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Dimasa language

{{Short description|Sino-Tibetan language of Northeast India}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2019}}

{{More citations needed|date=June 2020}}

{{Use Indian English|date=July 2019}}

{{Infobox language

|name=Dimasa

|nativename={{lang|dis-Latn|Grao-Dima}}
{{lang|dis-Beng|গ্ৰাউ-ডিমা}}

|states=India

|region=Assam, Nagaland

|ethnicity=Dimasa

|speakers= 137,184

|date= 2011 census (Dima Hasao)

|ref={{Cite web |title=Statement 1: Abstract of Speakers' Strength of Languages and Mother Tongues - 2011 |url=http://censusindia.gov.in/2011Census/Language-2011/Statement-1.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180713021311/http://censusindia.gov.in/2011Census/Language-2011/Statement-1.pdf |archive-date=2018-07-13 |access-date=2018-07-07 |via=Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India}}

|familycolor= Sino-Tibetan

|fam2=Tibeto-Burman

|fam3=Central Tibeto-Burman (?)

|fam4=Brahmaputran

|fam5=Boro–Garo

|script=Latin script, Eastern Nagari

|iso3=dis

|glotto=dima1251

|glottorefname=Dimasa

}}

The Dimasa language is a Tibeto-Burman language spoken by the Dimasa people of the Northeastern Indian states of Assam and Nagaland. The Dimasa language is known to Dimasas as "Grao-Dima" and it is similar to Boro, Kokborok and Garo languages. The Dimasa language is one of the oldest languages spoken in North East India, particularly in Assam, Nagaland.

Etymology

The word Dimasa etymologically translates to "Son(s) [sa] of the big river [dima]", i.e. the mighty Brahmaputra. The Dimasa word di, meaning water, forms the root of the names of many of the major rivers of Assam and of North East India in general, such as Dibang (plenty of water), Diyung (huge river), Dikrang (green river), Dikhow (fetched water), and many others. The Brahmaputra is known as Dilao (long river) among the Dimasas even now.

Many of the important towns and cities in Assam and Nagaland received their names from Dimasa words such as Diphu, Dimapur (a capital of the Dimasa Kingdom), Hojai, Khaspur, etc. In fact, the Dimasa language is one of the last languages of North East India to retain its original vocabulary without being compromised by foreign languages.{{sfn|Endle|1911|p=4}}

Geographical distribution

Dimasa is spoken in:

Phonology

{{More citations needed section|date=June 2020}}

=Vowels=

There are six vowels in Dimasa language.

class="wikitable"

|+Vowels

!rowspan=2|

!colspan=3|Front

!colspan=3|Central

!colspan=3|Back

IPA

!ROM

!Script

!IPA

!ROM

!Script

!IPA

!ROM

!Script

style="text-align:center"

!rowspan=1|Close

|{{IPA|i}}

|i

|

|colspan=3|

|{{IPA|u}}

|u

|

style="text-align:center"

!Close-mid

|{{IPA|e}}

|e

|

|colspan=3|

|{{IPA|o}}

|o

|

style="text-align:center"

!Mid

|colspan=3|

|{{IPA|ə}}

|ə

|

|colspan=3|

style="text-align:center"

!Open

|colspan=3|

|{{IPA|a}}

|a

|

|colspan=3|

  • All vowels can occurs in all three positions, except /{{IPA|ə}}/ which occurs only medially.

=Diphthongs=

class="wikitable"

|+Diphthongs

!

!{{IPA|i}}

!{{IPA|e}}

!{{IPA|o}}

!{{IPA|u}}

style="text-align:center"

!{{IPA|i}}

|

|

|

|{{IPA|iu}}

style="text-align:center"

!{{IPA|e}}

|{{IPA|ei}}

|

|{{IPA|eo}}

|

style="text-align:center"

!{{IPA|a}}

|{{IPA|ai}}

|

|{{IPA|ao}}

|

style="text-align:center"

!{{IPA|o}}

|{{IPA|oi}}

|

|

|

style="text-align:center"

!{{IPA|u}}

|{{IPA|ui}}

|

|

|

style="text-align:center"

!{{IPA|ə}}

|

|

|{{IPA|əo}}

|

=Consonants=

There are sixteen consonants in the Dimasa language.

class="wikitable"

|+Consonants

!colspan=2 rowspan=2|

!colspan=3|Labial

!colspan=3|Alveolar

!colspan=3|Dorsal

!colspan=3|Glottal

IPA

!ROM

!Script

!IPA

!ROM

!Script

!IPA

!ROM

!Script

!IPA

!ROM

!Script

style="text-align:center"

!colspan=2|Nasal

|{{IPA|m}}

|m

|

|{{IPA|n}}

|n

|

|{{IPA|ŋ}}

|ng

|

|colspan=3|

style="text-align:center"

