | ʔam˧˨ tu˨˦˧ | me˧˨ ru˧ | wa˥˦ | θət˧ |
| Qabiao | tɕia˧ | ɕe˥˧ | tau˥˧ | pe˥˧ | ma˧ | ma˧ nam˧˥ | ma˧ tu˥˧ | ma˧ ʐɯ˧ | ma˧ ɕia˧˩ | pət˧˩ |
| Laha, Wet | tɕɐm˧˩ | sa˧˦˧ | tu˧˦˧ | pɑ˧˦˧ | mɑ˧ | dɐm˧˦˧ | tʰo˧˦˧ | ma˧ hu˧ | so˧ wa˨˦ | pɤt˨˧ |
| Lachi | tɕa˧ | su˩ | te˩ | pu˩ | m̩˩ | ȵiã˩ | te˨˦ | ŋuɛ˩ | liu˨˦ | pɛ˩ |
| Gelao, Bigong | sɿ˥ təɯ˧ | səɯ˧˩ təɯ˧ | tɔ˧˩ | pɔ˧˩ | mɔ˧˩ | nai˧˩ | tʰɔ˧˩ | ʑɔ˧˩ | ʑɔu˧˩ | hui˩˧ |
| Gelao, Moji | tsɿ˥˧ | səu˧˩ | ta˧˩ | pu˧˩ | mlau˧˩ | tɕʰau˧˩ | xei˧˩ | xe˧˩ | kəu˧˩ | tsʰei˥˧ |
| Gelao, Puding | se˥ | so˥ | tua˥ | pu˦˥ | mu˥˧ | naŋ˥˧ | ɕi˧ | vra˥˧ | su˧ | paɯ˧ |
| Gelao, Pudi | sɪ˥ | səɯ˦˨ | tji˦˨ | pau˦˨ | mau˧˩ | mjaŋ˧˩ | te˦˨ | ɣe˧˩ | sau˩˧ | ɕye˩˧ |
| Gelao, Red | tsə˦ | se˧ | tua˦ | pu˦ | maŋ˦ | ɬoŋ˦ | te˦ | wu˧˥ | ʂe˧˥ | la˥˩ kwe˦ |
| Gelao, White[6] | tsɿ˧ | sɯn˧˥ | tau˥ | pu˥ | mlən˧˥ | tɕʰau˥ | hi˥ | ɕiau˥ | ku˥ | tɕʰiu˧ |
| Gelao, Sanchong | ʂɿ˦˧ | ʂa˦˥ | tau˦˥ | pu˦˥ | mei˨˩ | ȵaŋ˨˩ | tʂau˦˥ | ʑau˨˩ | ʂo˦˧ | sɿ˦˧ pie˦˧ |
| Mulao | tsɿ˥˧ | ɬu˨˦ | ta˨˦ | pʰu˨˦ | mu˧˩ | ȵe˧˩ | sau˧˩ | ɣau˧˩ | so˨˦ | ve˥˧ |
| Gelao (Heijiaoyan)[7] | sɿ˦ | sɑ˦ | tuu˦ | pu˦ | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gelao (Jianshan)[7] | ʐɤ˦˨ | sw˦˨ | tuɑ˦˨ | pu˦ | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gelao (Banliwan)[7] | i˥˧ | ɑ˥˧ | ɑ˥˧ muŋ˥˧ | ɑŋ˦ | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gelao (Zunyi)[7] | 失 (shi) | 沙 (sha) | 刀 (dao) | 波 (bo) | 媒 (mei) | 娘召 (niangshao) | 召 (shao) | 饶 (rao) | 署 (shu) | 失不 (shibu) |
| Gelao (Renhuai)[7] | 思 (shi) | 沙 (sha) | 刀 (dao) | 波 (bo) | 差 (cha) | 良 (liang) | - | 绕 (rao) | 素 (su) | 死比 (sibi) |
Notes
- ↑ Note: C is a reconstructed tone.
- ↑ Norquest, Peter K. 2007. A Phonological Reconstruction of Proto-Hlai. Ph.D. Department of Anthropology, University of Arizona.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Diller, Anthony, Jerold A. Edmondson, and Yongxian Luo ed. The Tai–Kadai Languages. Routledge Language Family Series. Psychology Press, 2008.
- ↑ 李锦芳/Li, Jinfang and 周国炎/Guoyan Zhou. 仡央语言探索/Geyang yu yan tan suo. Beijing, China: 中央民族大学出版社/Zhong yang min zu da xue chu ban she, 1999.
- ↑ http://lingweb.eva.mpg.de/numeral/
- ↑ Numbers 1-9 are suffixed with du35.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 Zunyi Prefecture Ethnic Gazetteer [遵义地区志：民族志] (1999)
Further reading
- Ostapirat, Weera (2000). "Proto-Kra". Linguistics of the Tibeto-Burman Area 23 (1): 1-251
- Edmondson, Jerold A. (2002). The Laha language and its position in Proto-Kra
External links
- Proto-Kra reconstructions from the Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database
- Database of basic words in various Kra languages
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