Idu Mishmi language

Idu Mishmi
Luoba
Region India: Assam; Arunachal Pradesh: Dibang Valley district, Lower Dibang valley, Lohit; [(East Siang District)]; [(Upper Siang)]. China: southeastern Tibet Autonomous Region: Nyingchi Prefecture: Zayü County; western Yunnan
Ethnicity Mishmi people (categorized as Lhoba and Mishmi)
Native speakers
11,000 (2001 census)[1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3 clk
Glottolog idum1241[2]

The Idu Mishmi language (simplified Chinese: 义都语; pinyin: Yìdū yŭ) is a small language spoken by the Mishmi people in Dibang Valley district, Lower Dibang Valley district, Lohit district, East Siang district, Upper Siang district of the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh and in Zayü County of the Tibet Autonomous Region, China. There were 8569 speakers in India in 1981 and 7000 speakers in China in 1994. It is considered an endangered language.

Locations

In China, Idu Mishmi is spoken in Xiba village 西巴村, which has just over 40 residents and is located at the foot of Xikong Mountain 习孔山. Xiba village is located 10 kilometers from the nearest administrative center, namely Migu village 米古村 (Jiang 2005:4).[3] The Idu live in the Danba River 丹巴江 and E River 额河 watersheds in Zayü County, Tibet. They are officially classified by the Chinese government as ethnic Lhoba people.

In India, the Idu are found in Arunachal Pradesh.

Script

The Idu Mishmi people did not usually have a script of their own. When needed Idu Mishmis tended to use the Tibetan script. Currently the Idu Mishmi have developed a script known as "Idu Azobra".

Alternative names

The Idu Mishmi language is often referred to as:

  • Chulikata by the Assamese.
  • Idu in general.
  • Yidu may be used in China.
  • Midu, Mindri and Mithu (also called Bebejias by the Assamese) are subclassifications within the Idu tribe based on the pitch and pronunciation of certain words. However, Idu people prefer the ethonym "Kera-Ah" (children of Kera)[4]

Dialects

Dialect name Alternative name (if any) Area spoken
Mindri Anini area
Mithu Bebejia Hunli, Desali, Koronu, Abango, Bhismaknagar,
Midu Roing, Dambuk, Aohali, Injonu
Mihi Ahi valley (Anelih)

References

  1. Idu Mishmi at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
  2. Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2017). "Idu-Mishmi". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
  3. Jiang Huo. 2005. Yiduyu Yanjiu. Beijing: Minzu University Press.
  4. Idu

Further reading

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