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The Tai Languages of Assam (2008)

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Abstract

An overview of the Tai languages of Assam, looking at particular features of Tai Phake, Tai Aiton and Tai Khamyang. Full reference: Morey, Stephen. 2008. ‘The Tai languages of Assam’, in Anthony Diller and Jerrold A. Edmondson (eds.) The Tai Kadai languages. London: Routledge. 207-253

Key takeaways
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  1. Tai languages of Assam include Ahom, Aiton, Khamti, Khamyang, Phake, and Turung, each with unique features.
  2. The Ahom language, once dominant, is now primarily used in rituals and cultural revivals.
  3. Aiton has approximately 1,500 speakers, actively learning the language, while Khamyang is critically endangered with only older speakers.
  4. Phake has around 2,000 speakers, with a rich manuscript culture, and unique tonal features in questioning and negation.
  5. The text aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the Tai languages' history, structure, and sociolinguistic context.
Figures (28)
It is possible that the weakening of voiceless aspirates to voiceless fricatives and the strengthening of semi vowels to voiced fricatives has so changed the phoneme inventory that it might be better to express it as in Table @.2:
It is possible that the weakening of voiceless aspirates to voiceless fricatives and the strengthening of semi vowels to voiced fricatives has so changed the phoneme inventory that it might be better to express it as in Table @.2:
TABLE @.3 POSSIBLE CONSONANT PHONEMES IN AHOM
TABLE @.3 POSSIBLE CONSONANT PHONEMES IN AHOM
In terms of vowel quality, most of the Tai languages of Assam have a nine vowel contrast, with a tenth phoneme provided by the length contrast between /a/ and /aa/. Table @.4 gives the vowel phonemes in Phake. The forms in brackets show the orthography used by Banchob (1987) which is maintained here for the sake of consistency. TABLE @.4 VOWEL PHONEMES IN PHAKE
In terms of vowel quality, most of the Tai languages of Assam have a nine vowel contrast, with a tenth phoneme provided by the length contrast between /a/ and /aa/. Table @.4 gives the vowel phonemes in Phake. The forms in brackets show the orthography used by Banchob (1987) which is maintained here for the sake of consistency. TABLE @.4 VOWEL PHONEMES IN PHAKE
TABLE @.5 VOWEL PHONEMES IN AITON The relation between Aiton and Phake vowels is shown in (5
TABLE @.5 VOWEL PHONEMES IN AITON The relation between Aiton and Phake vowels is shown in (5
This merger of mid-open and open vowels is at least several generations old. It wa: clearly notated in Banchob’s manuscript Aiton—English-Thai Dictionary, as is shown it the following table: The symbols [¢] and [9] have been chosen for the Aiton mid vowels rather than [e] and [o], because [g] and [9] in Aiton correspond with [¢] and [9] in Phake. There is also some orthographic evidence that the merger is much older. One early example of the merger of /e/ > /i/ in open syllables is provided in the Treaty between the Aitons and the Turungs, where the word 8 3ii? ‘1st daughter’ is found. This word is ye? in Phake. The manuscript was written about 1950 and was copied in the 1980s before it was damaged by insects. The vowel 2 [ii] can still clearly be seen, even though the consonant has been eaten by ants.
This merger of mid-open and open vowels is at least several generations old. It wa: clearly notated in Banchob’s manuscript Aiton—English-Thai Dictionary, as is shown it the following table: The symbols [¢] and [9] have been chosen for the Aiton mid vowels rather than [e] and [o], because [g] and [9] in Aiton correspond with [¢] and [9] in Phake. There is also some orthographic evidence that the merger is much older. One early example of the merger of /e/ > /i/ in open syllables is provided in the Treaty between the Aitons and the Turungs, where the word 8 3ii? ‘1st daughter’ is found. This word is ye? in Phake. The manuscript was written about 1950 and was copied in the 1980s before it was damaged by insects. The vowel 2 [ii] can still clearly be seen, even though the consonant has been eaten by ants.
Table @.8 presents the Phake tones including an analysis of the contours, based on examples elicited from Ee Nyan Khet, a female speaker born in 1939. In this elicitation, all the tones were collected using the sequence [maa], except for tone 5, which was me? ‘mother’. It is possible that as a result of me’ having a higher vowel than the other words elicited, the pitch of tone 5 is slightly higher than it would have been if a word with the rhyme [aa] had been recorded. In addition to these citation tones, there are other tones which occur in Phake in questions, commands and negative sentences. These are discussed below in Section 5.
Table @.8 presents the Phake tones including an analysis of the contours, based on examples elicited from Ee Nyan Khet, a female speaker born in 1939. In this elicitation, all the tones were collected using the sequence [maa], except for tone 5, which was me? ‘mother’. It is possible that as a result of me’ having a higher vowel than the other words elicited, the pitch of tone 5 is slightly higher than it would have been if a word with the rhyme [aa] had been recorded. In addition to these citation tones, there are other tones which occur in Phake in questions, commands and negative sentences. These are discussed below in Section 5.
