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Bodish Languages
Bodish, named for the Tibetan ethnonym ''Bod'', is a proposed grouping consisting of the Tibetic languages and associated Sino-Tibetan languages spoken in Tibet, North India, Nepal, Bhutan, and North Pakistan. It has not been demonstrated that all these languages form a clade, characterized by shared innovations, within Sino-Tibetan. Shafer, who coined the term "Bodish", used it for two different levels in his classification, called "section" and "branch" respectively: * Bodish ** Bodish *** West Bodish *** Central Bodish *** South Bodish *** East Bodish ** Gurung ( Tamangic) ** Tshangla ** Rgyalrongic It is now generally accepted that the languages Shafer placed in the first three subgroups are all descended from Old Tibetan, and should be combined as a Tibetic subgroup, with the East Bodish languages as a sister subgroup. More recent classifications omit Rgyalrongic, which is considered a separate branch of Sino-Tibetan. Bradley (1997) also defined a broad "Bodish" g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tibetan Plateau
The Tibetan Plateau (, also known as the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau or the Qing–Zang Plateau () or as the Himalayan Plateau in India, is a vast elevated plateau located at the intersection of Central, South and East Asia covering most of the Tibet Autonomous Region, most of Qinghai, western half of Sichuan, Southern Gansu provinces in Western China, southern Xinjiang, Bhutan, the Indian regions of Ladakh and Lahaul and Spiti (Himachal Pradesh) as well as Gilgit-Baltistan in Pakistan, northwestern Nepal, eastern Tajikistan and southern Kyrgyzstan. It stretches approximately north to south and east to west. It is the world's highest and largest plateau above sea level, with an area of (about five times the size of Metropolitan France). With an average elevation exceeding and being surrounded by imposing mountain ranges that harbor the world's two highest summits, Mount Everest and K2, the Tibetan Plateau is often referred to as "the Roof of the World". The Tibetan Platea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tshangla Language
Tshangla is a Sino-Tibetan language of the Bodish branch closely related to the Tibetic languages. Tshangla is primarily spoken in Eastern Bhutan and acts as a lingua franca in the region; it is also spoken in the adjoining Tawang tract in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh and the Pemako region of Tibet. Tshangla is the principal pre-Tibetan language of Bhutan. Classification Tshangla is frequently assumed to be close to the Tibetic languages. Bradley (2002) includes in among the East Bodish languages. Van Driem (2011), however, leaves it unclassified within Sino-Tibetan, pending further research. Bodt (2012:188-189) classifies Tshangla as a Bodish language, but notes that Tshangla (like East Bodish) is related to, but not directly descended, from Classical Tibetan. Varieties Tshangla is a dialect cluster consisting of a few mutually unintelligible language varieties, including (Gerber 2018):Gerber, Pascal. 2018. Areal features in Gongduk, Bjokapakha and Black Mounta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zakhring Language
Zahkring (also Eastern Mishmi or Zaiwa; known as Meyor in India and Zha (Zhahua 扎话) in China) is a language of Arunachal Pradesh and 3 villages in Tibet. Classification Zakhring has been classified as a Midzuish language. Blench and Post (2011) consider Zakhring to be an East Bodish language that has been influenced by Midzu (which they classify as a language isolate) or other divergent languages of the region. In 2015, Blench suggests that Zakhring may be a language isolate. Blench argues that Zakhring had borrowed heavily from Midzu and Tibetic, and then later borrowed from Naga languages and Jingpho as well. Scott DeLancey (2015) considers Meyor to be part of a wider Central Tibeto-Burman group. Names Li and Jiang (2001) reports that the Zakhring have no actual autonym, but are referred to by the neighboring Taraon, Kaman language, Idu, and Tibetan peoples by various names. *' (Taraon exonym) *' (Kaman exonym) *' (Tibetan exonym) *' (Idu exonym; the Idu are located ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zhang-Zhung Language
