Pa-Hng language
| Pa-Hng | |
|---|---|
| Pateng | |
| Pronunciation | [pa˧˩ŋ̊ŋ˧˥] |
| Native to | China, Vietnam |
|
Native speakers
|
34,000 (1995–2009) |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | |
| Glottolog | pahn1237 |
Pa-Hng (also spelled Pa-Hung; Chinese: 巴哼语 Bāhēng yǔ) is a divergent Hmongic (Miao) language spoken in Guizhou, Guangxi, and Hunan in southern China as well as northern Vietnam.
Pa-Hng has long been recognized as divergent. Benedict (1986) argued that one of its dialects constituted a separate branch of the Miao–Yao family. Ratliff (2010) found it to be the most divergent Hmongic (Miao) language that she analyzed. This Bahengic branch also includes Younuo (Yuno) and Wunai (Hm Nai).
Pa-Hng speakers are called by the following names (Mao & Li 1997).
In Liping County, Guizhou, the Dong people call the Pa-Hng ka˧˩jiu˧ (嘎优), while the Miao people call them ta˥tia˦˨ju˧ (大达优). In Tongdao County, Hunan, the Pa-Hng (xeŋ˧) are also known as the Seven Surname Yao 七姓瑶, since they have the seven surnames of Shen 沈, Lan 兰, Dai 戴, Deng 邓, Ding 丁, Pu 蒲, and Feng 奉.
In China, Pa-Hng speakers are classified as Yao, even though their language is Hmongic rather than Mienic.
Mao & Li (1997) splits Pa-Hng into the following subdivisions, and most closely related to Hm Nai:
Vocabulary word lists for these three Pa-Hng varieties can be found in Mao & Li (1997). An additional dialect is found in Vietnam.
The Na-e dialect (also known by the Vietnamese rendition of Pa-Hng, Pà Then [Pateng]), is a geographic outlier. Paul Benedict (1986) argued that it is not actually Pa-Hng, or even Hmongic, but a separate branch of the Miao–Yao language family. However, Strecker (1987) responded that it does appear to be a Pa-Hng dialect, though it has some peculiarities, and that Pa-Hng as a whole is divergent.
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