View source for Lisu language

{{Short description|Tibeto-Burman language}}
{{Hatnote|Not to be confused with Lisu, the [[Lizu language]].}}
{{Infobox language
|name=Lisu
|nativename={{lang|lis|ꓡꓲ-ꓢꓴ ꓥꓳꓽ}}, {{lang|lis|Lisu ngot}}
|image=
|imagecaption= 
|states=[[China]], [[Myanmar]] (Burma), [[India]], [[Thailand]]
|ethnicity=[[Lisu people|Lisu]]
|speakers=c. 940,000 
|date=2000–2007
|ref=e18
|familycolor=Sino-Tibetan
|fam2=[[Tibeto-Burman languages|Tibeto-Burman]]
|fam3=[[Lolo–Burmese languages|Lolo–Burmese]]
|fam4=[[Loloish languages|Loloish]]
|fam5=[[Lisoish languages|Lisoish]]
|fam6=Lisu–Lalo
|nation=[[Weixi Lisu Autonomous County]], [[Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture]] ([[China|PRC]])
|script=[[Fraser script|Fraser alphabet]], Lisu syllabary, [[Latin script|Latin]]
|iso3=lis
|glotto=lisu1250
|glottorefname=Lisu
|notice=IPA
}}
{{Contains special characters}}
'''Lisu''' ([[Fraser script|Fraser alphabet]]: {{lang|lis|ꓡꓲ-ꓢꓴ}}, {{lang|lis|ꓡꓲ‐ꓢꓴ ꓥꓳꓽ}} or {{lang|lis|ꓡꓲꓢꓴ}}; [[Latin script|Latin]]: {{lang|lis|Lisu ngot}}; Lisu syllabary: [[File:Lisu ngot li44 su44 ŋo31.png|60px]]; {{lang-zh|c=傈僳语|p=Lìsùyǔ}}; {{langx|my|လီဆူဘာသာစကား}}, {{IPA|my|lìsʰù bàðà zəɡá|pron}}) is a [[tone (linguistics)|tonal]] [[Tibeto-Burman languages|Tibeto-Burman language]] spoken in [[Yunnan]] (Southwestern [[China]]), Northern [[Myanmar|Burma]] (Myanmar) and [[Thailand]] and a small part of [[India]]. Along with [[Lipo language|Lipo]], it is one of two languages of the [[Lisu people]]. Lisu has many dialects that originate from the country in which they live. Hua Lisu, Pai Lisu and Lu Shi Lisu dialects are spoken in China. Although they are mutually intelligible, some have many more loan words from other languages than others.<!--Which ones? There are only three.-->

The Lisu language is closely related to the [[Lahu language|Lahu]] and [[Akha language]]s and is also related to [[Burmese language|Burmese]], [[Jingpho language|Jingphaw]] and [[Yi people#Language|Yi languages]].

==Demographics==
In China, the Lisu people are mostly found in [[Yunnan]], the majority living mainly in [[Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture|Nujiang]] and [[Weixi]],<ref>omniglot</ref> but also in [[Baoshan, Yunnan|Baoshan]], [[Dehong]], [[Dêqên County|Dêqên]], [[Lijiang]], [[Lincang]], [[Pu'er City|Pu'er]], [[Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture|Chuxiong]], [[Luquan Yi and Miao Autonomous County|Luquan]] and [[Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture|Dali]]. In [[Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture|Liangshan]] and [[Panzhihua]], [[Sichuan]], where they make a small minority, some speak Lisu and others speak [[Lipo language|Lipo]], and some are classified under the [[Yi people|Yi nationality]]. A number of Lisu can also be found in southern [[Tibet]].

In Myanmar, it is spoken in [[Shan State]], [[Kachin State]], [[Sagaing Division]] and [[Mandalay Division]]. The two states are bordered by Yunnan. The [[Fraser script]] was invented in Myanmar by [[Sara Ba Thaw]].

