Tamang language
Sino-Tibetan dialect cluster
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Varieties
Ethnologue divides Tamang into the following distinct languages due to mutual unintelligibility with each other.
- Eastern Tamang: 759,000 in Nepal (2000 WCD). Population total all countries: 773,000. Sub-dialects are as follows.
- Outer-Eastern Tamang (Sailung Tamang)
- Central-Eastern Tamang (Temal Tamang)
- Southwestern Tamang (Kath-Bhotiya, Lama Bhote, Murmi, Rongba, Sain, Tamang Gyoi, Tamang Gyot, Tamang Lengmo, Tamang Tam)
- Western Tamang: 323,000 (2000 WCD). Sub-dialects are as follows.
- Trisuli (Nuwakot)
- Rasuwa
- Northwestern dialect of Western Tamang (Dhading) — was having separate ISO code tmk, merged with tdg in 2023. Population 55,000 (1991 census). Spoken in the central mountainous strip of Nuwakot District, Bagmati Province.
- Southwestern dialect of Western Tamang
- Eastern Gorkha Tamang: 4,000 (2000 WCD). Sub-dialects are as follows.
- Kasigaon
- Kerounja
The Tamang language is the most widely spoken Sino-Tibetan language in Nepal.
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Geographical distribution
Ethnologue gives the following location information for the varieties of Tamang.
Eastern Tamang
- Bagmati Province: Bhaktapur District, Chitwan District, Dolkha District, Kathmandu District, Kavrepalanchok District, Lalitpur District, Makwanpur District, eastern Nuwakot District, Ramechhap District, Sindhuli District and western Sindhupalchowk District
- Province No. 1: Okhaldhunga District, western Khotang District, and Udayapur District
Southwestern Tamang
- Bagmati Province: Chitwan District, southern Dhading District, western and northwestern Kathmandu District area and northwestern Makwanpur District
- Province No. 2: Bara District, Parsa District and Rautahat District
Western Tamang
- Bagmati Province: western Nuwakot District, Rasuwa District, and Dhading District
- central mountainous strip of Nuwakot District, Bagmati Province (Northwestern Tamang)
- northeastern Sindhupalchok District, Bagmati Province: Bhote Namlan, and Bhote Chaur, on Trishuli river west bank toward Budhi Gandaki river
- northwestern Makwanpur District, Bagmati Province: Phakel, Chakhel, Khulekhani, Markhu, Tistung, and Palung
- northern Kathmandu District, Bagmati Province: Jhor, Thoka, and Gagal Phedi
Eastern Tamang
- south and east of Jagat, northern Gorkha District, Gandaki Province
Grammar
Some grammatical features of the Tamang languages include:
- A canonical word order of SOV
- Use of postpositions;
- The genitives precede nouns;
- question word medial;
- It is an ergative–absolutive language;
- CV, CVC, CCV, V, CCVC;
Phonetically Tamang languages are tonal.
Phonology
Consonants
Vowels
Nasality only marginally occurs, and is typically transcribed with a mark.
Tones
Four tones occur as high falling , mid-high level , mid-low level , very low .
Writing system
Tamang language is written in prakriti.