TABLE @.9 TONES IN KHAMYANG Chowlik'®. This tone box differs from the Phake, where A2-3 is merged with A4, and B4 is a separate tone. It also differs from Khamti where Al is merged with B1-3.
TABLE @.9 TONES IN KHAMYANG Chowlik'®. This tone box differs from the Phake, where A2-3 is merged with A4, and B4 is a separate tone. It also differs from Khamti where Al is merged with B1-3.
Contemporary Aiton appears to have only three contrastive tones. In late 1999, the Aito informant Bidya Thoumoung produced the following five tones: TABLE @.10 TONES PRODUCED BY BIDYA THOUMOUNG FOR AITON
Contemporary Aiton appears to have only three contrastive tones. In late 1999, the Aito informant Bidya Thoumoung produced the following five tones: TABLE @.10 TONES PRODUCED BY BIDYA THOUMOUNG FOR AITON
Subsequently a word-list of around 2000 items was collected from Bidya Thoumoung. It quickly became clear that there were only three contrastive tones, as shown in Table @.11:
Subsequently a word-list of around 2000 items was collected from Bidya Thoumoung. It quickly became clear that there were only three contrastive tones, as shown in Table @.11:
The core arguments of a predication are expressed either as noun phrases or as prepositional phrases. Noun phrases are headed by nouns or pronouns, the former of All the Tai varieties in India show considerable variation in the ordering of the arguments around the verb. Nevertheless, it is at least arguable that SVO remains the basic word order'?. There seems to be a preference that if there is only one noun phrase argument, with the exception of an NP incorporated with a verb, it will be placed before the verb'*. In practise, therefore, sentences with objects are often not SVO'*. A more detailed discussion of constituent order is found in Morey (in press).
The core arguments of a predication are expressed either as noun phrases or as prepositional phrases. Noun phrases are headed by nouns or pronouns, the former of All the Tai varieties in India show considerable variation in the ordering of the arguments around the verb. Nevertheless, it is at least arguable that SVO remains the basic word order'?. There seems to be a preference that if there is only one noun phrase argument, with the exception of an NP incorporated with a verb, it will be placed before the verb'*. In practise, therefore, sentences with objects are often not SVO'*. A more detailed discussion of constituent order is found in Morey (in press).
In both (21) and (22), kaa‘, a marker indicating that the event is past and gone, is adjacent 1 to the main verb. This occurs because the objects, muy? sit! an? ‘four countries’ and caa? man? ‘him’ in (21) and (22) respectively, have been anteposed. Examples of both of these are found in Tai Aiton, as in (21), which is an example of (19), and (22), which is an example of (20). Both examples are from the same speaker and the same text.
In both (21) and (22), kaa‘, a marker indicating that the event is past and gone, is adjacent 1 to the main verb. This occurs because the objects, muy? sit! an? ‘four countries’ and caa? man? ‘him’ in (21) and (22) respectively, have been anteposed. Examples of both of these are found in Tai Aiton, as in (21), which is an example of (19), and (22), which is an example of (20). Both examples are from the same speaker and the same text.
Table @.13 lists seven Tense/Aspect/Mood markers frequently recorded in Aiton texts: TABLE @.13 TAM MARKERS IN AITON TEXTS 4.3. TAM markers in Tai Aiton
Table @.13 lists seven Tense/Aspect/Mood markers frequently recorded in Aiton texts: TABLE @.13 TAM MARKERS IN AITON TEXTS 4.3. TAM markers in Tai Aiton
Example (26) shows the use of kaa/immediately following the verb. It could be argued that this use of kaa/is a serial verb structure indicating direction, or that it is a sentence of the form of (23) above, an SVO sentence in which kaa‘is a TAM marker directly adjacent to the verb. If it is the latter, it is the oldest example of such a sentence yet identified. It should be noted that the object of this sentence is a prepositional phrase. There is no example in the text of a sentence showing Verb-kaa“Object NP: This example is important because it shows the particle ka kaa4 as a TAM marker, directly following the verb, whereas the TAM particle zau? which marks completion, is utterance final.
Example (26) shows the use of kaa/immediately following the verb. It could be argued that this use of kaa/is a serial verb structure indicating direction, or that it is a sentence of the form of (23) above, an SVO sentence in which kaa‘is a TAM marker directly adjacent to the verb. If it is the latter, it is the oldest example of such a sentence yet identified. It should be noted that the object of this sentence is a prepositional phrase. There is no example in the text of a sentence showing Verb-kaa“Object NP: This example is important because it shows the particle ka kaa4 as a TAM marker, directly following the verb, whereas the TAM particle zau? which marks completion, is utterance final.
