Kinnauri, also known as Kanauri, Kanor, Koonawur, or Kunawar is a Tibeto-Burman language (Sino-Tibetan stock) spoken in the Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh by approximately 49,000 native speakers.
Sounds
This description is of the Pangi dialect of Kinnauri.
Consonants
|
| Bilabial
| Labio-Velar
| Alveolar
| Palatal
| Retroflex
| Velar
| Glottal
|
| Stop
| voiced
|
|
| d
|
| ɖ
| ɡ
|
|
| voiceless
| p
|
| t
|
| ʈ
| k
|
|
| aspirated
| pʰ
|
| tʰ
|
| ʈʰ
| kʰ
|
|
| Affricate
| voiced
|
|
| ʣ
| ʤ
|
|
|
|
| voiceless
|
|
| ʦ
| ʧ
|
|
|
|
| aspirated
|
|
| ʦʰ
| ʧʰ
|
|
|
|
| Nasal
|
| m
|
| n
| ȵ
|
| ŋ
|
|
| Trill
|
|
|
| r
|
|
|
|
|
| Fricative
|
|
|
| s
| ʃ
|
|
| h
|
| Approximant
|
|
| w
| l
| j
|
|
|
|
Note on palatals: /ʤ/, /ʧ/, /ʧʰ/, and /ʃ/ are post-alveolar. /ȵ/ is alveolo-palatal.
Vowels
|
| Front
| Central
| Back
|
| High
| i / iː
| ɨ / ɨː
|
|
| Mid
| e / eː
|
| o / oː
|
| Low
|
| a / aː
|
|
Kinnauri has phonemic short and long vowels.
Syllables
/h/, aspirated obstruents (i.e. /pʰ/, /tʰ/, /ʈʰ/, /kʰ/, /ʦʰ/, /ʧʰ/), and glides (i.e. /w/, /j/) do not occur in syllable codas.
All consonants may occur in onsets and word-medially.
Kinnauri has the following types of syllables:
- (C)V(C)(C)(C)
- CCV(C)
- CCCVC
Grammar
Bibliography
- Grimes, Barbara F. (Ed.). (2000). Ethnologue: Languages of the world, (14th ed.). Dallas, TX: SIL International. ISBN 1-5567-1106-9. (Online edition: http://www.ethnologue.com/).
- Nagano, Yasuhiko; & LaPolla, Randy J. (Eds.). (2001). New research on Zhangzhung and related Himalayan languages. Bon studies 3, Senri ethnological reports 19. Osaka: National Museum of Ethnology.
- Takahashi, Yoshiharu. (2001). A descriptive study of Kinnauri (Pangi dialect): A preliminary report. In Y. Nagano & R. J. LaPolla (Eds.), New research on Zhangzhung and related Himalayan languages. Osaka: National Museum of Ethnology.
