| Khir | |
|---|---|
| Laya | |
| Native to | Laos |
| Region | Phongsaly province |
Native speakers | 3,200 (2023)[1] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | None (mis) |
| Glottolog | None |
Khir (Lao: ເຄີ /kʰɯ/, Kheu; autonym: ka55 ɯ21orla21 ja21) is a Loloish language of northern Laos. It is closely related to Cosao.[2]
Khir is spoken in Nyot U District, Phongsaly Province, including in Kang village.[3]
The autonym is ka55 ɯ21. A less commonly used autonym, la21 ja21, is an autonym elicited in Khir Tai language.[1]
The exonym is pronounced khɯ but is officially spelled Khir (Lao: ເຄີ).[1]
As of 2023, the ethnic Khir population is 3,200.[1]
There are 6 dialects of Khir, all of which are mutually intelligible with each other. Each dialcet has 300 to 800 speakers.[1]
Below is a comparison of lexical differences among each of the six Khir dialects.[1]
| Gloss | Kang | Somheuang | Khir | Hin | Ka | Paek |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| eye | mla33sɯ21 | mja33sɯ21 | mɛ33sɯ21 | ma33nɯ̰33 | mɛ33hɯ21 | mɛ33nɯ̰33 |
| chicken | a33 | ha33 | ha33ɕḭ33 | a21ɕḭ33 | ja33ʨḭ33 | ja33ʨḭ33 |
| language | sɯ21to21 | mi33 | ne21bu21 | to21ma33 | tɔ21 | tɔ21 |
| bee | blə21 | pja21 | pɛ21ɔ21 | i21ɕi55 | pja21 | pja21 |
| face | mla33phlo21 | mja33phlo21 | ma33phɔ21 | ma33phɔ21 | mɛ33phɔ21 | mɛ33phɔ21 |
| full (not empty) | a21blɯ33 | a21blɯ33 | bɯ33 | pɯ33 | pɯ33 | pɯ33 |
| sweat | tsha55qhi21 | ʨhɛ55khli21 | sɛ55khi21 | sɛ55khi21 | khɛ21su21 | khi21ʨha55 |
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Sino-Tibetan branches
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| Western Himalayas (Himachal, Uttarakhand, Nepal, Sikkim) |
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| Eastern Himalayas (Tibet, Bhutan, Arunachal) |
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| Myanmar and Indo-Burmese border |
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| East and Southeast Asia |
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| Dubious (possible isolates) (Arunachal) |
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| Proposed groupings |
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| Proto-languages |
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Italics indicates single languages that are also considered to be separate branches. | |||||
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| Mondzish |
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| Loloish (Yi) (Ngwi) |
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| Burmish |
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| Pai-lang |
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| (Proto-languages) |
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