Mizo language
The Mizo language, or Mizo ṭawng, is a Kuki-Chin-Mizo language belonging to the Tibeto-Burman family of languages, spoken natively by the Mizo people in the Mizoram state of India and Chin State in Burma. The language is also known as Duhlian, a colonial term, as the Duhlian people were the first among the Mizos to be encountered by the British in the course of their colonial expansion. The Mizo language is mainly based on Lusei dialect but it has also derived many words from its surrounding Mizo sub-tribes and sub-clan. Now, Mizo language or Mizo ṭawng is the lingua franca of Mizoram and its surrounding areas and to a lesser extent of Burma and Bangladesh and in India in some parts of Assam, Tripura and Manipur. Many poetic language is derived from Pawi, Paite, and Hmar, and most known ancient poems considered to be Mizo are actually in Pawi. Mizo is the official language of Mizoram, along with English, and there have been efforts to have it included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India.
History
The Mizo language belongs to the Kuki-Chin-Mizo branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family. The numerous clans of the Mizo had respective dialects, amongst which the Lusei dialect was the most common, and evolved with significant influenced from Hmar, Lai and Paite, etc. to become the Mizo language and the lingua franca of the Mizo peoples due to its extensive and exclusive use by the Christian missionaries and the later young generation.Writing system
The Mizo alphabet is based on the Roman script and has 25 letters, namely:| Letter | a | aw | b | ch | d | e | f | g | ng | h | i | j | k |
| Name |
| Letter | l | m | n | o | p | r | s | t | ṭ | u | v | z |
| Name |
In its current form, it was devised by the first Christian missionaries of Mizoram, Rev. J.H.Lorrain and Rev. F.W.Savidge based on Hunterian system of transliteration.
A circumflex ^ was later added to the vowels to indicate long vowels, viz., â, ê, î, ô, û, which were insufficient to fully express Mizo tone. Recently, a leading newspaper in Mizoram, Vanglaini, the magazine Kristian Ṭhalai, and other publishers began using á, à, ä, é, è, ë, í, ì, ï, ó, ò, ö, ú, ù, ü to indicate the long intonations and tones. However, this does not differentiate the different intonations that short tones can have.
Relation with other languages
The Mizo language is related to the other languages of the Sino-Tibetan family. The Kuki-Chin-Mizo languages have a substantial number of words in common.Mizo and Sino-Tibetan languages
The following table illustrates the similarity between Mizo and other members of the Sino-Tibetan family. The words given are cognates, whose origins could be traced back to the proto-language Proto-Sino-Tibetan.| Proto-Sino-Tibetan | Mizo/Duhlian/Lusei language | Khawsak-Hmar language | Zote-Hmar language | Standard Chinese character | Early Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Written Tibetan | Written Burmese | Written Sgaw Karen | Bodo | Tripuri | Meitei language | Trung | English meaning |
| *tujH | tui | tui | tui | 水 | - | - | - | - | htee | døi | twi/tui | ishing | water | |
