Mashan Miao language

Mang was classified as a branch of Western Hmongic in Wang (1985), who listed four varieties.{{Cite book |title=Miáoyǔ jiǎnzhì |date=1985 |publisher=Minzu chubanshe |editor-last=Wang |editor-first=Fushi 王辅世 |location=Beijing |language=zh |script-title=zh:苗语简志 |trans-title=Miao Language Brief History}} Matisoff (2001) gave these four varieties the status of separate languages, and, conservatively, did not retain them as a single group within West Hmongic. Li Yunbing (2000) added two minor varieties which had been left unclassified in Wang, Southeastern (Strecker's "Luodian Muyin") and Southwestern ("Wangmo").{{Cite book |last=Li |first=Yunbing 李云兵 |title=Miáoyǔ fāngyán huàfēn yíliú wèntí yánjiū |date=2000 |publisher=Zhongyang minzu daxue chubanshe |location=Beijing |language=zh |script-title=zh:苗语方言划分遗留问题研究}}

• Central Mang: 70,000 speakers
• Northern Mang: 35,000
• Western Mang: 14,000
• Southern Mang: 10,000
• Southeastern Mang: 4,000
• Southwestern Mang: 4,000

Below is a list of Miao dialects and their respective speaker populations and distributions from Li (2018),{{cite book |last=Li |first=Yunbing 李云兵 |date=2018 |title=Miao Yao yu bijiao yanjiu 苗瑶语比较研究 (A comparative study of Hmong-Mien languages) |location=Beijing |publisher=The Commercial Press |oclc=1112270585 |isbn=9787100165068}} along with representative datapoints from Wang (1985).Wang Fushi 王辅世. 1985. Miaoyu jianzhi 苗语简志. Beijing: Minzu chubanshe 民族出版社.

According to Sun (2017), the central dialect of Mashan Miao is spoken in the following locations by a total of approximately 50,000 speakers.{{cite book|isbn=9787105142385 |editor-last=Sun|editor-first=Hongkai 孙宏开|editor-last2=Ting|editor-first2=Pang-hsin 丁邦新|publisher=Minzu chubanshe 民族出版社|year=2017|url=http://www.kaom.net/mzy_hzyyyhch.php|title=Hanzangyu yuyin he cihui 汉藏语语音和词汇|location=Beijing|page=40}}

• Ziyun County: Zongdi 宗地, Dayi 打易, Gejing 格井, Kehun 克混, Meichang 妹场, Baihua 百花
• Luodian County: Fengting 逢亭, Bianyang 边阳, etc.

A pinyin alphabet had been created for Mang in 1985, but proved to have deficiencies. Wu and Yang (2010) report the creation of a new alphabet, albeit a tentative one, based on the Central Mang dialect of Ziyun County, Zōngdì 宗地 township, Dàdìbà 大地坝 village.{{refn|Several consonants were added to the 1985 alphabet, while bz, pz, nbz, mz and gh were removed.{{Cite journal |last=Wu |first=Zhengbiao 吴正彪 |last2=Yang |first2=Guangying 杨光应 |date=2010 |title=Máshān cì fāngyán qū Miáo wén fāng'àn de shèjì yǔ shǐyòng—jiān tán Miáozú yīngxióng shǐshī “Yàlǔ wáng” de jì yì zhěnglǐ wèntí |script-title=zh:麻山次方言区苗文方案的设计与使用—兼谈苗族英雄史诗《亚鲁王》的记译整理问题 |url=http://218.249.224.102/upfile/20115613035615353.pdf |url-status=dead |journal=Mínzú fānyì |language=zh |volume=2010 |issue=3 |pages=58–65 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150420085819/http://218.249.224.102/upfile/20115613035615353.pdf |archive-date=2015-04-20 |access-date=2021-08-17 |script-journal=zh:民族翻译}}}}

Consonants, in pinyin, are:

:labial: b p nb np, m f v, by py nby my, bl pl nbl npl ml

:lateral: l lj

:dental or alveolar stops: d t dl dj nd nt n

:dental affricates: z c s nz nc

:retroflex: dr tr ndr nr sh r

:alveolo-palatal: j q nj x y ny

:velar or uvular: g k ngg ng, h w hw

:(zero onset)

The Latin voiced/voiceless opposition has been coopted to indicate aspiration, as usual in pinyin alphabets.

Correspondences between Central Mang dialects include Dadiba retroflex dr, tr with dental z, c in another village of the same Zongdi township, Sanjiao (三脚 Sānjiǎo). The other five varieties of Mang have more palatalized initials than Central Mang, though these can be transcribed as medial -i-. The onsets by, py, nby, my are pronounced {{IPA|[pʐ pʰʐ mpʐ mʐ ]}} in Central Mang and {{IPA|[pj pʰj mpj mj]}} in the other five Mang varieties.

