Rukai language
| Rukai | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Taiwan |
| Region |
Pingtung County Kaohsiung County Taidong County |
| Ethnicity | Rukai |
|
Native speakers
|
10,500 (2002) |
|
Austronesian
|
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| Dialects |
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| Latin script (Rukai alphabet) | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | |
| Glottolog | ruka1240 |
Location of Taiwan
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Distribution of the Rukai language
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Rukai is a Formosan language spoken by the Rukai people in Taiwan. It is a member of the Austronesian language family. The Rukai language comprises six dialects, which are Budai, Labuan, Maga, Mantauran, Tanan, and Tona. The number of speakers of the six Rukai dialects is estimated to be about 10,000. Some of them are monolingual. There are varying degrees of mutual intelligibility among the Rukai dialects. Rukai is notable for its distinct grammatical voice system among the Formosan languages.
Paul Jen-kuei Li considers Rukai to be the first language to have split from the Proto-Austronesian language. Below are the estimated divergence dates of various Formosan languages from Li (2008:215).
Classifications by various scholars repeatedly find that Rukai is one of the, and often the, most divergent of the Austronesian languages. It is therefore prime evidence for reconstructing Proto-Austronesian. Ross (2009) notes that to date, reconstructions had not taken Rukai into account, and therefore cannot be considered valid for the entire family.
Rukai is unique for being the only Formosan language without a focus system.
Tanan Rukai is also the Formosan language with the largest consonant inventory, with 23 consonants and 4 vowels having length contrast. Tanan Rukai also makes an animate/inanimate instead of a personal/non-personal one as most other Formosan languages do.
Mantauran is one of the most divergent dialects. Li (2001) classifies them as follows:
According to Zeitoun (2007:4), there are a total of 6 Rukai dialects spoken in 12 different villages.
Together, Maga, Tona, and Mantauran are also known as the "Lower Three Villages." Rukai have also recently in Sandimen Township and southern Sanhe Village, Majia Township, where there are many Paiwan. Sanhe Village is also where the Budai Rukai originally lived in before they relocated to Wutai Township in the mid-1900s.
Most Rukai dialects have four vowels and retroflex and interdental consonants.
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