Nùng is a Kra–Dai language spoken mostly in Cao Bằng and Lạng Sơn provinces in Vietnam and also in China and Laos. It is also known as Nong, Tai Nùng, Tay, and Tày Nùng. Nùng is the name given to the various Tai languages of northern Vietnam that are spoken by peoples classified as Nùng by the Vietnamese government. The Nùng were originally Zhuang people who migrated into Vietnam in the 16th and 18th centuries.

Nùng
Native toVietnam, China, Laos
EthnicityNung
Native speakers
968,800 (2009 census)[1]
Latin (modified Vietnamese alphabet)
Sawndip
Language codes
ISO 639-3nut
Glottolognung1283
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Geographic distribution of Nung Language

Speakers

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In the 1999 census, it had about 856,000 speakers. It had about 968,800 speakers in the 2009 census.

Distribution

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In Vietnam, Nùng is spoken in all of the Northeast Region (Except Phu Tho Province) and parts of the South Central Region (Dak Lak, Gia Lai and Lam Dong Provinces).

In China, Nùng is spoken in the Wenshan Prefecture of Yunnan and neighbouring parts of Guangxi. Speakers of the Nùng language in China are classified as Zhuang.

In Laos, Nùng is spoken in three villages of Luang Prabang Province. Speakers are known as the Yang people.

In Laos

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The Nùng people of Laos (Yang) believed to originated from a border crossing in Vietnam to Laos from Dien Bien Province to Son La Province and later to Luang Prabang Province. This was during the Vietnam War.[citation needed]

Phonology

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The following are the sounds of the Nùng language:[2]

Consonants

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Labial Alveolar Post-
alveolar
Palatal Velar Glottal
Nasal m n ɲ ŋ
Plosive/
Affricate
voiceless p t k ʔ
aspirated
implosive ɓ ɗ
Fricative voiceless f s h
voiced v ʐ
lateral ɬ
Approximant w l j
Phoneme Allophone
/kʰ/ []
/w/ []
/j/ []
// [ɨ̯], [ɰ]

Vowels

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Front Central Back
High i ɨ ɨː u
High-mid
Mid əː
Low-mid ɔ ɔː
Low æ æː a
Phoneme Allophone Notes
// [eᵊ] in closed syllables
/æ/ [ɛ]
/ɨ/ [ɯ]
/ɨː/ [ɯː]
/əː/ [ə] in closed syllables
// [uᵊ] before /n/
// [oᵊ] before /n/
/ɔː/ [ɒ]
/ɔ/ [ɔʷ] before /ŋ/

Tone

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The Nùng language has six tones:

Tones
á ˦
a ˧
à ˨
a᷆ ˨˩
á+glottal ˦ʔ
à+glottal ˨ʔ

Varieties

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Nùng consists of many varieties, some of which are listed below.[3][4]

Nùng Vên (En), a language formerly undistinguished from surrounding Central Tai (Nùng) dialects, was discovered to be a Kra language by Hoàng Văn Ma and Jerold A. Edmondson in 1998. Its speakers are classified as Nùng by the Vietnamese government.

References

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  1. ^ Nùng at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. ^ Saul, Janice E.; Wilson, Nancy Freiberger (1980). Nung Grammar. Publications in Linguistics, 62. Dallas: The Summer Institute of Linguistics and the University of Texas at Arlington. pp. 5–13.
  3. ^ Edmondson, Jerold A., Solnit, David B. (eds). 1997. Comparative Kadai: the Tai branch. Summer Institute of Linguistics and the University of Texas at Arlington Publications in Linguistics 124. Dallas: Summer Institute of Linguistics and the University of Texas at Arlington.
  4. ^ "Map & Language Descriptions | Borderlands: Lesser Known Indigenous Languages of Northern Vietnam". Archived from the original on 2012-02-07. Retrieved 2012-03-03.
  5. ^ "Return To Dalat: The Lost Shangrila". www.vnafmamn.com. Archived from the original on 2008-07-09.
  • Freiberger, Nancy; Vy Thị Bé (1976a). Sẹc mạhn Slứ Nohng Fạn Slihng: Ngữ vựng Nùng Phạn Slinh (Nung Fan Slihng Vocabulary). Series 64 E72. Summer Institute of Linguistics (Viện Chuyên Khảo Ngữ Học).
  • Freiberger, Nancy (1976b). Thòi củ cưhn Nohng Fạn Slihng: Phong tục tập quán của người Nùng Phạn Slinh (Culture and Folklore of the Nung Fan Slihng). Series 64 E16. Summer Institute of Linguistics (Viện Chuyên Khảo Ngữ Học), Mainland Southeast Asia Branch.
  • Vy Thị Bé; Janice E. Saul; Nancy Freiberger Wilson (1982). Nung Fan Slihng - English Dictionary. Manila: Summer Institute of Linguistics (Viện Chuyên Khảo Ngữ Học).

See also

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