Talk:Hmong language
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I've merged Hmong phonology here. See Talk:Hmong phonology for discussion of that page. --Angr/tɔk tə mi 19:43, 27 July 2005 (UTC)
- Should information about the Pahawh Hmong writing system go here, or on a page of its own? Evertype 17:14, 19 September 2005 (UTC)
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[edit] Dialects
The Hmong article states that all of the Miao Languages (which include Hmong) are mutually intelligible. This article says that even dialects within Hmong are mutually unintelligble. Which is accurate? One needs to be changed.
I've tried to update this article at least. There is significant disagreement between linguists about how the various Hmong dialect/languages are related. You'll find a brief description of the problem here: http://socrates.berkeley.edu/~dmort/hmong_lang_faq.html.--Nposs 06:54, 18 August 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Requesting more info
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Please help improve this article or section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. |
This article really could use more general information about the speakers, history, etc. of Hmong, though the linguistics seems solid. Twinxor t 03:45, 26 February 2006 (UTC)
- This article is specifically about the Hmong language(s). If you want more info on the speakers, history, etc., follow the links within the article: Hmong People, Hmong-Mien_Languages. Repeating such information here would dilute the article and make it too long.--WilliamThweatt 22:34, 26 February 2006 (UTC)
[edit] I'm at a loss... re Saola
I found an interesting assertion in Saola, added in this edit, stating that the saola is known as <whatever> in Hmong because <some random reason>... The problem is, the <whatever> given does not look Hmong to me at all... I suspect it's perhaps Lao or maybe even "made up". Anyone who knows, or knows anyone who knows, please look into it and fixerup. Thanks, Tomertalk 06:33, 13 March 2006 (UTC)
Hello, if you're referring to the words "saht-supahp", they are Lao/Thai words: "saht" meaning "animal" and "supahp" (also transcribed "suphab") meaning "polite, respectful, gentlemanly, etc". It is quite possible that the Hmong in that area do indeed use that word for the animal. Many Hmong are bilingual in Lao (using it as a lingua franca to trade with low-land Laos) and frequently adopt Lao terms for things that they don't have a word for in their own language. As far as fixin' 'er up, I don't believe it needs much in that regard. I will make note that the term is derived from Lao.--WilliamThweatt 17:55, 13 March 2006 (UTC)
- Thanks. My guess is that, if it's been borrowed from Lao, that it's called xa-xhubphas in Hmong...but that's sheer conjecture. saht-suphap is "impossible" in Hmong, phonologically. Anyways, thanks for looking into it. Tomertalk 18:23, 13 March 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Hmong vs dialects
It's very unclear whether this article is actually about Hmong as a group of several different languages (according to SIL) or one or several of the dialect-languages. The Ethnologue code and the external link at the bottom both point to Hmong Daw. Why the choice of Hmong Daw rather than any number of other Hmong variants? It seems rather arbitrary and without any clear motivation.
Peter Isotalo 12:15, 26 March 2006 (UTC)
- Actually, it's not unclear at all, Peter. The first paragraph, after giving general mention of the interralationship of the Hmong dialects within the Hmong-Mien family, states that information in the phonology section is that of White Hmong (Hmong Daw). As to the reasons why, I can only guess; but here are two fairly obvious possibilities. 1) White Hmong has been studied more and there are more resources available for White Hmong. 2) The majority of Hmong immigrants to the West were White Hmong from Laos so it is the dialect most often thought of by non-linguists as being representative of the Hmong dialects as a whole.
- When I lived in Fresno, CA, I had access to resources on Green (or Blue) Hmong (Hmong Njua). Unfortunately, I no longer live there. It will take me a while to get the info again. However, the differences in the two dialects are so minimal that a simple section listing the points where the two diverge might suffice, although I would rather see an additional section describing Hmong Njua phonology and noting lexical differences (as I remember, grammar and syntax differences are negligible).
- I am less familiar with the other Hmong dialects (Flowery Hmong, etc. or those spoken inside China). From what I understand, due to isolation and influence from Chinese, these dialects differ more widely in terms of tone realization, syntax, lexicon, and phonology. However they still basically form a dialect continuum from North-to-South with those at the extreme ends being mutually unintelligeable, but those more closer together being able to understand each other perfectly (similar to Dutch/German 100 years ago). If no one else gets to it first, I will add information as I am able, starting with the codes in the info box.--WilliamThweatt 16:13, 26 March 2006 (UTC)
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- Hmong Njua is actually the Hmong Daw pronounciation for Mong Njua, which is also called Mong Leng. As I noted in my edits to the article, Mong Leng does not use the aspirated /m/, thus "Mong" instead of "Hmong." (You can find a more detailed description of differences between White and Green Hmong in: Smalley et al. Mother of Writing: the Origin and Development of a Hmong Messianic Script. The University of Chicago Press, 1990 [p. 40-52]). In my experience, Green/Blue Mong people have preferred to be called Mong Leng as opposed to Mong Njua. Some even find Mong Njua to be an offensive term. I've tried to raise some of these issues in my edit. The decision to prefer Hmong as opposed to Mong seems to be both arbitrary and a reflection of the fact (mentioned earlier) that more research has been done on White Hmong language and culture. This issues are perhaps better addressed in another article rather than in this one on Hmong language. Here's a link to a recent paper on Mong Leng phonology that others may want to incorporate into the article: http://socrates.berkeley.edu/~dmort/mong_leng_phonology.pdf. This page also discusses the Hmong vs. Mong issue: http://www.culturalorientation.net/hmong/hpeop.html.--Nposs 07:07, 18 August 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Confusion with Mon
I'm doubtful that enough people would confuse Hmong with Mon to put it in a redirect. Aren't redirects more for terms that are more homographic? AEuSoes1 16:48, 3 June 2006 (UTC)
- I agree. I think confusion between Mon and Hmong is pretty unlikely. Angr (talk) 18:18, 3 June 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Hmong vs. Hmoob
Why do English speakers call the language Hmong while its own speakers call it Hmoob? 71.131.194.40 00:21, 10 August 2006 (UTC)
- Because of the orthography of the language. It's not pronounced "Hmoob". The "b" indicates a high tone. DHN 02:32, 10 August 2006 (UTC)
