Sapa, or Tày Sa Pa, is a Southwestern Tai language of Sa Pa, Lào Cai Province, northern Vietnam. According to Pittayaporn (2009) and Glottolog, it is the closest relative of the Southwestern Tai languages, but does not share the phonological innovations that define that group. There are about 300 speakers.[2] Tày Sa Pa speakers are classified by the Vietnamese as ethnic Tay people, most of whom speak Central Tai languages rather than Southwestern Tai languages. According to Jerold Edmondson, the phonology, tones, and lexicon of Tày Sa Pa is similar to that of Standard Thai.

Sapa
Tày Sa Pa
Native toVietnam
RegionSa Pa
EthnicityTày
Native speakers
300 (2002)[1]
Latin
(Vietnamese alphabet)
Language codes
ISO 639-3tys
Glottologtays1238

A similar Southwestern Tai language called Padi [pa˧˩ zi˧˩] is spoken in Mường Khương District, Lao Cai Province, northern Vietnam.[2]

References

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  1. ^ Sapa at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. ^ a b "Map & Language Descriptions | Borderlands: Lesser Known Indigenous Languages of Northern Vietnam". www.uta.edu. Archived from the original on 2015-09-30.

Sources

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  • Bùi Quốc Khánh. 2013. Tri thức dân gian trong canh tác cây lúa nước của người Pa Dí ở Lào Cai. Nhà xuất bản Thời Đại. ISBN 978-604-930-596-2
  • Pittayaporn, Pittayawat, 2007. Tai dialects of Northern Vietnam: Sapa , Vinh Yen, and Cao Bang (Kra-Dai).