Nyaw language
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| Nyaw | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spoken in: | Thailand, Laos | |
| Region: | Isan, Mekong floodplain | |
| Total speakers: | 50,000 | |
| Language family: | Tai-Kadai Kam-Tai Be-Tai Tai-Sek Tai Southwestern East Central Lao-Phutai Nyaw |
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| Language codes | ||
| ISO 639-1: | none | |
| ISO 639-2: | — | |
| ISO 639-3: | nyw | |
| Note: This page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. See IPA chart for English for an English-based pronunciation key. | ||
The Nyaw language is a language closely related to the Isan or the Lao language of northeastern Thailand. It is spoken by the Nyaw people of Nong Khai, Sakon Nakhon, and Nakhon Phanom provinces of Thailand and in parts of central Laos. Very similar to the Isan/Lao language and for the most part mutually intelligible with them, there are a few unique vocabulary, tonal and pronunciation differences. Speakers of the Nyaw language, numbering rougly 50,000, usually live in their own villages[1]. In Thailand, this language group is increasingly becoming integrated into the mainstream Isan language, to which it is closely related and very similar already. With increased exposure to the Isan/Lao language, the local lingua franca and media, educational, and governmental exposure to the central Thai language, language use is eroding and may not be in active use within the next few generations. Like other Tai language speakers of the region, the Nyaw are Theravada Buddhists, with animistic practices and ancestor worship, and share much culture with the surrounding peoples[2]. This is due to an aggressive campaign by the Thai government to modernise all Thais. Younger members of the Nyaw tribe are being integrated into Isan, and Thai society at large and prefer to identify as Thai nationals rather than their unique tribal origin.
