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==Languages== | ==Languages== | ||
Languages include [[Chitkuli Kinnauri language|Chitkuli Kinnauri]], [[Kinnauri language|Kinnauri]], [[Sunam language|Sunam]], [[Jangshung language|Jangshung]], [[Shumcho language|Shumcho]], [[Pattani language|Pattani]] (Manchad), [[Tinan language|Tinan]], [[Gahri language|Gahri]] (Bunan), [[Kanashi language|Kanashi]], [[Rongpo language|Rongpo]], [[Darmiya language|Darmiya]], [[Byangsi language|Byangsi]], [[Dhuleli language|Dhuleli]], [[Chaudangsi language|Chaudangsi]], [[Rangas language|Rangas]], and perhaps [[Zhangzhung language|Zhangzhung]]. | |||
[[Zhangzhung language|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)<ref>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 Ethnology 国立民族学博物館. {{doi|10.15021/00002145}}</ref> provides lexical and phonological evidence for the classification of Zhangzhung within West Himalayish. | [[Zhangzhung language|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)<ref>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 Ethnology 国立民族学博物館. {{doi|10.15021/00002145}}</ref> provides lexical and phonological evidence for the classification of Zhangzhung within West Himalayish. | ||
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==Classification== | ==Classification== | ||
Widmer (2014:47)<ref name="Widmer2014">Widmer, Manuel. 2014. "A tentative classification of West Himalayish." In ''A descriptive grammar of Bunan'', 33-56. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Bern.</ref> classifies the West Himalayish languages as follows. The recently discovered [[Dhuleli language|Dhuleli]] language has been added from Regmi & Prasain (2017).<ref name="Regmi">Regmi, Dan Raj; Prasain, Balaram. 2017. ''A sociolinguistic survey of Dhuleli''. Linguistic Survey of Nepal (LinSuN), Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal.</ref> | Widmer (2014:47)<ref name="Widmer2014">Widmer, Manuel. 2014. "A tentative classification of West Himalayish." In ''A descriptive grammar of Bunan'', 33-56. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Bern.</ref> classifies the West Himalayish languages as follows. The recently discovered [[Dhuleli language|Dhuleli]] language has been added from Regmi & Prasain (2017).<ref name="Regmi">Regmi, Dan Raj; Prasain, Balaram. 2017. ''A sociolinguistic survey of Dhuleli''. Linguistic Survey of Nepal (LinSuN), Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal.</ref> | ||
*Western | {{tree list}} | ||
**Lahaul: ''[[Pattani language|Manchad]], [[Tinan language|Tinan]]'' | *'''West Himalayish''' | ||
**Kinnaur: ''[[Kanashi language|Kanashi]], Lower Kinnauri, Standard [[Kinnauri language|Kinnauri]], Chitkhuli, Jangrami, [[Shumcho language|Shumcho]]'' | **Western | ||
*Eastern | ***Lahaul: ''[[Pattani language|Manchad]], [[Tinan language|Tinan]]'' | ||
**Central: ''[[Bunan language|Bunan]], [[Sunam language|Sunnami]], [[Rongpo language|Rongpo]]''; possibly ''[[Zhangzhung language|Zhangzhung]]'' | ***Kinnaur: ''[[Kanashi language|Kanashi]], Lower Kinnauri, Standard [[Kinnauri language|Kinnauri]], Chitkhuli, Jangrami, [[Shumcho language|Shumcho]]'' | ||
**Almora: ''[[Rangas language|Rangas]], [[Darmiya language|Darmiya]], [[Byangsi language|Byangsi]], [[Dhuleli language|Dhuleli]], [[Chaudangsi language|Chaudangsi]]'' | **Eastern | ||
***Central: ''[[Bunan language|Bunan]], [[Sunam language|Sunnami]], [[Rongpo language|Rongpo]]''; possibly ''[[Zhangzhung language|Zhangzhung]]'' | |||
***Almora: ''[[Rangas language|Rangas]], [[Darmiya language|Darmiya]], [[Byangsi language|Byangsi]], [[Dhuleli language|Dhuleli]], [[Chaudangsi language|Chaudangsi]]'' | |||
{{tree list/end}} | |||