The first 15 lines of the text are reproduced in Appendix 1. In examining these sentences, and taking lines | & 2 as a single sentence, we can see that the main verb in each line is usually marked with some kind of TAM marker, as follows:
The first 15 lines of the text are reproduced in Appendix 1. In examining these sentences, and taking lines | & 2 as a single sentence, we can see that the main verb in each line is usually marked with some kind of TAM marker, as follows:
TABLE @.14 ANALYSIS OF SENTENCES IN NANG WIMALA’S HISTORICAL STORY
TABLE @.14 ANALYSIS OF SENTENCES IN NANG WIMALA’S HISTORICAL STORY
In sentences (11) and (12) from Nang Wimala’s story, the direct object of the verb intervenes. Sentence (11) is here reproduced as (31): It might be argued that this too is a case of object incorporation, where te’ muuy? is analysed as a single grammatical word, meaning ‘found a country’. However, example (32), from the same text, also has the object (and adjective) between the verb and kaa‘
In sentences (11) and (12) from Nang Wimala’s story, the direct object of the verb intervenes. Sentence (11) is here reproduced as (31): It might be argued that this too is a case of object incorporation, where te’ muuy? is analysed as a single grammatical word, meaning ‘found a country’. However, example (32), from the same text, also has the object (and adjective) between the verb and kaa‘
Appendix 2 presents the first twelve lines of a text told by Ong Cham in January 1998. Following the methodology of Table @.14 above, we will examine each sentence in turn. Sentence 1, which names the text, is omitted.
Appendix 2 presents the first twelve lines of a text told by Ong Cham in January 1998. Following the methodology of Table @.14 above, we will examine each sentence in turn. Sentence 1, which names the text, is omitted.
The various tone combinations so far observed are summarised in Table @.17 TABLE @.17 THE QUESTIONING TONE IN PHAKE
The various tone combinations so far observed are summarised in Table @.17 TABLE @.17 THE QUESTIONING TONE IN PHAKE
A second feature of Khamyang speech is vowel reduction, found frequently in the speech of Chaw Deben Chowlik, particularly with grammatical words. For example, the word (/luk*/ in Phake) ‘from’ is pronounced by him as [lyk], and is distinguished from the word for ‘child’, (also /luk*/ in Phake). These two were analysed for their formant structure, and this is reported in Table @.20:
A second feature of Khamyang speech is vowel reduction, found frequently in the speech of Chaw Deben Chowlik, particularly with grammatical words. For example, the word (/luk*/ in Phake) ‘from’ is pronounced by him as [lyk], and is distinguished from the word for ‘child’, (also /luk*/ in Phake). These two were analysed for their formant structure, and this is reported in Table @.20:
In (69), there is an affix /-n/ attached to the word maa? ‘come’. The tone shape of the word is not the same as when the word ‘come’ appears in citation form. It is somewhat longer and may be a combination of the tone shape of tone 2 and tone 1, here notated as - 2 (1). Table @.21 compares the tones of the citation forms of tone | and 2 with the tone on maan*l), TABLE @.21 COMPARISON OF KHAMYANG TONES
In (69), there is an affix /-n/ attached to the word maa? ‘come’. The tone shape of the word is not the same as when the word ‘come’ appears in citation form. It is somewhat longer and may be a combination of the tone shape of tone 2 and tone 1, here notated as - 2 (1). Table @.21 compares the tones of the citation forms of tone | and 2 with the tone on maan*l), TABLE @.21 COMPARISON OF KHAMYANG TONES
Notes: * Nang Wi translated kaa’ noi? as ‘afterwards’. Nang Wi stated that in her MS, the first words were e%epder%u3 mun? sup! mun? khaam?‘speak-mouth-speak-word’. mun? is a word only used in written language version.
Notes: * Nang Wi translated kaa’ noi? as ‘afterwards’. Nang Wi stated that in her MS, the first words were e%epder%u3 mun? sup! mun? khaam?‘speak-mouth-speak-word’. mun? is a word only used in written language version.
On the recording, Nang Wimala read the following two lines: ‘Grandmother Singpha erected a diamond and golden ladder and sent them to Muang Heu Muang Ham.’
On the recording, Nang Wimala read the following two lines: ‘Grandmother Singpha erected a diamond and golden ladder and sent them to Muang Heu Muang Ham.’
Note: * This is probably a merging of a final unstressed nan? ‘that’ with an? ‘CLF’. The Story of the crow and the fox, told by Ong Cham on October 1, 1998, Bargoan Village (02509 baan? tun'), Karbi Anglong District, Assam; translated into English with the help of Chaw Sangea Phalung.
Note: * This is probably a merging of a final unstressed nan? ‘that’ with an? ‘CLF’. The Story of the crow and the fox, told by Ong Cham on October 1, 1998, Bargoan Village (02509 baan? tun'), Karbi Anglong District, Assam; translated into English with the help of Chaw Sangea Phalung.
Notes: * these two words are spoken so quickly together that it sounds like [kaan’].
Notes: * these two words are spoken so quickly together that it sounds like [kaan’].

