the-namuyi-linguistic-and-cultural-features

RESEARCH MATERIAL Libu Lakhi Qinghai Normal University 青海師范大学 Brook Hefright University of Michigan, Ann Arbor Kevin Stuart Qinghai Normal University he Namuyi Linguistic and Cultural Features Abstract he Namuyi live in southern Sichuan Province, the People’s Republic of China, and form part of the oicially recognized Tibetan ethnic group. his paper irst introduces the Namuyi in terms of location, population, and ethnonym. It then provides brief background on the Namuyi language, including a comparison of the dʐə¹¹ qu¹¹ and Luóguōdĭ varieties and a 207-item Swadesh list of English words with their dʐә11 qu11 Namuyi equivalents. Finally, it discusses Namuyi religion and provides a transcription of the ka¹¹ ju¹¹ bu⁴⁴ ritual. Keywords: Namuyi—Namyi—Namuzi—Tibetan—China minorities—Sichuan—folk ritual—exorcism Asian Folklore Studies, Volume 66, 2007: 233–253 T he Namuyi 1 (in English also Namyi; in Namuyi—na53 mʑi 53, 2 in Chinese—Nàmùyī 納木依 , Nàmùyì 納木義 , and Nàmùzī 納木兹) are a little-studied group of people who reside in Liángshān Yí Autonomous Prefecture 涼山彝族自治州 in the southern part of Sìchuān Province 四川省 , People’s Republic of China. The Namuyi have a reported population of five thousand (Gordon 2005). Linguists have generally classiied the Namuyi language within the Qiangic branch of the the Tibeto-Burman language family (Sūn 2001, 160). his paper focuses on Namuyi people who live in the communities of dʐә11 qu11 and dʑa53 qa53 tu11 in Xīchāng City 西昌市, and ʂa44 pa53 and ɕa11 ma11 khu53 in Miǎnníng County 冕宁縣. hese communities also have signiicant Hàn 漢 Chinese and Nuosu (Yí 彝) populations. Table 1 provides geographic and approximate population information for each community: table 1. Namuyi population in selected communities Community Jurisdiction Township or Town City or County dʐә11 qu11 Dàshuı̌ Village Mínshèng Township Xīchāng City 80 600 Xīchāng City 800 9,000 Miǎnníng County 560 1,100 Miǎnníng County 290 1,600 1,740 22,200 大水村 民胜鄉 dʑa qa tu11 Хiǎngshuı̌ Village Xiǎngshuı̌ Тоwnship 响 響水村 響水鄉 ɕa11 ma11 khu53 Dōngfēng Village Zéyuǎn Township 東風村 澤遠鄉 53 53 a pa 44 53 Lǎoyā Village Shābà Town 老鴉村 沙壩鎮 Totals Namuyi Pop. Total Pop. Libu Lhaki’s3 father (Namuyi: li44 ʙu55 ʂә11 pә53, Chinese: Lĭ Cáifù 李財富, born 1945) states that family relatives live in Jiànměi Township 健美鄉 (Namuyi: dʑa11 mi44) and Xīnxīng Тоwnship 新興鄉 (Namuyi: ɕi44 ɕi44) in Miǎnníng County. [ 234 ] linguistic and cultural features of the namuyi 235 Zéyuǎn Township 澤遠鄉 Miǎnníng County 冕宁縣 Shābà Town 沙壩鎮 Mínshèng Township 民胜鄉 Xiǎngshuĭ Township 響水鄉 Mùlĭ County 木里縣 Lĭzhōu Town 礼州鎮 Zéyuǎn Township 澤遠鄉 illustration 1. Location of selected Namuyi communities (1: 1,400,000) hese villages are situated in valleys between small mountains. Travel from dʑa53 qa53 tu11 to dʐә11 qu11 takes about one day on foot, dʐә11 qu11 to ʂa44 pa53 takes about a half-day on foot, and dʐә11 qu11 to Lĭzhōu takes about forty minutes by motorcycle. he weather is warm, the growing season is long, and it snows only once or twice a year. he Namuyi raise goats, water bufalo, horses, pigs, chickens, ducks, geese, mules, and donkeys, and they cultivate rice, wheat, maize, barley, tobacco, and beans. hey derive cash income by selling livestock, small amounts of grain and tobacco, and wild mushrooms they collect in nearby forests in June through August. Increasing numbers of Namuyi leave the area to earn cash by working on construction crews organized by Hàn Chinese. hey travel mostly to Xīchāng City, but some Namuyi also ind work in Běijīng 北京 and Guaˇngdōng 广东. In 2005 the average annual cash income per family was 500 to 800 CNY (approximately $60 to $100 US)4 (li44 ʙu55 ʂә11 pә53, interview data). names Although the Namuyi speak what is probably a Qiangic language, they form part of China’s oicially-recognized Tibetan ethnic group. he ethnonym na53 mʑi53 denotes not only speakers of Namuyi, but all Tibetans. Similarly, Nuosu people refer to the Namuyi as ozzu “Tibetan” or “Prmi”—a term which may have originally meant “aborigine” (Huáng 2004, 16). However, local Hàn Chinese use the term xīfān 西番 “western barbarian,” a traditional Chinese designation for many of the Qiangic-speaking peoples of western Sichuan (Sūn 2001). his was reportedly the term the Namuyi used for themselves when speaking Chinese until their classiication as part of the Tibetan ethnic group in 1984 (Huáng and Rénzēng 1991, 153). Namuyi refer to Nuosu people as ɡu11 ɕy44 and Hàn Chinese people as va53. In the Chinese literature on Namuyi, the