| *sĭj | thi | thi/famchang | famchang/thi | 死 | si' | sjid | shi-ba | se | thee | thøi | thwi/thui | shi | ɕi | die |
| *ghāH | khà | kha | khak | 苦 | kʰɔ' | khag | kha | khâ | khá | khá | Kwkha/Kha | kha | Kha | bitter |
| *sĭŋ | thing | thingkung | thingkung | - | sin | sjin | shing | sac | tháe | - | Bufang/Wafang | - | wood/tree | |
| *miǝ̆ŋ | hming | hming | hming | 名 | mjiajŋ | mjing | ming | mung | mï | - | Bumung/mung | ming | muŋ | name |
| *paH | pa | pa | zuopa | 爸 | - | - | - | - | pa | afah | Afa/Bupha | ipa | - | father |
| *ŋāH | nga | panga | panga | 五 | ŋɔ' | ngag | lnga | ŋ̩â | yëh | ba | Ba/Kaiba | manga | pəŋ-ŋà | five |
| *rŭk | ruk | paruk | paruk | 六 | luwk | ljəkw | drug | khrok | xu | doh | - | taruk | khlu | six |
| *nă- | nang | nang | nangma | 汝 | ȵɨʌ | naʔ | - | - | na | nøng | nung/nwng | nang | nǎ | thou |
| *nĭj | ni | ni/sun/nisa | nisa | 日 | ȵiɪt | njiɡ | - | - | mu ni/mu | shan | Sal | nì | day/sun | |
| *ma | em | mäw | am | 吗 | - | - | - | - | ma | - | - | bara | - | ? |
| *nu- | nù | nuhmei | nuhmei | 女 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | female | |
| *- | chaw ei | bu fak | bu bak | 吃饭 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | chak cha | - | eat rice |
| *druaŋ | lai | lailung | malai | 中 | ṭüŋ ṭǜŋ | truŋ truŋs | gźuŋ | ǝtwaŋh | khuh tha | - | - | matai/manak | a3-tuŋ1 | middle |
| *tī̆kʷ | tâwk | huntawk | hunchat | 淑 | - | - | sdug | thǝuk | - | - | - | - | enough, sufficient | |
| *- | hmang zo | hmang zo/hmang ral | inthām/inral | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | use up, exhaust |
| *ra | ṭha | ṭha | ṭha | - | - | - | - | - | ghay | - | Kaham/Chao | pha | - | good |
| *chēŋ | hring | hring | hring | 青 | chieŋ | shēŋ | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | green |
| *cht | sât | sat/chan/tan | vat/tan/sat | 切 | chiet | shīt | zed | ćhać | - | - | tandi/Hradi | - | to cut |
Mizo and Burmese
The following few words suggest that Mizo and the Burmese are of the same family: kun, kam, kha, sam, mei, that, ni, hnih, li, nga etc.Phonology
Vowels
Monophthongs
The Mizo language has eight tones and intonations for each of the vowels a, aw, e, i and u, four of which are reduced tones and the other four long tones. The vowel o has only three tones, all of them of the reduced type; it has almost exactly the same sound as the diphthong /oʊ/ found in American English. However, the vowels can be represented as follows:Diphthongs
Triphthongs
Mizo has the following triphthongs:- iai, as in iai, piai
- iau as in riau ruau, tiau tuau etc.
- uai, as in uai, zuai, tuai, vuai
- uau, as in riau ruau, tiau tuau, suau suau
Consonants
- The glottal and glottalised consonants appear only in final position.
Tone
The eight tones and intonations that the vowel a can have are shown by the letter sequence p-a-n-g, as follows:
- long high tone: páng as in páng là.
- long low tone: pàng as in Tui a kawt pàng pâng mai.
- peaking tone: pâng as in Tui a kawt pàng pâng mai.
- dipping tone: päng as in Tuibur a hmuam päng mai.
- short rising tone: pǎng as in naupǎng.
- short falling tone: pȧng as in I va inkhuih pȧng ve?
- short mid tone: pang as in A dik lo nghâl pang
- short low tone: pạng as in I pạng a sá a nih kha''.