In India, it is spoken in the [[Changlang District]] of [[Arunachal Pradesh]] and possibly in the [[Tinsukia District]] of [[Assam]]. See {{section link|Lisu people#Lisu in India}} for more information. Lisu people in India are called Yobin.

In [[Northern Thailand]], it is spoken mainly in the provinces of [[Chiang Mai]], [[Chiang Rai]], [[Mae Hong Son]] and [[Kamphaeng Phet]].

Possibly, there are also perhaps some Lisu speakers in [[Laos]] and in [[Vietnam]]. The Lisu villages in Laos and Vietnam are rare and isolated from the outside world, and are difficult to distinguish among the [[Hmong people|Hmong]] and [[Yao people|Yao]] villages, which make up the majority. {{Citation needed|date=March 2025}}

==Dialects==
Three dialects can be distinguished: northern, central and southern, with northern being the standard.<ref>{{harvp|Handel|page=2}}</ref>

===Bradley (2003)===
Bradley (2003) lists the following three Lisu dialects.<ref name="Bradley 2003">{{harvp|Bradley|2003}}</ref>

*'''Northern''' ({{IPA|/lo35 nɛ̠44/}}, 'Black Lisu' (autonym), {{IPA|/lo35 wu55/}}, 'Northern Lisu' (name given by other Lisu)): Northwest Yunnan, Kachin State, Mandalay region, Sagaing Region and India
*'''Central''' ({{IPA|/ɕɑ̠44 ɕɑ̠44/}}, Flowery Lisu or Hua Lisu): Western Yunnan, Burma
*'''Southern''' ({{IPA|/lo35 ʂɨ33/}}, 'Yellow Lisu'): extreme Southwestern Yunnan, Shan State of Burma, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam

===Mu and Sun (2012)===
In their study of Lisu dialects, Mu and Sun (2012) split Lisu into three dialects.<ref name="Mu and Sun 2012">{{harvp|Mu|Sun|2012}}</ref>
*'''Nujiang 怒江方言''': 550,000 speakers in [[Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture|Nujiang Prefecture]] (all counties), [[Baoshan, Yunnan|Baoshan Prefecture]] (all counties), [[Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture|Dehong Prefecture]] (some counties), [[Lincang|Lincang Prefecture]] (some counties), [[Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture|Dali Prefecture]] (a few counties) and [[Weixi Lisu Autonomous County|Weixi County]]
*'''Luquan 禄劝方言''': 65,000 speakers in parts of [[Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture|Chuxiong Prefecture]] (in [[Luquan Yi and Miao Autonomous County|Luquan County]], [[Wuding County]], etc.) and parts of neighboring prefectures
*'''Yongsheng 永胜方言''': 18,000 speakers in the counties of [[Yongsheng County|Yongsheng]], [[Huaping County|Huaping]], [[Panzhihua]], [[Muli Tibetan Autonomous County|Muli]], [[Yanyuan County|Yanyuan]] and others

Mu and Sun (2012) compare a total of five datapoints in their comparative vocabulary table.<ref name="Mu and Sun 2012" />
*'''Fugong 福贡''': 140,000 speakers in [[Fugong County|Fugong]], [[Gongshan Derung and Nu Autonomous County|Gongshan]], [[Lanping Bai and Pumi Autonomous County|Lanping]], etc.
*'''Luquan 禄劝''' (autonym: ''{{IPA|li33 pʰɒ31}}'', [[Lipo language|Lipo]]): 45,000+ speakers in [[Binchuan County|Binchuan]], [[Wuding County|Wuding]], [[Yuanmou County|Yuanmou]], [[Dayao County|Dayao]], [[Yao'an County|Yao'an]], [[Yongren County|Yongren]], [[Dechang County|Dechang]], [[Huili City|Huili]], [[Huidong County, Sichuan|Huidong]], [[Yanyuan County|Yanyuan]], etc.
*'''Weixi 维西''': 100,000+ speakers in [[Weixi Lisu Autonomous County|Weixi]], [[Dêqên County|Deqin]], [[Shangri-La, Yunnan|Zhongdian]], [[Lijiang]], etc.
*'''Tengchong 腾冲''': 120,000+ speakers in [[Longling County|Longling]], [[Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture|Dehong Prefecture]], [[Gengma Dai and Va Autonomous County|Gengma]], [[Simao District|Simao]], [[Lushui]], [[Shan State]] (Burma), [[Chiang Mai]] (Thailand)
*'''Yongsheng 永胜''': 90,000+ speakers in [[Yongsheng County|Yongsheng]], [[Huaping County|Huaping]], [[Ninglang Yi Autonomous County|Ninglang]], [[Dayao County|Dayao]], [[Yongren County|Yongren]], [[Dechang County|Dechang]], etc.

