Yong (Nyong) is a
Southwestern Tai language of
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...
. It is used by Tai Yong people, who are descended from
Tai Lue people from
Xishuangbanna
Xishuangbanna, Sibsongbanna or Sipsong Panna ( Tham: , New Tai Lü script: ; ; th, สิบสองปันนา; lo, ສິບສອງພັນນາ; shn, သိပ်းသွင်ပၼ်းၼႃး; my, စစ်ဆောင် ...
, China and
Kengtung
th , เชียงตุง
, other_name = Kyaingtong
, settlement_type = Town
, imagesize =
, image_caption =
, pushpin_map = Myanmar
, pushpin_label_position = left
, ...
,
Myanmar
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
. ''Ethnologue'' reports that Yong is phonologically similar to the
Tai Lue language
Tai Lue (Tai Lü: , ''kam tai lue'', , Tai Tham: ) or Tai Lɯ, Tai Lü, Thai Lue, Tai Le, Xishuangbanna Dai (; my, လူးရှမ်း, luu Shan; lo, ພາສາໄຕລື້; th, ภาษาไทลื้อ, ''phasa thai lue'', ; ...
. Most Yong speakers are multilingual and speak
Northern Thai
Kam Mueang ( nod, , กำเมือง) or Northern Thai language ( th, ภาษาไทยถิ่นเหนือ) is the language of the Northern Thai people of Lanna, Thailand. It is a Southwestern Tai language that is closely rela ...
and
Standard Thai.
There were 12,600 speakers as of 2000.
Distribution
Yong is spoken in
San Kamphaeng District
San Kamphaeng (, ) is a district (''amphoe'') of Chiang Mai province in northern Thailand.
Geography
San Kamphaeng borders the districts (from west clockwise) Saraphi, Mueang Chiang Mai, San Sai, Doi Saket, Mae On of Chiang Mai Province an ...
,
Chiang Mai Province
Chiang Mai ( th, เชียงใหม่, ; nod, , ) is the largest Province (''changwat'') of Thailand. It lies in upper northern Thailand and has a population of 1.78 million people. It is bordered by Chiang Rai to the northeast, Lam ...
, and
Pa Sang District
Pa Sang ( th, ป่าซาง, ) is a district (''amphoe'') of Lamphun province, northern Thailand.
Geography
Neighboring districts are (from the east clockwise) Mueang Lamphun, Mae Tha, Ban Hong and Wiang Nong Long of Lamphun Province, D ...
,
Mae Tha District, and
Mueang Lamphun District
Mueang Lamphun ( th, เมืองลำพูน; ) is the capital district ('' amphoe mueang'') of Lamphun province, northern Thailand.
Geography
Neighboring districts are (from the south clockwise) Mae Tha and Pa Sang of Lamphun Province ...
,
Lamphun Province
Lamphun ( th, ลำพูน, ; Northern Thai: ) is one of Thailand's seventy-six provinces (''changwat''), lies in upper northern Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from north clockwise) Chiang Mai, Lampang, and Tak.
Geography
Lamphun is ...
(''Ethnologue'').
Phonology
Yong has six tones: mid-rising, mid, low, high, mid-falling and high-falling. As of 2019, there appears to be a generational change occurring where the high tone is merged with the high- and mid-falling tones due to language contact with
Northern Thai
Kam Mueang ( nod, , กำเมือง) or Northern Thai language ( th, ภาษาไทยถิ่นเหนือ) is the language of the Northern Thai people of Lanna, Thailand. It is a Southwestern Tai language that is closely rela ...
and
Standard Thai.
Further reading
*Wangsai, Piyawat. 2007. A Comparative Study of Phonological Yong and Northern Thai Language (Kammuang). M.A. thesis. Kasetsart University.
References
Southwestern Tai languages
{{tk-lang-stub