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Home , Barman language, Bhujel language, Biate language, Chakma people, Ethnolinguistics, Hrangkhol language

Arunachal Institute RAJIV GANDHI UNIVERSITY of Tribal Studies

The foundation of the Ra- The Arunachal is multi-cul- jiv Gandhi University (Formerly tural and multi-lingual. Though the rich Arunachal University) was laid on assemblage of myriad and lan- 4th February 1984 by Late Smt. Indi- guages of the state has attracted scholars ra Gandhi, the then Prime Minister and academics over the decades, very National Online Seminar little headway has been made in the pres- of . June 15 - 16, 2020 ervation, promotion and projection of their The University is located atop treasured cultural heritage, incredible in- Rono Hills on a picturesque table- Endangered Languages digenous knowledge system etc. land of 302 acres overlooking the of Realizing the great responsibility river Dikrong. The University was cast upon the University, the Center for Trib- converted into a Central University al Studies was established with the man- date to run a regular M.Phil programme in with effect from 9th April 2007 as per addition to research programmes. notification of Ministry of Human Re- Prof. Tamo Mibang, who joined the Univer- source Development, Government sity, in the capacity as the Head of the De- of India. Since then Rajiv Gandhi partment of Tribal Studies on 18th August University (Formerly Arunachal Uni- 1995, initiated the activities of the Depart- versity) has carved a niche for itself ment. Thus, the Department came into ex- istence on 18th August 1995. in the educational scenario of the Since then,the department has un- country. The University has contin- dertaken many programmes to preserve, uously maintained its premier sta- promote, project ans sustain the rich her- tus among top hundred (100) edu- itage indigenous knowledge system, es- cational institutions in NIRF ranking pecially in the area of ethno medicine, across India. ethno music, performing arts, language, folklore, handicrafts, educating process, Organised by University has Nine (09) Ac- management of forest resources and eco- ademic Faculties running Twenty Centre for Endangered Languages, system etc. that are declining and decay- six(26) Departments and Two (02) Arunachal Institute of Tribal Studies ing due to the onslaught of modernization Institutes. Rajiv Gandhi University, and alien influence. CENTRE FOR ENDANGERED LANGUAGES The Centre for Endangered Languages PATRONS (CFEL), Rajiv Gandhi University (RGU), is a University Grant Commission sponsored Center. The Center has been actively func- CHIEF PATRON tioning since 2016. The CFEL, RGU is multidis- ciplinary in nature and the research team comprises of scholars from , an- thropology, folklore, tribal studies and mass communication. Presently, the Center is focusing on field survey, documentation, analysis and dissemination of the critically and lesser known endangered languages of Arunachal Pradesh. It is also studying the speech communities in their socio-cultural context. The Center has successfully car- Prof. Amitava Mitra ried out several field studies and documen- Pro Vice-Chancellor, RGU tations among these communities and also successfully conducted several workshops with the native speakers in order to doc- ument the language, folklore and . PROF. Saket Khushwaha So far two comprehensive monographs Vice-Chancellor, RGU on lesser-known languages (Tangam and Kasik/Khapa) have been produced by the Center and it is in the process of pub- lication. The Center has also produced an award winning Documentary Film Ngok Miri Dekke Yoyo-Gaga Goktuanam Kiding (Those songs & lullabies I used to sing). Pres- ently, the Center is working on a few lesser known languages of Arunachal Pradesh Prof. Tomo Riba and also producing short films and mono- Registrar, RGU graphs of these speech communities. Concept Note: Northeast Indian states consist of Arunachal Pradesh, , , Mode of Delivery: , , , and . Northeast India as a whole is immensely variant and rich when it comes to ethno linguistics. Live web session through Language families like Sino-Tibetan, Indo-Aryan and Austroasiatic are the main language groups present in the region. Approximately, the existence of about 220 languages is acknowledged in the Northeast. However, the CISCO WEBEX numbers could be more since the region has not been explored or docu- mented extensively till now. Within the past few years, many linguists have worked on documenting the languages spoken in Northeast and the re- searches being carried out have unearthed many more linguistic phylum Important Note: and dialectal variations. The information on the status of numerous lesser - The registration process will re- known and endangered languages of the region also came to the notice main open from of researchers. In fact, many languages are on the verge of disappearing soon and if the process of documenting the depleting languages and the 8th to 13th June, 2020. dying cultural practices are not taken up urgently the Northeast region will lose vital worldviews of various indigenous communities as well as their - There is no registration fee. identities. - Registration on First come basis. The recent acceleration of technological change, including internet developments, mobile technologies, economic migration, to cite a few examples, result in the depletion of many languages in the region. This proved to create a renewed and even stronger interest in the linguistic potential to document the languages and contribute in maintenance and preservation of endangered languages of Northeast. This is in con- junction with the interest generated by the multiple researches undertak- For registration, en by institutes within the Northeast; the seminar aims to focus on all as- please click on the given link: pects of the description, documentation, and decipherment of texts of endangered languages and ethnolinguistics. Papers are invited on the https://forms.gle/467gKzbgFxy51F5z7 documentation, revitalization efforts and description of the endangered languages of Northeast India. Inaugural Session