==Orthography==
===Pollard alphabet===
{{Main|Pollard script}}
[[Sam Pollard (missionary)|Sam Pollard]]'s [[A-Hmao language|A-Hmao]] was adapted to write [[Lipo language|Lipo]], another Lisoish language (sometimes called ''Eastern Lisu'') spoken by the Lisu people.

===Fraser alphabet===
{{Main|Fraser script}}
The Lisu alphabet currently in use throughout Lisu-speaking regions in China, Burma and Thailand was primarily developed by two Protestant missionaries from different missionary organizations. The more famous of the two is [[James O. Fraser]], a British evangelist from the China Inland Mission. His colleague, who developed the original version of the alphabet (later revised and improved with Fraser and various colleagues from the C.I.M.) was Sara Ba Thaw, a polyglot Karen preacher based in Myitkyina, Burma, who belonged to the American Baptist Mission.

Ba Thaw had prepared a simple Lisu catechism by 1915. The script now widely known as the "Fraser alphabet" was finished by 1939, when Fraser's mission houses in the Lisu ethnic areas of Yunnan Province (China) received their newly printed copies of the Lisu New Testament.

===Lisu syllabary===
[[File:Lisu script.GIF|thumb|250px|Lisu syllabary]]
From 1924 to 1930, a Lisu farmer named Ngua-ze-bo (pronounced {{IPA|lis|ŋua˥ze˧bo˦|}}; {{lang-zh|汪忍波/哇忍波}}) invented the Lisu syllabary from [[Chinese characters|Chinese script]], [[Dongba symbols|Dongba script]] and [[Geba syllabary|Geba script]]. However, it looks more different from the Chinese script than [[Chữ Nôm]] and [[Sawndip]] (Zhuang logograms). Since Ngua-ze-bo initially carved his characters on bamboos, the syllabary is known as the Lisu Bamboo script (傈僳竹书).

It has a total of 1250 glyphs and 880 characters.{{cn|date=September 2023}}

===Latin Lisu alphabet===
A new Lisu alphabet based on [[pinyin]] was created in 1957, but most Lisu continued to use the old alphabet. The Fraser alphabet was officially recognized by the Chinese government in 1992, since which time its use has been encouraged.

===Burmese Lisu script===
In a few places in [[Myanmar]] in which Lisu is spoken, an orthography based on the [[Burmese alphabet]] has been developed and is taught to speakers and used in several publications and school books.
===Thai script===
In the 1970s, missionary Edward Hope of [[OMF International]] created a variant of the [[Thai script]] for the Lisu of Thailand. In doing so, he was guided by the policy of the Thai authorities, who believed that the writing systems of the country's national minorities should be based on the Thai script. However, this alphabet did not gain any popularity.