Sample sentences
The following table illustrates the pronunciations of various consonants, vowels and diphthongs found in the Mizo language:| Sentence | Pronunciation |
| Zạwhtë ka hmù | |
| Thlàpǔi a ëng | |
| Tlángah kǎn láwn | |
| Phengphehlep chi hrang paruk ṭhu chungin ka en | |
| Ṭahbelh chu chhunah kan hruai ve lo vang. | |
| I va berh ve! | ʔɪ vʌ berʔ ve: |
| Khàuphár thạwvẹn vè êm êm rịngawt mai che u hian. | |
| Nghakuai kan chiah | |
| I zuan kai ngam ka ring. | |
| Hläu miah lovin. | |
| Kuai tliak | |
| I tán liau liau | |
| I uar a ni lo maw? | |
| Sakei | |
| Paih darh suh |
Grammar
Mizo contains many analyzable polysyllables, which are polysyllabic units in which the individual syllables have meaning by themselves. In a true monosyllabic language, polysyllables are mostly confined to compound words, such as "lighthouse". The first syllables of compounds tend over time to be de-stressed, and may eventually be reduced to prefixed consonants. The word nuntheihna is composed of nung, theih and na ; likewise, theihna means "possibility". Virtually all polysyllabic morphemes in Mizo can be shown to have originated in this way. For example, the disyllabic form bakhwan, which occurs in one dialect of the Trung language of Yunnan, is actually a reduced form of the compound blak kwar, found in a closely related dialect. It is reported over 18 of the dialects share about 850 words with the same meaning. For example, ban, ke, thla, lu and kut.Word order
The declarative word order in Mizo is Object-subject-verb. For example:- Lehkhabu ka ziak
Verbs
Conjugation
The verbs are not conjugated as in languages such as English and French by changing the desinence of words, but the tense is clarified by the aspect and the addition of some particles, such as- ang,
- tawh,
- mék,
- dáwn,
- dáwn mék,
Modification of verbs
Mizo verbs are often used in the Gerund, and most verbs change desinence in the Gerund; this modification is called tihdanglamna. This modified form is also used as the past participle. Some verbs which undergo modification are tabulated below:| Mizo verb | Tihdanglam | English meaning |
| ziak | ziah | ziak – to write ziah – writing, written |
| tât | tah | tât – to whet tah – whetting, whetted |
| mà | mâk | mà – to divorce mâk – divorcing, divorced |
However, even if the spelling of a verb is not changed, its tone is sometimes changed. For example, the verbs tum, hum etc. change tones; the tone is lowered in the modified form. There is a third class of verbs – those which neither change tone nor are inflected. Examples include hneh, hnek.
Modification of words is not restricted to verbs; adjectives, adverbs etc. are also modified.
Nouns
Construction
There is no gender for nouns, and there are no articles. There are some specific suffixes for forming nouns from verbs and adjectives, the most common of which are -na and -zia. The suffix -na is used for forming nouns from both verbs and adjectives, whereas -zia is used specifically for nominalising adjectives. For example,- tlù – tlûkna
- hmù – hmuhna
- suäl – suàlna /suàlzia
Declension of nouns
| Case | Desinence | Tone | Examples |
| Nominative Accusative Genitive | no change | - - - | 1. tui 2. nula 3. hmangaihna |
| Ergative | suffix -in for non-proper nouns, n for proper nouns | short low pitch for -in | 1. tuiin 2. nulain 3. hmangaihnain |
| Instrumental | suffix -in for non-proper nouns, n for proper nouns | short high pitch on -in | 1. tuiin 2. nulain 3. hmangaihnain |
| Locative | suffix -ah | 1. tuiah 2. nulaah 3. hmangaihnaah |
Pluralisation
Nouns are pluralized by suffixing -te, -ho, -teho or -hote, for example:| Noun | Plurals | Meaning |
| mipa | mipate mipaho | mipa – man mipate/mipaho – men |
| naupang | naupangte naupangho | naupang – child naupangte/-ho – children |
Pronouns
Forms
All Mizo pronouns occur in two forms, namely in free form and clitic form:| Free form | Clitic form |
| kei | ka |
| keimah | |
| keini | kan |
| keimahni | |
| nang | i |
| nangmah | |
| nangni | in |
| nangmahni | |
| ani | a |
| amah | |
| anni | an |
| anmahni |
The free form is mostly used for emphasis, and has to be used in conjunction with either the clitic form or an appropriate pronominal particle, as shown in the following examples:
- Kei ka lo tel ve kher a ngai em?. This is a somewhat emphatic way of saying Ka lo tel ve kher a ngai em?
