Kmhmu'
Khmu
Austroasiatic (Mon-Khmer, Khmuic)
Khmu (ISO 639-3: kjg), also written Kmhmu or Kammu, is a Khmuic language of the Austroasiatic family spoken by roughly 700,000 people, primarily in northern Laos and in neighboring Vietnam, Thailand, and southern China. It comprises a broad dialect continuum with no single standard variety. Eastern dialects preserve contrasts among voiced, voiceless, and aspirated initial consonants, whereas many western dialects replaced earlier voicing with clear-versus-breathy register or tones, making Khmu important in studies of tonogenesis. Khmu is highly isolating, lacks inflectional morphology, and has basic SVO order, while derivation and serial-verb constructions remain productive. It is written variously in Lao, Thai, and Latin-based orthographies, whose use differs by country and community.
Where it is spoken
87 core words in Khmu
Sources
Words compared
Compared with languages in the same classification: Austroasiatic (Mon-Khmer, Khmuic)
| Meaning | Khmu | Proto-Austroasiatic | Wa | Proto-Vietic | Shwe Palaung | Mường | Mlabri |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | ʔom /ʔom/ | *ɗaːk /ɗaːk/ | rawm /rɔm/ | *ɗaːk /ɗaːk/ | ʔoːm /ʔoːm/ | đác /ɗaːk/ | wək /wək/ |
| Fire | pʰrɨə /pʰrɨə/ | *ʔuːs /ʔuːs/ | ngu /ŋu/ | *-laːs /-laːs/ | ŋal /ŋal/ | cúi /kuj/ | ʔulh /ʔulh/ |
| Sun | mat briʔ /mat briʔ/ | *tŋiːʔ /tŋiːʔ/ | singaix /siŋaiʔ/ | — /—/ | saŋi /saŋi/ | măt tlời /mat tləːj/ | ʔak ʒoŋ /ʔak ʒoŋ/ |
| Moon | moŋ /moŋ/ | *khe(ː)ʔ /kheːʔ/ | khix /kʰiʔ/ | *b-laŋ /b-laŋ/ | plaŋ kiər /plaŋ kiər/ | tlăng /tlaŋ/ | kiʔ /kiʔ/ |
| Star | sərmeɲ /sərmeɲ/ | *smʔaɲ /smʔaɲ/ | simuing /simʔuɲ/ | *k-raːw /k-raːw/ | səmiŋ /səmiŋ/ | khao /kʰaːw/ | sam mon /sam mon/ |
| Night | psɨəm /psɨəm/ | *cəːm /cəːm/ | ponsawm /ponsɔm/ | *teːm /teːm/ | hmɯ /m̥ɯ/ | hôm /hom/ | ni lɛk /ni lɛk/ |
| Rain | kəmaʔ /kəmaʔ/ | *gmaʔ /ɡmaʔ/ | lhiex /l̥ɛʔ/ | *k-maː /k-maː/ | ɟuŋ /ɟuŋ/ | mưa /mɨə/ | mɛʔ /mɛʔ/ |
| Wind | hndrəːj /hndrəːj/ | *kjɔʔ /kjɔʔ/ | bhaung /bʰaɯŋ/ | — | khuːr /kʰuːr/ | xỏ /sɔ/ | ra mɨt /ra mɨt/ |
| Earth | pteʔ /pteʔ/ | *tiʔ /tiʔ/ | tiex /tɛʔ/ | *tət /tət/ | kəɗɛː /kəɗɛː/ | tất /tət/ | bɛʔ /bɛʔ/ |
| Stone | glaŋ /ɡlaŋ/ | *tmɔʔ /tmɔʔ/ | simaox /simauʔ/ | — | mo /mo/ | khũ /kʰu/ | gɛp /ɡɛp/ |
| Mountain | mok /mok/ | *bruʔ /bruʔ/ | gawng /ɡɔŋ/ | — | sor /sor/ | tồl /tol/ | ʒa bo /ʒa bo/ |
