The Bahnar language or Ba-Na language () is a Central
Bahnaric language
The Bahnaric languages are a group of about thirty Austroasiatic languages spoken by about 700,000 people in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. Paul Sidwell notes that Austroasiatic/Mon–Khmer languages are lexically more similar to Bahnaric and Katui ...
. It has nine
vowel qualities and phonemic
vowel length
In linguistics, vowel length is the perceived length of a vowel sound: the corresponding physical measurement is duration. In some languages vowel length is an important phonemic factor, meaning vowel length can change the meaning of the word, ...
.
Subdivisions
Đào (1998) lists the following subgroups of Bahnar and their respective locations.
*Bahnar
Kon Tum
Kon Tum is the capital city of Kon Tum Province in Vietnam. It is located inland in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam, near the borders of Laos and Cambodia.
History
After the People's Army of Vietnam invaded South Vietnam on March ...
:
Kon Tum
Kon Tum is the capital city of Kon Tum Province in Vietnam. It is located inland in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam, near the borders of Laos and Cambodia.
History
After the People's Army of Vietnam invaded South Vietnam on March ...
area
*Bahnar Jơlong: northeastern
Kon Tum Province
*Bahnar Golar: northern
Pleiku
Pleiku is a city in central Vietnam, located in the Central Highlands region. It is the capital of the Gia Lai Province. Many years ago, it was inhabited primarily by the Bahnar and Jarai ethnic groups, sometimes known as the Montagnards or De ...
(
Gia Lai Province)
*Bahnar Tosung:
Mang Yang District (
Gia Lai Province)
*Bahnar Konkođe:
An Khê District (
Gia Lai Province)
*Bahnar Alatang:
An Khê District (
Gia Lai Province)
*Bahnar Alakông:
K'Bang District (
Gia Lai Province)
*Bahnar Tolo:
Kông Chro District and southern
An Khê District (
Gia Lai Province)
*Bahnar Bơnâm: eastern
An Khê District (
Gia Lai Province)
*Bahnar Roh: scattered areas in
An Khê District and
K'Bang District (
Gia Lai Province)
*Bahnar Krem:
Vĩnh Thạnh District and
An Lão District (
Bình Định Province)
*Bahnar Chăm:
Vân Canh District (
Bình Định Province)
*Bahnar But: forest areas; little communication with outsiders
Bùi (2011:5-6) lists the following subgroups of Bahnar and their respective locations.
*Tơ Lô: in Sơ Ró, Đắc Song, Chơ Loong, Yang Nam, and Đắc Tơ communes, which are in
Kông Chro District and part of
An Khê District (
Gia Lai Province)
*Krem: in
Vĩnh Thạnh District, as well as some in
An Lão District,
Hoài Ân District Hoai is a given name (Vietnamese have their surname first, followed by their given name). Notable people with this given name include:
* Phạm Thị Hoài (born 1960), Vietnamese writer, editor and translator
* Trần Văn Hoài (1929–2010), V ...
, and
Tây Sơn District in
Bình Định Province; some in Sơn Lang Commune,
K'Bang District,
Gia Lai Province
*Vân Canh: mostly in Canh Liên, Canh Thuận, and Canh Hòa communes of
Vân Canh District,
Bình Định Province
*Thồ Lồ: mostly in the upper part of
Đồng Xuân District,
Phú Yên Province. Scattered in 9 communes throughout
Đồng Xuân District,
Sơn Hòa District, and
Sông Hinh District. Descended from Tơ Lô people who were
Tây Sơn soldiers fleeing from the
Nguyễn dynasty
The Nguyễn dynasty (chữ Nôm: 茹阮, vi, Nhà Nguyễn; chữ Hán: 阮朝, vi, Nguyễn triều) was the last Vietnamese dynasty, which ruled the unified Vietnamese state largely independently from 1802 to 1883. During its existence, t ...
200 years ago. They fled southeast to Thồ Lồ,
Phú Yên Province. The
*Gơ Lar: mostly in
Mang Yang District,
Đắk Đoa District, and
Chư Sê District of
Gia Lai Province, and some living around
Kon Tum
Kon Tum is the capital city of Kon Tum Province in Vietnam. It is located inland in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam, near the borders of Laos and Cambodia.
History
After the People's Army of Vietnam invaded South Vietnam on March ...
town. There is also a subgroup called Bahnar Châng H'drung who live at the foot of Hàm Rồng Mountain.
*Kon Tum: in 4 precincts and 9 communes of
Kon Tum
Kon Tum is the capital city of Kon Tum Province in Vietnam. It is located inland in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam, near the borders of Laos and Cambodia.
History
After the People's Army of Vietnam invaded South Vietnam on March ...
town
*Jơ Lơng: in
Kon Tum
Kon Tum is the capital city of Kon Tum Province in Vietnam. It is located inland in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam, near the borders of Laos and Cambodia.
History
After the People's Army of Vietnam invaded South Vietnam on March ...
town, and Đắc Tơ Re, Đắc Ruồng, and Đắc Pne communes of
Kon Rẫy District,
Kon Tum Province
*Rơ Ngao (
Rengao): in 29 villages. They live with the Kon Tum people in 5 communes of
Kon Tum
Kon Tum is the capital city of Kon Tum Province in Vietnam. It is located inland in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam, near the borders of Laos and Cambodia.
History
After the People's Army of Vietnam invaded South Vietnam on March ...
; with the Bahnar and Sedang peoples in 2 communes of
Đắk Hà District; and with the
Sedang people
The Sedang people (In Vietnamese: Xê Đăng or Xơ Đăng) are an ethnic group of Vietnam. They mainly inhabit the Kon Tum province, Quảng Nam province (Trà My and Phước Sơn districts), Quảng Ngãi province (Sơn Tây district). They ...
in Pô Cô Commune,
Đắk Tô District,
Kon Tum Province
Phonology
Consonants
*-In the final sequence /jh/, /h/ is not pronounced and /j/ is pronounced phonetically as a short vowel /i/.
*
Vowels
*
Also used in Vietnam
Other minor groups include the Kon Kđe, Bơ Nơm, and A Roh subgroups in
Kông Chro District and
K'Bang District of
Gia Lai Province (Bùi 2011:6).
''
Ethnologue'' lists the following dialects of Bahnar.
*Tolo
*Golar
*Alakong (A-La Cong)
*Jolong (Gio-Lang, Y-Lang)
*Bahnar Bonom (Bomam)
*Kontum
*Krem
References
External links
Database of audio recordings in Bahnar - basic Catholic prayers
Bahnaric languages
{{AustroAsiatic-lang-stub