Kunigami language

Kunigami language
Kunigami language
ヤンバルクトゥーバ
Native to	Japan
Region	Northern Okinawa
Ethnicity	Ryukyuan people
Native speakers	5,000 (2004)
Language family	Japonic Ryukyuan Northern Ryukyuan Kunigami language; ; ;
Language codes
ISO 639-3	xug

The Kunigami language (Kunigami: 山原言葉, Yanbaru kutūba) is an endangered Ryukyuan language spoken in the Kunigami area of Okinawa, Japan.^[1]

Japan calls it a dialect while most linguists put Kunigami as its own language within the Ryukyuan languages group.

Kunigami is somewhat understandable to people who speak the Okinawan language. However, Japanese speakers wouldn’t be able to understand Kunigami. There are also different dialects of Kunigami, such as the one on Okinoerabu.

Phrases

Okinoerabu dialect

Thank you. = みへでぃろ。(Mihediro).

Welcome. = うがみやぶら。/ めんしょーり。(Ugamiyabura. / Menshoori.)

Music

A famous sanshin song known as “Aha Bushi” is sung in Kunigami.

Related pages

References

↑ Heinrich, Patrick (2014-08-25). "Use them or lose them: There's more at stake than language in reviving Ryukyuan tongues". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2020-08-03.

This short article about Asia can be made longer. You can help Wikipedia by adding to it.

[1] Heinrich, Patrick (2014-08-25). "Use them or lose them: There's more at stake than language in reviving Ryukyuan tongues". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2020-08-03.

[1]