Chinese-character rendering of the irst syllable of Namuyi as nà 納 has prompted suggestions that the group is related to the Nàxī 納西 ethnic group of Lìjiāng Nàxī Autonomous Prefecture 麗江納西族自治州 in Yúnnán Province 云南省 (Yáng 2006). In linguistic works 236 libu lakhi, brook hefright, and kevin stuart that use the IPA, authors have rendered the second syllable as /mu55/, with a full vowel (Huáng and Rénzēng 1991, 153; Huáng 1992, 212; Liú 1996, 185). However, as Liú notes, /m/ can appear both syllabically and as the irst element of initial consonant clusters (1996, 185; 187). he practice of writing the inal syllable as yī 依 or yì 義 has apparently contributed to a misimpression among certain speakers of Chinese that the Namuyi are a subgroup of the Yí ethnic group. However, as Huáng and Liú indicate, the value of this syllable ranges from /ji/ to /ʑi/ to /zә/ in diferent varieties of Namuyi (Huáng 1992, 212; Liú 1996, 185) and Huáng and Sūn have used “Nàmùzī” 納木兹 /na51 mu51 tsә55/ to represent the ethnonym as pronounced by speakers in Mùlĭ County (Huáng and Rénzēng 1991, 153; Sūn 2001, 159). he irst author prefers the IPA rendering na53 mʑi53 for the ethnonym as it is pronounced in the dʐә11 qu11 variety. clothing People born before 1965 oten wear a knee-length white robe (hũ53 ndzә53 ba11 tshә44) made from the skin of thin hemp plants (sa11 qhæ11) that grow as tall as a person. When the plant turns yellow in summer, people cut the plant, remove the skin, and roll it on their thigh until it forms a string about one meter long. hey then weave the strings into a fabric (hũ53 dzә53) from which they make the robes. Old people wrap a long strip of black cloth around their heads to make a turban (ɣu53 ju44). Today, most young people wear traditional clothing only during festivals. he irst author intends to describe the elaborate dress of women in future work. origin of the namuyi Namuyi people tell many variations of the following origin story. The first author’s father li44 ʙu55 ʂә11 pә˞ 53 provided this version: Long ago, grasslands and thick forests abounded in what is now Xīchāng City. he livestock and wild animals lived together peacefully. he melodious sound of birdsong illed the air. In the Namuyi language, that place was called ɔ53 ndʐo53—a word people cannot explain today, other than to say it is the name of that place. One day a bird appeared and started calling a44 zә55 do11 bi44. In Namuyi, a44 zә55 means “grandmother” and do11 bi44 means “buttocks.” he bird continued to call this day ater day. When Namuyi parents, sisters, brothers, the older generations, and young people were working and chatting together, they were very embarassed to hear this sound. Finally, all the Namuyi decided to leave this hateful bird and ind a new place to live. hey let ɔ53 ndʐo53 with their livestock and their tools for farming and herding. Finally, they reached the place where they now live and settled down. figure 1. Tiles are made in dʐə¹¹ qu¹¹ by a Namuyi family. Ater drying, these canisters are broken into four parts, stacked in a wood-ired kiln and baked. They are sold to local people. figure 2. Children herd water bufalo in dʐə¹¹ qu¹¹. figure 3. Autumn wheat ield in dʐə¹¹ qu¹¹. figure 4. Summer rice ield in dʐə¹¹ qu¹¹. figure 5. Summer rice ield in dʐə¹¹ qu¹¹. figure 6. A Namuyi family in dʐə¹¹ qu¹¹. figure 7. Mr. li⁴⁴bu⁵⁵ (Namuyi, b. 1965) in dʐə¹¹ qu¹¹ wearing the traditional kwa44 ta44 made from yak hair. figure 8. Ms. ta11 ja11 mi53 (Namuyi, b. 1945) in dʑa⁵³ qa⁵³ tu¹¹ wearing the traditional tʂʰa44qʰa53 made from hemp. figure 9. Old scripture owned by a family in dʐə¹¹ qu¹¹. figure 10. Mr. pha53tsә53 ta11 ja11 (b. 1940) in dʐə¹¹ qu¹¹. 240 libu lakhi, brook hefright, and kevin stuart the namuyi language In Namuyi, kha11 tho11 means “language,” and the Namuyi call their language na53 mʑi53 kha11 tho11. To date, there have appeared only preliminary linguistic analyses of Namuyi. here is still some disagreement among linguists over the genetic ailiation of Namuyi within the Tibeto-Burman family. Sūn argues that Namuyi is a Qiangic language that has been strongly inluenced by the Yí languages with which it is in contact (2001, 178). his inluence may be primarily structural rather than lexical: of the nine hundred words of dʐә11 qu11 Namuyi that the irst author has collected, only three percent appear to be loanwords from the local variety of Nuosu. Huáng and Rénzēng (1991) and Liú (1996) provide preliminary linguistic analyses of varieties of Namuyi spoken in Mùlĭ County and Luóguōdĭ 鑼鍋底, respectively. here are strong