| Hajong | |
|---|---|
| হাজং | |
 | |
| Pronunciation | [ha.dʑɔŋ] |
| Native to | India andBangladesh |
| Region | Meghalaya,Assam,Mizoram,Arunachal Pradesh andWest Bengal in IndiaMymensingh,Sherpur,Netrokona andSunamganj in Bangladesh |
| Ethnicity | Hajong |
Native speakers | 80,000 (2011)[1] 8,000 in Bangladesh (no date)[1] |
| Dialects |
|
| Bengali-Assamese script,Latin script[2] | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | haj |
| Glottolog | hajo1238 |
 | |
| This article containsIPA phonetic symbols. Without properrendering support, you may seequestion marks, boxes, or other symbols instead ofUnicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, seeHelp:IPA. | |
Hajong is anIndo-Aryan language[3] with a possibleTibeto-Burman language substratum.[4][5] It is spoken by approximately 80,000 ethnicHajongs across the northeast of theIndian subcontinent, specifically in the states ofAssam,Meghalaya,Arunachal Pradesh, andWest Bengal in present-day India, and the divisions ofMymensingh andSylhet in present-dayBangladesh. It is written inBengali-Assamese script andLatin script.[2] It has manySanskritloanwords. The Hajongs originally spoke a Tibeto-Burman language, but it later mixed withAssamese andBengali.[6]
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The language now spoken by the Hajong people may be considered anIndo-Aryan language because oflanguage shift from aTibeto-Burman language.[citation needed] Old Hajong orKhati Hajong may have been related toGaro, of Tibeto-Burman origin.
The Hajong Language varies within the clans because of regional variations. There are five notable clans of the Hajong people.
The Hajong language is written by using both the Latin and the Bengali scripts.[7] Although both scripts are used in India, the Hajongs in Bangladesh expect to use the Bengali script since most education is in Bengali medium.[8] However, Hajongs living is Dhemaji and surrounding areas use Assamese script. In each script, there is one added unique symbol for the close back unrounded vowel /ɯ/. In Latin script, it is written with "w" and in the Eastern Nagari script with "অৗ" at the end of a syllable.[9]
Hajong has 23 consonant phonemes, 8 vowel phonemes, and 2 approximants that have some characteristics of consonants: /w/ and /j/ act as diphthongs. The vowel phonemes are /a/, /i/, /u/, /e/, /ɛ/, /o/, /ɔ/ and /ɯ/ (close, back, unrounded). Unlike other Indo-Aryan languages, Hajong language has only one 'i' and 'u'. It is somewhat ambiguous whether the final vowel is a phoneme or an allophone of [a] in the environment of other close vowels.[9] The extra vowel /ɯ/ does not occur in other Indo-Aryan languages but is typical for the Tibeto-Burman family.[10]Codasj andch in the final position of a syllable turns into ans sound. Hajong includes some vowel harmony and the devoicing of final consonants.[9]
| Labial | Dental, Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ŋ | ||||
| Plosive/ Affricate | voiceless | unaspirated | p | t | tɕ | k | |
| aspirated | pʰ | tʰ | tɕʰ | kʰ | |||
| voiced | unaspirated | b | d | dʑ | ɡ | ||
| aspirated | bʱ | dʱ | dʑʱ | ɡʱ | |||
| Fricative | voiceless | s | h | ||||
| voiced | (z)[a] | ||||||
| Tap | ɾ | ||||||
| Lateral | l | ||||||
| Approximant | w | j | |||||
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i⟨i⟩ | ɯ⟨w⟩,u⟨u⟩ | |
| Close-mid | e⟨ei⟩ | o⟨ou⟩ | |
| Open-mid | ɛ⟨e⟩ | ɔ⟨o⟩ | |
| Open | ä⟨a⟩ |
Vowels play an important role in changing the meaning of words and the grammatical structure of sentences. Unlike in most other Indo-Aryan languages like Assamese and Bengali, Hajong has no distinction between longer and shorter /i/ and /u/. The Assamese script lacks some vowels unique to Hajong phonology, which is gradually leading to avowel shift. Since vowels play an important role in Hajong grammar, the grammatical structure is also changing.
Hajong primarily has a canonicalword order ofsubject–object–verb, and the subject, object, and verb of a sentence appear or usually appear in that order. Hajong has a strong tendency to usepostpositions, rather thanprepositions; to placeauxiliary verbs after the action verb; to place genitive noun phrases before the possessed noun; and to have subordinators appear at the end of subordinate clauses.
