Aimol language
| Aimol | |
|---|---|
| Native to | India |
| Region | Manipur, Assam |
| Ethnicity | Aimol, Langrong |
|
Native speakers
|
2,600 (2001 census) |
|
Sino-Tibetan
|
|
| Dialects |
|
|
Latin script Bengali script |
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | |
| Glottolog | aimo1244 |
Aimol (Aimal) is the language of the Aimol people of Manipur, India. It is considered endangered and has less than 3,000 speakers worldwide.
Aimol is spoken primarily in the Chandel, Senapati, and Churachandpur districts of Manipur. Aimol is spoken in the following villages of Manipur state (Ethnologue). There are also small numbers of speakers in Assam.
The name of the language comes from the Aimol tribe of people who speak it. The word Aimol itself may come from the words Ai meaning "wild turmeric" which would be found in the hill Mol.
Aimol is an Old Kuki language. The language displays similar characteristics as other Old Kuki including Kom, Mhar, and Chiru. However, most of the Old Kuki languages are not mutually intelligible with Aimol. Additionally, Aimol is reportedly less influenced by Manipuri/Meitei, the lingua franca of the state of Manipur, as compared to the other neighboring languages. Aimol is mutually intelligible with Kom. Speakers of the respective languages can understand each other when speaking in their own language. In terms of numeric structures, the two languages demonstrate extreme grammatical and structural similarities. In the Linguistic Survey of India, Grierson reported that all the Old Kuki languages, including Aimol, are all merely dialects of the same language. He also reported that these Old Kuki languages are closely related to the Central Kuki languages.
The Langrong variety is distinct enough that some consider it a separate language. There are two dialects of Aimol proper, Sutpong and Khurai, which can perhaps be attributed to differing migration patterns. There are small differences between the two but they are completely mutually intelligible.
Most occurrences of Aimol writing are of Sutpong. This version makes use of glottal stops in word endings preceding by vowel sounds. Speakers of this dialect tend to take pride in speaking this dialect over Khurai.
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Wikipedia