Yei Zhuang language


Yei Zhuang is a Northern Tai language complex spoken in Wenshan Prefecture, Yunnan, China. Its speakers are also known as the Sha.

Distribution

In Yunnan, Yei Zhuang dialects are spoken in Funing and Guangnan counties, as well as Qiubei. The largest concentrations of Yei Zhuang speakers are found in Qiubei and Funing counties.
Po-ai, a Tai language of Funing County described by Fang-kuei Li in the mid-1900s, was determined by Johnson to be a Yei Zhuang dialect.

Names

Below are various names for speakers of Yei Zhuang.
Many of these are names of Bouyei as well.

Characteristics

There are no palatalized consonants in Qiubei Zhuang. /pj/ in standard Zhuang is /p/, as in /pja1/ "fish", pjak7 "vegetable" is /pa/1, /pak/7. /mj/ is m or n，for example mjaːk3 "slippery", mjaːi2 "saliva" as /ma6/, /naːi2/. /kj/ is merged into k or t，for example kjaːŋ1 "middle", kja4 is /kaːŋ3/, /tsa4/. The consonant k before i, e is changed to ts, for instance ki3 "several", kiːŋ2, ke5 "old" as /tʃi1/, /tʃiːŋ2/, /tʃes/. 声母阱入v，h变成ɣ，而ɣ又变读作6。如fuːq2, faːi5读əŋ2, vaːi5, hau4, haɯ3变读ɣau4, ɣaɯ3；ɣam4, ɣum2, ɣoːk8变渎为6am4, 6em2, 6ue5。