Boro–Garo languages
| Bodo–Garo | |
|---|---|
| Bodo–Koch | |
| Geographic distribution | Northeast India, Bangladesh |
| Linguistic classification | Sino-Tibetan
|
| Subdivisions | |
| Language codes | |
| Glottolog | bodo1279 |
The Bodo–Garo languages are a branch of Sino-Tibetan languages spoken in Northeast India and parts of Bangladesh. The name Bodo is not related with the Tibetan ethnonym bod, which is the basis of the names Bodic and Bodish.
Bodo–Garo languages were historically very widespread throughout the Brahmaputra Valley and in what are now the northern parts of Bangladesh.[1]
Branches
The Bodo–Garo languages are:
- Bodo languages: Bodo, Dimasa, Tiwa, Kokborok (Tripuri), Kachari
- Garo languages: Garo, Megam
- Koch languages: Atong, Koch, Ruga, Rabha
- Deori-Chutia, Moran
Old Hajong may have been a Bodo–Garo language.
Bodo is an official language of the Indian state of Assam and India. Kokborok (Tripuri) is one of the official languages of the state of Tripura. Garo is an associate official language of Meghalaya. Megam has been strongly influenced by Khasic languages, while Deori-Chutia by the Idu Mishmi language
Languages of the family feature verb-final word order. There is some flexibility in the order of the arguments, but a nominative–accusative distinction is marked with post-nominal clitics. The languages also prefix classifiers to numerals modifying nouns. tense, aspect and mood are indicated using verbal suffixes.[2]
Classification
Joseph & Burling (2006)
Joseph & Burling (2006:1-2) classify the Bodo-Garo languages into four major groups. Wood (2008:6) also follows this classification.
- Bodo languages: Bodo, Kokborok, Tiwa
- Garo
- Koch languages: Koch, Rabha, Wanang, Atong, and Ruga
- Deori-Chutia
Jacquesson (2017)
Jacquesson (2017:112)[1] classifies the Bodo-Garo languages as follows, and recognizes three major branches (Western, Central, and Eastern). The Koch languages and Garo are grouped together as Western Bodo-Garo.
- Western
- Central
- Eastern
Jacquesson (2017)[1] believes that the Bodo-Garo languages had arrived in their present location from the southeast, and notes similarities shared with Zeme languages and Kuki-Chin languages.
Reconstruction
Proto-Bodo–Garo has been reconstructed by Joseph and Burling (2006) and by Wood (2008).
See also
- List of Proto-Bodo-Garo reconstructions (Wiktionary)
- Reang
References
- ^ a b c Jacquesson, François and van Breugel, Seino (2017). "The linguistic reconstruction of the past: The case of the Boro-Garo languages." In Linguistics of the Tibeto-Burman Area, 40, 90-122.doi:10.1075/ltba.40.1.04van [Note: English translation of the French original: Jacquesson, François (2006). ‘La reconstruction linguistique du passé: Le cas des language Boro-Garo’. Bulletin de la Société de Linguistique de Paris 101(1): 273–303.]
- ^ Wood 2008, p. 7.
- Joseph, U.V., and Burling, Robbins. 2006. Comparative phonology of the Boro Garo languages. Mysore: Central Institute of Indian Languages Publication.
- Wood, Daniel Cody. 2008. An Initial Reconstruction of Proto-Boro-Garo. M.A. Thesis, University of Oregon.
Further reading
- Burling, Robbins (2003). "The Tibeto-Burman languages of northeast India". In Thurgood, Graham; LaPolla, Randy J. (eds.). The Sino-Tibetan languages. London: Routledge. pp. 169–191. ISBN 978-0-7007-1129-1.
{{cite book}}: Invalid|ref=harv(help) - van Driem, George (2001). Languages of the Himalayas: An Ethnolinguistic Handbook of the Greater Himalayan Region. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-12062-4.
- Wood, Daniel Cody (2008). An Initial Reconstruction of Proto-Boro-Garo (MA thesis). University of Oregon. hdl:1794/9485.
{{cite thesis}}: Invalid|ref=harv(help)