Hmongic languages
The Hmongic also known as Miao languages include the various languages spoken by the Miao people (such as Hmong, Hmu, and Xong), Pa-Hng, and the "Bunu" languages used by non-Mien-speaking Yao people.
Hmongic | |
---|---|
Miao | |
Ethnicity | Miao people |
Geographic distribution | China, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand |
Linguistic classification | Hmong–Mien
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Subdivisions |
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ISO 639-2 / 5 | hmn |
Glottolog | hmon1337[1] |
Hmongic languages |
Name
The most common name used for the languages is Miao (苗), the Chinese name and the one used by Miao in China. However, Hmong is more familiar in the West, due to Hmong emigration. Many overseas Hmong prefer the name Hmong, and claim that Miao is both inaccurate and pejorative, though it is generally considered neutral by the Miao community in China.
Of the Hmongic languages spoken by ethnic Miao, there are a number of overlapping names. The three branches are as follows,[2] as named by Purnell (in English and Chinese), Ma, and Ratliff, as well as the descriptive names based on the patterns and colors of traditional dress:
Glottolog | Native name | Purnell | Chinese name | Ma | Ratliff | Dress-color name |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
west2803 | Ahmao* | Sichuan–Guizhou–Yunnan Miao | 川黔滇苗 Chuanqiandian Miao | Western Miao | West Hmongic | White, Blue/Green, Flowery, etc. |
nort2748 | Xong | Western Hunan Miao | 湘西苗 Xiangxi Miao | Eastern Miao | North Hmongic | Red Miao/Meo |
east2369 | Hmu | Eastern Guizhou Miao | 黔东苗 Qiandong Miao | Central Miao | East Hmongic | Black Miao |
* Ahmao is local Chinese for Flower Miao. No common name. Miao speakers use forms like Hmong (Mong), Hmang (Mang), Hmao, Hmyo. Yao speakers use names based on Nu.
The Hunan Province Gazetteer (1997) gives the following autonyms for various peoples classified by the Chinese government as Miao.
- Xiangxi Prefecture: gho Xong (guo Xiong 果雄), ghe Xong (ge Xiong 仡熊); guo Chu 果楚 (ceremonial)
- Luxi County and Guzhang County: ghao So (Suo 缩), te Suang (Shuang 爽)
- Jingzhou County: Hmu (Mu 目), (Nai Mu 乃目)
- Chengbu County: Hmao (Mao 髳)
Writing
The Hmongic languages have been written with at least a dozen different scripts,[3] none of which has been universally accepted among Hmong people as standard. Tradition has it that the ancestors of the Hmong, the Nanman, had a written language with a few pieces of significant literature. When the Han-era Chinese began to expand southward into the land of the Hmong, whom they considered barbarians, the script of the Hmong was lost, according to many stories. Allegedly, the script was preserved in the clothing. Attempts at revival were made by the creation of a script in the Qing Dynasty, but this was also brutally suppressed and no remnant literature has been found. Adaptations of Chinese characters have been found in Hunan, recently.[4] However, this evidence and mythological understanding is disputed. For example, according to Professor S. Robert Ramsey, there was no writing system among the Miao until the missionaries created them.[5] It is currently unknown for certain whether or not the Hmong had a script historically.
Around 1905, Samuel Pollard introduced the Pollard script, for the A-Hmao language, an abugida inspired by Canadian Aboriginal Syllabics, by his own admission.[6] Several other syllabic alphabets were designed as well, the most notable being Shong Lue Yang's Pahawh Hmong script, which originated in Laos for the purpose of writing Hmong Daw, Hmong Njua, and other dialects of the standard Hmong language.
In the 1950s, pinyin-based Latin alphabets were devised by the Chinese government for three varieties of Miao: Xong, Hmu, and Chuangqiandian (Hmong), as well as a Latin alphabet for A-Hmao to replace the Pollard script (now known as "Old Miao"), though Pollard remains popular. This meant that each of the branches of Miao in the classification of the time had a separate written standard.[7] Wu and Yang (2010) believe that standards should be developed for each of the six other primary varieties of Chuangqiandian as well, although the position of Romanization in the scope of Hmong language preservation remains a debate. Romanization remains common in China and the United States, while versions of the Lao and Thai scripts remain common in Thailand and Laos.
