Tai Lü language
Encyclopedia
Tai Lü is a language spoken by about 670,000 people in South East Asia. This includes 250,000 people in China
, 200,000 in Burma, 134,000 in Thailand
, and 5,000 in Vietnam
. The language is similar to other Tai languages
.
In Vietnam, Tai Lü speakers are officially recognised as the Lự
ethnic minority, although in China they are classified as part of the Dai people
, along with speakers of the other Tai languages
apart from Zhuang.
The initials ts- and s- are palatalised before i, e and ɛ and become tɕ- and ɕ-, respectively.
Similar to the Thai alphabet, the pronunciation of the tone of a syllable depends on the class the initial consonant belongs to, syllable structure and vowel length
, and the tone mark.
Unicode range ("New Tai Lue"): U+1980 – U+19DF
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, 200,000 in Burma, 134,000 in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, and 5,000 in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. The language is similar to other Tai languages
Tai languages
The Tai or Zhuang–Tai languages are a branch of the Tai–Kadai language family. The Tai languages include the most widely spoken of the Tai–Kadai languages, including standard Thai or Siamese, the national language of Thailand; Lao or Laotian, the national language of Laos; Burma's Shan language;...
.
In Vietnam, Tai Lü speakers are officially recognised as the Lự
Lu people
The Tai Lü people are an ethnic group of Vietnam, China, and Thailand. In Vietnam, most Lu live in the Lai Chau Province, and their population was 4,964 in 1999. In China, they are officially recognized as part of the Dai ethnic group. They speak a Tai language.Lu is the indigenous people in Mường...
ethnic minority, although in China they are classified as part of the Dai people
Dai people
The Dai peoples is one of several ethnic groups living in the Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture and the Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture , but by extension can apply to groups in Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, and Burma when Dai is used to mean specifically Tai Lue, Chinese Shan or even...
, along with speakers of the other Tai languages
Tai languages
The Tai or Zhuang–Tai languages are a branch of the Tai–Kadai language family. The Tai languages include the most widely spoken of the Tai–Kadai languages, including standard Thai or Siamese, the national language of Thailand; Lao or Laotian, the national language of Laos; Burma's Shan language;...
apart from Zhuang.
Phonology
Tai Lü has 21 syllable-initial consonants, 91 syllable finals and six tones (three different tones in checked syllables, six in syllables).Initials
| p | pʰ | b | m | f | v | |
| t | tʰ | d | n | l | ||
| ts | s | j | ||||
| k | ŋ | x | ||||
| kʷ | xʷ | |||||
| ʔ | h |
The initials ts- and s- are palatalised before i, e and ɛ and become tɕ- and ɕ-, respectively.
Finals
| aː | iː | eː | ɛː | uː | oː | ɔː | ɯː | əː | |
| ai | aːi | ui | oi | ɔi | ɯi | əi | |||
| au | aːu | iu | eu | ɛu | əu | ||||
| am | aːm | im | em | ɛm | um | om | ɔm | ɯm | əm |
| an | aːn | in | en | ɛn | un | on | ɔn | ɯn | ən |
| aŋ | aːŋ | iŋ | eŋ | ɛŋ | uŋ | oŋ | ɔŋ | ɯŋ | əŋ |
| ap | aːp | ip | ep | ɛp | up | op | ɔp | ɯp | əp |
| at | aːt | it | et | ɛt | ut | ot | ɔt | ɯt | ət |
| ak | aːk | ik | ek | ɛk | uk | ok | ɔk | ɯk | ək |
| aʔ | iʔ | eʔ | ɛʔ | uʔ | oʔ | ɔʔ | ɯʔ | əʔ |
Tones
There are six tones for unchecked syllables, although only three are allowed in checked syllables (those ending with -p, -t or -k).| Description | Contour | Transcription |
|---|---|---|
| high | 55 | á |
| mid | 33 | a (not marked) |
| low | 11 | à |
| falling | 51 | â |
| high rising | 35 | á̄ |
| low rising | 13 | à̄ |
Grammar
Word order is usually Subject - Verb - Object; Modifiers (e.g. adjectives) follow nouns.Vocabulary
Tai Lü has many loanwords from Pali, as well as from the local Chinese dialect and modern Standard Chinese.Numbers
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 100 | 10,000 | 100,000 | 1,000,000 |
| nɯŋ | sɔ́ŋ | sám | sī́ː | hā̀ː | hók | tɕet | pɛ̄́t | kā̀u | síp | hɔ̀i | mɯ̄́n | sɛ́n | làn |
Writing systems
Tai Lü is written in two different alphabets. The old writing system was reformed in the 1950s, but is still in use and has recently regained government support. The new alphabet is a simplified version of the old script.New Tai Lü
New Tai Lü is a modernisation of the Lanna alphabet, similar to the Thai alphabet, and consists of 42 initial consonant signs (21 high-tone class, 21 low-tone class), seven final consonant signs, 16 vowel signs, two tone letters and one vowel shortening letter (or syllable-final glottal stop). Vowels signs can be placed before or after the syllable initial consonant.Similar to the Thai alphabet, the pronunciation of the tone of a syllable depends on the class the initial consonant belongs to, syllable structure and vowel length
Vowel length
In linguistics, vowel length is the perceived duration of a vowel sound. Often the chroneme, or the "longness", acts like a consonant, and may etymologically be one, such as in Australian English. While not distinctive in most dialects of English, vowel length is an important phonemic factor in...
, and the tone mark.
Unicode range ("New Tai Lue"): U+1980 – U+19DF