Kayan, also known as, Padaung or Padaung Karen) is a
Karen language of
Burma
Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...
, spoken by the
Kayan people. The Kayan dialects share more than 90% lexical similarity.
Padaung is 71% to 76% lexically similar to
Lahta.
Distribution
*
Pekhon, southern
Shan State
Shan State (, ; , ) is a administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. Shan State borders China (Yunnan) to the north, Laos (Louang Namtha Province, Louang Namtha and Bokeo Provinces) to the east, and Thailand (Chiang Rai Province, Chia ...
*northwestern
Kayah State
Kayah State (, ), or Karenni State, is a state of Myanmar. Situated in eastern Myanmar, it is bounded on the north by Shan State, on the east by Thailand's Mae Hong Son Province, and on the south and west by Kayin State. It lies approximately b ...
*
Thandaung township,
Kayin State
Kayin State (, ; ; , ), formerly known as Karen State, is a Administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. The capital city is Hpa-An, also spelled Pa-An.
The terrain of the state is mountainous; with the Dawna Range running along the ...
*
Pyinmana township,
Mandalay Region
Mandalay Region (, ; formerly Mandalay Division) is an administrative divisions of Myanmar, administrative division of Myanmar. It is located in the center of the country, bordering Sagaing Region and Magway Region to the west, Shan State to the ...
*''Kayan Lahwi dialect'':
Lahwi and northwest
Dimawso,
Kayah State
Kayah State (, ), or Karenni State, is a state of Myanmar. Situated in eastern Myanmar, it is bounded on the north by Shan State, on the east by Thailand's Mae Hong Son Province, and on the south and west by Kayin State. It lies approximately b ...
; southern
Pekhon, southern
Shan State
Shan State (, ; , ) is a administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. Shan State borders China (Yunnan) to the north, Laos (Louang Namtha Province, Louang Namtha and Bokeo Provinces) to the east, and Thailand (Chiang Rai Province, Chia ...
*''Kayan Yinbaw/Kangan dialect'':
Dimawso area, northwestern
Kayah State
Kayah State (, ), or Karenni State, is a state of Myanmar. Situated in eastern Myanmar, it is bounded on the north by Shan State, on the east by Thailand's Mae Hong Son Province, and on the south and west by Kayin State. It lies approximately b ...
Internal classification
The Kayan languages are spoken in
Kayah State
Kayah State (, ), or Karenni State, is a state of Myanmar. Situated in eastern Myanmar, it is bounded on the north by Shan State, on the east by Thailand's Mae Hong Son Province, and on the south and west by Kayin State. It lies approximately b ...
, southern
Shan State
Shan State (, ; , ) is a administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. Shan State borders China (Yunnan) to the north, Laos (Louang Namtha Province, Louang Namtha and Bokeo Provinces) to the east, and Thailand (Chiang Rai Province, Chia ...
, and northern
Karen State
Kayin State (, ; ; , ), formerly known as Karen State, is a state of Myanmar. The capital city is Hpa-An, also spelled Pa-An.
The terrain of the state is mountainous; with the Dawna Range running along the state in a NNW–SSE direction, and ...
. There are four branches according to Shintani (2016), namely:
[Shintani, Tadahiko. 2015. ''The Kadaw language''. Linguistic survey of Tay cultural area (LSTCA) no. 106. Tokyo: Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA).]
*Kangan ("lowland dwellers")
*Kakhaung ("highland dwellers")
*Lawi ("South")
*Latha ("North")
Nangki (sometimes called Langki), documented in Shintani (2016), is one of the Kayan languages belonging to the Kakhaung subgroup. It is spoken only in one village.
Pekong Kayan is documented in Manson (2010).
Sonkan Kayan and Dosanbu Kayan are documented in Shintani (2018a, b). Shintani has also documented:by families or by villages as below:
*Phulon Kayan
*Lagu Kayan
*Totan Kayan
*Dokhoncon Kayan
*Natwei Kayan
*Pimon Kayan
*Sonplao Kayan
*Dolan Kayan
*Thaoku Kayan
*Diklon Kayan
*Pulon Kayan
*Kabla Kayan
*Kathan Kayan
*Kalondei Kayan
*Ramaku, Subao, Kadu, Huason, Hanti, Sonpu Kayan (Shintani 2022)
Dimawso Kayan, a Kayan variety spoken in Wanbanbalo village, Dimawso township,
Kayah State
Kayah State (, ), or Karenni State, is a state of Myanmar. Situated in eastern Myanmar, it is bounded on the north by Shan State, on the east by Thailand's Mae Hong Son Province, and on the south and west by Kayin State. It lies approximately b ...
,
Myanmar
Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...
, is described in Lew (2018).
''Ethnologue'' lists Padaung (Kayan) dialects as:
*Standard Pekon (prestige dialect)
*Kayan Lahwi
*Kayan Kangan (Yeinbaw, Yinbaw)
Phonology
Consonants
* Voiced stops /b, d/ can also range to pre-glottalized stops
”b, Ê”din free variation among speakers.
* /θ/ shows fluctuation to
in some closely related dialects.
* /ɾ/ is heard as a glide
¹in syllable-medial position. It is heard as a tap
¾elsewhere.
Vowels
* Sounds /ɨ, a, ə, u/ phonetically range to
¨Ì , aÌŸ, ɤ̟, ÊŠin free variation.
* Breathiness
̤is also evenly distributed among all sounds.
References
*Shintani, Tadahiko. 2020. ''A handbook of comparative Kayan languages''. Linguistic survey of Tay cultural area (LSTCA). Tokyo: Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA).
*Aung, Wai Lin. 2013.
A Descriptive Grammar of Kayah Monu'. Master’s thesis, Payap University.
*Ywar, Naw Hsa Eh. 2013.
A Grammar of Kayan Lahta'. Master’s thesis, Payap University.
{{Authority control
Karenic languages