Day 1: 15th June, 2020

09:00 am – 10:00 am Registration Inaugural Session Keynote speaker host: Kaling Dabi, SRF, CFEL, RGU Dr. Pauthang Haokip 10:00 am – 10:10 am Welcome Address Chairman, Prof. Simon John, Coordinator, CFEL Centre for Linguistics, JNU & Director, AITS, RGU

10:10 am – 10:20 am Address by the Patron Organizing Committee Prof. Tomo Riba Prof. S.Simon John Registrar, RGU RGU Prof. Jumyir Basar Ms. Zilpha Modi Dr. Tarun Mene 10:20 am – 10:30 am Address by the Patron Dr. Wanglit Mongchan Prof. Amitava Mitra Dr. Lienjang Zeite Pro Vice-Chancellor, RGU Dr. Mechek Sampar Awan Programme Director: 10:30 am – 11:00 am Keynote Address Prof. S. Simon John Dr. Pauthang Haokip Coordinators: Chairman, Centre for Linguistics, JNU Dr. Lienjang Zeite & Topic: “Endangered languages of Northeast Dr. Mechek Sampar Awan India with special reference to Tibeto-Burman Technical team: languages”. Kombong Darang Jason Padung 11:00 am – 11:10 am Address by the Chief Patron Kaling Dabi & VSAT Prof. Saket Khushwaha Rapporteurs: Hon’ble Vice-Chancellor, RGU Dr. Abang Pertin Yora Bathey 11:10 am – 11:20 am Vote of thanks Saheli Chakraborty Dr. Wanglit Mongchan For communications please send your mails to the following email address Assistant Professor, AITS [email protected] / [email protected] Programme Schedule Day 1: 15th June, 2020 Session 1 Chairperson: Prof. Jumyir Basar, AITS, Rajiv Gandhi University Time Name Affiliation Title of the paper 11:20 am-11:50 am Dr. Samar Sinha Coordinator, CFEL, Sikkim Native speakers among grammarian, surveyors and docu- University mentary linguists 11:50 am-12:20 pm Prof. Kh. Dhiren Singha Linguistics Dept., Assam Personal Pronoun in Dimasa: A Morpho-phonological study & Dibyajyoti Barman University 12:20 am-12:50 pm Dr. Monali Longmailai EFL, Tezpur University Affixation in Kuki-Chin Languges with reference to Biate, Khelma and Hrongkhol 12:50 pm-1:20 pm Dr. Mary Kim Haokip Linguistics Dept., Assam Role of Folklore in Language Preservation with reference to & Pranjit Dewri University Community

*1:20 pm – 2:00 pm Lunch Break Session 2 Chairperson: Dr. Pauthang Haokip, Chairman, Centre for Linguistics, JNU Time Name Affiliation Title of the paper 2: 00 pm-2:30 pm Pangersenla Walling Linguistics Dept., Naga- A Comparative study on the core case marking land University of standard Konyak and Tobu Konyaik. & Nikay Besa 2:30 pm- 3:00 pm Dr. Hima S. CFEL, Sikkim University A descriptive analysis of nominalization in Rokdung 3:00 pm-3:30 pm Dr. Biman Debbarma Linguistics Dept., Tripura Pronouns in Korbong University 3:30 pm -4:00 pm Aheibam Linthoigambi Linguistics Dept., Assam Gender in Lairamlo Chanu University Programme Schedule Day 2: 16th June, 2020 Session 3 Chairperson: Dr. Samar Sinha, Coordinator, CFEL, Sikkim University Time Name Affiliation Title of the paper 10:00 am - 10:30 am Dr. Charengna Widinibou CFEL, Tezpur University Prenasalized Consonants of Zeliangrong 10:30 am – 11:00 am Thaodem Romen Meitei & Linguistics Dept., Manipur Comparative syllable structure of Tangkhul Dialects: Sikibung, Thawai Dr. Guigongpou Gonmei University and T. M. Kasom

