|
Nam language
Extinct Sino-Tibetan language
Nam is an unclassified extinct language preserved in Tibetan transcriptions in a number of Dunhuang manuscript fragments. The manuscript fragments are held at the British Library and the Bibliothèque nationale de France.
Classification
According to Ikeda Takumi, the research of F. W. Thomas, published in 1948, concluded that Nam "was one of the old Qiang [languages] spoken around the Nam mountain range near Koko nor in Qinghai province", associated with a country called Nam tig which is mentioned in some historical records. However, Ikeda further states that Thomas' conclusions were widely criticized.[1]
Glottolog accepts that it was at least Sino-Tibetan.[2]
Lexicon
Wen (1981: 18–19) lists the following basic vocabulary items, which have been taken from Thomas (1948: 399–451).
| No. |
Chinese gloss |
English gloss |
Nam
|
| 1 |
天 |
sky |
mo, nam
|
| 2 |
云 |
cloud |
gmog, mog, mog
|
| 3 |
日 |
sun |
gnyi
|
| 4 |
月 |
moon |
’la, la
|
| 5 |
火 |
fire |
sme/’me, ’me’i, me, ’mye, ye
|
| 6 |
水 |
water |
’ldya, ’ldya
|
| 7 |
山 |
mountain |
’ri, gri, gri’i, ’ri’i
|
| 8 |
石 |
stone |
’rto, rto
|
| 9 |
虎 |
tiger |
cho
|
| 10 |
熊 |
bear (animal) |
gre
|
| 11 |
牦牛 |
yak |
’brong
|
| 12 |
马 |
horse |
rta, rta’, ’rta, ’rta’
|
| 13 |
驴 |
donkey |
gzu, ’ju , ’zu, ’dzu, ’ju’u’gduz
|
| 14 |
狗 |
dog |
’kyi
|
| 15 |
猪 |
pig |
’phag
|
| 16 |
头 |
head |
’bu, ’ko
|
| 17 |
眼 |
eye |
’me’i, méi, mye
|
| 18 |
齿 |
tooth |
swa
|
| 19 |
手 |
hand |
’phyag
|
| 20 |
心 |
heart |
syning, snyang
|
| 21 |
盲 |
blind |
klu
|
| 22 |
死 |
dead |
’shi, shi (gshi, bshi)
|
| 23 |
箭 |
arrow |
’da’, ’lda’?
|
| 24 |
门 |
door |
rgo, ’go, ’ko(rgor)
|
| 25 |
大 |
big |
rbo, bo-bon, rbom, ’bom, ’rbom
|
| 26 |
小 |
small |
byi, hbyi
|
| 27 |
高 |
high |
shid, ’shid, tho, ’tho, stang, ’stang
|
References
Further reading
|
|
