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| ==Writing system== | ==Writing system== | ||
| ] Arabic script sign in ] Hui Autonomous Prefecture, which is the centre of the ethnic minority of the ]]] | |||
| Knowledge of ] is widespread among the Sarta, and as a result, they often use the ] to write down their language informally (cf. the ] system that was used by ]); however, this has been little investigated by scholars. {{asof|2003}}, the official ] for Dongxiang, developed on the basis of the ] alphabet, remained in the experimental stage.<ref>{{harvnb|Kim|2003|p=348}}</ref> | Knowledge of ] is widespread among the Sarta, and as a result, they often use the ] to write down their language informally (cf. the ] system that was used by ]); however, this has been little investigated by scholars. {{asof|2003}}, the official ] for Dongxiang, developed on the basis of the ] alphabet, remained in the experimental stage.<ref>{{harvnb|Kim|2003|p=348}}</ref> | ||
Revision as of 16:44, 5 April 2012
‹ The template Infobox language is being considered for merging. ›| Santa | |
|---|---|
| Dongxiang | |
| Native to | China |
| Region | Gansu province, mainly in Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture, and Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region |
| Native speakers | (250,000 cited 1999) |
| Language family | Mongolic
|
| Writing system | Arabic, Latin |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | sce |
| ELP | Dongxiang |
The Santa language, also known as Dongxiang (东乡语), is a Mongolic language spoken by the Dongxiang people in northwest China.
Phonology
Dongxiang has neither vowel harmony nor distinctions of vowel length.
Grammar
In common with other Mongolic languages, Dongxiang is basically a subject–object–verb language. In Linxia, however, under the influence of the Mandarin dialects spoken by the neighbouring Hui people, sentences of the subject–verb–object type have also been observed.
Writing system
Knowledge of Arabic is widespread among the Sarta, and as a result, they often use the Arabic script to write down their language informally (cf. the Xiao'erjing system that was used by Hui people); however, this has been little investigated by scholars. As of 2003, the official Latin alphabet for Dongxiang, developed on the basis of the Monguor alphabet, remained in the experimental stage.
Numerals
| English | Classical Mongolian | Dongxiang | |
| 1 | One | Nigen | Niy |
| 2 | Two | Qoyar | Ghua |
| 3 | Three | Ghurban | Ghuran |
| 4 | Four | Dorben | Jierang |
| 5 | Five | Tabun | Tawun |
| 6 | Six | Jirghughan | Jirghun |
| 7 | Seven | Dologhan | Dolon |
| 8 | Eight | Naiman | Naiman |
| 9 | Nine | Yisun | Yysun |
| 10 | Ten | Arban | Haron |
The Tangwang creole language
Main article: Tangwang languageThere are about 20,000 people in the north-eastern part Dongxiang County, who self-identify as Dongxiang or Hui people who don't speak Dongxiang language, but speak natively a Dongxiang-influenced form of Mandarin. The linguist Mei W. Lee-Smith calls this creole language the "Tangwang language" (Chinese: 唐汪话), based on the names of the two largest villages (Tangjia and Wangjia, parts of Tangwang Town) where it is spoken. According to Lee-Smith, the Tangwang language uses mostly Mandarin words and morphemes with Dongxiang grammar. Besides Dongxiang loanwords, Tangwang also has a substantial number of Arabic and Persian loanwords.
Like standard Mandarin, Tangwang is a tonal language, but grammatical particles, which are typically borrowed from Mandarin, but are used in the way Dongxiang morphemes would be used in Dongxiang, don't carry tones.
For example, while the Mandarin plural suffix -men (们) has only very restricted usage (it can be used with personal pronouns and some nouns related to people), Tangwang uses it, in the form -m, universally, the way Dongxiang would use its plural suffix -la. Mandarin pronoun ni (你) can be used in Tangwang as a possessive suffix (meaning "your"). Unlike Mandarin, but like Dongxiang, Tangwang has grammatical cases as well (but only 4 of them, instead of 8 in Dongxiang).
References
- Bao 2006
- Gordon 2005, Dongxiang
- Bao 2006, 1.1: 东乡语的语序特点
- Kim 2003, p. 348
- ^
Lee-Smith, Mei W. (1996), "The Tangwang language", in Wurm, Stephen A.; Tyron, Darrell T. (eds.), Atlas of languages of intercultural communication in the Pacific, Asia, and the Americas, Volume 2, Part 1. (Volume 13 of Trends in Linguistics, Documentation Series)., Walter de Gruyter, pp. 875–882, ISBN 3110134179
{{citation}}: Missing|editor2=(help); More than one of|author=and|last=specified (help)
Sources
- Kim, Stephen S. (2003), "Santa", in Janhunen, Juha (ed.), The Mongolic Languages, Routledge Language Family Series, pp. 346–363, ISBN 0-203-98791-8
- Gordon, Raymond G., Jr., ed. (2005), Ethnologue: Languages of the World (15th ed.), Dallas, Texas: SIL International, retrieved 2009-04-13
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: editors list (link) - 包萨仁/Bao Saren (2006), "从语言接触看东乡语和临夏话的语序变化/Sequential Changes in Dongxiang Language and Linxia Dialects from the View of Linguistic Contact", Journal of the Second Northwest University for Nationalities (Social Science Edition) (2), ISSN 1008-2883, retrieved 2009-04-13
Further reading
- Field, Kenneth Lynn (1997), A grammatical overview of Santa Mongolian, PhD dissertation, University of California, Santa Barbara
- 马国忠/Ma Guozhong (2001), 东乡语汉语词典/Dongxiang-Chinese Dictionary, Lanzhou: 甘肃民族出版社/Gansu Nationalities Publishing House, ISBN 7542107674
External links
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