Nyiakeng Puachue Hmong script was created by Reverend Chervang Kong Vang to be able to capture Hmong vocabulary clearly and also to remedy redundancies in the language as well as address semantic confusions that was lacking in other scripts. This was created in the 1980s and was mainly used by United Christians Liberty Evangelical Church, a church also founded by Vang. The script bears strong resemblance to the Lao alphabet in structure and form and characters inspired from the Hebrew alphabets, although the characters themselves are different.[8]
Classification
Hmongic is one of the primary branches of the Hmong–Mien language family, with the other being Mienic. Hmongic is a diverse group of perhaps twenty languages, based on mutual intelligibility, but several of these are dialectically quite diverse in phonology and vocabulary, and are not considered to be single languages by their speakers. There are probably over thirty languages taking this into account.[9] Four classifications are outlined below, though the details of the West Hmongic branch are left for that article.
Mo Piu, first documented in 2009, was reported by Geneviève Caelen-Haumont (2011) to be a divergent Hmongic language, and was later determined to be a dialect of Guiyang Miao. Similarly, Ná-Meo is not addressed in the classifications below, but is believed by Nguyen (2007) to be closest to Hmu (Qiandong Miao).
Strecker (1987)
Strecker's classification is as follows:[9]
- Hmongic (Miao)
- West Hunan = Xong = Xiangxi (Northern Hmongic)
- East Guizhou = Mhu = Qiandong (Eastern Hmongic)
- Pa Hng
- Hm Nai = Wunai
- Kiong Nai = Jiongnai
- Yu Nuo = Younuo
- Sichuan–Guizhou–Yunnan = Chuanqiangdian (Western Hmongic, including Bu-Nao) (See)
In a follow-up to that paper in the same publication, he tentatively removed Pa-Hng, Wunai, Jiongnai, and Yunuo, positing that they may be independent branches of Miao–Yao, with the possibility that Yao was the first of these to branch off, effectively meaning that Miao/Hmongic would consist of six branches: She (Ho-Nte), Pa-Hng, Wunai, Jiongnai, Yunuo, and everything else.[10] In addition, the 'everything else' would include nine distinct but unclassified branches, which were not addressed by either Matisoff or Ratliff (see West Hmongic#Strecker).
Matisoff (2001)
Matisoff followed the basic outline of Strecker 1987, apart from consolidating the Bunu languages and leaving She unclassified:
Wang & Deng (2003)
Wang & Deng (2003) is one of the few Chinese sources which integrate the Bunu languages into Hmongic on purely linguistic grounds. They find the following pattern in the statistics of core Swadesh vocabulary:[11]
- She
- (main branch)
- (Hunan–Guangxi)
- Jiongnai
- (other)
- Western Hunan (Northern Hmongic / Xong)
- Younuo–Pa-Hng
- (Guizhou–Yunnan)
- Eastern Guizhou (Eastern Hmongic / Hmu)
- (Western)
- (Hunan–Guangxi)
Matisoff (2006)
Matisoff 2006 outlined the following. Not all varieties are listed.[12]
- Northern Hmong = West Hunan (Xong)
- Western Hmong (See)
- Central Hmong
- Longli Miao
- Guizhu
- Eastern Guizhou (Hmu)
- Daigong
- Kaili (= Northern)
- Lushan
- Taijiang (= Northern)
- Zhenfeng (= Northern)
- Phö
- Rongjiang (= Southern)
- Patengic
- Pateng
- Yongcong
Matisoff also indicates Hmongic influence on Gelao in his outline.
Ratliff (2010)
The Hmongic classification below is from Martha Ratliff (2010:3).[13]
- Hmongic (Miao)
Ratliff (2010) notes that Pa-Hng, Jiongnai, and Xong (North Hmongic) are phonologically conservative, as they retain many Proto-Hmongic features that have been lost in most other daughter languages. For instance, both Pa-Hng and Xong have vowel quality distinctions (and also tone distinctions in Xong) depending on whether or not the Proto-Hmong-Mien rime was open or closed. Both also retain the second part of Proto-Hmong-Mien diphthongs, which is lost in most other Hmongic languages, since they tend to preserve only the first part of Proto-Hmong-Mien diphthongs. Ratliff notes that the position of Xong (North Hmongic) is still quite uncertain. Since Xong preserves many archaic features not found in most other Hmongic languages, any future attempts at classifying the Hmong-Mien languages must also address the position of Xong.
