Page Type: languageMaonan | Ethnologue

MMD ISO 639-3

Maonan

A language of China

ISO 639
mmd
Alternate Names
Ai Nan
Population
30,000 (GXLOUS 2005), decreasing. A few thousand women and children are monolingual. Ethnic population: 101,000 (2010 census).
Location:
Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region: Huanjiang Maonan autonomous county, Xianan area: Nandan, Yishan, and Yizhou; a few in Du’an and Hechi counties; Guizhou province: south central small border area.
Language Status
6b* (Threatened). Language of recognized nationality: Maonan.
Classification
Kra-Dai, Kam-Tai, Kam-Sui
Typology
SVO; numbers and adjectives follow nouns; reduplication; glottalized, prenasalized, palatalized, and labialized onsets; nasal and stop finals; many Chinese loans; tonal, 6 tone categories in unchecked syllables, 2 in checked (split into 4 according to vowel length).
Language Use
75% use it at home; 62% use it outside the home; 72% speak it to their children (GXLOUS 2005). Positive attitudes. Most also use Mandarin Chinese [cmn], or other local languages (GXLOUS 2005).
Language Development
Literacy rate in L2: 93% (2000 census, Manon nationality). Taught in primary schools. Radio. Grammar.
Language Resources
OLAC resources in and about Maonan
Writing
Han script, Simplified variant [Hans]. Han script, Traditional variant [Hant]. Latin script [Latn], primary usage.
Other Comments
Daoist, Christian.

Also Spoken in

Map

Location: Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region: Huanjiang Maonan autonomous county, Xianan area: Nandan, Yishan, and Yizhou; a few in Du’an and Hechi counties; Guizhou province: south central small border area.