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AI

What explains the gradual language loss of the Ahom language?add

The study reveals that by the nineteenth century, the everyday usage of Ahom ceased as speakers assimilated into Assamese culture, utilizing Assamese as their mother tongue. This shift involved extensive cultural assimilation over 600 years under Ahom rule in Assam.

How do recent revival efforts impact the Ahom language's usage?add

The paper demonstrates that current revival initiatives, including two Ahom dictionaries, enhance its ritualistic use in ceremonies, aiding preservation. These efforts gather vocabulary from the late eighteenth century, facilitating an engaging cultural renaissance among the Ahoms.

What are the distinct linguistic features of Tai Aiton language?add

Tai Aiton includes initial consonant clusters and exhibits phonemic variations with additional phonemes like /b/ and /d/, differing from its Tai counterparts. Detailed phonological studies from the manuscript suggest the preservation of features indicative of original Tai languages.

When did the various Tai groups migrate to Assam, according to traditional accounts?add

Traditional narratives date the arrival of several Tai groups, including Khamti and Aiton, to the mid-eighteenth to early nineteenth century, with some evidence suggesting connections to the time of the Ahoms in the fifteenth century. The movements reflect complex religious and cultural exchanges within the region.

How does the Khamyang language exemplify bi-dialectal influences?add

The Khamyang community exhibits bi-dialectalism, using both Khamyang and Phake speech norms influenced by intermarriage and communication needs, reflecting a blending of linguistic features in daily interactions. This situation underscores the dwindling use of distinct Khamyang phonological traits in contemporary settings.

About the author
Stephen Morey
La Trobe University, Faculty Member

Stephen Morey is a senior lecturer in the Department of Languages and Linguistics, La Trobe University. H does linguistic documentation and description of several different languages/language groups spoken in North East India, as well as working on the indigenous languages of Victoria, Australia. His PhD (Monash University 2002) was on the Tai Languages of Assam, and he has since written a grammar of Turung, a variety of Singpho spoken in Assam (published 2010). He was a recipient of an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship (2011-2014) on a project entitled "A multifaceted study of Tangsa – a network of linguistic varieties in North East India", Earlier he was an ELDP fellow (2005-7) and a DoBeS fellow (2007-10). He is a Research Associate, Centre for Research in Computational Linguistics, Bangkok, Thailand CRCL maintains the following websites: Language data website: http://sealang.net/assam (where all language data can be searched and downloaded) Dictionary websites: http://sealang.net/ahom; http://sealang.net/singpho; http://sealang.net/phake Stephen Morey's recordings are archived at:: 1) DoBeS: http://corpus1.mpi.nl/ds/imdi_browser/ and following a link to DoBeS archive then Tangsa, Tai and Singpho in North East India (particularly Tangsa, but also Tai Ahom, Singpho) 2) ELAR: http://elar.soas.ac.uk/ (Singpho, including Turung) 3) PARADISEC: http://www.paradisec.org.au (Tai languages, and Turung and Singpho) He is also co-chair of the North East Indian Linguistics Society: http://sealang.net/neils

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Related papers

The Tai languages of Assam - a grammar and texts
Stephen Morey

2005

Introduction 1.1 Meeting the Tai of Assam 1.1.1 Some difficulties in undertaking this study 1.1.1.1 Crossing a bamboo bridge 1.1.2 Life in Tai villages 1.2 The Tai language family 1.2. 1 The Shan group of languages 1.2.2 The similarity of the languages in the Shan group 1.2.3 The Tai varieties of Northeast India 1.3 The data which forms the basis of this study 1.4 Key aims of this study 1.5 The scope of this work 2 The Tais of Assam & their languages 2. 1 The Linguistic mix in Northeast India. 2.2 The Ahoms 2.3 The other Tai groups 2.3.1 Some notes on the history of the Tai 2.3.2 The Tai Aiton Villages 2.3.3 The Tai Phake Villages 2.3.4 Other Tai Speaking Villages 2.3.4.1 Khamti villages 2.3.4.2 Tai Khamyang village 2.3.4.3 Turung Villages 2.3.5 Diffi culties with identifying the various Tai groups 2.3.6 A note on the names of the Tai groups 2.3