Taguchi (2012)
Yoshihisa Taguchi's (2012, 2013) computational phylogenetic study classifies the Hmongic languages as follows.[14][15]
- Hmongic
Mixed languages
Due to intensive language contact, there are several language varieties in China which are thought to be mixed Miao–Chinese languages or Sinicized Miao. These include:
- Lingling (Linghua) of northern Guangxi
- The Maojia dialect (also called Aoka or Qingyi Miao) of Chengbu Miao Autonomous County, Hunan and Ziyun, Longsheng Various Nationalities Autonomous County, Guangxi, which is located near Pana-speaking villages.
- Badong Yao 八峒瑶 of Xinning County, Hunan
- Laba 喇叭: more than 200,000 in Qinglong, Shuicheng, Pu'an, and Panxian in Guizhou; possibly a mixed Xiang Chinese and Miao language. The people are also called Huguangren 湖广人, because they claim their ancestors had migrated from Huguang (modern-day Hunan and Hubei).[19]
- Baishi Miao 拜师苗 of Baishi District, Tianzhu County, eastern Guizhou, possibly a mixed Chinese and Miao (Hmu) language[20]
- Sanqiao, a mixed Hmu-Kam (Miao-Dong) language of southeastern Guizhou
Numerals
Language | One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight | Nine | Ten |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Proto-Hmong-Mien | *ʔɨ | *ʔu̯i | *pjɔu | *plei | *prja | *kruk | *dzjuŋH | *jat | *N-ɟuə | *gju̯əp |
Pa-Hng (Gundong) | ji11 | wa35 | po35 | ti35 | tja35 | tɕu55 | tɕaŋ44 | ji42 | ko33 | ku42 |
Wunai (Longhui) | i35 | ua35 | po35 | tsi35 | pia35 | tju55 | tɕa21 | ɕi31 | ko33 | kʰu31 |
Younuo | je22 | u33 | pje33 | pwɔ33 | pi33 | tjo35 | sɔŋ31 | ja21 | kiu13 | kwə21 |
Jiongnai | ʔi53 | u44 | pa44 | ple44 | pui44 | tʃɔ35 | ʃaŋ22 | ʑe32 | tʃu33 | tʃɔ35 |
She (Chenhu) | i35 | u22 | pa22 | pi35 | pi22 | kɔ31 | tsʰuŋ42 | zi35 | kjʰu53 | kjʰɔ35 |
Western Xiangxi Miao (Layiping) | ɑ44 | ɯ35 | pu35 | pʐei35 | pʐɑ35 | ʈɔ53 | tɕoŋ42 | ʑi33 | tɕo31 | ku33 |
Eastern Xiangxi Miao (Xiaozhang) | a33 | u53 | pu53 | ɬei53 | pja53 | to33 | zaŋ13 | ʑi35 | gɯ32 | gu35 |
Northern Qiandong Miao (Yanghao) | i33 | o33 | pi33 | l̥u33 | tsa33 | ȶu44 | ɕoŋ13 | ʑa31 | tɕə55 | tɕu31 |
Southern Qiandong Miao (Yaogao) | tiŋ24 | v13 | pai13 | tl̥ɔ13 | tɕi13 | tju44 | tsam22 | ʑi24 | tɕu31 | tɕu24 |
Pu No (Du'an) | i454 | aːɤ454 | pe454 | pla454 | pu454 | tɕu423 | saŋ212 | jo42 | tɕu22 | tɕu42 |
Nao Klao (Nandan) | i42 | uɔ42 | pei42 | tlja42 | ptsiu33 | tɕau32 | sɒ31 | jou54 | tɕau24 | tɕau54 |
Nu Mhou (Libo) | tɕy33 | yi33 | pa33 | tləu33 | pja33 | tjɤ44 | ɕoŋ31 | ja32 | tɕɤ55 | tɕɤ32 |
Nunu (Linyun) | i53 | əu53 | pe53 | tɕa53 | pɤ53 | tɕu23 | ʂɔŋ22 | jo22 | tɕu32 | tɕu22 |
Tung Nu (Qibainong) | i55 | au33 | pe33 | tɬa33 | pjo33 | ʈu41 | sɔŋ21 | ʑo21 | tɕu13 | tɕu21 |
Pa Na | ʔa31 | ʔu13 | pa13 | tɬo13 | pei13 | kjo35 | ɕuŋ22 | ʑa53 | tɕʰu313 | tɕo53 |
Hmong Shuat (Funing) | ʔi55 | ʔau55 | pʲei55 | plɔu55 | pʒ̩55 | tʃɔu44 | ɕaŋ44 | ʑi21 | tɕa42 | kɔu21 |
Hmong Dleub (Guangnan) | ʔi55 | ʔɑu55 | pei55 | plou55 | tʃɹ̩55 | ʈɻou44 | ɕã44 | ʑi21 | tɕuɑ42 | kou21 |
Hmong Nzhuab (Maguan) | ʔi54 | ʔau43 | pei54 | plou54 | tʃɹ̩54 | ʈou44 | ɕaŋ44 | ʑi22 | tɕuɑ42 | kou22 |
Northeastern Dian Miao (Shimenkan) | i55 | a55 | tsɿ55 | tl̥au55 | pɯ55 | tl̥au33 | ɕaɯ33 | ʑʱi31 | dʑʱa35 | ɡʱau31 |
Raojia | i44 | ɔ44 | poi44 | ɬɔ44 | pja44 | tju33 | ɕuŋ22 | ʑa53 | tɕa55 | tɕu53 |
