| Mpi | |
| Nativename: | Kaw |
| States: | Thailand, perhaps China |
| Ethnicity: | 1,500 (2007) |
| Speakers: | 900 |
| Date: | 2007 |
| Ref: | e18 |
| Familycolor: | Sino-Tibetan |
| Fam2: | Tibeto-Burman |
| Fam3: | Lolo–Burmese |
| Fam4: | Loloish |
| Fam5: | Southern Loloish |
| Fam6: | Bi-Ka |
| Iso3: | mpz |
| Glotto: | mpii1239 |
| Glottorefname: | Mpi |
Mpi is a Loloish language of Thailand. The number of speakers is in decline. It is spoken in the following two villages in northern Thailand.
Since the Mpi of Thailand migrated from Mengla, Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, China over 300 years ago, there could also possibly be Mpi speakers in China (Nahhas 2007).
Mpi has six tones and two phonations in its vowels, modal voice and stiff voice:
| Tone | Modal voice | Stiff voice | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Low | sì 'blood' | sì̬ 'seven' | |
| Low rising | si᷅ 'putrid' | si̬᷅ 'dried up' | |
| Mid | sī (a color) | sī̬ (a classifier) | |
| Mid rising | sǐ 'to roll' | sǐ̬ 'to smoke' | |
| High | sí 'four' | sí̬ (a name) | |
| High rising | si᷄ 'to die' | si̬᷄ (a name) |