11: 00 am-11: 30am Jonali Saikia & Linguistics Dept., Assam Importance of language documentation for Language Existence and Use: Dr. Mary Kim Hoakip University A case study of Chakma 11:30 am-12:00 pm Reena Rai CFEL, Sikkim University A case of affirmative argument indexation in Kulung. 12:00 am-12:30 am Dr. Mechek Sampar Awan CFEL, AITS, Rajiv Gand- Segmental Phonemes of Ollo hi University *12:30 pm – 1:30 pm lunch Break Session 4 Chairperson: Prof. Dhiren Singha, Linguistics Department, Assam University Time Name Affiliation Title of the paper 1:30 pm – 2:00 pm Dr. T. Temsunungsang & Prof. EFLU, Shillong Issues of Development: case studies from Na- Alexander R. Coupe galand 2:00 pm – 2:30 pm Rinkimoni Rabha & Dibyajyoti Linguistics Dept., Assam University Consonant Phonemes of Mangar Barman 2:30 pm – 3:00 pm Bishnu Lal Bhujel CFEL, Sikkim University Kharpa Script and Orthography 3:00 pm – 3:30 pm Letkhosie Seiboy Touthang & Linguistics Dept., Manipur University Compounding in Gangte Dr. H. Surmangol Sharma 3:30 pm – 4:00 pm Prof. KC Mishra Dept. of English, Rajiv Gandhi Univer- Circumveting Language Endangerment the Classroom Way sity *4:00 pm – 4:30 pm Valedictory Session Selected Abstracts

Native Speaker among grammarian, surveyors and documentary linguists Mr. Samar Sinha [email protected] Sikkim University

Abstract The concept of native speaker is a central pawn in linguistics since its introduction by Bloomfied (1933: 43). The notion of native speaker primarily describes the relationship between speakers and languages; and in turn, community and language. However, the very notion of native speaker is not free of multiple interpre- tations - from a layman speaker to a mythical speaker of a language. On one hand, it essentially represents a social construct that linguistic identity is inherited since birth. On the other hand, it is the role that an individual receives on account of acquisition of linguistic knowledge. It is primarily concerned only with the scientific construction of our representations of linguistic realities. In the tradition of , following abstraction and idealisation, an ideal native speaker lives in a homogeneous speech community; and the native speaker is a realisation of linguistic competence. In both the approaches, the native speaker is authenticated as the only true and reliable source of language data’ (see Ferguson 1983). On account of the native speaker’s intuition, it is his/her idiolect that is assumed to a true reflection of a community’s linguistic knowledge which equates with the Saussurean langue — a cognitive system in the individual and a so- cial institution in the community. This paper explores the notion of native speaker in the colonial period in India primarily retrospecting the various grammatical works. Further, it also explores the notion in the current context of language endangerment and documentation.

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Personal Pronoun in Dimasa: A Morpho-phonological Study Kh. Dhiren Singha [email protected] & Kh. Dibyajyoti Barman [email protected] Assam University, Silchar Abstract It is one of the colourful of Northeast India struggling to protect and preserve their language, culture and identity. Dimasa is the name of the language and people. Ethnically, the Dimasas are mongoloids and their language belongs to the Bodo-Konyak-Jinghpaw group of the Tibeto-Burman (Burl- ing, 2003). Due to contact with other Indo-Aryan languages, they borrowed some Indo-Aryan lexical items. As per census of India 2011 the total of Dimasa was 1,33,327. Personal pronouns in Dimasa are the sub-classes of noun. Nevertheless, they are distinguished from nouns by the criterion of person i.e., personal pronouns can be used in all three persons whereas nouns are always used in third person. Unlike nouns, attributive noun modifiers cannot modify Dimasa personal pronouns. Like many other Tibeto-Burman languages, Dimasa lacks the gender distinction in case of personal pronouns however, the singular-non-singular distinction is present in Dimasa personal pronouns. Personal singular non-singular

pronouns 1st person aŋ zuŋ 2nd person nuŋ ni-si 3rd person bo bun-si In Dimasa all the singular personal pronoun are monosyllabic. The first person pronominal plural is suppletive form as such zuŋ. However the second and third person pronominal plural are non-suppletive form and the suffix -si is used to pluralize the personal pronoun. The pluralization process of first person pronoun is not made by affixation as many other Tibeto-Burman languages do namely Manipuri, Karbi, Rongmei, etc. and thus the suppletive feature contributes to form one of the typological feature of Bodo-Garo languages. The present paper is an attempt, to describe the morpho- of the personal pronoun in Dimasa. Key words: Dimasa, Personal Pronoun.

