Kam language


The Kam or Gam language, also known as Dong, is a Kam–Sui language spoken by the Dong people. Ethnologue distinguishes three Kam varieties as separate but closely related languages.

Demographics

Southern Dong

Almost 1.5 million speakers of Southern Dong were counted in the 1990 language census, from a total of 2.5 million people in the Dong ethnic group. The Southern Dong live primarily in Rongjiang, Jinping, Liping, Zhenyuan, and Congjiang counties in Guizhou Province; Longsheng, Sanjiang, and Rongshui counties in northeastern Guangxi; and Tongdao County in Hunan Province. Two Dong villages are also located in northern Vietnam, although only one individual in Vietnam is still able to speak Dong.

Dialects

The Kam language can be divided into two major subdivisions: Southern Kam and Northern Kam. Northern Kam displays more Chinese influence and lacks vowel length contrast, while Southern Kam is more conservative. Language varieties closely related to or part of Kam include Cao Miao and Naxi Yao. A northern Pinghua variety called Tongdao Pinghua, spoken in Tongdao County, Hunan, has also been significantly influenced by Kam.
;Southern Kam
  • First lectal area: Róngjiāng Zhānglǔ, Lípíng Hóngzhōu, Jǐnpíng Qǐméng in Guizhou; Tōngdào in Hunan; Longsheng and Sanjiang Dudong in Guangxi
  • Second lectal area: Lípíng Shuǐkǒu, Cóngjiāng Guàndòng, Róngjiāng Píngjiāng in Guizhou; Sānjiāng Hélǐ in Guangxi
  • Third lectal area: Zhènyuǎn Bàojīng in Guizhou
  • Fourth lectal area: Róngshuǐ in Guangxi
;Northern Kam
  • First lectal area: Tiānzhù Shídòng, Sānsuì Kuǎnchǎng, Jiànhé Xiǎoguǎng in Guizhou; also Jǐnpíng Jiǔzhài in Guizhou
  • Second lectal area: Tiānzhù Zhǔxī in Guizhou
  • Third lectal area: Jǐnpíng Dàtóng in Guizhou
Long classifies the Kam lectal areas as follows.
;Southern Kam
;Northern Kam
In Congjiang County, Dong consists of three dialects: Jiudong 九洞, Liudong 六洞, and another dialect spoken in Xishan 西山, Bingmei 丙梅, and Guandong 贯洞 .
In Suining County, Hunan, Dong is spoken in Lianfeng 联丰, Huangsangping 黄桑坪, Le'anpu 乐安铺, and other nearby locations. In Chengbu County, Hunan, Dong is spoken in Yanzhai 岩寨, Chang'anying 长安营, and Jiangtousi 江头司.
Kam is also spoken in the single village of Đồng Mộc, Trung Sơn Commune, Yên Sơn District, Tuyên Quang Province, northern Vietnam, where there are about 35 Kam people. The Kam of Đồng Mộc had migrated to Vietnam from China about 150 years ago. The Kam variety spoken in Đồng Mộc is most similar to that of Lípíng Shuǐkǒu in southeastern Guizhou.
In China, a total of seven counties designated as Dong Autonomous Counties.

Others

According to the Shaoyang Prefecture Gazetteer, language varieties closely related to Southern Kam are spoken in Naxi 那溪, Dongkou County and Lianmin 联民, Suining County. However, they are officially classified by the Chinese government as ethnic Yao, not Dong. Chen Qiguang reports that the ancestors of Naxihua 那溪话 speakers had migrated to their current location from Tianzhu, Liping, and Yuping counties of southeastern Guizhou during the early 15th century.

Phonology and orthography

Kam has two main orthographies: the Chinese academic developed system and the independently developed system by Ngo Van Lyong for Southern Kam as spoken in Rongjiang. The Chinese system is most commonly used by linguists and has similarities to other Chinese Kra–Dai language orthographies. The Ngo Van Lyong system was inspired by the Vietnamese alphabet and is made for speakers and learners.
While the Chinese system is the most well known, most Kam speakers are not literate in Kam.

Initials

The Chinese orthography for Kam orthography has 32 syllable-initial consonants; seven of them only occur in recent loanwords from Chinese.
IPAGaemlIPAGaemlIPAGaemlIPAGaemlIPAGaeml
bdjgzh
ptqkch
mnnyngsh
wllyhr
bisxguf
piykuz
minguc
wi

The Ngo Van Lyong orthography for Southern Kam has 28 syllable-initial consonants.
IPAGảmIPAGảmIPAGảmIPAGảmIPAGảmIPAGảmIPAGảm
bdghysz
ptkfwxc
jnglynylnm
qnghlhynhylhnhmh

Finals

The Chinese orthography for Kam has 64 syllable finals; 14 of them occur only in Chinese loans and are not listed in the table below.
IPAGaemlIPAGaemlIPAGaemlIPAGaemlIPAGaemlIPAGaemlIPAGaeml
aeeeiou/uu
aieioiui
aoeeuiuou
amaememeemimomum
anaeneneeninonun
angaengengeengingongung
ababebebibobub
adadededidod
agagegegigogug

The phonetic value of the vowel in the finals spelled -ab, -ad and -ag, is in syllables that have the tones -l, -p and -c ; in syllables with tones -s, -t and -x, it is. The phonetic value of the vowel in the finals spelled -eb, -ed and -eg, is in syllables that have the tones -l, -p and -c; in syllables with tones -s, -t and -x, it is.
The Ngo Van Lyong orthography for Southern Kam has 116 syllable finals.
IPAGảmIPAGảmIPAGảmIPAGảmIPAGảmIPAGảm
aoeui
ăôơưü
aioieiơiui
auoueuơuiu
iaioieuauoue
iaiioiieiiơiiuiiau
iouieuiơuuaiuoiuei
uauuouueuuơuuiuuơi
anamangakapat
ianiamiangiakiapiat
uanuamuanguakuapuat
ănămăngăkăpăt
iăniămiăngiăkiăpiăt
uănuămuănguăkuăpuăt
onomongokopot
ioniomiongiokiopiot
uonuomuonguokuopuot
ônômôngôkôpôt
iôniômiôngiôkiôpiôt
uônuômuônguôkuôpuôt
enemengekepet
ieniemiengiekiepiet
uenuemuenguekuepuet
ơnơmơngơkơpơt
iơniơmiơngiơkiơpiơt
uơnuơmuơnguơkuơpuơt
unumungukuput
iuniumiungiukiupiut
inimingikipit
uinuimuinguikuipuit

Tones

Kam is a tonal language. Open syllables can occur in one of nine different tones, checked syllables in six tones, so that the traditional approach counts fifteen tones. As with the Hmong alphabet, the Chinese orthography marks tones with a consonant at the end of each syllable.
The Ngô Văn Lương orthography marks tones via diacritics written above or below the vowel as with the Vietnamese alphabet and only features 6 tones.
tone contour:high flatlow flathigh fallinglow fallinghigh risinglow rising
tone contour:
Example:babábàbạbảbã