Thao, also known as
Sao, is the language of the Thao people, a tribe of
Taiwanese aboriginesTaiwanese aborigines is the term commonly applied in reference to the indigenous peoples of Taiwan...
in the region of
Sun Moon LakeSun Moon Lake is the largest natural lake in Taiwan as well as a tourist attraction. Situated in Yuchih, Nantou, the area around the Sun Moon Lake is home to the Thao tribe, one of aboriginal tribes in Taiwan....
in central
TaiwanTaiwan , also known as Formosa , is the largest island of the Republic of China in East Asia. Taiwan is located east of the Taiwan Strait, off the southeastern coast of mainland China...
. In 2000 there were approximately 5 or 6 speakers, all but one of whom were over the age of sixty. It is a Formosan language of the
AustronesianThe Austronesian languages are a language family widely dispersed throughout the islands of Southeast Asia and the Pacific, with a few members spoken on continental Asia. It is on par with Bantu, Indo-European, Afro-Asiatic and Uralic as one of the best-established ancient language families...
family; Brawbaw and Shtafari are dialects.
p as in punuq (head), apuy (fire)
b as in bidhu (beard), tubu (urine)
m as in matha (eye), rumfadh (bird), urum (cloud)
f as in funush (knife), afu (food), qaruf (knee)
t as in taparudh (rabbit), katawnan (village), shpat (four)
d as in dadú (chief), shmadiya' (owl)
n as in nipin (tooth), tanathu (nine), mudhin (nose)
ɬ as in lhanadh (name), tilhadh (sun), qawlh (bamboo)
l as in luysh (short, not long), lalay (cicada), bunal (sand)
r as in ribush (tree), katuru (six), kamar (millet)
θ as in thaythuy (they), ruthun (monkey), lhamith (root)
ð as in dhama (tongue), padhay (corn husk), fidhfidh (banana)
s as in sadhum (water), rusaw (fish), balis (iron)
ʃ as in shmin'an (to drink), tusha (two), shaqish (face)
k as in ku'aw (eagle), kakulhum (ant)
ŋ as in kakani na pangka (table), lhungqawshin (to sneeze)
q as in qnuwan (deer, pig), maqusum (black), flhuq (to wash)
ʔ as in a'a (baby)
h as in hudun (mountain), ihu (you)
j as in yaku (I), today (thuyni), bukay (flower)
w as in wakrath (river), kawash (year), mashimdhaw (cold as in weather)
The letter i is pronounced e before and after q and r.
The letter u is pronounced o before and after q and r.
Thao has two or arguably three patterns of
reduplicationReduplication, in linguistics, is a morphological process by which the root or stem of a word, or part of it, is repeated.Reduplication is used in inflections to convey a grammatical function, such as plurality, intensification, etc., and in lexical derivation to create new words...
: Ca-reduplication, full reduplication, and rightward reduplication (which is sometimes considered to be a form of full reduplication).
- Blust, R. A.
Robert A. Blust is a prominent linguist in several areas, including historical linguistics, lexicography and ethnology. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and raised in California. He received a B.A. in anthropology, and a PhD in linguistics in 1974 from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa...
(2003).
Discussion
Ask a question about 'Thao language' Start a new discussion about 'Thao language' Answer questions from other users |
Thao, also known as
Sao, is the language of the Thao people, a tribe of
Taiwanese aboriginesTaiwanese aborigines is the term commonly applied in reference to the indigenous peoples of Taiwan...
in the region of
Sun Moon LakeSun Moon Lake is the largest natural lake in Taiwan as well as a tourist attraction. Situated in Yuchih, Nantou, the area around the Sun Moon Lake is home to the Thao tribe, one of aboriginal tribes in Taiwan....
in central
TaiwanTaiwan , also known as Formosa , is the largest island of the Republic of China in East Asia. Taiwan is located east of the Taiwan Strait, off the southeastern coast of mainland China...
. In 2000 there were approximately 5 or 6 speakers, all but one of whom were over the age of sixty. It is a Formosan language of the
AustronesianThe Austronesian languages are a language family widely dispersed throughout the islands of Southeast Asia and the Pacific, with a few members spoken on continental Asia. It is on par with Bantu, Indo-European, Afro-Asiatic and Uralic as one of the best-established ancient language families...
family; Brawbaw and Shtafari are dialects.
Phonology
p as in punuq (head), apuy (fire)
b as in bidhu (beard), tubu (urine)
m as in matha (eye), rumfadh (bird), urum (cloud)
f as in funush (knife), afu (food), qaruf (knee)
t as in taparudh (rabbit), katawnan (village), shpat (four)
d as in dadú (chief), shmadiya' (owl)
n as in nipin (tooth), tanathu (nine), mudhin (nose)
ɬ as in lhanadh (name), tilhadh (sun), qawlh (bamboo)
l as in luysh (short, not long), lalay (cicada), bunal (sand)
r as in ribush (tree), katuru (six), kamar (millet)
θ as in thaythuy (they), ruthun (monkey), lhamith (root)
ð as in dhama (tongue), padhay (corn husk), fidhfidh (banana)
s as in sadhum (water), rusaw (fish), balis (iron)
ʃ as in shmin'an (to drink), tusha (two), shaqish (face)
k as in ku'aw (eagle), kakulhum (ant)
ŋ as in kakani na pangka (table), lhungqawshin (to sneeze)
q as in qnuwan (deer, pig), maqusum (black), flhuq (to wash)
ʔ as in a'a (baby)
h as in hudun (mountain), ihu (you)
j as in yaku (I), today (thuyni), bukay (flower)
w as in wakrath (river), kawash (year), mashimdhaw (cold as in weather)
The letter i is pronounced e before and after q and r.
The letter u is pronounced o before and after q and r.
Reduplication
Thao has two or arguably three patterns of
reduplicationReduplication, in linguistics, is a morphological process by which the root or stem of a word, or part of it, is repeated.Reduplication is used in inflections to convey a grammatical function, such as plurality, intensification, etc., and in lexical derivation to create new words...
: Ca-reduplication, full reduplication, and rightward reduplication (which is sometimes considered to be a form of full reduplication).
Further reading
- Blust, R. A.
Robert A. Blust is a prominent linguist in several areas, including historical linguistics, lexicography and ethnology. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and raised in California. He received a B.A. in anthropology, and a PhD in linguistics in 1974 from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa...
(2003). Thao dictionary. Taipei: Institute of Linguistics (Preparatory Office), Academic Sinica.