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Brao language

{{short description|Austroasiatic language spoken in Cambodia and Laos}}

{{distinguish|Bru language}}

{{Lead too short|date=November 2024}}

{{Infobox language

| name = Brao

| nativename =

| states = Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam

| ethnicity = Brao

| speakers = {{sigfig|62,480|2}}

| date = 2009–2015

| ref = e26

| familycolor = Austro-Asiatic

| fam2 = Bahnaric

| fam3 = West

| fam4 =

| script = Latin, Khmer

| lc1 = brb

| ld1 = Brao (was Lave)

| lc2 = krr

| ld2 = Krung

| lc3 = krv

| ld3 = Kavet

| glotto = lave1249

| glottorefname = Brao

| map = Brao language.jpg

}}

Brao is a Mon–Khmer language of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.

Varieties

According to Ethnologue, there are four distinct but mutually intelligible varieties, sometimes considered separate languages: Lave (Brao proper), Kru’ng (Kreung), and Kavet (Kravet), the latter spoken by only a couple thousand.

Sidwell (2003) also lists four communities of speakers, three of which are in Cambodia.

Lun, spoken in Stung Treng Province, Cambodia, is related to Lave and Kavet (Philip Lambrecht 2012).{{Cite web |url=http://li.payap.ac.th/images/stories/survey/khmer_khes_report_final.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2015-01-30 |archive-date=2020-07-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200719003306/https://li.payap.ac.th/images/stories/survey/khmer_khes_report_final.pdf |url-status=dead }}

Demographics

Sidwell (2003) suggests the possibility of a total of 50,000 speakers, while Bradley (1994:161) gives an estimate of 35,000. All estimates below are drawn from Sidwell (2003:30).

  • Laos: The 1995 Laotian census places the Laveh population at 17,544.
  • Cambodia: The Asian Development Bank gave an estimate of 29,500 speakers as of the early 2000s.
  • Vietnam: About 300 Brau live in Đắc Mế village, Bờ Y commune, Ngọc Hồi district, Kon Tum province (Đặng, et al. 2010:112).Đặng Nghiêm Vạn, Chu Thái Sơn, Lưu Hùng. 2010. Ethnic Minorities in Vietnam. Hà Nội: Thế Giới Publishers. Parkin (1991:81) also estimates several hundred Brao in Vietnam.
  • Thailand: Parkin (1991:81) estimates a Brao population of 2,500 in Thailand.

Phonology

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"

|+ Consonants{{cite journal|last1=Keller|first1=Charles E.|title=Brao-Krung Phonology|journal=Mon-Khmer Studies|date=April 1999|volume=31|url=http://sealang.net/sala/archives/pdf8/keller2001brao.pdf|access-date=10 June 2015|archive-date=9 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210609091551/http://sealang.net/sala/archives/pdf8/keller2001brao.pdf|url-status=dead}}

colspan="2" |

! Labial

! Denti-alveolar

! Palatal

! Velar

! Glottal

rowspan="4" | Obstruent

! {{small|voiceless}}

| {{IPAlink|p}}

| {{IPAlink|t}}

| {{IPAlink|c}}

| {{IPAlink|k}}

| {{IPAlink|ʔ}}

{{small|aspirated}}

| {{IPAlink|pʰ}}

| {{IPAlink|tʰ}}

| {{IPAlink|cʰ}}

| {{IPAlink|kʰ}}

| {{IPAlink|h}}

{{small|voiced}}

| {{IPAlink|b}}

| {{IPAlink|d}}

| {{IPAlink|ɟ}}

| {{IPAlink|g}}

|

{{small|glottalized}}

| {{IPAlink|ˀb}}

| {{IPAlink|ˀd}}

| {{IPAlink|ˀɟ}}

| {{IPAlink|ˀg}}

|

rowspan="2" | Nasal

! {{small|plain}}

| {{IPAlink|m}}

| {{IPAlink|n}}

| {{IPAlink|ɲ}}

| {{IPAlink|ŋ}}

|

{{small|preaspirated}}

| {{IPAlink|ʰm}}

| {{IPAlink|ʰn}}

|

| {{IPAlink|ʰŋ}}

|

colspan="2" | Trill

|

| {{IPAlink|r}}

|

|

|

colspan="2" | Approximant

| {{IPAlink|w}}

| {{IPAlink|l}}

| {{IPAlink|j}}

|

|

References

{{reflist}}

  • Sidwell, Paul (2003). A Handbook of comparative Bahnaric, Vol. 1: West Bahnaric. Pacific Linguistics, 551. Canberra: Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian National University.

Further reading

  • Keller, C. E. (1976). A grammatical sketch of Brao, a Mon–Khmer language. Grand Forks, N.D.: Summer Institute of Linguistics, University of North Dakota Session. OCLC: 2915938

{{Languages of Vietnam}}

{{Languages of Cambodia}}

{{Languages of Laos}}

{{Austro-Asiatic languages}}

Category:Bahnaric languages

Category:Languages of Laos

Category:Languages of Cambodia

{{AustroAsiatic-lang-stub}}

Category:Languages of Vietnam