Xijia Miao (Shibanzhai) | i55 | u31 | pzɿ31 | pləu31 | pja31 | ʈo24 | zuŋ24 | ja33 | ja31 | ʁo31 |
Gejia | i33 | a33 | tsɪ31 | plu33 | tsia33 | tɕu55 | saŋ31 | ʑa13 | tɕa24 | ku13 |
See also
- List of Proto-Hmong-Mien reconstructions (Wiktionary)
- List of Proto-Hmongic reconstructions (Wiktionary)
- Hmong-Mien comparative vocabulary list (Wiktionary)
References
- Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2017). "Hmongic". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
- Schein, Louisa (2000). Minority Rules: The Miao and the Feminine in China's Cultural Politics (illustrated, reprint ed.). Duke University Press. p. 85. ISBN 082232444X. Retrieved 24 April 2014.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- "Hmong Archives – preserving the Hmong heritage". www.hmongarchives.org.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-07-28. Retrieved 2014-07-28.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- Ramsey, S. Robert (1987). The Languages of China (illustrated, reprint ed.). Princeton University Press. p. 284. ISBN 069101468X. Retrieved 24 April 2014.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- Tanya Storch Religions and missionaries around the Pacific, 1500-1900 2006 p293
- 苗文创制与苗语方言划分的历史回顾 Archived 2011-11-04 at the Wayback Machine
Other branches had been left unclassified. - Everson, Michael (2017-02-15). "L2/17-002R3: Proposal to encode the Nyiakeng Puachue Hmong script in the UCS" (PDF).
- Strecker, David (1987). "The Hmong-Mien Languages" (PDF). Linguistics of the Tibeto-Burman Area. 10 (2): 1–11.
- Strecker, David. (1987). "Some comments on Benedict's 'Miao-Yao enigma: the Na-e language'" (PDF). Linguistics of the Tibeto-Burman Area. 10 (2): 22–42.
- 王士元、邓晓华,《苗瑶语族语言亲缘关系的计量研究——词源统计分析方法》,《中国语文》,2003(294)。
- Matisoff, 2006. "Genetic versus Contact Relationship". In Aikhenvald & Dixon, Areal diffusion and genetic inheritance.
- Ratliff, Martha. 2010. Hmong–Mien language history. Canberra, Australia: Pacific Linguistics.
- Yoshihisa Taguchi [田口善久] (2012). On the Phylogeny of the Hmong-Mien languages Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine. Conference in Evolutionary Linguistics 2012.
- Yoshihisa, Taguchi [田口善久] (2013). On the phylogeny of Hmongic languages. Presented at the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society (SEALS 23), Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok.
- Hsiu, Andrew. 2015. The classification of Na Meo, a Hmong-Mien language of Vietnam. Paper presented at SEALS 25, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
- Hsiu, Andrew. 2018. Preliminary classification of Hmongic languages.
- Chen Qiguang [陈其光] (2013). Miao and Yao language [苗瑶语文]. Beijing: Ethnic Publishing House [民族出版社]. ISBN 9787566003263
- "Operation China" (PDF). Retrieved 2018-09-30.
- "Chinese peoples info" (PDF). asiaharvest.org.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-11-21. Retrieved 2012-09-29.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
External links
- Li Jinping, Li Tianyi [李锦平, 李天翼]. 2012. A comparative study of Miao dialects [苗语方言比较研究]. Chengdu: Southwest Jiaotong University Press.
- 283-word wordlist recording in Wuding Maojie Hmong (Dianxi Miao) dialect (F, 31), ellicited in Standard Mandarin, archived with Kaipuleohone.