Khmu language
| Khmu’ | |
|---|---|
| Khamu, Kamhmu | |
| Native to | Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, China |
|
Native speakers
|
710,000 (1999–2005 census) |
|
Austroasiatic
|
|
| Lao, Latin | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | Either: kjg – Khmu khf – Buddhist Khmu (Khmu Khwen) |
| Glottolog | khmu1255 |
Khmu [kʰmuʔ] is the language of the Khmu people of the northern Laos region. It is also spoken in adjacent areas of Vietnam, Thailand and China. Khmu lends its name to the Khmuic branch of the Austroasiatic language family, the latter of which also includes Khmer and Vietnamese. Within Austroasiatic, Khmu is often cited as being most closely related to the Palaungic and Khasic languages. The name "Khmu" can also be seen romanized as Kmhmu, Khmu', Kammu, or Khamuk in various publications or alternatively referred to by the name of a local dialect.
As a minority language with no standardizing influence, many dialects have evolved. Dialects differ primarily in consonant inventory, existence of register, and the degree to which the language has been influenced by the surrounding national language(s). Dialects are, for the most part, mutually intelligible; however communication can be difficult between speakers of geographically distant dialects.
The dialects of Khmu can be broadly categorized into two groups, Western Khmu and Eastern Khmu.
Suwilai Premsrirat (2002) reports the following locations and dialects of Khmu in Laos, Vietnam, China, and Thailand.
The consonant inventory of Khmu is shown in the table below. The phonemes in the colored cells are particular to the dialects of Eastern Khmu. The phoneme /f/, present in dialects of both Eastern and Western Khmu, is a result of borrowings from the surrounding Tai languages.
*w̥ is technically a voiceless labio-velar approximant
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