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Review of "The Tai Languages of Assam - A Grammar and Texts" by Stephen Morey. Canberra, Pacific Linguistics, 2005.
Mark W. Post
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Tai languages of Assam, a progress report — Does anything remain of the Tai Ahom language? 1
Stephen Morey

A discussion of the Tai Ahom language and its revival. Full reference: Morey, Stephen. 2002, ‘Tai languages of Assam, a progress report ¬– Does anything remain of the Tai Ahom language?’ in David and Maya Bradley, (eds). Language Maintenance for Endangered Languages: An Active Approach. London: Curzon Press. 98-113.

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A Study on the Impact of Tai Ahoms on Assamese Language and Culture
IOSR Journals

The Tai Ahom culture and language has ample impact on the formation of dominant Assamese culture and language. Many Tai words now become the recognised words of Assamese language and are popularly used in day to day Assamese conversation and writing. There are scarce of substitute words for many Assamese terminologies other than the Tai version of words are used spoken Assamese on different occasions. Such many Tai words have been recognised as substantive Assamese words by modern Assamese dictionaries too. The Tai Ahoms demand that they are the harbinger of Assamese Bihu festivals that accompany with typical Bihu dances, songs and other related activities performed by the Assamese people today. The base of their demands lie on the fact that all the dances, songs, musical instruments and other customs associated with Bihu show greater similarities with the traditional dances, songs and other co-activities of different festivities of the Tai people living in the central part of China from where the present Tai Ahoms migrated to Assam centuries

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Turung: A Variety of Singpho Language Spoken in Assam
Stephen Morey

2010

I headed off on the back of Chaw Sangea's motorbike and met the village leaders Mya Seng Turung and Bong Jap Turung. Thanks to first a La Trobe University postdoctoral fellowship (2003)(2004)(2005) and then a grant from the Endangered Languages Documentation Program () for the project A comprehensive documentation of the Turung and Singpho languages of Assam (2005Assam ( -2007)), I was able to undertake a number of field trips, collect a substantial number of texts and write this grammar. The revisions, corrections and proof reading were all done under a grant funded by the DoBeS (Dokumentation Bedrohter Sprachen -Documentation of Endangered Languages) () program within the Volkswagen Stiftung, Germany. I have received an immense amount of help from the Research Centre for Linguistic Typology (RCLT), La Trobe University, where I have been employed since 2003. Prof. A.Y. Aikhenvald, read several drafts of the manuscript and provided invaluable suggestions and support at all stages. Prof. Randy LaPolla generously read the entire final manuscript and brought his considerable knowledge of Tibeto-Burman languages to bear on what is certainly a better book as a result of his generosity. I have learned much from all my other colleagues at the RCLT over the years, and particularly wish to thank David Bradley, Alexander Coupe, Mark Post and Seino van Breugel. A special thanks must go to our tireless executive officer, Siew-Peng Condon, whose efforts enable all of us at RCLT to do all our research. My work in India would not have been possible without the excellent links that I have been able to set up with Gauhati University Linguistics Department, and in particular the head of that Department, Prof. Jyotiprakash Tamuli. His vision and dedication has seen a significant number of fine students take linguistics as their major study. One of these, Palash Kumar Nath, became the research assistant for my ELDP project. His assistance was invaluable at every level; collecting recordings, working on the transcription and translation of texts and also with the day to day business of organising travel from place to place. Nibedita Sarma, Prafulla Basumatery, Zeenat Tabassum and Bihung Brahma are other students from the same department who have helped with different parts of this project. I also wish to thank Anita Tamuli of the English Language Teaching Department at Gauhati University. Together with Prof. Jyotiprakash Tamuli and Mark Post, I was able to set up the North East Indian Linguistics Society (NEILS), and the conferences that were organised at NEILS enabled me to meet with and learn from many fine scholars such as Robbins Burling, Scott DeLancey, François Jacquesson and U.V. Joseph, whose considerable combined expertise on related languages has been most enlightening. 1 Better known as Chau En Lai -a nickname given because he was born the year the late Chinese Premier visited India. 16 Some people among the Singpho and Turung communities dispute that Turung and Tairong refer to the same entity. Grierson certainly regarded these two as the same.

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