grammatical similarities between Luóguōdĭ variety and the irst author’s dʐә11 qu11 variety. However, there are also phonological and lexical diferences, as demonstrated in Table 2 (Liú 1996): As the table suggests, some non-homonymous cognates difer in the occurrence of prenasalized stops (present in dʐә11qu11, absent in Luóguōdĭ) and voicing (relative voice onset time). here is a more systematic diference in tonal categories. Liú describes four categories: 55, 53, 31, and 13 for the Luóguōdĭ variety. However, the irst author produces lexical items cognate to those Liú describes as 55 slightly lower that the top of his voice range, a tone we represent as 44. Furthermore, he produces items cognate to those in 31 and 13 as a single lowlevel tone, which we represent as 11. Due to this merger (or non-split), we describe only three tonal categories for the dʐә11 qu11 variety: high (44), high-falling (53), and low (11). For purposes of comparison, we provide a complete Swadesh list of 207 English words with their dʐә11 qu11 Namuyi equivalents, as pronounced by the irst author, in the appendix attached. table 2. A comparison of selected lexical items in dʐә11 qu11 and Luóguōdĭ Namuyi dʐә11 qu11 53 Luóguōdĭ 53 fu Gloss to blow (as wind) Homonymous cognates fu dzә (apical vowel) dzɿ (apical vowel) to eat Non-homonymous cognates ndza11 dza31 thin qæ11 ɢæ13 to dig ɕә tshә44 pʰsɿ leaf do44 bu53 ly53 ʁu53 mountain 53 11 Non-cognates 53 linguistic and cultural features of the namuyi 241 Namuyi possesses no orthography, and in dʐә11 qu11 only about ten percent of the population reads Chinese, two percent reads Nuosu, and only the irst author reads Tibetan. However, the language is well preserved in the communities of dʑa53 qa53 tu11, dʐә11 qu11, and a44 pa53—particularly so in dʑa53 qa53 tu11, where only residents under the age of twenty who have attended primary school can speak Chinese. In dʐә11 qu11 and ʂa44 pa53, Namuyi residents speak Namuyi among themselves and luent Nuosu and passable Chinese to people who prefer to speak those languages. Namuyi is less well preserved in ɕa11 ma11 khu53, where almost all Namuyi people also speak Nuosu and Chinese: residents born before 1955 speak Namuyi to each other, but while younger people understand a great deal of Namuyi, they prefer to converse in Nuosu or Chinese. Very few Nuosu or Hàn Chinese residents of these communities speak or understand Namuyi. The sociolinguistic situation is changing rapidly. During the New Year Festival in January to February 2005, the irst author’s elder sister and sister-inlaw came from ɕa11 ma11 khu53 to visit the family home in dʐә11 qu11. Asked why they insisted on speaking Nuosu to family members, they replied, “It is stupid to speak such a useless language as Namuyi these days. We have to communicate with our Nuosu friends in Nuosu. here are only a very few people who speak Namuyi. It’s just like walking of a clif with your eyes closed if you only speak Namuyi and refuse to speak Nuosu.’’ When the author asked why their two seven-year-old children only spoke and understood Chinese, they replied, “Who doesn’t want their kids to ind a good job, settle down, and have a comfortable family life? We should have our kids learn Chinese to help them ind a job, shouldn’t we?’’ The first author has also noticed that code-switching among Namuyi, Nuosu, and Chinese is on the rise among the youngest generation in dʐә11 qu11. When the irst author visited his home in January to February 2005, he noted the following exchange with his niece (born 1994), who attended the village primary school where Nuosu children make up majority of the student body: A. Libu Lakhi: no53 tʰi44 pæ44 ɣo53 Language Gloss Translation pi11 ʑi11 qʰa44 ȵi11 ɡvu11 dʑɔ44 how many there is/are Namuyi you det class loc student How many students are there in your class? 242 libu lakhi, brook hefright, and kevin stuart B. Niece: ɕɔ31 si33 san33 ʂә31 vu45 kɔ 学生 三十五 個 Characters Languages Gloss dʑɔ44 Xīchāng Chinese students Translation Namuyi thirty-ive CL there is/are here are thirty-ive students. In her response, the irst author’s niece combines a Xīchāng Chinese noun phrase with a Namuyi existential verb.5 Interestingly, however, she uses Namuyi noun-phrase constituent order, in which numeral-classiier constructions follow their noun heads, instead of the usual Chinese word order. In his question, the irst author uses the lexical item pæ44, which appears to be a loanword from Chinese, pan⁵⁵ 班. Noticing a cat dragging away his niece’s handkerchief, the irst author initiated