Zhang-Zhung () is an extinct Sino-Tibetan language that was spoken in what is now western Tibet. It is attested in a bilingual text called ''A Cavern of Treasures'' (''mDzod phug'') and several shorter texts. A small number of documents preserved in Dunhuang contain an undeciphered language that has been called Old Zhangzhung, but the identification is controversial. ''A Cavern of Treasures'' (''mDzod phug'') ''A Cavern of Treasures'' () is a terma uncovered by Shenchen Luga () in the early eleventh century. Martin identifies the importance of this scripture for studies of the Zhang-zhung language: External relationships Bradley (2002) says Zhangzhung "is now agreed" to have been a Kanauri or West Himalayish language. Guillaume Jacques (2009) rebuts earlier hypotheses that Zhangzhung might have originated in eastern (rather than western) Tibet by having determined it to be a non-Qiangic language. Widmer (2014:53-56) classifies Zhangzhung within the eastern branch of West Him ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dakpa Language
The Takpa or Dakpa language (), ''Dakpakha'', known in India as Tawang Monpa, also known as Brami in Bhutan, is an East Bodish language spoken in the Tawang district of Arunachal Pradesh, and in northern Trashigang District in eastern Bhutan, mainly in Kyaleng (Shongphu gewog), Phongmed Gewog, Dangpholeng and Lengkhar near Radi Gewog. Van Driem (2001) describes Takpa as the most divergent of Bhutan's East Bodish languages, though it shares many similarities with Bumthang. SIL reports that Takpa may be a dialect of the Brokpa language and that it been influenced by the Dzala language whereas Brokpa has not. Takpa is mutually unintelligible with Monpa of Zemithang and Monpa of Mago-Thingbu. Monpa of Zemithang is another East Bodish language, and is documented in Abraham, et al. (2018).Abraham, Binny, Kara Sako, Elina Kinny, Isapdaile Zeliang. 2018. Sociolinguistic Research among Selected Groups in Western Arunachal Pradesh: Highlighting Monpa'. SIL Electronic Survey Reports 20 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George Van Driem
George "Sjors" van Driem (born 1957) is a Dutch linguist associated with the University of Bern, where he is the chair of Historical Linguistics and directs the Linguistics Institute. Education * Leiden University, 1983–1987 (PhD, ''A Grammar of Limbu'') * Leiden University, 1981–1983 (MA Slavic, BA English, MA General Linguistics) * Leiden University, 1979–1981 (BA Slavic) * University of Virginia at Charlottesville, 1975–1979 (BA Biology) * Katholieke Universiteit Nijmegen, 1978–1979 * Watling Island Marine Biological Station on San Salvador Island in the Bahamas, 1977 * Duke University at Durham, North Carolina, 1976 Research George van Driem has conducted field research in the Himalayas since 1983. He was commissioned by the Royal Government of Bhutan to codify a grammar of Dzongkha, the national language, design a phonological romanisation for the language known as Roman Dzongkha, and complete a survey of the language communities of the kingdom. He and native ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bumthang Language
The Bumthang language ( dz, བུམ་ཐང་ཁ་, ); also called "Bhumtam", "Bumtang(kha)", "Bumtanp", "Bumthapkha", and "Kebumtamp") is an East Bodish language spoken by about 20,000 people in Bumthang and surrounding districts of Bhutan. Van Driem (1993) describes Bumthang as the dominant language of central Bhutan. Related languages Historically, Bumthang and its speakers have had close contact with speakers of the Kurtöp, Nupbi and Kheng languages, nearby East Bodish languages of central and eastern Bhutan, to the extent that they may be considered part of a wider collection of "Bumthang languages." Bumthang language is largely lexically similar with Kheng (92%), Nyen (75%–77%), and Kurtöp (70%–73%); but less so with Dzongkha (47%–52%) and Tshangla (40%–50%, also called "Sharchop"). It is either closely related to or identical with the Tawang language of the Monpa people of Tawang in India and China. Grammar Bumthang is an ergative–absolutive lan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gongduk Language
Gongduk or Gongdu (, it is also known as Gongdubikha) is an endangered Sino-Tibetan language spoken by about 1,000 people in a few inaccessible villages located near the Kuri Chhu river in the Gongdue Gewog of Mongar District in eastern Bhutan. The names of the villages are Bala, Dagsa, Damkhar, Pam, Pangthang, and Yangbari (''Ethnologue''). Gongduk has complex verbal morphology, which Ethnologue considers a retention from Proto-Tibeto-Burman, and is lexically highly divergent.Blench, R. & Post, M. W. (2013)Rethinking Sino-Tibetan phylogeny from the perspective of Northeast Indian languages/ref> On this basis, it is apparently not part of any major subgroup and will probably have to be assigned to its own branch. The people are said to have come from hunters that would move from place to place at times. The language is notable for only being discovered by linguists in 1991. Currently, George van Driem is working towards the completion of a description of Gongduk based on his w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lhokpu Language