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Affixation in Kuki-Chin languages with reference to Biate, Khelma and Hrangkhol Monali Longmailai [email protected] Centre for Endangered Languages Tezpur University

Abstract Biate, Khelma and Hrangkhol are cognate languages belonging to the Central Kuki sub-group of the Tibeto-Burman language family. These are also neighbouring languages spoken majorly in the of Assam, in northeast India. According to their degree of endangerment, these three languages are vulner- ably endangered. Typologically, Biate, Khelma and Hrangkhol are tonal (contour tones), both agglutinating and inflecting (person and number agreements with subject), and have both SOV (basic word order) and OSV word orders (only for pronominal subjects). To further add, they are highly rich in affixation as prefixes and suffixes with nouns and verbs due to the relatively high index of synthesis and fusion, because of which, they are both agglutinating and inflecting. Several of their noun and verb bases have bound roots that are productively used with prefixes mostly. However, they have merged diachronically as one word, as shown in bold and illustrated here: irdai ‘play’ in Biate and Hrangkhol, and andai in Khelma. This paper, thus, attempts to identify the irregular occurrence of the affixing characteristics in some of these bases across Biate, Khelma and Hrangkhol, and discuss, thereby, their derivational and inflectional properties in such word formations in these languages. Role of Folklore in Language Preservation with reference to Tiwa Community Dr. D. Mary Kim Haokip [email protected] & Pranjit Dewri [email protected] Department of Linguistics Assam University, Silchar Abstract The aim of the paper is to discuss the role of folklore in preserving language with special reference to Tiwa. The paper also aims to find out as to how language and culture can be preserved using different methods of archiving. It also seeks to identify the issues and problems relating to the preservation of the and culture. Tiwa is an indigenous tribal community settled mainly in the states of Assam and Meghalaya in the northeastern part of India. In Assam, Tiwas are found in Karbi Anglong, Nagaon, Morigaon, and Kamrup districts and in Meghalaya, they are concentrated in the Ri-bhoi district. According to the 2011 census, the total population of Tiwa community was 3,71,000 and out of the total population only 31,421 can speak the language. Linguistically, Tiwa, also known as ‘Lalung’ is a Bodo- belonging to the Tibeto-Burman sub group of the Sino-Tibetan language family. As per the UNESCO report (2003), Tiwa is one of the endangered languages of the North-East India. Tiwa community is very rich in traditional cultures, festivals, dresses, songs, dances etc. They have different festivals for different occasions and each of the festivals songs and dances are different from the others. The Tiwa community has two identities, one is based on Family identity and the other is based on place identity. Family identity is known as ‘khul’ and the Place identity is known as ‘Phoid’. During festivals or any cul- tural rituals, there are some rules and regulations where these identities play a very active role while performing the rituals. As Tiwa has no script, it still remains an oral language and therefore their rich folklore and cultural heritage is transmitted orally to the next generation. Therefore, oral tradition and folklore continue to play a significant role in the preservation of their language and culture. However, with the advancement of technology and modernisation, the rich folklore is facing a serious threat leading to endangerment of their culture and language. In this connection, the paper will discuss the role of the rich folklore of the Tiwas in the preservation of their language and also highlight the ways to preserve and archive this rich cultural heritage before they face extinction. Key words: Tiwa, Folklore, Identity, Language documentation ...... A comparative study on the core case marking of Standard Konyak and Tobu Konyak Pangersenla Walling & Nikay Besa Department of Linguistics Nagaland University Abstract This paper is an attempt to investigate and compare the core case markers of two varieties of Konyak: standard Konyak and Tobu Konyak. These two varieties are mutually unintelligible. A Tibeto-Burman language, Konyak is primarily spoken in the north eastern state of Mon district of Nagaland, India. Though the standard Konyak and Tobu Konyak share some grammatical feature they have some evident differences in case marking between them. Case is a category of marking dependent noun phrases for the type of relationship they bear to their heads. The three phenomena that are clearly determined by case functions in many languages are explored: phonological realization, selection, and agreement. There are three core case markers of the subject in standard Konyak, the occurrence in a sentence appears to be highly influenced by the subject. The case marking system is clear nominative accusative, while the Tobu variety of Konyak appears to be an ergative absolutive language. This paper will be an attempt to discuss the typological perspective of case such as the semantic function of cases focusing on split- ergative pattern and accusative patterns. It aims to explain the why there are difference of core case marking in the varieties of Konyak. This paper will also throws some light to show how varieties of one language may be considered mutual intelligibility or non-mutual intelligibility, and this classification is based on the percentage of convergence and divergence among them......