Thai alphabet for Lisu:<ref>E. R. Hope. Lisu. Canberra, 1976. Pacific linguistics. Phonems and orthography. Language planning in ten minority languages of Thailand</ref>

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; "
! colspan="42" | Consonants
|-style="font-size: 150%"
| ก || ข || ค || ฆ || ง || จ || ฉ || ช || ซ || ฌ || ญ || ฎ || ด || ดส || ดซ || ต || ตส || ตซ || ถ || ท || ทส || ทซ || น || บ || ป || ผ || ฝ || พ || ฟ || ม || ย || ฦ || ล || ว || ส || ห || อ || ฮ
|-----
| /k/ || /kʰ/ || /kʰ/ || /x/ || /ŋ/ || /tɕ/, /tʂ/ || /tɕʰ/, /tʂʰ/ || /tɕʰ/, /tʂʰ/ || /s/, /ɕ/, /ʂ/|| /dʑ/, /dʐ/ || /z/, /ʐ/ || /g/ || /d/ || /dz/ || /dz/ || /t/ || /ts/ || /ts/ || /tʰ/ || /tʰ/ || /tsʰ/ || /tsʰ/ || /n/, /ɲ/ || /b/ || /p/ || /pʰ/ || /f/ || /pʰ/ || /f/ || /m/ || /y, ʑ/ || /ɣ/ || /l/ || /v, w/ || /s/, /ɕ/, /ʂ/ || /h/ || /ʔ/ || /h/
|}

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; "
! colspan="42" |Vowels
|-style="font-size: 150%"
| ะ || า || ิ ||  ี || ึ || ื || ุ || ู || เ-ะ || เ || แ-ะ || แ || เ-าะ || อ || เ-อะ || เ-อ
|-----
| /ɑ/ || /ɑ/ || /i/ || /i/ || /ɯ/, /ɤ/ || /ɯ/, /ɤ/ || /u/, /y/ || /u/, /y/ || /e/ || /e/ || /ɛ/ || /ɛ/ || /o/ || /o/ || /e/ || /ø/
|}

Tones are marked with ่, ๋, ๊.

==Phonology==
The Lisu phonological inventory is as follows.<ref name="Bradley 2003" />

===Vowels===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Lisu vowels
! rowspan="2"|
! colspan="2"| [[Front vowel|Front]]
! colspan="2"| [[Back vowel|Back]]
|-
! <small>Unrounded</small>
! <small>[[Rounded vowel|Rounded]]</small>
! <small>Unrounded</small>
! <small>Rounded</small>
|-
! [[Close vowel|Close]]
| {{IPA link|i}}~{{IPA link|ɨ}} || {{IPA link|y}}~{{IPA link|ʉ}} || {{IPA link|ɯ}} || {{IPA link|u}}
|-
! [[Mid vowel|Mid]]
| {{IPA link|e}} || {{IPA link|ø}} || {{IPA link|ɤ}} || {{IPA link|o}}
|-
! [[Open vowel|Open]]
| {{IPA link|ɛ}} || || {{IPA link|ɑ}} ||
|}
{{IPA|[i]}} and the [[fricative vowel]] {{IPA|[ɨ]}} are in complementary distribution: {{IPA|[ɨ]}} is only found after palato-alveolars, though an alternate analysis is possible, with the palato-alveolars viewed as allophones of the palatals before {{IPA|[u]}} and {{IPA|[ɨ]}}.<ref>{{harvp|Handel|page=1}}</ref> The distinction originates from proto-Lolo–Burmese consonant clusters of the type *kr or *kj, which elsewhere merge, but where Lisu normally develops {{IPA|/i/}}, they remain distinct with the latter producing the type {{IPA|[tʃɨ]}}, the former the type {{IPA|[tɕi]}}. Inherited palatal affricates + {{IPA|/i/}} also become {{IPA|[tʃɨ]}}.

In Central Lisu, {{IPA|[i]}} is heard as a syllabic {{IPA|[z̩]}} when after alveolar sibilant sounds, and as {{IPA|[ʐ̩]}} when after retroflex sibilant sounds. {{IPA|/ɑ/}} is heard as more fronted {{IPA|[a]}} when following alveolo-palatal sounds.<ref name=":0">{{Harvp|Tabain|Bradley|Yu|2019}}</ref>

{{IPA|/y/}} is variable across dialects. It may be either [[endolabial]] or [[exolabial]], central {{IPA|[ʉ]}} or even merged with {{IPA|/u/}}. The distinction between {{IPA|ɯ}} and {{IPA|ɤ}} is marginal, and both are written {{angle bracket|e}} in pinyin.