Lhokpu, also ''Lhobikha'' or ''Taba-Damey-Bikha'', is one of the autochthonous languages of Bhutan spoken by the Lhop people. It is spoken in southwestern Bhutan along the border of Samtse and Chukha Districts. Van Driem (2003) leaves it unclassified as a separate branch within the Sino-Tibetan language family. Classification George van Driem (2001:804) notes that Lhokpu, although unclassified, may be more closely related to the Kiranti languages than to Lepcha. Gerber, et al. (2016) also notes a particularly close relationship between Lhokpu and Kiranti. Furthermore, van Driem (2001:804-805) notes that Dzongkha, the national language of Bhutan, may in fact have a Lhokpu substratum. Grollmann & Gerber (2017) consider Lhokpu to have a particularly close relationship with Dhimal and Toto. Name Lhokpu is spoken by the Lhop—a Dzongkha term meaning "Southerners"—, who "represent the aboriginal dungDung population of western Bhutan. Locations According to the ''Ethnologue'', ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
West Himalayish Languages
The West Himalayish languages, also known as Almora and Kanauric, are a family of Sino-Tibetan languages centered in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and across the border into Nepal. LaPolla (2003) proposes that the West Himalayish languages may be part of a larger "Rung" group. Languages The languages include: *Kinnauri ** Chitkuli Kinnauri **Kinnauri **Thebor: Sunam, Jangshung, Shumcho *Lahaulic: Pattani (Manchad), Tinan * Gahri (Bunan) * Kanashi *Rongpo–Almora ** Rongpo **Almora (Ranglo): Darmiya, Byangsi, Dhuleli, Chaudangsi, Rangas (extinct early 20th century), Zhangzhung Zhangzhung, the sacred language of the Bon religion, was spoken north of the Himalayas across western Tibet before being replaced by Tibetan. James Matisoff (2001)Matisoff, James. 2001. "The interest of Zhangzhung for comparative Tibeto-Burman." In ''New Research on Zhangzhung and Related Himalayan Languages'' (Bon Studies 3). Senri Ethnological Studies no. 19, p.155-180. Osaka: National Museum of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Old Tibetan
Old Tibetan refers to the period of Tibetan language reflected in documents from the adoption of writing by the Tibetan Empire in the mid-7th century to works of the early 11th century. In 816 CE, during the reign of Sadnalegs, literary Tibetan underwent a thorough reform aimed at standardizing the language and vocabulary of the translations being made from Indian texts, and this resulted in what we now call Classical Tibetan. Phonology Old Tibetan is characterised by many features that are lost in Classical Tibetan, including ''my-'' rather than ''m-'' before the vowels ''-i-'' and ''-e-'', the cluster ''sts-'' which simplifies to ''s-'' in Classical Tibetan, and a reverse form of the "i" vowel letter (''gi-gu''). Aspiration was not phonemic and many words were written indiscriminately with consonants from the aspirated or unaspirated series. Most consonants could be palatalized, and the palatal series from the Tibetan script represents palatalized coronals. The sound conventi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rgyalrongic Languages
The Gyalrongic languages (also known as Rgyalrongic or Jiarongic) constitute a branch of the Qiangic languages of Sino-Tibetan, although some propose that it may be part of a larger Rung languages group, and do not consider it to be particularly closely related to Qiangic, suggesting that similarities between Gyalrongic and Qiangic may be due to areal influence. However, other work suggests that Qiangic as a whole may in fact be paraphyletic, with the only commonalities of the supposed "branch" being shared archaisms and areal features that were encouraged by contact. Jacques & Michaud (2011) propose that Qiangic including Gyalrongic may belong to a larger Burmo-Qiangic group based on some lexical innovations. Geographical distribution The Gyalrongic languages are spoken in Sichuan in China, mainly in the autonomous Tibetan and Qiang prefectures of Karmdzes and Rngaba. These languages are distinguished by their conservative morphology and their phonological archaisms, which ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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