the following exchange: A. Libu Lakhi: ha11 le44 nu53 Language Gloss Translation ba11 tsʰә44 dʑә11 Namuyi cat your clothes pull he cat is pulling your stuf B. Niece: ji55 a11 dʑu55 Languages Gloss Translation tʰo53 dʑә11 Nuosu it doesn’t matter ɕy53 hĩ11 Namuyi let pull go away let It doesn’t matter, let the cat drag it away. In this exchange, the irst author’s niece begins with a phrase in Nuosu, ji55 a dʑu55 “it doesn’t matter,” then inishes her utterance in Namuyi.6 11 namuyi religion Namuyi elders teach that Namuyi people are descended from gods, known as ɕi44 vi44. On special days such as the New Year and during weddings, ɕi44 vi44 linguistic and cultural features of the namuyi 243 must be respected and ofered the freshest and tastiest food, such as rice and animal blood. Trance mediums known as pha53 tsә53 can hear what the ɕi44 vi44 have to tell family members what to do during rituals. he one pʰa53 tsә53 in dʐә11 qu11 in 2007 was born around 1945. Villagers frequently invite the pʰa53 tsә53 into their homes to perform religious activities when family members are sick or when they encounter trouble. the exorcism ritual he irst author provides this account: My father performed the ka11 ju11 bu44 ritual for me many times during my childhood. he last time I remember him peforming it was in the summer of 2002. One aternoon, I felt like vomiting. I lay on the sofa by the ireplace. Ater returning from working in the rice ield, we were about to have supper. “Come eat supper,’’ Mother called from the kitchen. I could smell the food cooking and I knew that supper was nearly ready without her telling me, but I didn’t seem to have much appetite. After I failed to reply to my mother, my father came to me, saying ‘’Didn’t you hear? Come eat.’’ “I don’t want to eat anything. I feel like vomiting,’’ I replied in a low voice. “When did you start to feel unwell?’’ he asked. “Just a couple of minutes ago,’’ I said. “It must be those hateful ka11 ju11 [ghosts]. Quickly go get a bowl, put a little water inside along with a few grains of cooked rice, and bring it here,’’ he ordered my mother. I didn’t have supper that night. Father beat the bowl with a pair of chopsticks above my head and chanted loudly as I lay on the sofa. Ater he inished chanting, he walked to the courtyard door and threw the water and rice grains outside. Next, my younger sister cleaned the loor with a broom, closed the door, and threw what she had swept up out through the courtyard door. his was meant to further discourage the ghost from returning. hen I went to sleep, and when I woke up the next day morning, I felt as well as usual. He also provides this second account: During the New Year festival in January to February 2005, I was sitting on the sofa and reading a book when I suddenly heard chanting. I rushed out, and when I saw that my father was doing the ka11 ju11 bu44 ritual, I realized that my younger brother must be ill. My younger brother was sitting on a 244 libu lakhi, brook hefright, and kevin stuart bag of grain; my father beat a bowl half-full of water and a few cooked rice grains with chopsticks above his head. My father chanted things like, “Please return to where you are from, there is nothing here to eat and drink…” People believe that the ghosts of people who have died from starvation or poisoning are prone to approach people and cause sudden illness, causing dizziness, nausea, and lack of appetite. he ka11 ju11 bu44 ritual exorcises these ghosts. Both men and women who know the chant frequently perform the ka11 ju11 bu44 ritual because it is informal and does not require the services of a pʰa53 tsә53. In most cases, elder brothers and sisters perform it for whomever is ill. he only implements practitioners need are a bowl and a pair of chopsticks. hey add water and a few grains of cooked rice to the bowl. It is considered best if all the family members are present at the time of the ritual and say things that will please the ghosts; ater the ritual’s completion, they clean the room and throw out garbage. Below, we provide a transcription of the ka11 ju11 bu44 ritual chant performed by the irst author’s father, li44 ʙu55 ә11 pә53, described in the account above. he author recorded the chant on video at his home in dʐә11 qu11 during the New Year festival held in January to February 2005. the ritual chant 1. hoː11 tɕʰiŋ44 tɕʰiŋ44 tɕʰiŋ44 tɕʰiŋ44 [Untranslated material here and below consists of incantatory syllables without identiiable lexical meaning.] 