Also Known As: Xauni,Hanhi,Uni,Haw,Hani Proper,Hani,Hànhì,U Ní,Xá U Ní,Hani language
Description:
The Hani language (Hani: Haqniqdoq; simplified Chinese: 哈尼语; traditional Chinese: 哈尼語; pinyin: Hāníyǔ; Vietnamese: Tiếng Hà Nhì) is a language of the Loloish (Yi) branch of the Tibeto-Burman linguistic group spoken in China, Laos, Burma (Myanmar), and Vietnam by the Hani people. In China, Akha and other related languages are considered dialects of Hani.
Hani has three main tones and two types of short vowels.
The total number of speakers of Hani proper is over 500,000 in China with only around 20,000 in Vietnam and 1,000 in Phongsaly Province, Laos.
Hani is divided into three dialects: Haya, Haohai, and Bika.
Oral tradition tells of an ancient written script for Hani but says it was lost when the Hani migrated from Sichuan. In China, Hani now uses a romanization of the Haya dialect of Luchun in the Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture as a written script developed by Chinese authorities and promulgated in 1957. As with the Latin-based scripts of the Zhuang, Hmong and Iu Mien languages, it uses final consonant letters to designate tone...... full article at Wikipedia |