A Descriptive Analysis of Nominalisation in Rokdung Ms. Hima S [email protected] Sikkim University Abstract It is a well-attested fact that the Tibeto-Burman nominalizer performs various functions including but not limited to (Verbal) complementation, Nominal com- plementation, Converbal clauses, Relative (or participial) clauses, Non-embedded independent clauses, purpose clause, relative and non-relative attributives, adjectives, expression of the semantic predicate in verbal periphrasis etc. (See Noonan 1997 and Genetti et. al 2007 a.o.). This paper deals with the different nominalizers and the phenomenon of nominalisation in Rai-Rokdung, a critically endangered Tibeto-Burman language spoken by about 20 people in Rolep vil- lage in East Sikkim, and attempts to describe and analyse nominalisation in a way as to account for the different functions of the nominaliser -ko. -ko is used as a nominalizer (1), relativizer (2), and also to mark what seems to be definiteness on demonstratives and wh-words (3). However, surprisingly it is used for marking what looks like perfect tense (4): (1) muks-om ɦuŋ-ma-ko om-nə-tsʰək 3S-GEN wear-INF-NOMR white-DUR-IMPF His/her shirt is white. (2) mu-pi oŋ-na-tsʰək-ko oŋmit tsʰa-a set-o DIST-LOC burn-DUR-IMPF-NOMR lamp child-ERG kill-PRF? The child extinguished the lamp that was burning there. (3) i-ko sak-ko PROX-NOMR who-NOMR Who is this? (4) ikʰa-tse-m kama ɦi-ja-ko man-tsʰi PROX-PL-GEN work finish-PST-NOMR NEG-AUX ‘Their work had not finished.’

This paper examines the different functions of -ko and thereby its morphosyntactic identity in the context of Tibeto-Burman in general and other nearby Hima- layan languages in particular. Pronouns in Korbong Biman Debbarma [email protected] Tripura University Abstract Korbong is critically an endangered, undocumented and is threatened by its extinction. Korbongs are one of the smallest and lesser known spoken in the state of Tripura which is estimated around 110 speakers. The language belongs to Kuki-Chin sub group of Tibeto-Burman language family but none of the scholars has mentioned about the position of Korbong in any sub-grouping of TB languages. The present paper aims to describe the pronouns found in Korbong. The pro- nouns found in Korbong include (i) Personal pronouns, (ii) Demonstrative pronouns, (iii) Interrogative pronouns; and (iv) Reflexive pronouns; and (v) Indefinite pronouns. Korbong lacks gender distinction in personal pronouns. Thus the word ama is a genderless distinction which indicates both for ‘he’ or ‘she’. Although Korbong lacks gender distinctions but the presence of singular-plural distinctions are found in personal pronoun. Like other Kuki-Chin languages, Korbong has exclusive-inclusive distinctions only in the first person plural form as kaŋni ‘we’ (exclusive) and ǝini ‘we’ (inclusive). However, the first person singular form lacks exclusive-inclusive distinctions. Korbong demonstrative is formed by the proximate determiner hi- ‘this’ and distal determiner u- ‘that’ to the demonstrative root ma such as hi-ma ‘this’ and u-ma ‘that’. Korbong has both basic and derived interrogative pronouns. Most of the interrogative pronouns in the language are derived from the basic ones by adding various aspectual markers. In Korbong, reflexive pronoun is formed by the morpheme tak-tak ‘self’ (body-body) suffixing to the personal pronominal prefix and followed by the corresponding personal pronouns in a phrase or a sentence. The indefinite pronouns found in Korbongs do not have distinct form like English and other Indo-European languages. The indefinite pronouns are usually formed by means of suffixation to the lexical items in Korbong. Key words: Kuki-Chin, personal pronouns, demonstrative pronouns, interrogative pronouns, reflexive pronouns, indefinite pronouns......