Vowels and finals, including those needed for Chinese loans, are:

:a aa {{IPA|[ã]}} ai ao ain ang

:e ea ei en ein eu ew eng

:i iou in ie iu iao ian iang

:o ou ow ong

:u uw ua ui ue un uai uan uang

:yu

Most Central Mang and Western Mang dialects have eleven to thirteen tones. Compared to the eight tone categories of other Western Hmongic languages, the odd-numbered tones are each split into two. The tones of at least three villages of Central Mang have been documented: Dadiba (Wu & Yang 2010), Jiaotuozhai (Wang & Mao 1995; Li 2000), and Jingshuiping (Xian 1990; Mortensen 2006,{{Cite web |last=Mortensen |date=2006 |title=Diachronic Universals and Synchronic Parochialisms: Explaining Tone-Vowel Interactions |url=http://www.pitt.edu/~drm31/VowelRaisingInShuijingping.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060920115838/http://www.pitt.edu/~drm31/VowelRaisingInShuijingping.pdf |archive-date=2006-09-20 |language=en |via=pitt.edu}} all in the Zongdi township of Ziyun County. They lie several kilometers apart and have minor differences.

Although some pairs of tones (such as tones 6 and 7b) have the same value when pronounced alone, they behave differently with regard to tone sandhi and should be treated as different phonologically. Tones also interact with phonation types and vowel quality. Jiaotuozhai tones 4 and 6 are breathy voiced and have higher vowels.

The basic constituent order in Mang clauses is subject-verb-object.{{ref label|Heal_note|a}} In the following example from Southern Mashan, {{lang|hma|god mat}} 'my mother' is the subject, {{lang|hma|jaud}} 'boil' is the verb, and {{lang|hma|haet}} 'egg' is the object:{{sfn | Heal | 2020 | p=9}}

{{interlinear|lang=hma|indent=3

| god mat jaud haet

| 1SG mother boil egg

| 'My mum boiled (some) eggs.'}}

In sentences with a single argument, this single argument most often appears before the verb:{{sfn | Heal | 2020 | p=10}}

{{interlinear|lang=hma|indent=3

| god xef lex

| 1SG wake.up ASP

| 'I got up.'}}

Mang has an existential construction using the verb {{lang|hma|nyab}} 'have', where the subject is introduced after the verb:{{sfn | Heal | 2020 | p=11}}

{{interlinear|lang=hma|indent=3

| xix_eid nyab ib lenx box_lol_renh

| before have one CLF witch

| 'Once upon a time there was a witch.'}}

Prepositional phrases usually appear between the subject and the verb.{{sfn | Heal | 2020 | p=11}} In the following example, the preposition {{lang|hma|ndeus}} 'with' appears:{{ref label|ndeus_note|b}}{{sfn | Heal | 2020 | p=12}}

{{interlinear|lang=hma|indent=3

| god ndeus nil nyax lex.

| 1SG with 3SG eat PERF

| 'I ate (it) with him.'}}

Another example with {{lang|hma|nyab}} 'at':{{sfn | Heal | 2020 | p=13}}

{{interlinear|lang=hma|indent=3

| god mat nyab biaed angt_hangb

| 1SG mother at house work

| 'My mother works at home.'}}

Topicalization is achieved by placing content on the left side of the main clause, separated from the clause by a pause or by the particle {{lang|hmm|jek}}:{{sfn | Heal | 2020 | p=14}}

{{interlinear|lang=hmm|indent=3

| beid jek zit qengl njab qengl.

| fruit PRT spill.fall.out all.completely spill.fall.out all.completely

| 'As for the pears, (they) spilled out everywhere.'}}

Aspect in Mang is expressed through markers separate from the verb, and include perfective/inchoative {{lang|hma|lex}}, progressive {{lang|hma|ndaex}}, experiential {{lang|hma|hliah}}, and completive {{lang|hma|jinx}}.{{sfn | Heal | 2020 | p=18}}

Negation takes the form of a negative marker preceding the verb, {{lang|hma|mux}} in Southern Mashan and {{lang|hmm|muh}} in Central:{{sfn | Heal | 2020 | p=16}}

{{interlinear|lang=hma|abbreviations=DIR:directional|indent=3

| god mux ngil loul

| 1SG NEG down.off DIR

| 'I'm not coming down.'}}

Mang also has a "non-completion" negative marker akin to Mandarin Chinese {{lang|cmn|没有}} méiyǒu with the same syntax. It takes the form {{lang|hma|mux neis}} in Southern Mashan and {{lang|hmm|muh nans}} in Central. An example from the Central variety:

{{interlinear|lang=hmm|indent=3

| gongd muh_nans nongh ngex heb, gongd noax ngex nggongx

| 1SG NEG eat meat chicken 1SG eat meat cow

| 'I didn't eat chicken, I ate beef.'}}

{{note label|Heal_note|a}} The primary source on Mang grammar is Heal (2020),{{cite book |title=Grammar Sketch of Mashan Miao |publisher=SIL International |last=Heal |first=Sarah |date=2020}} which is cast in Role and reference grammar. The discussion here converts specialized terminology into their more conventional counterparts.

{{note label|ndeus_note|b}} Heal's (2020) analysis here for Mang {{lang|hma|ndeus}} 'with' as a "deverbal preposition" differs slightly from Jarkey's (2015){{cite book |title=Serial Verbs in White Hmong |date=2015 |last=Jarkey |first=Nerida |publisher=Brill}} analysis for the Hmong cognate {{lang|mww|nrog}} 'be with' as a verb in a serial verb construction.{{sfn | Jarkey | 2015 | p=229}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Hmong-Mien languages}}

{{Languages of China}}

Category:West Hmongic languages

Category:Languages of Guizhou