2. ti11 dʑo44 ŋa11 dʑo11 qhvu11 dʑo11 ә11 dʑo11 ɴɢv11 dʑo11 irst circle, ith circle, sixth circle, seventh circle, ninth circle [Refers to circles made around the patient’s head with bowl and chopsticks.] 3. ti11 dʑo44 ŋa11 dʑo11 qhvu11 dʑo11 ә11 dʑo11 ɴɢv11 dʑo11 irst circle, ith circle, sixth circle, seventh circle, ninth circle 4. hoː11 da11 te11 dʑe11 bu44 da11 tɛ11 hoː11 da11 tɛ11 for dʑe11 bu44 [Refers to the irst author’s younger brother, li44 ʙu55 dʑe11 bu44, born 1985. He is identiied in line 30 below as pa44 ɴɢi44.] 5. r11 ze53 ma53 qv11 tʙu11 pe11 ma11 qu11 le11 because he doesn’t know how to act 6. va53 ræ53 dʐa44 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met Hàn Chinese ghosts [“Ghosts” are the spirits of people who have died violently—for example, by drowning, poisoning, murder, or falling from a clif.] 7. na53 ræ53 dʐa44 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 linguistic and cultural features of the namuyi met Namuyi ghosts 8. hũ53 ә44 ræ53 dʐa44 da44 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met hũ53 ә44 ghosts 9. hoː11 da11 te11 10. hũ11 mbʐi11 ræ53 dʐa44 da44 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met hũ11 mbʑi11 ghosts, 11. tʰe53 je11 da11 te11 12. a11 mi44 ɡu11 nu11 13. sɔŋ11 ndʑa44 ɕe44 ræ53 dʐa44 da:44 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met the Sòng 宋 family’s ghosts 14. tʰe53 je11 da11 te11 15. a11 mi44 ɡu11 nu11 16. xua11 ndʑa44 ɕe44 ræ53 dʐa44 the Huáng 黄 family’s ghosts 17. hoː11 da11 te11 18. ɡæ11 pʰæ11 ɕe44 ræ53 dʐa44 da:44 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met the gæ11 pʰæ11 family’s ghosts 19. tʰe53 je11 da11 te11 20. li44 ʙu55 ɕe44 ræ53 dʐa44 da:44 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met the li44 ʙu55 family’s ghosts 21. hoː11 da11 te11 22. hũ53 ә44 ræ53 dʐa11 hũ11 mbʐi11 ræ53 dʐa11 hũ53 ә44 ghosts and hũ11 mbʑi11 ghosts 23. hoː11 da11 te11 24. mi11 ma11 tʰʙu11 su11 ræ53 dʐa11 ghosts without given names 25. lu53 ma44 tʰʙu11 su44 ræ53 dʐa11 ghosts without animal year names 26. tʰe53 je11 da11 te11 27. dʐɔ11 ræ53 dʐa11 ɣi11 ræ53 dʐa11 dʐɔ11 ghosts and livestock ghosts 28. hoː11 da11 te11 29. a11 mi44 ɡu11 nu11 30. pa44 ɴɢi44 da44 lo11 mi11 do44 su44 da44 te53 ghosts who asked pa44 ɴɢi44 31. ȵi44 tɕʰɔ44 li44 dʐә11 su44 ji11 ly11 ghosts from the west 32. ʂa44 tɕʰɔ44 li44 dʐә11 su44 ji11 ly11 ghosts from the east 33. a11 mi44 ɡu11 nu11 34. ndzә44 ɣɔ53 ndzә44 mæ11 li44 dʐә11 su44 ræ53 dʐa11 ghosts who come from north and south 245 246 libu lakhi, brook hefright, and kevin stuart 35. hũ53 ә44 ræ53 dʐa11 te44 hũ11 mbʐi11 ræ53 dʐa11 te44 hũ53 ә44 ghosts and hũ11 mbʑi11 ghosts 36. tʰe53 je11 da11 te11 37. mi11 ma11 tʰʙu11 su11 ræ53 dʐa11 ghosts without given names 38. lu53 ma44 tʰʙu11 su44 ræ53 dʐa11 ghosts without animal year names 39. tʰe53 je11 da11 te11 40. pa44 ɴɢi44 da44 te44 r11 zә53 ma53 qv11 tʙu11 pe11 ma11 qu11 le11 because pa44 ɴɢi44 doesn’t know how to act 41. a11 mi44 ɡu11 nu11 42. hũ53 ә44 ræ53 dʐa11 hũ53 ʂә44 ghosts 43. ka11 ju11 da11 va53 ka11 ju11 da11 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met Chinese ghosts 44. na53 ka11 ju11 da11 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met Namuyi ghosts 45. tʰe53 je11 da11 te11 46. a11 mi44 ɡu11 nu11 47. hoː11 da11 te11 48. ti11 dʑo44 ŋa11 dʑo11 qhvu11 dʑo11 ә11 dʑo11 ɴɢv11 dʑo11 irst circle, ith circle, sixth circle, seventh circle, ninth circle 49. hoː11 da11 te11 50. hũ53 ә44 ræ53 dʐa11 hũ53 ʂә44 ghosts 51. ȵi44 a44 te44 ʐo11 mi11 dʑi11 te11 ʐo11 ɡu11 li11 hũ11 If you are hungry, return ater I ofer food 52. fa44 a44 te44 ʐo11 mi11 dʑi11 te11 ʐo11 ɡu11 li11 hũ11 If you are thirsty, return ater I ofer food 53. tʰe53 je11 da11 te11 54. haː 11 da11 te11 55. ka11 ju11 da11 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met ghosts 56. va53 ka11 ju11 da11 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met Chinese ghosts 57. na53 ka11 ju11 da11 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met Namuyi ghosts 58. ɡæ11 pʰæ11 ɕe44 ka11 ju11 da:44 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met the gæ11 pʰæ11 family’s ghosts 59. tʰe53 je11 da11 te11 linguistic and cultural features of the namuyi 247 60. li44 ʙu55 ɕe44 ka11 ju11 the li44 ʙu55 family’s ghosts 61. sɔŋ11 ndʑa44 ɕe44 ka11 ju11 the Sòng 宋 family’s ghosts, 62. hoː11 da11 te11 63. va53 tʂa44 va53 bæ44 va53 tʂa44 va53 bæ44 ghosts 64. ɡu11 ly44 ɡu11 ɕy44 Nuosu ghosts 65. va53 la44 he44 le44 Hàn Chinese ghosts 66. heː11 da11 te11 67. ka11 ju11 da11 te11 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 Met ghosts 68. ɡu11 ly44 ɡu11 ɕy44 ʑi55 Nuosu people’s ghosts 69. tʰæ˞:53 