Gender in Lairamlo Aheibam Linthoingambi Chanu [email protected] Assam University, Silchar Abstract Lairamlo is one of the dialects of Tangkhul, mainly spoken by the Ringpam people in Ringpam or Momlo Ringpam village in the Machi sub-division of Chandel District of Manipur, which have 540 (approximately) speakers. The term Ringpam is a compound word ring ‘alive’ and pam ‘land’ which literally means ‘living land’. Tangkhul belongs to the Kuki-Chin-Naga sub-group of Tibeto-Burman family (Grierson’s LSI, 1903). There is no grammatical gender in Lairamlo. It has natural gender i.e., gender is determined on the recognition of natural sex. The suffix /-pe/ /-nuŋ/ and /-pʉ/ is used to indicate male and female irrespective of hu- man or non-human and inanimate there is no gender distinction found in the dialect. However, in the case of some hen, opposite words are used to express male and female for examples: /opre/ ‘cock’, /opiyu/ ‘hen’. Some lexical items are attested in the language, which is inherently denoting masculine and feminine gender for example /aphaŋ/ ‘uncle’ and /ano/ ‘aunt’. The present paper attempts to describe gender marking systems in Lairamlo. The data are collected from Ringpam village Chandel District of Manipur, through questionnaire and interview method. Key words: Lairamlo, Gender, Chandel, Ringpam, Manipur, Tibeto-Burman, Kuki-Chin-Naga. Prenasalized Consonants of Zeliangrong Charengna Widinibou [email protected] Centre for Endangered Languages, Tezpur University Abstract This paper presents the phonological representation of prenasalized in Zeme, Liangmai and Rongmei, a Tibeto-Burman language spoken in Assam, Manipur and Nagaland in Northeast India. Structurally, Zeme, Rongmei and Liangmai languages have close similarities in case of phonology, and syntactical lev- els. Linguistically very little work has been done on these languages. This is the first paper intends to make a comparative study of the sister languages of Zeme, Liangmai and Rongmei on prenasalized consonants. The prenasalized onset is very common in these languages which occur in every consonantal phoneme. The paper attempts to highlight the revisits the topic of prenasals which has been controversial due to the existence of two contrasting views. One view is that the pre- nasals form a single phoneme, and the second view is that they function as initial consonant cluster. It must be mentioned that the Handbook of the International Phonetic Association does not refer to any prenasalized consonants. Key word: Prenasalized Consonants

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Comparative Syllable Structure of Tangkhul dialects: Sikibung, Thawai and T.M Kasom Thaodem Romen Meitei & Dr. Guigongpou Gonmei Manipur University

