Dimasa language
Sino-Tibetan language of Northeast India
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Dimasa language is a Tibeto-Burman language spoken by the Dimasa people of the Northeastern Indian states of Assam and Nagaland. The Dimasa language is known to Dimasas as "Grao-Dima" and it is similar to Boro, Kokborok and Garo languages. The Dimasa language is one of the oldest languages spoken in North East India, particularly in Assam, Nagaland.
Etymology
The word Dimasa etymologically translates to Children [sa] of the big river [dima]", i.e. the mighty Tsang, which is known as Brahmaputra by the Assamese. The Dimasa word dzi/Dí, meaning water, forms the root of the names of many of the major rivers of Assam and of North East India in general, such as Dibang (plenty of water), Diyung (huge river), Dikrang (green river), Dikhow (fetched water), and many others. The Brahmaputra is known as Tsangi (the purifier) and Lohit is known as Di Lao (long river) among the Dimasas even now.
Many of the important towns and cities in Assam and Nagaland received their names from Dimasa words such as Diphu, Maibang, Dimabang (a capital of the Dimasa Kingdom) etc. In fact, the Dimasa language is one of the last languages of North East India to retain its original vocabulary without being compromised by foreign languages.[2]
Geographical distribution
Dimasa is spoken in:
- Assam: Dima Hasao district (formerly North Cachar Hills district), Cachar district, Karbi Anglong district, West Karbi Anglong district, Nagaon district, Hojai district (formerly a part of Nagaon district)
- Nagaland
- Meghalaya
- Mizoram
Phonology
Vowels
There are six vowels in Dimasa language.
- All vowels can occurs in all three positions, except /ə/ which occurs only medially.
Diphthongs
| i | e | o | u | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| i | iu | |||
| e | ei | eo | ||
| a | ai | ao | ||
| o | oi | |||
| u | ui | |||
| ə | əo |
Consonants
There are sixteen consonants in the Dimasa language.
- The three voiceless aspirated stops, /pʰ, tʰ, kʰ/, are unreleased in syllable final position. Their unaspirated voiced counterparts are released and cannot occur word final position.
- Sometimes /pʰ, tʰ, kʰ, s/ are pronounced as /b, d, g, z/ respectively.
- The consonants /pʰ, b, tʰ, kʰ, m, n, r, l/ can occur in all position.
- The consonants /g, s, s, ɦ/ cannot occur in Dimasa indigenous words, but can occur in loan words.
- The consonants /d, w, j/ cannot appear in word final positions in Dimasa.
- The consonants /ŋ/ cannot appear in word initial positions.
Grammar
Dimasa is an inflectional language. The verbs are inflected for number, tense, case, voice, aspect, mood but not for gender and person.
Pronouns
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| First person | ang | jing |
| Second person | ning | nishi |
| Third person | bo | bunshi |
Sentence syntax
The verb is rarely inflected for person and gender.
Subject–object–verb word order is usual; Object–verb–subject word order also occurs.
Writing system
Dimasa is written using Latin script, which has been introduced in the lower primary education system in Dima Hasao District. The main guiding force behind it is the Dimasa Lairidim Hosom, a literary apex body of the Dimasa community.[3]
The Bengali script is used in Cachar, where the Bengali people live alongside Dimasas.[4]
