Social:Xong language

From HandWiki
Short description: Hmongic language of south-central China
Xong
Xiangxi Miao
Xonb
Pronunciation[ɕõ˧˥]
Native toChina
RegionHunan, Guizhou, Hubei, Guangxi and Chongqing
EthnicityQo Xiong
Native speakers
~900,000 (2005)[1]
Hmong–Mien
Dialects
  • Western (Xong proper)
  • Eastern (Suang)
Latin
Language codes
ISO 639-3Either:
mmr – Western Xiangxi Miao
muq – Eastern Xiangxi Miao
Glottolognort2748[2]

The Xong language (Dut Xonb [tu53 ɕõ35])[3] is the northernmost Hmongic language, spoken in south-central China by around 0.9 million people. It is called Xiangxi Miaoyu (湘西苗语, "Western Hunan Miao") in Chinese, as well as Eastern Miao (东部苗语). Western sources, it has been called Meo, Red Miao, and North Hmongic (Ratliff 2010[4]). An official alphabet was adopted in 1956.

Distribution

Xong is spoken mainly in Hunan province, but also in a few areas of Guizhou, Guangdong and Hubei provinces, the Guangxi autonomous region and Chongqing municipality in China . Xong-speaking communities, by county, are,[5]

  • Western (Xong): 800,000 speakers (autonym qɔ35 ɕoŋ35)
    • Hunan
      • Huayuan County, Xiangxi
      • Jishou, Xiangxi
      • Fenghuang County, Xiangxi
      • Baojing County, Xiangxi
      • Longshan County, Xiangxi
      • Xinhuang Dong Autonomous County, Huaihua
      • Mayang Miao Autonomous County, Huaihua
    • Guizhou
      • Songtao Miao Autonomous County
      • Tongren County
    • Hubei
      • Xuan'en County
    • Chongqing
      • Xiushan Tujia and Miao Autonomous County, Qianjiang
      • Youyang Tujia and Miao Autonomous County, Qianjiang
    • Guangxi
      • Hechi (including Beiya 坝牙村 of Xia'ao 下坳乡, Yong'an 永安乡, and Banling 板岭乡 of Du'an County[6])
      • Nandan County
  • Eastern (Suang): 80,000 speakers
    • Hunan
      • Jishou, Xiangxi (e.g., in Xiaozhangzhai 小章寨, with autonym qɯ˨ suɑŋ˥˧)
      • Longshan County, Xiangxi (e.g., in Wujiazhai 吴家寨)
      • Guzhang County, Xiangxi
      • Luxi County, Xiangxi (e.g., in Dongtouzhai 洞头寨, with autonym tei˥˧ sou˥˧)

Classification

Xong was classified in its own branch of the Hmongic family in Strecker (1987). Xiang (1999)[5] divided Xong into western and eastern dialects. Matisoff (2001) considered these to be two distinct languages, but Matisoff (2006) consolidated them into one. Yang (2004)[7] divides each of these dialects into three subdialects, as listed below. Speaker populations and locations are from Li and Li (2012).[8]

  • Western (includes standardized Xong)
    • Lect 1 (autonym: qo35 ɕoŋ35): Jiwei 吉卫, Huayuan County; 769,000 speakers in the counties of Fenghuang (except Baren 叭仁乡), most of Huayuan, southern Jishou, Xinhuang, Mayang, Songtao, parts of Rongjiang, parts of Ziyun, Xiushan, parts of Nandan, parts of Hechi, and parts of Du'an.
    • Lect 2 (autonym: qo54 ɕoŋ54): Yangmeng 阳孟, Jishou; 120,000 speakers in the counties of eastern Huayuan, western and northern Jishou, eastern Baojing, southwestern Guzhang, Fenghuang (in Baren 叭仁乡), and Xuan'en.
    • Lect 3 (autonym: o55 ɕaŋ55): Zhongxin 中心, Baojing County; 30,000 speakers in southeastern Baojing County.
  • Eastern
    • Lect 4 (autonym: te53 suɑŋ53): Xiaozhang 小章, Luxi County; 6,000 speakers in and around Xiaozhang, Luxi County
    • Lect 5 (autonym: ɡɔ35 sɤ53): Danqing 丹青, Jishou; 48,000 speakers in the counties of northwestern Luxi, eastern Jishou, and southeastern Guzhang.
    • Lect 6 (autonym: bja22 sã44 nɤ44): Dengshang 蹬上, Longshan County; 300 speakers in southern Longshan County and Yongshun County (in Shouche 首车乡).

He Fuling (2009) describes a western Qo Xiong dialect of Gouliang Ethnic Miao Village, Ala Township, Fenghuang County (凤凰县阿拉镇勾良苗寨).

Chen (2009)[9] describes a western Qo Xiong dialect of Daxing Town 大兴镇, Songtao County, Guizhou.

Phonology and script

A written standard based on the Western dialect in Làyǐpíng village and Jíwèi town, Huāyuán county, Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture was established in 1956.