tʰa11 pæ44 dʑæ11 ʂa44 ræ53 dʐa44 da44 lo11 ɣu44 bʙu11 su44 met tʰæ˞:53 tʰa11 pæ44 dʑæ11 ʂa44 ghosts 70. tʰe53 je11 da11 te11 71. ȵi44 a44 te44 ʐo11 mi11 dʑi11 te11 ʐo11 ɡu11 li11 hũ11 If you are hungry, return ater I ofer food 72. fa44 a44 te44 ʐo11 mi11 dʑi11 te11 ʐo11 ɡu11 li11 hũ11 If you are thirsty, return ater I ofer food 73. hoː11 da11 te11 74. hũ53 ә44 ræ53 dʐa11 te44 hũ11 mbʐi11 ræ53 dʐa11 te44 hũ53 ә44 ghosts and hũ11 mbʑi11 ghosts 75. ɴɢv11 ȵi11 r11 gv11 te11 ti11 ȵi11 mә11 nu11 li44 ʙu11 I command you back in one day if you came here in nine days 76. ɴɢv11 ha44 r11 ɡv44 te11 ti11 ha11 mә11 nu11 li44 ʙu11 I command you back in one night if you came here in nine nights 77. hoː11 da11 te11 78. v11 tv11 li44 dʐә11 su44 te44 v11 tv11 li44 ʙu11 I command ghosts from the maternal side to return to the maternal side 79. ʑi44 tv11 li44 dʐә11 su44 da44 te44 ʑi44 tv11 li44 ʙu11 I command ghosts from the paternal side to return to the paternal side 80. ȵi44 tɕʰɔ44 li44 dʐә11 su44 ræ53 dʐa11 da44 te44 ȵi44 tɕʰɔ44 nu44 li44 ʙu11 I command ghosts from the west to return to the west 81. ʂa44 tɕʰɔ44 li44 dʐә11 su44 ræ53 dʐa11 da44 te44 ʂa44 tɕʰɔ44 nu44 li44 ʙu11 I command ghosts from the east to return to the east 82. hoː11 da11 te11 248 libu lakhi, brook hefright, and kevin stuart 83. ndzә44 ɣɔ53 ndzә44 mæ11 li44 dʐә11 su44 ræ53 dʐa11 ghosts who come from north and south 84. tʙu11 ræ53 dʐa11 ɣi11 ræ53 dʐa11 Wild animal ghosts and livestock ghosts 85. v11 ræ53 dʐa11 ʑi44 ræ53 dʐa11 Maternal ghosts and paternal ghosts 86. dʐa53 ndʑa44 li44 dʐә11 su44 ræ53 dʐa11 he Zhāng 張 family’s ghosts 87. hoː11 jy11 ma11 sa11 su11 r11 zә44 ma11 zә44 su44 ræ53 dʐa11 da44 te44 ghosts who wander at night 88. hoː11 ʂa53 dʑo11 dʑo11, sa53 ho11 ho11, sa53 ho11 ho11. notes 1. he form Namuyi is a transliteration of a Chinese-character rendering of the word na53 mʑi53. It captures the phonological details of the ethnonym rather poorly, and the authors use it with reluctance. However, because this form is established in the cosmopolitan literature (cf. Matisoff 1991; Gordon 2005), the authors use it in order to ensure that their work remains accessible to the widest possible audience. 2. Transcription Notes. here is no orthography for Namuyi, and to date there has been no phonological analysis of the dʐә11 qu11 variety. herefore, we present all Namuyilanguage material by means of broad phonetic transcription in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). IPA symbols have their standard values (Pullum and Ladusaw 1996). Following IPA recommendations (International Phonetic Association 1949, 42, cited in Pullum and Ladusaw 1996, 89), we use /ә/ to represent both the non-retrolex “apical’’ vowel which Chinese linguists transcribe as [ɿ] (cf. Standard Chinese sì 四 “four”), as well as its retrolex equivalent, which Chinese linguists transcribe as [ʅ] (cf. Standard Chinese shì 十 “ten”). In dʐә11 qu11 Namuyi, like in Standard Chinese, the non-retrolex apical pronunciation occurs following alveolar fricatives /s, z/ and africates /ts, tsh, dz/, while the retrolex pronunciation occurs ater retrolex fricatives /ʂ, ʐ/ and africates /tʂ, tʂh, dʐ/. Other notable articulatory phenomena include the following: Consonants: (1) A voiced bilabial trill [ʙ] appears to be in complementary distribution with the high back unrounded vowel [u] ater many alveolar /t, th, d/, and some biliabial /p, ph, b/, plosives in some words and not in others. he occurrence of the trill appears to be variable: sometimes [ʙ] is the syllable nucleus, and sometimes it is followed by [u]. Huáng and Rénzēng (1991) and Liú (1996) both identify [ʙ] as an allophone of /u/. However, the trill also appears as an initial in the word ʙr 53 “snake,” and in the irst author’s family name, li44 ʙu55. We transcribe occurrences of [ʙ] phonetically; (2) A voiced labiodental fricative [v] appears to be in complementary distribution with [u] ater most uvular /q, qʰ, ɢ/, and some velar /k, kʰ, ɡ/, plosives in some words and not in others; like [ʙ], sometimes [v] is the syllable nucleus, and sometimes it is followed by [u]. We transcribe occurrences of [v] phonetically; (3) When the lateral approximant /l/ precedes the high front rounded vowel /y/, the consonant is palatized, approaching [ʎ]. We transcribe this sound phonemically as /l/. Vowels: (1) It is not yet clear whether there is a phonemic distinction between mid-high vowels /e/ and /o/ and mid-low vowels /ɛ/ and /ɔ/. We transcribe these vowels phonetically as they occur; (2) Following voiceless fricatives and aspirated