language family From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Ryūkyūan languages (Okinawan: 琉球口, Duuchuuguchi) are a group of Japonic languages spoken in the Ryūkyū Islands, the southernmost part of Japan. The languages are Amami, Kunigami, Okinawan, Miyako, Yaeyama and Yonaguni.
Ryukyuan | |
---|---|
Ethnicity: | Ryukyuan people |
Geographic distribution: | Ryukyu Islands (Okinawa Prefecture, Amami Islands of Kagoshima Prefecture) |
Linguistic classification: | Japonic
|
Subdivisions: | |
Location of Ryukyu Islands |
Although Japan says the Ryukyuan languages are dialects of Japanese, most linguists see them as languages. This is because Japanese speakers would not be able to understand Ryukyuan without learning it.[1]
In the past, the Ryukyuan languages were spoken all over Ryukyu, but due to the languages being discriminated against, most Ryukyuans now speak Japanese.[2]
When a group people called the Yayoi came to Japan, they brought over a language called Proto-Japonic. This language diverged into Japanese and Ryukyuan over time.
Japanese and Ryukyuan have different sound changes. For example, Japanese “o” becomes Okinawan “u”. This is why the Japanese word “to” (and) is “tu” in Okinawan.
It’s also common for Japanese “k” to become Okinawan “ch”. This causes “Okinawa” to become “Uchinaa”.
In the Yonaguni language, Japanese “y” becomes “d”. Japanese “yama” (mountain) is “dama” in Yonaguni.
Most older Ryukyuans can speak a Ryukyuan language, while younger people speak Japanese. Ryukyuan languages are also spoken in Hawaii and South America as many Ryukyuans live there too.
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Every time you click a link to Wikipedia, Wiktionary or Wikiquote in your browser's search results, it will show the modern Wikiwand interface.
Wikiwand extension is a five stars, simple, with minimum permission required to keep your browsing private, safe and transparent.