Mon Khmer Language

Mon-Khmer languages

Mon language, Mon-Khmer language spoken by the Mon people of southeastern Myanmar (Lower Burma) and several Mon communities in Thailand. The oldest inscriptions, dating from the 6th century, are found in central Thailand in archaeological sites associated with the Dvaravati kingdom. Numerous Old Mon inscriptions date from the later Mon kingdoms of Thaton and Pegu. The Old Mon inscriptions found at Pagan, central Myanmar, attest to the prestige of the Mon language in medieval Myanmar society. Old Mon is written in a script originating from South India. The Mon writing system evolved gradually into its modern form and served as a basis for the Burmese writing system. The modern Mon language is now spoken primarily in southeastern Myanmar, between the towns of Moulmein and Ye. In northern, central, and western Thailand, there are also numerous Mon communities that migrated from Myanmar over the past four centuries.

Myazedi inscription, epigraph written in 1113 in the Pāli, Pyu, Mon, and Burmese languages and providing a key to the Pyu language. The inscription, engraved on a stone found at the Myazedi pagoda near Pagan, Myanmar (Burma), tells the story of King Kyanzittha’s deathbed reconciliation with his estranged son, whom he had disinherited by a peace-producing compromise of 1084 that had helped end the bloodletting between the Pagan and Mon kingdoms.

The period described by the Myazedi stone saw the gradual decline in the formal use of the Pāli and Mon languages, and the rise of the Burmese language, which was reaching maturity as a medium of literary expression, using Mon script. The later decades of the Pagan period marked the ascendancy of Burman cultural traits at the expense of Mon tradition. The Myazedi inscription is a benchmark from which to chronicle the development of a peculiarly Burman culture.

Khmer language, Mon-Khmer language spoken by most of the population of Cambodia, where it is the official language, and by some 1.3 million people in southeastern Thailand, and also by more than a million people in southern Vietnam. The language has been written since the early 7th century using a script originating in South India. The language used in the ancient Khmer empire and in Angkor, its capital, was Old Khmer, which is a direct ancestor of modern Khmer. Several hundred monumental inscriptions found in Cambodia, southern Vietnam, and parts of Thailand, dating from the 7th to the 15th century, attest to the former widespread use and prestige of the language. It has exerted a lasting influence on the languages of the region, as evidenced by the large number of Khmer borrowings found in Thai, Lao, Kuay, Stieng, Samre, Cham, and others. Khmer has in turn liberally borrowed from Sanskrit and Pāli, especially for philosophical, administrative, and technical vocabulary

Mon-Khmer languages, language family included in the Austroasiatic stock. Mon-Khmer languages constitute the indigenous language family of mainland Southeast Asia. They range north to southern China, south to Malaysia, west to Assam state in India, and east to Vietnam. The most important Mon-Khmer languages, having populations greater than 100,000, are Vietnamese, Khmer, Muong, Mon, Khāsi, Khmu, and Wa.

The family consists of some 130 languages, most of which are not, or very rarely, written. Several languages are spoken by only a few hundred speakers and are in imminent danger of extinction; these include Phalok, Iduh, Thai Then, Mlabri, Aheu, Arem, Chung (Sa-och), Song of Trat, Samrai, Nyah Heuny, Che’ Wong, and Shompe. The family is subclassified into 12 branches: Khasian, Palaungic, Khmuic, Pakanic, Vietic, Katuic, Bahnaric, Khmeric, Pearic, Monic, Aslian, and Nicobarese. There has been reluctance in the past in accepting Vietic, which includes Vietnamese, as a branch of Mon-Khmer, but recent studies make this quite certain. Nicobarese was also thought to form a separate family in the Austroasiatic stock, but recent data from this poorly known branch confirm its inclusion in Mon-Khmer. The Chamic languages of Vietnam and Cambodia, which were included by some scholars in the Mon-Khmer family, have now been reclassified as Austronesian.

Nicobarese languages, Austroasiatic languages spoken on the Nicobar Islands and once considered to form a distinct family within the Austroasiatic stock. More recent data on these hitherto poorly known languages suggest that they form a distinct branch of the Mon-Khmer family, itself a part of the Austroasiatic stock. The Nicobarese languages are usually classified into four groups: North Nicobar, including the Car, Chowra, Teressa, and Bompaka languages; Central Nicobar, including the Camorta, Nancowry, Trinkat, and Katchall languages; South Nicobar, including the Coastal Great Nicobar and the Little Nicobar languages; and Inland Great Nicobar, including the Shompe language.