===Tones===
Lisu has six tones: high {{IPA|[˥]}}, mid creaky {{IPA|[˦ˀ]}}, mid {{IPA|[˧]}}, low {{IPA|[˨˩]}}, rising {{IPA|[˧˥]}} and low checked {{IPA|[˨˩ʔ]}} (that is, {{IPA|[tá ta̰ ta tà tǎ tàʔ]}}). In some dialects the creaky tone is higher than mid tone, in others they are equal. The rising tone is infrequent, but common in baby talk (which has a stereotypical disyllabic low–rising pattern); both high and rising tone are uncommon after voiced consonants.

===Consonants===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Lisu consonants
!colspan=2 rowspan=2|
!rowspan=2| [[Labial consonant|Labial]]
!colspan=2| [[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
! rowspan="2" |[[Retroflex consonant|Retroflex]]
! rowspan="2" | [[Alveopalatal consonant|(Alveo-)<br>Palatal]]
!rowspan=2| [[Velar consonant|Velar]]
!rowspan=2| [[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
!{{small|plain}}
!{{small|[[sibilant]]}}
|-
!colspan=2|[[Nasal stop|Nasal]]
| {{IPA link|m}}
| {{IPA link|n}}
|
|
| {{IPA link|ɲ}}
| {{IPA link|ŋ}}
| {{IPA link|h}}, {{IPA link|h̃}}
|-
!rowspan=3| [[Plosive]]/<br>[[Affricate]]
!{{small|[[Tenuis consonant|tenuis]]}}
| {{IPA link|p}}
| {{IPA link|t}}
| {{IPA link|ts}}
|{{IPA link|tʂ}}
| {{IPA link|tɕ}}
| {{IPA link|k}}
| {{IPA link|ʔ}}
|-
!{{small|[[Aspiration (phonetics)|aspirated]]}}
| {{IPA link|pʰ}}
| {{IPA link|tʰ}}
| {{IPA link|tsʰ}}
|{{IPA link|tʂʰ}}
| {{IPA link|tɕʰ}}
| {{IPA link|kʰ}}
|
|-
!{{small|[[Voiced consonant|voiced]]}}
| {{IPA link|b}}
| {{IPA link|d}}
| {{IPA link|dz}}
|{{IPA link|dʐ}}
| {{IPA link|dʑ}}
| {{IPA link|ɡ}}
|
|-
!rowspan=2| [[Fricative]]
!{{small|voiceless}}
| ({{IPA link|f}})
| 
| {{IPA link|s}}
|{{IPA link|ʂ}}
| {{IPA link|ɕ}}
| {{IPA link|x}}
| 
|-
!{{small|voiced}}
| rowspan="2" | {{IPA link|v}}~{{IPA link|w}}
|
| {{IPA link|z}}
|{{IPA link|ʐ}}
| rowspan="2" | {{IPA link|j}}
| {{IPA link|ɣ}}
|
|-
! colspan="2" |[[Continuant]]
|{{IPA link|l}}
|
|
|
|
|}
{{IPA|[v]}} and {{IPA|[w]}} are in complementary distribution, with {{IPA|[v]}} before [[front vowel]]s. {{IPA|/f/}} is marginal, occurring in a few words before {{IPA|/u/}} or {{IPA|/y/}}. The subdialect Fraser first encountered also distinguishes a retroflex series, {{IPA|/tʂ tʂʰ dʐ ʂ ʐ/}}, but only before {{IPA|/ɑ/}}.