Xong Consonant Phonemes
Labial Alveolar Retroflex (Alveolo-)
palatal
Velar Uvular Glottal
plain pal. app. plain pal. aff. plain aff. plain lab. plain lab. plain lab.
Nasal voiced m n ɳ ɲ ŋ ŋʷ
aspirated m̥ʰ n̥ʰ
Stop/
Affricate
voiceless p t ts ʈ c k q
aspirated pʲʰ pʴʰ tsʰ ʈʰ tɕʰ kʷʰ qʷʰ
prenasal ᵐp ⁿt ⁿts ᶯʈ ᶮc ᶮtɕ ᵑk ᵑkʷ ᶰq ᶰqʷ
prenasal asp. ᵐpʰ ᵐpʴʰ ⁿtʰ ⁿtsʰ ᶯʈʰ ᶮcʰ ᶮtɕʰ ᵑkʰ ᵑkʷʰ ᶰqʰ ᶰqʷʰ
Fricative voiceless f s ʂ ɕ h
voiced ʐ ʑ
Approximant voiced w l
aspirated l̥ʰ l̥ʲʰ
Xong Vowel Phonemes
Front Central Back
Close i ɯ u
Mid e ɤ o
Open-mid ɛ ɔ
Open a ɑ
Xong Consonant Orthography
p ⟨b⟩ ⟨p⟩ ᵐp ⟨nb⟩ mpʰ ⟨np⟩ m ⟨m⟩ m̥ʰ ⟨hm⟩
⟨bl⟩ pɹʰ ⟨pl⟩ mpɹʰ ⟨npl⟩ ⟨ml⟩
t ⟨d⟩ ⟨t⟩ ⁿt ⟨nd⟩ ntʰ ⟨nt⟩ l̥ʰ ⟨hl⟩ n ⟨n⟩ n̥ʰ ⟨hn⟩
ts ⟨z⟩ tsʰ ⟨c⟩ ⁿts ⟨nz⟩ ntsʰ ⟨nc⟩ s ⟨s⟩ f ⟨f⟩
⟨j⟩ tɕʰ ⟨q⟩ ᶮtɕ ⟨nj⟩ ntɕʰ ⟨nq⟩ ɕ ⟨x⟩ ʑ ⟨y⟩
ʈ ⟨zh⟩ ʈʰ ⟨ch⟩ ᶯʈ ⟨nzh⟩ ɳʈʰ ⟨nch⟩ ʂ ⟨sh⟩ ʐ ⟨r⟩ ɳ ⟨nh⟩
k ⟨g⟩ ⟨k⟩ ᵑk ⟨ngg⟩ ŋkʰ ⟨nk⟩
q ⟨gh⟩ ⟨kh⟩ ᶰq ⟨ngh⟩ ɴqʰ ⟨nkh⟩
w ⟨w⟩ h ⟨h⟩
Xong Vowel Orthography
i ⟨i⟩ u ⟨u⟩
iu ⟨iu⟩
ɑ ⟨a⟩ ⟨ia⟩ ⟨ua⟩
o ⟨o⟩ io ⟨io⟩
e ⟨e⟩ ie ⟨ie⟩ ue ⟨ue⟩
ei ⟨ei⟩ uei ⟨ui⟩
a ⟨ea⟩ ia ⟨iea⟩ ua ⟨uea⟩
ɔ ⟨ao⟩ ⟨iao⟩
ɤ ⟨eu⟩ ⟨ieu⟩ ⟨ueu⟩
ɯ ⟨ou⟩ ⟨iou⟩ ⟨uou⟩
ɛ ⟨an⟩ ⟨ian⟩ ⟨uan⟩
en ⟨en⟩ ien ⟨in⟩ uen ⟨un⟩
ɑŋ ⟨ang⟩ iɑŋ ⟨iang⟩ uɑŋ ⟨uang⟩
⟨ong⟩ ioŋ ⟨iong⟩
Tones
Tone IPA Letter
high rising, 45 ˦˥ ⟨b⟩
low falling, 21 ˨˩ ⟨x⟩
high, 4 ˦ ⟨d⟩
low, 2 ˨ ⟨l⟩
high falling, 53 ˥˧ ⟨t⟩
falling, 42 ˦˨ ⟨s⟩

References

  1. Western Xiangxi Miao at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
    Eastern Xiangxi Miao at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
  2. Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds (2017). "North Hmongic". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History. http://glottolog.org/resource/languoid/id/nort2748. 
  3. Sposato, Adam (2015). A Grammar of Xong (PhD thesis). University at Buffalo.
  4. Ratliff, Martha (2010). Hmong–Mien language history. Canberra, Australia: Pacific Linguistics. ISBN 978-0-85883-615-0. 
  5. 5.0 5.1 Xiang, Rizheng 向日征 (1999) (in zh). Jíwèi Miáoyǔ yánjiū. Chengdu: Sichuan renmin chubanshe. 
  6. Guangxi Zhuangzu zizhiqu shaoshu minzu yuyan wenzi gongzuo weiyuanhui [Guangxi Minority Languages Orthography Committee] (2008) (in zh). Guǎngxī mínzú yǔyán fāngyīn cíhuì. Beijing: Minzu chubanshe. 
  7. Yang, Zaibiao 杨再彪 (2004) (in zh). Miáoyǔ dōngbù fāngyán tǔyǔ bǐjiào. Beijing: Minzu chubanshe. 
  8. Li, Jinping 李锦平; Li, Tianyi 李天翼 (2012) (in zh). Miáoyǔ fāngyán bǐjiào yánjiū. Chengdu: Xinan jiaotong daxue chubanshe. 
  9. Chen, Hong 陈宏 (2009). Guìzhōu Sōngtáo Dàxīngzhèn Miáoyǔ yánjiū 贵州松桃大兴镇苗语研究 (Ph.D. thesis) (in 中文). Nankai daxue.

Further reading

External links

fr:Miao du Xiangxi occidental