voiceless africates, some vowels are voiced linguistic and cultural features of the namuyi 249 in some words and not in others. We mark devoicing where it occurs. (3) When the voiceless labiodental fricative /f/ precedes the high back rounded vowel /u/, the vowel becomes unrounded, approaching [ɯ]. We transcribe these occurrences phonemically as /u/. (4) Vowels that precede or follow /m/ are generally nasalized; however, they are not as nasal as the categorically nasal vowels /ĩ/ and /̃/ described in Liú (1996). We do not mark nasalization on these vowels. Tone: (1) Because of typographic restrictions, we represent tone using a number system designed by Chao, common in descriptions of languages in China (Chao 1930). his system employs a scale of one to ive, where one represents the bottom of the vocal range and ive represents the top. In dʐә11 qu11 Namuyi each tone is symbolized as a sequence of two numbers, written as a superscript following the syllable: the irst number represents the initial pitch of the tone, and the second number represents the inal pitch; (2) We identify three tonal categories in the dʐә11 qu11 variety: high (44), high-falling (53), and low (11). In some series of two or more high tones, the last tone is slightly higher than the others. We transcribe this last tone phonetically as (55). 3. he irst author has chosen to render his Namuyi name /li44 ʙu55 la11 khi44/ in a conventional English spelling. 4. In 2005, 1 US dollar was worth approximately 8.23 Chinese yuán 元. 5. he IPA transcription of the Xīchāng Chinese phrase reproduces the irst author’s pronunciation. 6. he IPA transcription of the Nuosu phrase reproduces the irst author’s pronunciation. references cited Chao, Y. R. 1930 A system of tone letters. Le maître phonétique 45: 24–27. Gordon, Raymond J., Jr., ed. 2005 Ethnologue: Languages of the World. 15th ed. Dallas, TX: SIL International. Hé Yàohuá 何耀華 2004 Chuān xīnán zàngzú lìshĭ chū tàn 川西南藏族歷史初探 [Initial exploration of southwest Sichuan Tibetan history]. Liángshān zàngxué yánjiū 凉山藏学研究 [Liángshān Tibetan study and research] 1: 14–15. Huáng Bùfān 黄布凡 1992 Qiāng yǔzhī 羌語支 [he Qiangic language branch]. In Hàn-zàngyǔ gàilùn 漢藏 語概論 [General discussion of Sino-Tibetan languages], ed. Mă Xuéliáng 馬 学良, 208–369. Beijing: Běijīng Dàxué Chūbănshè. Huáng Bùfān and Rénzēng Wàngmŭ 仁增旺姆 1991 Nàmùzīyŭ 納木兹語 [he Namuzi language]. In Zàng-mianyŭ shíwŭ zhŏng 藏緬 語十五種 [Fiteen types of Tibeto-Burman languages], ed. Dài Qìngxià 戴 慶夏 et al., 153–73. Běijīng: Yānshān Chūbănshè. Huáng Yuēbù 黄約布 2004 Qiăn tán Chuān xīnán zàngzú de zúyuán yŭ zúchēng 浅談川西南藏族的族源与族 称 [A brief discussion of southwest Sichuan Tibetan ethnic origins and appellations]. Liángshān zàngxué yánjiū 1: 16-17. 250 libu lakhi, brook hefright, and kevin stuart International Phonetic Association 1949 he Principles of the International Phonetic Association. London: International Phonetic Association. Liú Huīqiáng 劉 輝强 1996 Luóguōdĭ Nàmùyīyŭ 鑼鍋底納木依語 [he Luóguōdĭ Namuyi language]. Yǔyán yánjiū 語言研究 [Linguistic research] 2: 185–98. Liú Huīqiáng and Shàng Yúnchuān 尚 云川 2006 Zhěngjiù qiāng yŭzhī bīnwēi yŭyán 拯救羌語支瀕危語言 [Preserve endangered languges of the Qiang language branch]. Xīnán Mínzú Dàxué xuébào rénwén shèkē ban [Bulletin of the Southwest Nationalities University, humanities and social sciences edition] 12: 11–12. Matisoff, James A. 1991 Sino-Tibetan linguistics: Present state and future prospects. Annual Review of Anthropology 20: 464–504. Mgebbu Lunzy (Ma Erzi) 2003 Ethnic voices: Nuosu and neighbouring ethnic groups: Ethnic groups and ethnic relations in the eyes and ears of three generations of the Mgebbu clan. Trans. Stevan Harrell. Asian Ethnicity 4(1): 129–45. Pullum, Geofrey K., and William A. Ladusaw 1996 Phonetic Symbol Guide. Chicago; London: he University of Chicago Press. 2nd ed. Sūn Hóngkāi 孫宏開 2001 Lùn zàng-mian yŭzú zhōng de qiāng yŭzhī yŭyán 論臧緬語族中的羌語支語言 [On languages of the Qiangic branch of Tibeto-Burman]. Yŭyán jí yŭyánxué 語言及 語言学 [Language and linguistics] 2(1): 157–81. Swadesh, Morris nd Science Fair Project Dictionary: Swadesh List 2. (accessed 16 February 2007). Yáng Fúquán 揚福泉 2006 “Nàmùyī” yŭ ‘’nà’’ zhī zúqún guānxi kăolüè“納木依”与“納”之族群關系考略 [An exploration of the ethnic relationships between “Namuyi” and “Na”]. Mínzú yánjiū 民族研究 [Nationalities research] 3: 52–59; 108. Zhao Xinyu 2003 Tibetan Namyi people in Southwest Sichuan. China’s Tibet 14(2). Accessed 16 February 2007. linguistic and cultural features of the namuyi appendix 207 English words and their equivalents in dʐә11 qu11 Namuyi 1 