Medial glides appear before {{IPA|/ɑ/}}. These are {{IPA|/w/}} with velars and {{IPA|/j/}} with bilabials and {{IPAslink|h̃}}. The latter consonant (see [[rhinoglottophilia]]) has a non-nasal allophone in the imperative particle {{IPA|[hɑ́]}}. {{IPA|/ɣ/}} is only distinctive before {{IPA|/ɑ/}} and in some dialects is merged with {{IPA|/j/}}.

In Central Lisu, {{IPA|/j/}} can be heard as an alveolo-palatal {{IPA|[ʑ]}} when before {{IPA|/i/}}.<ref name=":0" /> In Southern Lisu, the velar plosives become alveopalatal before front vowels. The vowels {{IPA|/u/}} and {{IPA|/e/}} trigger an offglide on preceding consonants, so {{IPA|/tu du te de/}} are pronounced {{IPA|[tfu dvu tje dje]}}.

The vowels {{IPA|/ɯ ɤ/}} do not occur initially—or, at least, in initial position they are pronounced {{IPA|[ɣɯ ɣɤ]}}. It has been argued that the initial vowels {{IPA|/i e y u ɯ ɤ/}} are phonetically {{IPA|[ji je fy fu ɣɯ ɣɤ]}}, so initial consonants do not need to be posited in such cases (and marginal {{IPA|/f/}} can be removed from the inventory of native words), or that they are phonemically {{IPA|/ʔV/}}, with glottal stop.<ref name="Bradley 2003" />

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Works cited==
{{refbegin}}
* {{Cite book |last=Bradley |first=David |title=The Sino-Tibetan Languages |date=2003 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0-7007-1129-5 |editor-last=Thurgood |editor-first=Graham |location=London |language=en |chapter=Lisu |editor-last2=LaPolla |editor-first2=Randy J.}}
* {{Cite web |last=Handel |first=Zev |title=Proto-Lolo–Burmese Velar Clusters and the Origin of Lisu Palatal Sibilant |url=http://faculty.washington.edu/zhandel/Handel_Lisu.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803102517/http://faculty.washington.edu/zhandel/Handel_Lisu.pdf |archive-date=2020-08-03 |via=faculty.washington.edu}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Mu |first1=Yuzhang 木玉璋 |title=Lìsùyǔ fāngyán yánjiū |last2=Sun |first2=Hongkai 孙宏开 |date=2012 |publisher=Minzu chubanshe |isbn=978-7-105-12004-8 |location=Beijing |language=zh |script-title=zh:傈僳语方言研究 |trans-title=A Study of Lisu Dialects}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Tabain |first1=Marija |title=Central Lisu |last2=Bradley |first2=David |last3=Yu |first3=Defen |year=2019 |location=Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 49(1) |pages=129–147}}{{refend}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
* [[Marc Miyake|Miyake, Marc]]. 2011. [http://www.amritas.com/110618.htm#06181717 Unicode 5.2 (not 6.1!): the Old Lisu script].
*{{Cite JIPA|author=Tabain, Marija and Bradley, David and Yu, Defen|title=Central Lisu|volume=49|issue=1|pages=129&ndash;147|doi=10.1017/S0025100318000129|printdate=2019-04|soundfiles=yes}}{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Incubator|lis}}
* [https://archive.org/details/cu31924022354462 Handbook of the Lisu language] (1922)
* [https://stedt.berkeley.edu/pubs_and_prods/STEDT_Monograph4_Southern-Lisu-Dict.pdf SOUTHERN LISU DICTIONARY]
* [https://openresearch-repository.anu.edu.au/bitstream/1885/145803/1/PL-C126.pdf A DICTIONARY OF THE NORTHERN DIALECT OF LISU (CHINA AND SOUTHEAST ASIA) ]

{{Languages of Burma}}
{{Languages of China}}
{{Languages of Thailand}}
{{Sino-Tibetan languages}}
{{Lolo-Burmese languages}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Loloish languages]]
[[Category:Languages of Yunnan]]
[[Category:Languages of India]]
[[Category:Languages of Myanmar]]
[[Category:Languages of Thailand]]
[[Category:Languages of Sichuan]]