Micha, or Miqie (;
autonym: '), is a
Loloish language
The Loloish languages, also known as Yi in China and occasionally Ngwi or Nisoic, are a family of fifty to a hundred Sino-Tibetan languages spoken primarily in the Yunnan province of China. They are most closely related to Burmese and its rela ...
of
Yunnan
Yunnan , () is a landlocked province in the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the ...
. Its usage is declining.
Classification
Micha (' or ') is most closely related to
Lipo,
Lolopo, and
Lisu.
[Gao 2014]
The autonym ' is used by
Lalo speakers, and should not be confused with Micha.
Distribution
Micha is spoken by about 9,000 persons in north-central Yunnan, in
Wuding County
Wuding County (; Chuxiong Yi script: , IPA: ) is under the administration of the Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture, in the north-central part of Yunnan province, China, bordering Sichuan province to the north. Wuding's county seat is located ...
,
Luquan County, and
Fumin County.
*
Wuding County
Wuding County (; Chuxiong Yi script: , IPA: ) is under the administration of the Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture, in the north-central part of Yunnan province, China, bordering Sichuan province to the north. Wuding's county seat is located ...
: Shedianxiaocun, Yongtaoxiacun, Yongtaozhongcun, Yangliuhe, Maichacun, Wodudacun, Woduxincun, Shuiduifang, Shanjudacun, Shanjuxiacun, Yangjiacun, Luomian, Xiagubai, Yanziwo, Shudecun, Dacun, Xincun, Baisha, Dashiban, Puxi Xincun, Yangliuhe, Nanshancun, Maidishan, Daxinzhuang, Yangjiucun, Nuomizha, Bizu
*
Luquan County: Shanglaowu, Xiashihuiyao, Qinglongqing, Bailike, Yantang, Pingtian, Damituo, Xicun
*
Fumin County: Madishangcun, Madixiacun, Madishaocun
According to the ''Nanjian County Gazetteer'' (1993), Micha (密岔) is also spoken in
Nanjian County
Nanjian Yi Autonomous County () is a county in the Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture located in the west central part of Yunnan province, China.
Administrative divisions
Nanjian Yi Autonomous County has 5 towns and 3 townships.
;5 towns
;3 townsh ...
, around Aliwu (阿里勿) and Santaishan (三台山),
southeast of Dali.
References
Further reading
*Gao, Katie Butler. 2014. “Phonological Sketch and Classification of Micha: A Central Ngwi language of Yunnan.” Presented at the 47th International Conference on Sino-Tibetan Languages and Linguistics. Oct 2014. Yunnan Normal University. Kunming, China.
*Gao, Katie B. 2015.
Assessing the Linguistic Vitality of Miqie: An Endangered Ngwi (Loloish) Language of Yunnan, China" ''Language Documentation & Conservation'' 9. 164-191.
*Gao, Katie B. 2017.
Dynamics of Language Contact in China: Ethnolinguistic Diversity and Variation in Yunnan'. PhD Dissertation: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa.
*Nanjian County Gazetteer Commission
��涧县志编纂委员会编(ed). 1993. ''Nanjian County Gazetteer''
��涧彝族自治县志 Chengdu: Sichuan Reference Press
��川辞书出版社
External links
An open access collection of Micha recordingsare available through
Kaipuleohone Kaipuleohone is a digital ethnographic archive that houses audio and visual files, photographs, as well as hundreds of textual material such as notes, dictionaries, and transcriptions relating to small and endangered languages. The archive is stored ...
.
{{Lolo-Burmese languages
Loloish languages
Languages of China
Endangered Sino-Tibetan languages