Hill Miri dialect

Nyishi (Kamle)
Sarak
RegionArunachal Pradesh
EthnicityNyishi (Kamle) people
Native speakers
10,000 (2008)[1]
Sino-Tibetan
Language codes
ISO 639-3None (mis)
Individual code:
mrg – (included under Plains Miri)
GlottologNone
ELPHill Miri
Portrait of a girl of the Nyishi people of Kamle

Nyishi (Kamle) or Sarak is a Tani language of India. It is spoken in Arunachal Pradesh by an estimated 9,000 people of the Nyishi tribe.[2] It appears to be a dialect of the Nishi language.[3]

Though Hili Miri is listed under Mising [mrg] in Ethnologue, Burling and Sun–experts on the Aranuchal Pradesh and Tani languages–treat Hill Miri and Mising as separate and distinct languages belonging to different branches of the Tani subgroup.[1]

Description

Nyishi (muri-mugli) is a member of the Tani branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages and is considered a dialect of the Nishi language. It is spoken by 9,000 people in the northern regions of India by the Nyishi people of Kamle.[1] It is threatened because the younger generation is slowly breaking away from their people's traditions and language.[4][5] Many audio books of gospel narratives in the Nyishi language of Kamle have been collected.

History of scholarship

George Abraham Grierson, in his survey of India regarding its linguistics, researched the Nyishi language and published a record over a century ago.[citation needed]

Phonology

Consonants

The following table includes an inventory of Nyishi (Kamle) consonants.[6]

Labial Alveolar Post-
alveolar
Velar Glottal
Nasal m n ɲ[7] ŋ
Stop voiceless p t c[8] k
voiced b d ɟ[9] ɡ
Fricative s ʃ h
Approximant w l j
Trill? r

Vowels are front /i, e/, central /ɨ, ʉ, ə, a/,[10] and back /u, o/. Vowels occur long and short.

Grammar

The basic Nyishi (Kamle) grammar and basic word order are like those of related Sino-Tibetan languages, similar to that of Nishi.

Numerals

Nyishi (Kamle)
1 aken
2 eñi
3 oum
4 epi
5 ango/angngo
6 ake
7 kenne
8 pine
9 kora
10 íri

Pronouns

Personal

Singular Plural
1st person ngo ngu-lu
2nd person no nu-lu
3rd person bu, bú bu-lu, bú-lu

References

  1. ^ a b c "Did you know Hill Miri is threatened?". Endangered Languages. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
  2. ^ Moseley, Christopher (2007). Encyclopedia of the world's endangered languages. Routledge. p. 298. ISBN 978-0-7007-1197-0. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
  3. ^ Post, Mark W. (2013). Defoliating the Tani Stammbaum: An exercise in areal linguistics. Paper presented at the 13th Himalayan Languages Symposium. Canberra, Australian National University, Aug 9.
  4. ^ Audio
  5. ^ Nabam Tadar Rikam, "Emerging religious Identities of Arunachal Pradesh", Mittal Publications, 2005
  6. ^ Ju Namkung, "Phonological inventories of Tibeto-burman languages", Center for Southeast Asia Studies, University of California, 1996
  7. ^ Value unclear, perhaps [nʲ]?
  8. ^ Value unclear, perhaps [t͡ʃ]?
  9. ^ Value unclear, perhaps [d͡ʒ]?
  10. ^ Transcribed ɯ, y, ɤ, a in Namkung

Further reading

  • Ivan Martin Simon, "Hill Miri language guide", Govt. of Arunachal Pradesh, 1976
  • Matthew S. Dryer, "Word order in Tibeto-burman languages" Linguistics of the Tibeto-Burman Area, 2008
  • Shri Aduk Tayeng, "Nishi Phrase book"[permanent dead link], Arunachal Pradesh, 1990
  • P. T. Abraham, "A Grammar of Nyishi Language", 2005
  • S. N. Goswami, "Nishing ( Bangni) Language Guide", 1995

External links

  • Hill Miri profile at the Endangered Languages Project
  • Gospel narratives in Hill Miri dialect
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