Bwe Karen language

Bwe
Bghai
Native toBurma
EthnicityBwe people
Native speakers
(17,000 cited 1997)
Language codes
ISO 639-3bwe
Glottologbwek1238

Bwe, also known as Bwe Karen and Bghai (Baghi), is a Karen language of Burma. It shares 82 to 100% lexical similarity with Geba Karen language.

Distribution

Dialects

Dialects are Western Bwe Karen and Eastern Bwe Karen. Most comprehend the Western Bwe Karen dialect.

Phonology

Consonants
Labial Dental Palatal Velar Glottal
Plosive p b t d c ɟ k g (ʔ)
Aspirated pʰ tʰ (cʰ) kʰ
Implosive ɓ ɗ
Fricative θ ʃ x h
Nasal m n
Approximant w ˀw l r j ˀj ɰ
Vowels
Front Central Back
High i u
Near-high ɪ ʊ
Mid-high e (ə) o
Mid-low ɛ ɔ
Low a

Bwe Karen also has three tones; high, mid, and low.

References

  1. ↑ Bwe at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Myanmar". Ethnologue: Languages of the World. 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-10-10.
  3. 1 2 3 Namkung, Ju (1996). Matisoff, James A. (ed.). "Phonological Inventories of Tibeto-Burman Languages" (PDF). Sino-Tibetan Etymological Dictionary and Thesaurus Monograph Series (3). University of California, Berkeley.