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The Tibetic languages form a well-defined group of languages descended from Old Tibetan (7th to 9th centuries).[2] According to Tournadre (2014), there are 50 languages, which split into over 200 dialects or could be grouped into 8 dialect continua.[2] These languages are spoken in the Tibetan Plateau and in the Himalayas in Gilgit-Baltistan, Aksai Chin, Ladakh, Nepal, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bhutan, and the Kachin State of Myanmar.[3] Classical Tibetan is the major literary language, particularly for its use in Buddhist literature.
Tibetan languages are spoken by some 6 million people, not all of whom are Tibetans.[1] With the worldwide spread of Tibetan Buddhism, the Tibetan language has spread into the western world and can be found in many Buddhist publications and prayer materials; with some western students learning the language for translation of Tibetan texts. Outside Lhasa itself, Lhasa Tibetan is spoken by approximately 200,000 exile speakers who have moved from modern-day Tibet to India and other countries. Tibetan is also spoken by groups of ethnic minorities in Tibet who have lived in close proximity to Tibetans for centuries, but nevertheless retain their own languages and cultures.
Although some of the Qiang peoples of Kham are classified by China as ethnic Tibetans (see Gyalrongic languages; Gyalrong people are identified as 'Tibetan' in China), the Qiangic languages are not Tibetan, but rather form their own branch of the Tibeto-Burman language family.
Classical Tibetan was not a tonal language, but many varieties such as Central and Khams Tibetan have developed tone registers. Amdo and Ladakhi-Balti are without tone. Tibetan morphology can generally be described as agglutinative.
^ abTournadre, Nicolas (2014). "The Tibetic languages and their classification". In Owen-Smith, Thomas; Hill, Nathan W. (eds.). Trans-Himalayan Linguistics: Historical and Descriptive Linguistics of the Himalayan Area. De Gruyter. pp. 103–129. ISBN 978-3-11-031074-0. (preprint)
^ abTournadre, Nicolas. 2014. "The Tibetic languages and their classification." In Trans-Himalayan linguistics, historical and descriptive linguistics of the Himalayan area. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
The Tibeticlanguages form a well-defined group of languages descended from Old Tibetan (7th to 9th centuries). According to Tournadre (2014), there are...
languages are a group of related Tibeticlanguages descended from Old Tibetan. Most Bhutanese varieties of Central Bodish languages are of the Southern subgroup...
Bod, is a proposed grouping consisting of the Tibeticlanguages and associated Sino-Tibetan languages spoken in Tibet, North India, Nepal, Bhutan, and...
Sino-Tibetan languages spoken in Chamdo, eastern Tibet) may or may not be Qiangic. Gyalrongic languages are surrounded by Tibeticlanguages and have thus...
The Ladakhi language is a Tibeticlanguage spoken in the Indian union territory of Ladakh. It is the predominant language in the Buddhist-dominated district...
the Tibeticlanguage used by the majority of the people in Kham. Khams is one of the three branches of the traditional classification of Tibetic languages...
and the Ibero-Romance languages of Spain and Portugal. Aranese is a subdialect of Gascon Tibeticlanguages Amdo tibetan language have regional official...
certain Tibeticlanguages, including Tibetan, Dzongkha, Sikkimese, Ladakhi, Jirel and Balti. It has also been used for some non-Tibeticlanguages in close...
separate language) Ethnologue reports that Walungge is highly intelligible with Thudam. Glottolog reports these South-Western Tibeticlanguages as forming...
Tournadre, Nicolas; Suzuki, Hiroyuki (2023). The TibeticLanguages: an introduction to the family of languages derived from Old Tibetan. Paris: LACITO. p. 680...
dialect Any of the other Tibeticlanguages Old Tibetan, the language used from the 7th to the 11th century Central Tibetan language, which forms the basis...
together various ethnic groups speaking Tibeticlanguages, as well as some groups speaking other Tibeto-Burman languages living in the Transhimalayan region...
Yunnan, as well as in India, Nepal, and Bhutan. The Tibeticlanguages belong to the Tibeto-Burman language group. The traditional or mythological explanation...
Tshangla is a Sino-Tibetan language of the Bodish branch closely related to the Tibeticlanguages. Tshangla is primarily spoken in Eastern Bhutan and acts...
considered a South Tibeticlanguage. It is closely related to and partially intelligible with Sikkimese, and to some other Bhutanese languages such as Chocha...
Qiangic languages. Basic vocabulary is about 85% Tibetic and 15% Qiangic, and the Tibetic words do not link to any established group of Tibeticlanguages. Chirkova...
Amdo is one of the three branches of traditional classification of Tibeticlanguages (the other two being Khams Tibetan and Ü-Tsang). In terms of mutual...
various mutually unintelligible Tibeticlanguages serve as the low register vernacular, like Central Tibetan language in Ü-Tsang (Tibet proper), Khams...
Kyirong is a language from the subgroup of Tibeticlanguages spoken in the Gyirong County of the Shigatse prefecture, of the Tibetan Autonomous Region...
several Tibetic (Sino-Tibetan) languages spoken in India: Bhoti Kinnauri, a Tibeticlanguage of Kinnaur, Himachal Pradesh, India Ladakhi language (Bhoti)...
to: Relating to the Indian state of Sikkim Sikkimese language, one of the Southern Tibeticlanguages Sikkimese people, the Indian peoples who inhabit the...
Kagate or Syuba is a language from the subgroup of Tibeticlanguages spoken by the Kagate people primarily in the Ramechhap district of Nepal. Kagate...
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