Hajong is anagglutinative language in which words are often combined and compressed, and there is often no pause between words of a sentence.
Even though it is considered an Eastern Indo-Aryan language, Hajong does not conjugate verbs in the same way as Bengali or Asamiya but rather has a simplified system. The case endings in Hajong are also unique compared to other Indo-Aryan languages and may represent affinity with Tibeto-Burman languages.[12][5] The following table is taken from Phillips:[5]
| Hajong | Hajong (in IPA) | English | Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| বুৰি-ৰৗ | buri-rɯ | the old woman | unmarked |
| বুৰি-ৰৗগে | buri-rɯge | to the old woman | dative |
| বুৰি-লৗ | buri-lɯ | of the old woman | genitive |
| বুৰি নি | buri ni | to/at the old woman | locative |
| বুৰি ভায় | buri bʰaʲ | to the old woman | allative |
| বুৰি থিকি | buri t̪ʰiki | from the old woman | ablative |
| বুৰি দিঅৗ | buri diɯ | through/by the help of the old woman | instrumental |
The genitive and unmarked or accusative cases have two forms respectively; rw/ra and lw/la. For words ending with the vowels /a/, /ɛ/ and /ɔ/ it becomes ra and la and for /i/, /u/, /e/, /o/ and /ɯ/ it becomes rw and lw. The vowels /ɛ/(e) and /ɔ/(o) are used to end interrogative sentences, likeBhat khase? (have you taken your food?) andBhat khabo? (Do you want to eat?); and the vowels /e/(ei) and /o/(ou) are used at the end of declarative sentences, as inBhat khasei ([I] have taken my food.) andBhat Khabou ([I] will eat.). Adding the suffix bw or ba tointerrogative words turn them intoindefinite pronouns; for example, kibw means something, kwibw means someone, kumaba means somewhere and also kwibw, kageba, kundwbw and kalaba means 'I don't know who/whom/which/whose' respectively in English. Similarly adding the suffix ha and ga toverbs means 'come and (verb)' and 'go and (verb)' respectively; for example,khaha means come and eat,niha means come and take;khaga means go and eat andniga means go and take.
A unique feature of Hajong is the use ofhonorifics. When talking about someone superior in status, a speaker usually uses special nouns or verb endings to indicate the subject's superiority. Unlike Assamese, Bengali, Sylheti and other Indo-Aryan languages, there is no word like আপুনি/আপনি/আফনে(apuni/apni/afne) to substituteyou. Instead, Hajong has a different way to indicate supremacy of the other person. For elders and others of high ranking, people second-person and third-person pronouns are never used. One must always refer elders with their name or their honorary title. Ending words with 'ge' and 'ha' is also a form of showing respect to another person.
Phrases from theHajong – English Phrase Book:[13]
| Hajong Phrases | Hajong Latin Script | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| কুমায় জায়? | kumai jai? | Where are you going? |
| কিংকৗ আছে? | kingkw ase? | How are you? |
| তই আহিলে? ভিতুৰ ভায় আয়। | Toi ahile? Bhiturbai ai. | You came? Come inside. |
| তুলা আহাৰা ভালা হুছেই। | Tula ahara bhala husei. | It was good of you to come. |
| ভাত খাছে? | Bhat khase? | Have you eaten? |
| চা খাবো? | Cha khabo? | Will you take tea? |
| তই কুন গাওলা? | Toi kun gaola? | What village are you from? |
| মই তাঙাবাৰিলৗ। | Moi Tangabarilw. | I am from Tangabari. |
| ইলা তই কুমায় থাকে? | Ila toi kumai thake? | Now where do you live? |
| তুলা ঘৰৰা কুমায়? | Tula ghorra kumai? | Where is your house? |
| মুলা ঘৰৰা হাৱাখানানি। | Mula ghorra Hawakhanani. | My house is in Hawakhana. |
| ইদৗ অগে বুজিয়ৗ দি। | Idw oge bujyw di. | Explain this to him. |
| ইদৗনি লিখিক। | Idwni likhik. | Write it here. |
| ময় জাং। | Moy jang. | I'm going. |
| আবাৰ লাক পাবোউ। | Abar lak pabou. | We will meet again. |
[The Hajongs] speak the Hajong language, originally a Tibeto-Burman tongue that later mixed with Assamese and Bengali.