Kiranti languages

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The Kiranti languages form a sub-unit of the Mahakiranti languages , which belong to the Tibetan Burman languages , a primary branch of Sinotibetic . The 30 or so Kiranti languages ​​are spoken by 600,000 people in Nepal south of Mount Everest ; there are also several thousand speakers in Bhutan and Northeast India . The largest single language is the Limbu with 350,000 speakers. The Kiranti is divided into Limbu, Ostkiranti, Central Kiranti and Westkiranti. A common proto -language , the Proto-Kiranti, has been reconstructed for the Kiranti languages . Within the Mahakiranti, the Kiranti is related to the Newari-Thangmi and the Magar-Chepang .

Kiranti within Sino Tibetan

  • Sinotibian
    • Tibeto Burmese
      • Mahakiranti
        • Kiranti
        • Newari thangmi
        • Magar-Chepang

Internal classification and number of speakers

  • Kiranti
    • Limbu (Yakthungba) (350 thousand)   Dialects: East: Panchthare, Tamarkhole; West: Phedappe, Chattare
    • East Kiranti
      • Lohorung-Yamphu: Lohorung (Lohorong) (15 thousand), Yamphu (5 thousand), Mewahang (Meohang) (5 thousand)
      • Yakkha: Yakkha (15 thousand), Lumba (1 thousand), Dungmali (5 thousand), Phangduwali almost
      • Athpare: Athpare (Athpariya) (1 thousand), Chiling (Chulung) (1 thousand), Belhare (Belhariya) (1 thousand), Chintang (5–6 thousand)
    • Central Kiranti
      • North
        • Kulung (15 thousand)   Dialects: Kulung, Sottoring, Chukwa
        • Nachiring (2 thousand), Sampang (5 thousand), Sam (Saam) almost †, Koi (Kohi) (2.5 thousand), Chukwa (100)
      • south
        • Chamling (Camling, Rodong) (15 thousand), Puma (4–10 thousand)
        • Bantawa (35,000)   dialects: Dilpali, Hangkhim, Rungchengbum, Dhankuta, West Bantawa, Amchoke, Yangma
    • Westkiranti
      • Thulung-Khaling: Thulung (25 thousand), Khaling (15 thousand), Dumi (2 thousand)
      • Umbule-Jerung: Umbule (Ombule) (5 thousand)   Dialects: Hilepani, Umbu, Udaypure, Jhappali
        Jerung (Jero) (2 thousand), Tilung (300)
      • Hayu-Baying: Bahing (10 thousand), Sunwar (30 thousand), Hayu (Vayu, Wayu) (1.7 thousand)
      • Diamond (Harka Gurung, Khamchi) (500)

Classification according to van Driem 2001, number of speakers according to Ethnologue 2005.

literature

Kiranti languages

Tibeto Burmese

  • Christopher I. Beckwith (Ed.): Medieval Tibeto-Burman Languages. Brill, Leiden - Boston - Cologne 2002.
  • Paul K. Benedict: Sino-Tibetan. A Conspectus. Cambridge University Press 1972.
  • Scott DeLancey: Sino-Tibetan Languages. In: Bernard Comrie (Ed.): The World's Major Languages. Oxford University Press 1990.
  • Austin Hale: Research on Tibeto-Burman Languages. Mouton, Berlin - New York - Amsterdam 1982.
  • James A. Matisoff: Handbook of Proto-Tibeto-Burman. University of California Press 2003.
  • Anju Saxena (Ed.): Himalayan Languages. Mouton de Gruyter, Berlin - New York 2004.
  • Graham Thurgood, Randy J. LaPolla: The Sino-Tibetan Languages. Routledge, London 2003.
  • George van Driem: Languages ​​of the Himalayas. Brill, Leiden 2001.

Web links

Kiranti languages ​​in the World Atlas of Language Structures Online