Viet-Muong languages, subbranch of the Vietic branch of the Mon-Khmer family of languages, itself a part of the Austroasiatic stock. Vietnamese, the most important language of the group and of the entire Mon-Khmer family, has a number of regional variants. Northern Vietnamese, centred in Hanoi, is the basis for the official form of Vietnamese. Central Vietnamese, centred in Hue, and Southern Vietnamese, centred in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), differ from the Northern norm in having fewer tones and in modifying certain consonants. All three use the same writing system, which is called Quoc-ngu. The dialects spoken in the city of Vinh and in much of Nghe An province are more divergent. Vietnamese has borrowed liberally from Chinese over the centuries. This vocabulary, which has now diverged from the original Chinese source, is sometimes called Sino-Vietnamese. Muong, the other language of the group, is spoken in northern Vietnam; it differs from Vietnamese primarily in showing far less Chinese influence

Palaungic languages, branch of the Mon-Khmer group of the Austroasiatic languages. Palaungic languages are spoken primarily in Myanmar (Burma) and secondarily in Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Yunnan province in China. The members of the Palaungic branch are somewhat controversial but are generally given as Kano’ (Danau, or Danaw), Mang, and sometimes Lamet (which are often grouped in the Khmuic branch), as well as the many languages classified within the Palaung-Riang, Angkuic, and Waic subbranches of Palaungic.

Pearic languages, a branch of the Mon-Khmer family of languages, which is itself a part of the Austroasiatic stock. The Pearic languages include Chong, Samre (Eastern Pear), Samrai (Western Pear), Chung (Sa-och), Song of Trat, Song of Kampong Speu, and Pear of Kampong Thom. All but the last are located in western Cambodia and southeastern Thailand. All are spoken by very small populations and are in imminent danger of extinction. They have sometimes been thought to be closely related to Khmer for geographic reasons, or even to be a form of Old Khmer. When Old Khmer borrowings are set aside, the Pearic branch can be shown to be clearly distinct historically from the Khmeric branch. It has a very unusual phonology where four registers (types of voice) are distinguished.

Khasian languages, group of languages spoken primarily in the Khāsi Hills and Jaintia Hills of Meghālaya state of northeastern India. The Khasian languages form the westernmost branch of the Mon-Khmer language family, itself a part of the Austroasiatic stock, and are the only Mon-Khmer languages spoken outside of Southeast Asia. Speakers of Khasian languages number about 900,000, most of whom speak Khāsi; other languages of the group include Amwi (War), Synteng (Pnar), and Lyng-ngam.

Khmuic languages, group of Mon-Khmer languages (Austroasiatic stock) spoken primarily in Laos in areas scattered around Louangphrabang and extending into parts of Thailand and northern Vietnam.

Khmu is the most prominent of the languages, having more than 500,000 speakers, most of whom are spread across northern Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, and China. Smaller numbers live in Myanmar (Burma) and in Western countries. Other Khmuic languages include Khang, Phong (also called Kaniang, Piat, or Phong-Kniang), Puoc, Iduh (Odu, Thai Hat), Mal (Thin, Prai, Phai, Lua’), Thai Then, and Mlabri (Yumbri).

Viet-Muong languages, subbranch of the Vietic branch of the Mon-Khmer family of languages, itself a part of the Austroasiatic stock. Vietnamese, the most important language of the group and of the entire Mon-Khmer family, has a number of regional variants. Northern Vietnamese, centred in Hanoi, is the basis for the official form of Vietnamese. Central Vietnamese, centred in Hue, and Southern Vietnamese, centred in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), differ from the Northern norm in having fewer tones and in modifying certain consonants. All three use the same writing system, which is called Quoc-ngu. The dialects spoken in the city of Vinh and in much of Nghe An province are more divergent. Vietnamese has borrowed liberally from Chinese over the centuries. This vocabulary, which has now diverged from the original Chinese source, is sometimes called Sino-Vietnamese. Muong, the other language of the group, is spoken in northern Vietnam; it differs from Vietnamese primarily in showing far less Chinese influence.

Myazedi inscription, epigraph written in 1113 in the Pāli, Pyu, Mon, and Burmese languages and providing a key to the Pyu language. The inscription, engraved on a stone found at the Myazedi pagoda near Pagan, Myanmar (Burma), tells the story of King Kyanzittha’s deathbed reconciliation with his estranged son, whom he had disinherited by a peace-producing compromise of 1084 that had helped end the bloodletting between the Pagan and Mon kingdoms.

The period described by the Myazedi stone saw the gradual decline in the formal use of the Pāli and Mon languages, and the rise of the Burmese language, which was reaching maturity as a medium of literary expression, using Mon script. The later decades of the Pagan period marked the ascendancy of Burman cultural traits at the expense of Mon tradition. The Myazedi inscription is a benchmark from which to chronicle the development of a peculiarly Burman culture.