Tai Dam language
Encyclopedia
Tai Dam Black Tai is a Tai language
spoken by the Tai Dam
in Vietnam
, Laos
, Thailand
, and China
(mostly in the Jinping Miao, Yao, and Dai Autonomous County
). It is called ภาษาไทดำ pʰaːsaː tʰai dam "Black Tai language" in Thai and Dǎidānyǔ 傣担语 in Chinese.
The Tai Dam language is similar to Thai
and Lao
, but it is not close enough to be readily understood by most Thai and Lao speakers. In particular, the Pali and Sanscrit additions to Thai and Lao are largely missing from Tai Dam.
Tai Dam
speakers in China
are classified as part of the Dai
nationality along with almost all the other Tai peoples. But in Vietnam
they are given their own nationality (with the White Tai) where they are classified (confusingly for English speakers) as the Thái nationality (meaning Tai people).
An effort is underway to standardize the script in Unicode
:
Tai languages
The Tai or Zhuang–Tai languages are a branch of the Tai–Kadai language family. The Tai languages include the most widely spoken of the Tai–Kadai languages, including standard Thai or Siamese, the national language of Thailand; Lao or Laotian, the national language of Laos; Burma's Shan language;...
spoken by the Tai Dam
Tai Dam
The Tai Dam or Tai Dum are an ethnic group of Laos, Vietnam, China, and Thailand.Tai Dam speakers in China are classified as part of the Dai nationality along with almost all the other Tai peoples...
in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
(mostly in the Jinping Miao, Yao, and Dai Autonomous County
Jinping Miao, Yao, and Dai Autonomous County
Jinping Miao, Yao, and Dai Autonomous County is located in Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan province, China. Jinping is home to the red hat Yao minority group who wear a pointed red hat on their heads after they get married.-External links:* Link appears to be broken....
). It is called ภาษาไทดำ pʰaːsaː tʰai dam "Black Tai language" in Thai and Dǎidānyǔ 傣担语 in Chinese.
The Tai Dam language is similar to Thai
Thai language
Thai , also known as Central Thai and Siamese, is the national and official language of Thailand and the native language of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group. Thai is a member of the Tai group of the Tai–Kadai language family. Historical linguists have been unable to definitively...
and Lao
Lao language
Lao or Laotian is a tonal language of the Tai–Kadai language family. It is the official language of Laos, and also spoken in the northeast of Thailand, where it is usually referred to as the Isan language. Being the primary language of the Lao people, Lao is also an important second language for...
, but it is not close enough to be readily understood by most Thai and Lao speakers. In particular, the Pali and Sanscrit additions to Thai and Lao are largely missing from Tai Dam.
Tai Dam
Tai Dam
The Tai Dam or Tai Dum are an ethnic group of Laos, Vietnam, China, and Thailand.Tai Dam speakers in China are classified as part of the Dai nationality along with almost all the other Tai peoples...
speakers in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
are classified as part of the Dai
Dai people
The Dai peoples is one of several ethnic groups living in the Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture and the Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture , but by extension can apply to groups in Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, and Burma when Dai is used to mean specifically Tai Lue, Chinese Shan or even...
nationality along with almost all the other Tai peoples. But in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
they are given their own nationality (with the White Tai) where they are classified (confusingly for English speakers) as the Thái nationality (meaning Tai people).
Unique writing
The Tai Dam language has its own system of writing, consisting of 31 consonants and 14 vowels. Although the language is tonal, there are no tone markers, as there are in Tai and Lao. According to Thai authors, the writing system is probably derived from the old Thai writing of the kingdom of Sukhotai.An effort is underway to standardize the script in Unicode
Unicode
Unicode is a computing industry standard for the consistent encoding, representation and handling of text expressed in most of the world's writing systems...
:
- At the Workshop on Encoding and Digitizing the Thai Script, held on November 3, 2006 in Điện Biên PhủDien Bien PhuĐiện Biên Phủ is a city in northwestern Vietnam. It is the capital of Dien Bien province, and is known for the events there during the First Indochina War, the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, during which the region was a breadbasket for the Việt Minh.-Population:...
, VietnamVietnamVietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, it has been proposed that the name of the script be called Tay, to indicate the Tai language as spoken in Vietnam.
- At a Unicode subcommittee meeting on February 6, 2007, a proposal on the Tay Viet script was submitted by James Brase of SIL InternationalSIL InternationalSIL International is a U.S.-based, worldwide, Christian non-profit organization, whose main purpose is to study, develop and document languages, especially those that are lesser-known, in order to expand linguistic knowledge, promote literacy, translate the Christian Bible into local languages,...
.
- At the ISO/IEC JTC1/SC2/WG2 meeting on 2007-04-24, a revised proposal for the script, now known as Tai Viet, was accepted "as is", with support from TCVN, the Vietnam Quality & Standards Centre.
- The Tai Viet script is present in Unicode as of version 5.2, in block Tai Viet U+AA80..U+AADF, and in ISO/IEC 10646, in parallel.
External links
- Tai Dam at EthnologueEthnologueEthnologue: Languages of the World is a web and print publication of SIL International , a Christian linguistic service organization, which studies lesser-known languages, to provide the speakers with Bibles in their native language and support their efforts in language development.The Ethnologue...
- Tai Dam alphabet
- Tai Dam Language, Literature, and Culture
- SIL Tai Dam fonts