Widmer (2014:53–56)<ref name="Widmer2014"/> classifies [[Zhangzhung language|Zhangzhung]] within the Eastern branch of West Himalayish, and notes that it appears particularly close to languages of the Central subgroup ([[Gahri language|Bunan]], [[Sunam language|Sunnami]], and [[Rongpo language|Rongpo]]). | Widmer (2014:53–56)<ref name="Widmer2014"/> classifies [[Zhangzhung language|Zhangzhung]] within the Eastern branch of West Himalayish, and notes that it appears particularly close to languages of the Central subgroup ([[Gahri language|Bunan]], [[Sunam language|Sunnami]], and [[Rongpo language|Rongpo]]). | ||
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==References== | ==References== | ||
* George van Driem (2001) ''Languages of the Himalayas: An Ethnolinguistic Handbook of the Greater Himalayan Region.'' Brill. | * George van Driem (2001) ''Languages of the Himalayas: An Ethnolinguistic Handbook of the Greater Himalayan Region.'' Brill. | ||
*LaPolla, Randy. 2001. ''[http://www.ntu.edu.sg/home/randylapolla/papers/LaPolla_2001_The_Tibeto-Burman_Languages_of_Uttar_Pradesh.pdf The Tibeto-Burman Languages of Uttar Pradesh]''. | *LaPolla, Randy. 2001. ''[http://www.ntu.edu.sg/home/randylapolla/papers/LaPolla_2001_The_Tibeto-Burman_Languages_of_Uttar_Pradesh.pdf The Tibeto-Burman Languages of Uttar Pradesh] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160416195629/http://www.ntu.edu.sg/home/randylapolla/papers/LaPolla_2001_The_Tibeto-Burman_Languages_of_Uttar_Pradesh.pdf |date=2016-04-16 }}''. | ||
*Widmer, Manuel. 2017. ''[https://www.academia.edu/34126236/The_linguistic_prehistory_of_the_western_Himalayas_endangered_minority_languages_as_a_window_to_the_past The linguistic prehistory of the western Himalayas: endangered minority languages as a window to the past]''. Presented at Panel on Endangered Languages and Historical Linguistics, 23rd International Conference on Historical Linguistics (ICHL 23), San Antonio, Texas. | *Widmer, Manuel. 2017. ''[https://www.academia.edu/34126236/The_linguistic_prehistory_of_the_western_Himalayas_endangered_minority_languages_as_a_window_to_the_past The linguistic prehistory of the western Himalayas: endangered minority languages as a window to the past]''. Presented at Panel on Endangered Languages and Historical Linguistics, 23rd International Conference on Historical Linguistics (ICHL 23), San Antonio, Texas. | ||
*Widmer, Manuel. 2018. [ | *Widmer, Manuel. 2018. [https://hdl.handle.net/2433/235313 The linguistic prehistory of the western Himalayas]. ''Proceedings of the 51st International Conference on Sino-Tibetan Languages and Linguistics (2018)''. Kyoto: Kyoto University. | ||
{{Sino-Tibetan languages}} | {{Sino-Tibetan languages}} | ||
{{Bodic languages}} | {{Bodic languages}} | ||
{{Authority control}} | |||
[[Category:West Himalayish languages| ]] | |||
[[Category:Bodish languages|*]] | [[Category:Bodish languages|*]] | ||
Latest revision as of 07:42, 2 January 2026
| West Himalayish | |
|---|---|
| Kanauric, Almora | |
| Geographic distribution | Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand (India), Nepal |
| Linguistic classification | Sino-Tibetan
|
| Glottolog | tibe1275 |
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[edit | edit source]
Languages include Chitkuli Kinnauri, Kinnauri, Sunam, Jangshung, Shumcho, Pattani (Manchad), Tinan, Gahri (Bunan), Kanashi, Rongpo, Darmiya, Byangsi, Dhuleli, Chaudangsi, Rangas, and perhaps 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)[1] provides lexical and phonological evidence for the classification of Zhangzhung within West Himalayish.