Abstract Tangkhul are major naga living in the Indo-Burma border area occupying the Ukhrul district in Manipur, India. It consists of many dialects. Each village has its own dialect named after the village. The intelligibility among the village dialects varies according to distance between them. Further the village, lesser is the intelligibility. Therefore the paper will focus on syllable structure of them. Syllable is an indispensible part in phonological analysis. As phonological processes is within syllables and across syllable boundaries. The law of syllable is associated with phonotactics sequence of words and agrees with the accept- able sequence of words in a language. The framework used in this article is the Optimality Theory (hence OT), first proposed by Prince and Smolensky (1993) and elaborated later by McCarthy and Prince (1993a, b, 1995, and 1999). In the framework of optimality theory, the paper will examine the syllabic structure of Tangkhul dialects i.e. Sikibung, Thawai and T.M Kasom Tangkhul which are Tibeto-Burman dialects spoken in Manipur, India. In this area a limited number of literatures have been produced. A little literature regarding the language is found. Keeping this view a modest attempt is ready to reconstruct the proto-syllabic structure of these three dialects. Importance of Language Documentation for Language Existence and Use: A Case Study of Chakma Jonali Saikia [email protected] & Dr D. Mary Kim Haokip [email protected] Department of Linguistics, Assam University, Silchar Abstract The main aim of the paper is to investigate the importance of language documentation for language existence and use with special reference to the Chakma community. This paper also aims to examine how the Chakma community faces the challenges of modernization and try to retain their indigenous way of living based on their customs, traditions, taboos and rituals in spite of the winds of change that have intruded into their lives. As Nikolaus P. Himmelmann defines a language documentation is a lasting, multipurpose record of a language. The Chakma community also need language documentation for the sake of future gen- erations to show their rich cultural heritage. Chakma is an indigenous ethno-linguistic group mostly found in Hill Tracts of , Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura, Assam, Mizoram, Meghalaya and West of India and in some parts of Burma. The total population of Chakmas in India according to the 2011 census was 2,26,860 persons, with 96,972 persons in Mizoram, 79,813 in Tripura, 2,032 in Assam, 466 in West Bengal, 106 in Meghalaya and 47,471 in Arunachal Pradesh. The have resemblance with the Tibeto-Burman group but they speak a kind of an Indo-Aryan language, which they call . They are Mongoloid by race. The present study is based on fieldwork conducted in Papumpare district of Arunachal Pradesh, India. As we all know that, globalization is the process of interaction and integration among the people worldwide. In other words, with the increased global interactions results the growth of international trade, ideas, and culture. The process of globalization creates opportunity for the people to integrate their culture with the modern life style of the developed areas. Due to globalization process the indigenous communities get the opportunity to integrate their culture, beliefs, customs and other traditions with the modern of the world. Like other indigenous communities, the Chakmas also have their own unique way of life, rich culture and folk literature consisting of myths, legends, tales, music, oral history, popular beliefs and customs. However, the advent of globalization has already made a significant impact on their folk life and culture. Globalization has also affected the rich tradition or cultural heritage of the Chakmas and therefore there is an urgent need for effective preservation of this rich tradition and culture and of the tribe. Key words: Chakma, language documentation, language existence and use, globalization ...... A case of affirmative argument indexation in Kulung Ms. Reena Rai [email protected] Sikkim University Abstract Kulung (exonym) or Kuluring (endonym) is a sept belonging to the Rai community with a distinct linguistic and socio-cultural practices. Kulung, a central Kiranti group in the Himalayan branch of the Trans-Himalayan language family, is spoken in the eastern region of and in Sikkim, India; it is one of the endangered languages in both these countries. Typologically, Kulung is ergative-absolutive case marking language with past vs. non-past tense distinction, and traditionally labelled as a ‘pronominalising’ language. Rai (2012, 2015, 2016a, 2016b, 2018, 2081b, 2019, 2019b, 2020), based on the fieldworks in Sikkim, finds three way distinction in person and number; two markers for clusivity; and the absence of morphological marker to indicate gender in Kulung. In the argument indexation system, the argument indexation paradigm shows a difference with respect to tense, affirmative, number, clusivity, and subject-object asymmetry in indexation. The dual form irrespective of subject or object is [-cɨ] in non-third person; [-cu] is a portmanteau of dual and third person. Similarly, clusivity is indexed either of the subject or the object argument. First person and its number is compulsorily marked either in person or number, and number is prominently marked of the first person over the non-first person. This paper provides an account of the Kulung argument indexation system in detail particularly of the affirmative in past and nonpast paradigm highlighting the phi-feature hierarchy for argument indexation. Key words: Kulung, Sikkim, phi-feature, clusivity, argument indexation

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Segmental Phonemes of Ollo Dr. Mechek Sampar Awan [email protected] Centre for Endangered Languages, Rajiv Gandhi University, Doimukh