!rowspan=2|Stop

!aspirated

|{{IPA|pʰ}}

|ph

|

|{{IPA|tʰ}}

|th

|

|{{IPA|kʰ}}

|kh

|

|colspan=3|

style="text-align:center"

!voiced

|{{IPA|b}}

|b

|

|{{IPA|d}}

|d

|

|{{IPA|ɡ}}

|g

|

|colspan=3|

style="text-align:center"

!rowspan=2|Fricative

!voiceless

|colspan=3|

|{{IPA|s}}

|s

|

|colspan=3|

|colspan=3|

style="text-align:center"

!voiced

|colspan=3|

|{{IPA|z}}

|z

|

|colspan=3|

|{{IPA|ɦ}}

|h

|

style="text-align:center"

! colspan="2" rowspan="1" |Trill/Flap

|colspan=3|

|{{IPA|r ~ ɾ}}

|r

|

|colspan=3|

|colspan=3|

style="text-align:center"

! rowspan="2" |Approximant

!voiced

|{{IPA|w}}

|w

|

| colspan="3" |

|{{IPA|j}}

|y

|

| colspan="3" |

style="text-align:center"

!lateral

|colspan=3|

|{{IPA|l}}

|l

|

|colspan=3|

|colspan=3|

  • The three voiceless aspirated stops, /{{IPA|pʰ, tʰ, kʰ}}/, are unreleased in syllable final position. Their unaspirated voiced counterparts are released and cannot occur word final position.
  • Sometimes /{{IPA|pʰ, tʰ, kʰ, s}}/ are pronounced as /{{IPA|b, d, g, z}}/ respectively.
  • The consonants /{{IPA|pʰ, b, tʰ, kʰ, m, n, r, l}}/ can occur in all position.
  • The consonants /{{IPA|g, s, s, ɦ}}/ cannot occur in Dimasa indigenous words, but can occur in loan words.
  • The consonants /{{IPA|d, w, j}}/ cannot appear in word final positions in Dimasa.
  • The consonants /{{IPA|ŋ}}/ cannot appear in word initial positions.

Grammar

{{More citations needed section|date=June 2020}}

Dimasa is an inflectional language. The verbs are inflected for number, tense, case, voice, aspect, mood but not for gender and person.

=Pronouns=

class="wikitable"

!   !! Singular !! Plural

First person

| ang || jing

Second person

| ning || nisi

Third person

| bo || bunsi

=Sentence syntax=

The verb is rarely inflected for person and gender.

Subject–object–verb word order is usual; Object–verb–subject word order also occurs.

Writing system

Dimasa is written using Latin script, which has been introduced in the lower primary education system in Dima Hasao District. The main guiding force behind it is the Dimasa Lairidim Hosom, a literary apex body of the Dimasa community.{{Cite web |title=Tribes of Assam |url=http://online.assam.gov.in/tribes_of_assam#Dimasa |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170205030325/http://online.assam.gov.in:80/tribes_of_assam#Dimasa%20Kachari |archive-date=5 February 2017 |website=online.assam.gov.in}}

The Bengali script is used in Cachar, where the Bengali people live alongside Dimasas.{{Cite web |title=Index of Languages by Writing System |url=http://www.omniglot.com/writing/langalph.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180413101247/http://www.omniglot.com/writing/langalph.htm |archive-date=2018-04-13 |access-date=18 April 2018 |website=Omniglot}}

See also

Notes

{{Reflist}}

References

{{refbegin}}

  • {{Cite thesis |last=Brahma |first=Pratima |title=Phonology and Morphology of Bodo and Dimasa: A Comparative Study |date=2014 |degree=PhD |publisher=Assam University |hdl=10603/21160 |hdl-access=free}}
  • {{cite book |last1=Endle |first1=Sidney |title=The Kacháris |date=1911 |publisher=Macmillan |url=https://archive.org/details/kacharis009491mbp}}
  • {{cite book |last1=Evans |first1=Jonathan P. |last2=Langthasa |first2=Dhrubajit |title=Dimasa Language: Structure and Texts |publisher=Institute of Linguistics, Academia Sinica Taipei |place=Taiwan |date=2024 |url=https://www.ling.sinica.edu.tw/item/zh-tw?act=publish_book&type=2}}

{{refend}}

{{incubator|code=dis}}

External links

  • [https://digital.library.unt.edu/explore/collections/DLR Dimasa Language Resource] collection of Dimasa language documentation in the Computational Resource for South Asian Languages (CoRSAL) archive

{{Sal languages}}

{{Languages of Northeast India}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dimasa Language}}

Category:Sal languages

Category:Languages of Assam

Category:Languages of Nagaland

Category:Endangered languages of India