Khitan language

Khitan or Kitan ( in large script or in small, Khitai;^[3] Chinese: t 契丹語, Qìdānyǔ), also known as Liao, is a now-extinct language once spoken by the Khitan people (4th to 13th century). It was the official language of the Liao dynasty (907–1125) and the Qara Khitai (1124–1218).

Khitan appears to have been related to the Mongolic languages;^[4] Juha Janhunen states, "[T]he conception is gaining support that Khitan was a language in some respects radically different from the historically known Mongolic languages. If this view proves to be correct, Khitan is, indeed, best classified as a Para-Mongolic language."^[1]

Khitan was written using two mutually exclusive writing systems known as the Khitan large script and the Khitan small script.^[1] The small script, which was a syllabary, was used until the Jurchen-speaking Jin dynasty (1115–1234) replaced it in 1191.^[5] The large script was logographic like Chinese and may have been used by Para-Mongolic groups as far back as the Tuoba.

Records

The History of Liao contains a volume of Khitan words transcribed in Chinese characters titled "Glossary of National Language" (國語解). It is found in Chapter 116.^[6][7][8][9]

The Qianlong Emperor of the Qing dynasty erroneously identified the Khitan people and their language with the Solons, leading him to use the Solon language to "correct" Chinese character transcriptions of Khitan names in the History of Liao in his Imperial Liao-Jin-Yuan Three Histories National Language Explanation (欽定遼金元三史國語解) project.

The Liao dynasty referred to the Khitan language with the term Guoyu 國語 "National language", which was also used by other non-Han Chinese dynasties in China to refer to their languages like Manchu of the Qing, Classical Mongolian during the Yuan dynasty, Jurchen during the Jin, and Xianbei during the Northern Wei.

Vocabulary

There are several closed systems of Khitan lexical items for which systematic information is available.^[10] The following is a list of words in these closed systems that are similar to Mongolic. Mongolian equivalents are given after the English translation:

Seasons

Numerals

Compared with Khitan, The Tungusic numerals of the Jurchen language differ significantly: three=ilan, five=shunja, seven=nadan, nine=uyun, hundred=tangu.

Animals

Directions

Time

Personal relations

Tribal administration

Basic verbs

Natural objects

The Liaoshi records in Chapter 53:

國語謂是日為「討賽咿兒」。「討」五；「賽咿兒」，月也。

In the national (Khitan) language this day (5th day of the 5th lunar month) is called 'Tao Saiyier'. 'Tao' means five; 'Saiyier' means moon/month.

'Tao Saiyier' corresponds to Mongolian 'tavan sar' (fifth moon/month). The Turkic equivalent would be 'beshinchi ay' while the Manchu (Tungusic) equivalent would be 'sunja biya'.

See also

References

Bibliography

Juha Janhunen (2006). The Mongolic Languages. Routledge. p. 393. ISBN 978-1-135-79690-7. 

Further reading

• Franks, H. (1976): "Two Chinese-Khitan Macaronic Poems." In: Heissig, W.-Krueger, J. R.-Oinas, F. J.-Schütz, E. (eds): Tradata Altaica. Wiesbaden, Otto Harrassowitz.
• Kane, Daniel (1989). The Sino-Jurchen Vocabulary of the Bureau of Interpreters. Uralic and Altaic Series, Vol. 153. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University, Research Institute for Inner Asian Studies. ISBN 978-0-933070-23-3. 
• Qinge'ertai (Chinggeltei); Yu Baolin; Chen Naixiong; Liu Fengzhu; Xin Fuli (1985). Qidan xiao zi yanjiu [A Study of the Khitan Small Script]. Beijing: Zhongguo Shehui Kexue Chubanshe. OCLC 16717597. 
• Jacques, Guillaume (2010). "Review of Kane 2009, The Khitan Language and Script". Diachronica. 27 (1): 157–165. doi:10.1075/dia.27.1.05jac. 
• Vovin, Alexander (2003). "Once Again on Khitan Words in Chinese-Khitan Mixed Verses". Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae. 56 (2-4): 237–244. doi:10.1556/AOrient.56.2003.2-4.10. 

External links

Look up Category:Khitan language in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• New Developments of the Studies on Khitai Language and Khitai Scripts

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