Chintang/Puma
Kiranti languages generally have very intricate and non-transparent
morphological systems including complex agreement patterns (with both agents and
patients in the case of transitive verbs). Therefore great care is taken of
collecting comprehensive sets of paradigms. Other points of considerable
typological interest include relativization and complementation structures
displaying syntactic ergativity, or clause chaining constructions with variable
tense marker scope. By recording, transcribing and annotating a large variety of
texts, and building up dictionaries, it is possible to document the historical
and cultural complexities of these speech traditions.
Language families in Nepal
More than 100 languages are spoken in the Himalayan kingdom of Nepal, but
most of them have less than 10,000 speakers. Chintang and Puma are two highly
endangered but almost totally undocumented languages which are spoken in
localities situated to the south and south-east of the Everest region. Both
languages belong to the Kiranti family of Tibeto-Burman, which includes more
than thirty languages in East Nepal. Both Chintang and Puma are rapidly being
supplanted by Bantawa (one of the major Kiranti languages) and Nepali, the
national lingua franca. nevertheless, the two language communities still have a
distinct culture with a rich oral tradition, maintained by a decreasing number
of knowledgeable elders, priests, and shamans.
The Sino-Tibetan Family of Languages (Based on Michailovsky 1994, van Driem
1991, 2001, Opgenort 2004).
Source: CBS 2001 report; Yadava 2003