Nusu language explained

Nusu
States:	China, Myanmar
Ethnicity:	Nu
Date:	2007
Ref:	e18
Familycolor:	Sino-Tibetan
Fam2:	(Tibeto-Burman)
Fam3:	Lolo–Burmese
Fam4:	Loloish
Fam5:	Nusoish
Iso3:	nuf
Glotto:	nusu1239
Glottorefname:	Nusu

The Nusu language is a Loloish language spoken by the Nu people of China and Myanmar. There are three dialects: Northern, Southern, and Central. The Central dialect of Miangu is the prestige dialect and is understood fairly well by speakers of other dialects.

Lama (2012) observes a sound change, *r- > Ø- from Proto-Loloish, as a Nusoish innovation.

Distribution

The three Nusu dialects are spoken in the following locations (Nusuzu Nusuyu Jianzhi 怒族怒苏语简志 1986).

• Southern, also known as the Guoke-Puluo (果科-普洛) dialect: northern Lushui County 泸水县, in Guoke 果科,^[1] Puluo 普洛,^[2] Tongping 同坪,^[3] Jiajia 加甲^[4] (3,000 speakers)
• Central, also known as the Zhizhiluo-Laomudeng (知之罗-老姆登) dialect: southern Fugong County 福贡县, in Pihe 匹河怒族乡,^[5] Zhizhiluo 知之罗,^{[6] [7]} Laomudeng 老姆登,^[8] Miangu 棉古,^[9] Shawa 沙瓦,^[10] Zileng 子楞^[11] (4,000 speakers)
• Northern, also known as the Wawa-Kongtong (瓦娃-空通) dialect: Fugong County 福贡县, in Wawa 瓦娃,^{[12] [13]} Kongtong 空通,^{[14] [15]} Youduoluo 有夺洛^[16] (2,000 speakers)

The divergent Liangsu dialect (良苏话) is spoken in by about 3,000 people in the following locations of Fugong County, Yunnan.^{[17] [18]}

• Zilijia Township 子里甲乡: Jianu 甲怒, Mazudi 马祖底, Jiada 甲打, Lamujia 腊母甲, Jiache 加车
• Jiakedi Township 架科底乡: Jiake 架科, La'anjia 腊安甲

Phonology

Consonants

! rowspan="2"

Labial	Alveolar		Retroflex	(Alveolo-) Palatal	Velar	Glottal
Nasal	voiced	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/			pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/
	unvoiced	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/
Stop/ Affricate	voiced	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/
	unvoiced	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/
	aspirated	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/
Fricative	unvoiced	pronounced as /ink/		pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/
	voiced	pronounced as /ink/		pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/
Approximant	voiced		pronounced as /ink/			pronounced as /ink/	pronounced as /ink/
	unvoiced		pronounced as /ink/

Tones

Nusu has seven tones:

Tone	IPA
High	pronounced as /ink/
High falling	pronounced as /ink/
Creaky low	pronounced as /ink/
Low	pronounced as /ink/
Creaky high	pronounced as /ink/
Rising-falling	pronounced as /ink/
Mid	pronounced as /ink/

External links

• Nusu language site

Notes and References

1. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡果科村委会 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805194159/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147895 . dead .
2. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡普洛村委会 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805211402/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147903 . dead .
3. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡托坪村委会 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805231714/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147945 . dead .
4. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡架究村委会 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805203119/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147937 . dead .
5. Web site: Archived copy . 2018-12-30 . 2018-12-30 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181230194950/http://www.ynszxc.net/model/index4.aspx?departmentid=1524 . dead .
6. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡知子罗村委会 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805220948/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147913 . dead .
7. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡知子罗村委会知子罗 达罗 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805201751/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147914 . dead .
8. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡老姆登村委会 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805221128/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147916 . dead .
9. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡棉谷村委会 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805194218/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147934 . dead .
10. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡沙瓦村委会沙瓦 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805194236/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147925 . dead .
11. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡沙瓦村委会子楞 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805194253/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147924 . dead .
12. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡瓦娃村委会瓦娃一 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805194213/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147928 . dead .
13. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡瓦娃村委会瓦娃二 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805194208/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147929 . dead .
14. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡瓦娃村委会空通一 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805194229/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147932 . dead .
15. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡瓦娃村委会空通二 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805194204/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147933 . dead .
16. Web site: 福贡县匹河怒族乡瓦娃村委会优夺罗 . 2018-12-30 . 2020-08-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805210108/http://www.ynszxc.net/villagePage/vIndex.aspx?departmentid=147930 . dead .
17. Chen, Haihong [陈海宏]; Tan, Liya [谭丽亚]. 2022. Yunnan binwei Nuyu Liangsuhua ynajiu [云南濒危怒语良苏话研究]. Beijing: Minzu chubanshe [民族出版社].
18. Ye, Shifu [叶世富]. 2007. Jianu Liangsu Nuyu [甲怒良苏怒语]. Unpublished manuscript.