- Nangni in zo tawh em? This is a somewhat emphatic way of saying Nangni in zo tawh em?
- Ani a kal ve chuan a ṭha lo vang.
Declension
Mizo pronouns, like Mizo nouns, are declined into cases as follows:| Pronoun | Genitive case | Accusative case | Ergative case | |
| clitic form | - | - | - | - |
| clitic form | ka | ka | mi, min | keimahin=keima'n |
| clitic form | kan | kan | min | keimahni-in=keimahnin |
| clitic form | i | i | che | nangmahin=nangma'n |
| clitic form | in | in | che u | nangmahni-in=nangmahnin |
| clitic form | a | a | amah | amahin=ama'n |
| clitic form | an | an | anmahni | anmahni-in=anmahni'n |
| free form | - | - | - | - |
| free form | kei | keima | keimah, keimah min | keimahin=keima'n |
| free form | keimah | keima | keimah, keimah min | keimahin=keima'n |
| free form | keini | keini | keini, keini min | keini-in=keini'n |
| free form | keimahni | keimahni | keimahni, keimahni min | keimahni-in=keimahni'n |
| free form | anni | anni | anni | anni'n |
| free form | anmahni | anmahni | anmahni | anmahni-in=anmahni'n |
Adjectives
Mizo adjectives follow the nouns they describe, as follows:| 1. | naupang | fel | a good child |
| 1. | child | good | a good child |
| 2. | lehkhabu | chhiartlâk | a readable book |
| 2. | book | readable | a readable book |
| 3. | hmasawnna | chhenfâkawm | sustainable development |
| 3. | development | sustainable | sustainable development |
Negation
For declarative sentences, negation is achieved by adding the particle lo at the end of a sentence. For example,| Sentence | Negation |
| Lala a lo kal Lala is coming/Lala came | Lala a lo kal lo Lala did not come |
| Pathumin paruk a sem thei Three divides six | Pathumin paruk a sem thei lo Three does not divide six |
Also, for words such as engmah, tumah etc., unlike English we have to add the negation particle lo; for example
Thus we have to use double negation for such cases.
Unique parts of speech
All kinds of Parts of Speech like noun, pronoun, verbs, etc. can be found in Mizo language with some additional unique kinds – post-positions and double adverbs.Sample texts
The following is a sample text in Mizo of the Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights:| Mizo ṭawng | English |
| Mi zawng zawng hi zalèna piang kan ni a, zahawmna leh dikna chanvoah intluk tlâng vek kan ni. Chhia leh ṭha hriatna fîm neia siam kan nih avangin kan mihring puite chungah inunauna thinlung kan pu tlat tur a ni. | All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience. Therefore, they should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. |
Some Mizo words and phrases
Cardinal numbers
Literature
Books
Mizo has a thriving literature with Mizo departments in Mizoram University and Manipur University. The governing body is the Mizo Academy of Letters, which awards the annual literary prize MAL Book of the Year since 1989. The books awarded so far and their authors are tabulated below along with the years:| Year | Book | Author | Comments on the book |
| 1989 | Ka Lungkham | B. Lalthangliana | |
| 1990 | Hmangaihzuali | C. Laizawna | Novel |
| 1991 | Zoram Khawvel-I | L. Keivom | Contemporary Mizo history |
| 1992 | Ṭhangthar Taitesena | Romawia | |
| 1993 | Mizo Literature | B. Lalthangliana | |
| 1994 | Kum za Kristian Zofate hmabâk | Bangalore Mizo Christian Fellowship | |