2 English dʐә11 qu11 Namuyi I ŋa44 44 you (singular) nu English dʐә11 qu11 Namuyi 35 thin ndza11 36 woman ȵu53 ȵu53 hɔ53 man (adult male) man (human being) pʰ11 dʑә11 ʑi53 44 3 he tʰe 4 we ŋo53 5 you (plural) no53 38 6 they tʰjo53 39 child (a youth) la11 kʰi44 7 this ti44 ly44 40 wife mbʐә11 8 that o44 tʰi53 ly53 41 husband pʰ11 dʑә11 9 here ha44 da55 42 mother ma44 ja11 43 father a53 da44 44 animal hĩ44 na55 45 ish zә44 46 bird ɡi44 ʑi55 37 44 55 10 there o da 11 who qʰa53 ɡu11 12 what ɡɔ53 13 where qʰa44 ɣɔ44 53 44 tsʰɔ11 14 when qʰa ta 47 dog tʂә11 15 how qʰa44 m44 48 louse 16 not ma44 ʂu44 49 snake 17 all o11 ba11 ʙr53 50 worm tɕʰә̣44 qæ44 44 11 18 many do bʐә 51 tree 19 some ti11 ki44 ɕә11 forest few a11 ȵi44 ȵi11 52 20 ɕә11 væ53 53 stick (of wood) 21 other væ44 qæ53 ɢɔ11 tʰʙu44 54 fruit ɕә11 ly44 ly53 11 22 one ti seed two ȵi44 55 23 ʐɔ11 zә11 56 leaf 24 three sɔ44 ɕә11 tsʰә44 57 root 25 four zә11 ɕә11 pæ11 58 bark (of trees) ɕә11 r11 qa44 11 26 ive ŋa 59 lower væ53 27 big do44 dʐә44 60 grass 28 long do44 hæ˞ 44 ȵɔ11 61 rope r44 29 wide do44 fe44 30 thick do53 la53 31 heavy zә11 32 small a11 dʑә44 33 short a11 ndi44 34 narrow a11 qә˞44 62 63 skin (of a person) meat (as in lesh) r11 qa44 ʂә11 64 blood ɕe11 65 bone ʂә44 r44 qa55 251 252 libu lakhi, brook hefright, and kevin stuart English dʐә11 qu11 Namuyi 66 fat (noun) tsʰә53 ɴɢu11 103 to know (a fact) 67 egg r44 ʁu55 104 to think ʂә44 dʐә44 105 to smell (sense odor) bʑi53 ȵu53 106 to fear qv53 107 to sleep jy11 108 to live dʑo44 109 to die ә̣11 qɔ44 110 to kill tʙu11 111 to ight ŋɡa53 112 to hunt tʂә11 dʑe11 113 to hit mbo11 114 to cut nda11 115 to split qʰa11 116 to stab (or stick) ɴɢɔ11 117 to scratch (an itch) kʰa11 kʰa11 118 to dig qæ11 53 English 53 68 horn qʰv pæ 69 tail mæ11 rә11 qvu11 70 feather tɕɔ53 mo53 mo53 71 hair ʁu53 hũ53 72 head ʁu53 ru53 73 ear hĩ11 pæ11 74 eye me44 ljo44 75 nose ȵa11 ŋɡa44 76 mouth qʰa44 tsa55 77 tooth hĩ11 mi44 78 tongue ɣi11 79 ingernail mi53 ә11 qɔ44 80 foot ә̣11 ka11 81 leg kʰi53 kʰi53 knee ɢɔ lɔ tɕʰә 82 11 11 11 53 11 dʐә11 qu11 Namuyi sә11 83 hand la ka 119 to swim ndzә53 fu11 84 wing dʙu53 ka11 120 to ly bʑi44 85 belly hε11 mbe11 to walk zә11 da11 guts vu44 ȵi53 vu53 ɡɔ11 121 86 122 to come da11 123 to lie ʁa44 124 to sit ndzu53 125 to stand hɛ11 11 11 87 neck ta ræ 88 back ji11 ɡu11 89 breast ȵu11 ȵu11 90 heart ȵi11 mi44 91 liver ɕә44 vә11 126 92 to drink ndʐә11 127 93 to eat dzә53 94 to bite qʰæ11 95 to suck tɕʰy11 96 to spit pɕә44 53 53 to turn (change direction) to fall (as in drop) qɔ11 ndʑɔ11 ɡɔ44 pa53 128 to give kɔ11 129 to hold (in one’s hand) mæ44 130 to squeeze ndʐә53 kʰæ11 97 to vomit li pɕi 131 to rub zɔ11 zɔ11 98 to blow (as wind) fu53 132 to wash tsʰә11 99 to breathe sa11 pʰu53 133 to wipe sә̣11 ɕa44 100 to laugh r11 qʰæ11 134 to pull dʑә11 101 to see ly11 135 to push tsʰɔ11 102 to hear ɡi53 136 to throw qv11 ŋɡa53 137 to tie ɴɢv11 ta11 linguistic and cultural features of the namuyi English dʐә11 qu11 Namuyi 138 to sew ha11 ha44 174 yellow ә53 xa11 139 to count sa11 175 white pʰu53 lu11 to say a 176 black na44 qʰә˞53 177 night hũ11 ɴɢu11 140 11 English 253 dʐә11 qu11 Namuyi to sing ɡa 142 to play ʁa r 178 day (daytime) ȵi44 mi53 ɡu44 143 to loat lɔ11 tsʰa53 179 year kʰvu53 ru11 144 to low ɡa 180 145 to freeze dzu44 dzu53 tɔ11 146 to swell ru44 pa44 la53 181 147 sun hĩ 44 mi55 182 full bʐә44 148 moon hũ11 mi11 183 new 149 star mә53 dʐә11 ʂә53 tsa11 184 old mbo11 kʰu44 dʑa11 150 water ndzә53 bo44 185 good kʰi44 141 11 11 44 44 53 11 warm (as in weather) cold (as in weather) tɕʰә̣44 qʰæ44 ɡa53 151 to rain hĩ dʑy 186 bad qʰa53 qʰa53 152 river ndzә53 qʰæ44 187 rotten (as a log) mbo11 tʂә11 153 lake mbɛ11 tʰo53 188 dirty tʂʰa11 ræ11 154 sea (as in ocean) ha11 ndzә11 189 straight dʐo44 190 round tɔ11 ly44 ly11 tʰa11 11 11 155 salt tɕә qʰæ 156 stone r11 qa44 157 sand mә44 ʂә44 191 sharp (as a knife) 158 dust pʰu53 dzә53 192 dull (as a knife) ʁɔ44 ly53 ly53 159 earth (as in soil) dʙy44 193 smooth he11 lɛ11 bʑi44 160 cloud dʐu11 va11 194 wet tsɔ53 tsɔ53 11 fog dʑu hĩ 195 dry (adjective) fu11 dʐә11 ka44 162 sky mә 53 196 right (correct) dja44 163 wind (as in breeze) mә53 sә53 197 near a11 ȵɔ44 198 far do44 qʰv44 164 snow vi11 199 right (side) ji44 (r53 ka53) 165 ice dzu44 dzu55 200 let (side) 166 smoke mi53 kʰvu53 ʁæ11 (r11 ka11) 201 at ɣɔ53 202 in qɔ11 lɔ44 203 with (accompanying) jo11 jo44 161 44 53 167 ire mi 168 ashes la11 mæ˞44 169 to burn mi53 ta44 170 road r44 ɡu53 204 and na53 171 mountain do44 bu53 ly53 205 if ɕy53 172 red li53 xu11 206 because ka44 53 207 name mi11 173 green hũ ru 11