Classification[edit | edit source]
Widmer (2014:47)[2] classifies the West Himalayish languages as follows. The recently discovered Dhuleli language has been added from Regmi & Prasain (2017).[3]
Widmer (2014:53–56)[2] classifies Zhangzhung within the Eastern branch of West Himalayish, and notes that it appears particularly close to languages of the Central subgroup (Bunan, Sunnami, and Rongpo).
Widmer (2017)[4] notes that many Tibetan varieties in the western Tibetan Plateau have been influenced by West Himalayish languages.
Vocabulary[edit | edit source]
Widmer (2017)[4] lists the following lexical items that differ in the Eastern and Western branches of West Himalayish.
| Language | ‘one’ | ‘hand’ | ‘cry’ | ‘black’ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proto-Eastern West Himalayish |
*it | *gut | *krap- | *rok- |
| Manchad | itsa | gùṛa | krap- | roki |
| Kanashi | idh | guḍ | kərop- | roko |
| Kinnauri (Southern) |
id | gŭd' | krap- | rŏkh |
| Proto-Western West Himalayish |
*tik | *lak | *tjo- | *kʰaj/*wom |
| Bunan | tiki | lak | tjo- | kʰaj |
| Rongpo | tig | lag | tyõ- | kʰasyũ |
| Byangsi | tigɛ | là | tye- | wamdɛ |
Widmer (2014:53-56)[2] classifies Zhangzhung within the eastern branch of West Himalayish, and lists the following cognates between Zhangzhung and Proto-West Himalayish.
| Gloss | Zhangzhung | Proto-West Himalayish |
|---|---|---|
| barley | zad | *zat |
| blue | ting | *tiŋ- |
| diminutive suffix | -tse | *-tse ~ *-tsi |
| ear | ra tse | *re |
| fat | tsʰas | *tsʰos |
| girl | tsa med | *tsamet |
| god | sad | *sat |
| gold ? | zang | *zaŋ |
| heart | she | *ɕe |
| old (person) | shang ze | *ɕ(j)aŋ |
| red | mang | *maŋ |
| white | shi nom | *ɕi |
Footnotes[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 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 Ethnology 国立民族学博物館. doi:10.15021/00002145
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Widmer, Manuel. 2014. "A tentative classification of West Himalayish." In A descriptive grammar of Bunan, 33-56. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Bern.
- ↑ Regmi, Dan Raj; Prasain, Balaram. 2017. A sociolinguistic survey of Dhuleli. Linguistic Survey of Nepal (LinSuN), Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Widmer, Manuel. 2017. The linguistic prehistory of the western Himalayas: endangered minority languages as a window to the past. Presented at Panel on Endangered Languages and Historical Linguistics, 23rd International Conference on Historical Linguistics (ICHL 23), San Antonio, Texas.
References[edit | edit source]
- George van Driem (2001) Languages of the Himalayas: An Ethnolinguistic Handbook of the Greater Himalayan Region. Brill.
- LaPolla, Randy. 2001. The Tibeto-Burman Languages of Uttar Pradesh Archived 2016-04-16 at the Wayback Machine.
- Widmer, Manuel. 2017. The linguistic prehistory of the western Himalayas: endangered minority languages as a window to the past. Presented at Panel on Endangered Languages and Historical Linguistics, 23rd International Conference on Historical Linguistics (ICHL 23), San Antonio, Texas.
- Widmer, Manuel. 2018. The linguistic prehistory of the western Himalayas. Proceedings of the 51st International Conference on Sino-Tibetan Languages and Linguistics (2018). Kyoto: Kyoto University.