Abstract Ollo is an endangered Tibeto-Burman language spoken by Ollo people in North East Frontier Area of Arunachal Pradesh, India. Ollo also has speakers in Myan- mar. In India, Ollo native speakers have settlements in Khonsa, of Arunachal Pradesh. There are 19 Ollo villages viz. Lazu, Lonyan, Noglo, Upper Chinhan, Lower Chinhan, New Kothung, Old Kothung, Basap Sinu, Raho, Longliang, Liangchen, Pongkong, Sanliom, Lonbow, Upper Kollom, Lower Kollom, Tutnyu, Thunjeng and Nokna . Out of the total 19 villages, Lazu Village has the biggest number of Ollo native speakers. Total population of Ollo native speakers in India is 9754 only (Primary Health Centre, Lazu: 2019). The present paper attempts to describe the segmental phonemes of Ollo language spoken in Lazu Vil- lage. It discusses the identification and distribution of consonant, vowel and diphthong sounds of this language. The methodology of this research is a descriptive method based on the fieldwork conducted in 28th January to 7th February, 2020 at Lazu village, Khonsa of Tirap District, Arunachal Pradesh undertaken by the Centre for Endangered Languages, Rajiv Gandhi University. Key words: Segmental Phonemes, Ollo, Tibeto-Burman, Language, Endangered language Issues in Orthography Development: Case Studies from Nagaland T. Temsunungsang [email protected] The English and Foreign Languages University Shillong Campus & Alexander R. Coupe Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Abstract Like most languages of North East India, the languages spoken in Nagaland are considered to be endangered at different levels. An important step in extending the life of an endangered language is to give its speech community the means of writing. In North East India, the introduction and development of for unwritten languages has historically been under the purview of missionaries. However, many such attempts at reducing oral languages to writing fell well short of satisfactory as it was not linguistically sound. In the development of an effective orthography, there are a number of features which must be followed. It must be linguistically sound, it must be socially and politically acceptable and importantly, it must be usable. In this paper, we discuss some of the issues in orthogra- phy development that was encountered in the dictionary workshops conducted in three communities: Pathso Khiamniungan (2017), Khensa Mongsen (2018) and Yimchungru (2019) in Nagaland...... Consonant Phonemes of Mangar Rinkimoni Rabha [email protected] & Kh.Dibyajyoti Barman [email protected] Assam University Abstract Mangar is the name of the language and people. It is spoken in Sikkim and in its neighbouring country called Nepal. Grierson in his linguistic survey of India Vol.3 (part1) classified Mangar under Non-Pronominalized Himalayan sub group of Tibeto-Himalayan Branch of Tibeto-Burman Language Family. Mangar has its own script called Akharika, which is developed by their literacy society in 2002. However they do not have healthy written literature and their literature remain oral till date. More specifically, they have rich folk and literature and it has been transmitted from generation to generation. Mangar has language contact with In- do-Aryan Languages, namely Nepali and . Therefore, their language is influence by the Indo- Aryan Languages. Nevertheless, Mangar people have positive attitude towards their mother tongue and they maintain their Language at home domains. According to census of India (2001), the total population of Mangar was below 10,000. As per the preliminary study based on the data collected from West Sikkim district of Sikkim State, It is realized that the Mangar Language has 17 consonant, and on the basis of place of articulation the phonemes are bilabial, alveolar, palatal, velar, glottal and on the basis of manner of articulation they are plosive, nasal, fricative, trill, lateral and semi-vowel. Aspiration is not phonemic in Mangar. The present paper is an attempt to describe the consonant phonemes of Mangar, and its various positions in which the consonant phonemes of the language occur, based on the syllable of the words. Key words: Mangar, Phonemes, Consonant combination. Kharpa Script and Orthography Bishnu Lal Bhujel [email protected] Sikkim University Abstract Bhujel is one of the communitiesalong the sub-Himalayan belt of India, Nepal, and Burma. Apart from Nepal; in India, they have been living in Sikkim, Darjeeling, Assam, and in others parts of the country since time immemorial. Theycall their languagePuhɡal Ngur (endonym), and Bhujel is its exonym. Regmi (2012) have categorised Bhujel under the Central Himalayish subgroup of the Bodish-Himalayish group of the Tibeto-Burman language family. Bhujel is one of the endangered languages of India and Nepal. Prior to the People’s Linguistic Survey of India (see Bhujel 2018), there is no mention of in the official records of Sikkim. However, along with the social, cultural and political assertions, there is a growing concern about the language revival among the community members in India (Bhujel 2016). Script does play a defining role in the contemporary context of digitalisation. Importantly, script has emerged as an important tool fordistinct identity and as a fuel for further language revitalisation in the context of Sikkim. In the course of language revitalisation, Bhujel has developed its own script called Kharpa script, which is based on the Bhujel sound system. The Kharpa script has 29 consonants, 6 vowels along with its diacritics and numerals. Although the Kharpa is non-UNICODE, its font is based on the ASCII encoding scheme and has designed a keyboard layout based on the QWERTY scheme. This paper describes the role of the script in the Bhujel language revitalization in Sikkim, and the conceptual and practical issues regarding the Kharpa script, orthography and its technical implementations.

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Compounding in Gangte Letkhosei Seiboy Touthang [email protected] & H. Surmangol Sharma [email protected] Department of Linguistics Manipur University

Abstract This paper aims to discuss Compounding in Gangte, one of the northern sub-group of the Kuki-Chin languages (Thurgood 2003) spoken mainly in the North-east- ern part of India, particularly in the States of Manipur, Nagaland, and Mizoram. As per the survey of 2011, Gangte has approximately 21,813 speakers. This paper discusses Compound words in Gangte i.e, endocentric, exocentric and conjuctive compounds. Gangte Compounds may be right-headed or left-headed depending on the nature of the constituent elements. The study is oriented on semantic as well as syntactic and formal grounds. Key words: Compounding, Gangte, Kuki-Chin