| 1995 | Ram leh i tan chauh | H. Lallungmuana | |
| 1996 | Bible leh Science | P.C. Biaksiama | Creationism |
| 1997 | Pasalṭha Khuangchera | Laltluangliana Khiangte | Drama |
| 1998 | Anita | C. Laizawna | Novel |
| 1999 | Tlawm ve lo Lalnu Ropuiliani | Lalsangzuali Sailo | Mizo history |
| 2000 | Chawngmawii leh Hrangchhuana | R. Rozika | Novel |
| 2001 | Ka khualzin kawng | Robuanga | |
| 2002 | Runlum Nuthai | L.Z. Sailo | Eulogy |
| 2003 | Kan Bible hi | Zairema | Theology |
| 2004 | Zorinpari | H. Lalngurliana | Novel |
| 2005 | Damlai thlipui | Lalhriata | Novel |
| 2006 | Pasalṭhate ni hnuhnung | C. Lalnunchanga | Historical adventure novel |
| 2007 | Zofate zinkawngah zalenna mei a mit tur a ni lo | R. Zamawia | Factual description and idealisation of Mizo uprising |
| 2008 | Chun chawi loh | Lalhriata | Novel |
| 2009 | Rintei zùnléng | Lalrammawia Ngente | Novel |
| 2010 | Beiseina Mittui | Samson Thanruma | Novel |
| 2011 | Zodinpuii | Lalchhantluanga | Novel |
| 2012 | Sihlipui | Romuanpuii Zadeng | Novel |
| 2013 | Thinglubul | Lalpekkima | Novel |
This award is only for books originally written in Mizo, not for translations, and it has been awarded every year since 1989. The award has been given to books on history and religion, but most of its winners are novels. Each year, the academy examines about 100 books, out of which it selects the top 20, and then first shortlistling it further to top 10, and then to top 5, then top 3, finally chooses the winner.
The academy also awards lifetime achievement in Mizo literature.
Some of the best-known Mizo writers include James Dokhuma, Ṭhuamtea Khawlhring, C. Laizawna, C. Lalnunchanga, Vanneihtluanga etc.
Newspaper
The Mizoram Press Information Bureau lists some twenty Mizo daily newspapers just in Aizawl city, as of March 2013. The following list gives some of the most well-known newspapers published in the Mizo language.| Name of newspaper | Publication frequency | Editor | Place |
| Chhawkhlei | Daily | Lalhmingliana | Champhai |
| Chhawrpial | Daily | C.Lalzamlova | Aizawl |
| Chhim Aw | Daily | Baitha | Saiha |
| Chhinlung | Daily | Vanhnuna | Lunglei |
| Dumde | Daily | F. Lalbiakmawia | Champhai |
| Harhna | Daily | C.Vulluaia | Aizawl |
| Hnamdamna | Daily | Chawngchhuma | Lunglei |
| Hruaitu Arsi | Daily | Zosangliana | Aizawl |
| Khawpui Aw | Daily | Zaithankhuma | Aizawl |
| Laisuih | Daily | C.Lalhminghlua | Serchhip |
| Lengzem chanchinbu | Monthly | Vanneihtluanga | Aizawl |
| Lenkawl | Daily | Remmawia Kawlni | Serchhip |
| Lenrual | Daily | Lalhlupuia | Champhai |
| Pasaltha | Daily | Lalhmingmawia Pachuau | Champhai |
| Ramlai Arsi | Daily | Lalremruata Ralte | Serchhip |
| Rihlipui | Daily | DK Lalhruaitluanga | Champhai |
| Romei | Daily | Robert Lalchhuana | Aizawl |
| Thu Thar | Daily | A.Rodingliana | Aizawl |
| Turnipui | Daily | S.Lalhmachhuana | Kolasib The Zozam Times| Daily| H.Laldinmawia| Aizawl |
| Vanglaini chanchinbu, | Daily | K. Sapdanga | Aizawl |
| Zalen | Daily | Vanlalrema Vantawl | Aizawl |
| Zawlbuk Aw | Daily | Hranghmingthanga | Thenzawl |
| Zoram Thlirtu | Daily | Lalrinmawia Sailo | Aizawl |
| Zoram Tlangau | Daily | L.Pachuau | Aizawl |
| Zorin | Daily | Lalkunga | Aizawl |
Most of them are daily newspapers.