| Mother | maʔ /maʔ/ | *maʔ /maʔ/ | miex /mɛʔ/ | *meːʔ /meːʔ/ | ma /ma/ | mệ /meː/ | mɤʔ /mɤʔ/ |
| Father | joŋ /joŋ/ | *ɓa(ː)ʔ /ɓaːʔ/ | keeing /kɯɲ/ | *bɔːʔ /bɔːʔ/ | kun /kun/ | pổ /po/ | mɤm /mɤm/ |
| I | oʔ /ʔoʔ/ | *ʔaɲ /ʔaɲ/ | aux /ʔaɯʔ/ | *soː /soː/ | ʔɔ /ʔɔ/ | ho /hɔ/ | ʔo /ʔo/ |
| You | meʔ /meʔ/ | *miːʔ /miːʔ/ | maix /maiʔ/ | *miː /miː/ | mi /miː/ | mầy /məj/ | mɛ /mɛ/ |
| We | iʔ /ʔiʔ/ | — /—/ | ix /ʔiʔ/ | — /—/ | ʔɛ / jɛ /ʔɛ / jɛ/ | chúng tôi /cuŋ toj/ | ʔa thəŋ /ʔa tʰəŋ/ |
| Name | sŋməh /sŋməh/ | *ɟmuh /ɟmuh/ | ceu kaux /tɕɤ kaɯʔ/ | — /—/ | ʨɨː /ʨɨː/ | tên /ten/ | bɨr ʔi /bɨr ʔi/ |
| Person | gon /ɡon/ | *m-raʔ /mraʔ/ | pui /pui/ | *ŋaːj /ŋaːj/ | bi /bi/ | mõl /mɔl/ | mla /mla/ |
| Head | kəmpoŋ /kəmpoŋ/ | *ɓoːkʔ /ɓoːkʔ/ | kaing: /kaɲ/ | *k-loːk /k-loːk/ | kiŋ /kiŋ/ | tlốc /tlok/ | glə /ɡlə/ |
| Eye | mat /mat/ | *mat /mat/ | ngai /ŋai/ | *mat /mat/ | ŋai /ŋai/ | măt /mat/ | mat /mat/ |
| Ear | rəməj /rəməj/ | *Ctoːr /Ctoːr/ | yhaok /j̊auk/ | *saːj /saːj/ | hjɔʔ /hjɔʔ/ | thai /tʰaːj/ | ket /ket/ |
| Nose | muh /muh/ | *muh /muh/ | meeih /mɯih/ | *muːs /muːs/ | kɔŋmuh /kɔŋmuh/ | mũi /muj/ | moh /mɔh/ |
| Mouth | tənɔh /tənɔh/ | *miəŋʔ /miəŋʔ/ | jheeh /dʑʰɯih/ | *mɛːŋʔ /mɛːŋʔ/ | mur /mur/ | mồm /mom/ | səm bɛp /səm bɛp/ |
| Tooth | hraŋ /hraŋ/ | *lmVɲ /lməɲ/ | rhang /r̥aŋ/ | *k-saŋ /k-saŋ/ | hraŋ /r̥aːŋ/ | thăng /tʰaŋ/ | ʒən /ʒən/ |
| Tongue | həntak /həntak/ | *lntaːk /lntaːk/ | dak /dak/ | *laːs /laːs/ | kərdaʼ /kərɗaʔ/ | lãi /laːj/ | rət lat /rət lat/ |
| Hand | tiʔ /tiʔ/ | *tiːʔ /tiːʔ/ | taix /taiʔ/ | *siː /siː/ | tiː /tiː/ | thay /tʰaːi/ | tiʔ /tiʔ/ |
| Foot | krwɛh /krwɛh/ | *ɟəːŋ /ɟəːŋ/ | caong /tʃaɔŋ/ | *ciɲ /ciɲ/ | ɟɯŋ /ɟɯŋ/ | chân /cən/ | ʒəŋ /ʒəŋ/ |
| Heart | tlɔːm ŋok /tlɔːm ŋok/ | *nuːɕ /nuːɕ/ | rhawm /r̥ɔm/ | — /—/ | nuər /nuər/ | nỏ /nɔ/ | kluʔ klol /kluʔ klol/ |
| Bone | cʼaaŋ /tʃʔaːŋ/ | *cʔaːŋ /cʔaːŋ/ | si-ang /siʔaŋ/ | *ɟaːŋ /ɟaːŋ/ | kaʼang /kaʔaŋ/ | xiêng /siəŋ/ | ca ʔɛŋ /ca ʔɛŋ/ |
| Blood | maːm /maːm/ | *mham /mham/ | nham /n̥am/ | *t-muːʔ /t-muːʔ/ | hnam /n̥aːm/ | mảu /maw/ | mhang /mhaŋ/ |
| Love | kɔɔh /kɔːh/ | — /—/ | moh /moh/ | — /—/ | ʔoŋ /ʔoŋ/ | thương /tʰɨəŋ/ | kraʔ /kraʔ/ |
| Tree | sʔɔːŋ /sʔɔːŋ/ | *ɟɕɨːʔ /ɟɕɨːʔ/ | khaox /kʰauʔ/ | *gəl /gəl/ | tiŋ he /tiŋ he/ | câl /kəl/ | lam /lam/ |
| Dog | sɔʔ /sɔʔ/ | *cɔː /cɔː/ | sox /soʔ/ | *ʔa-cɔːʔ /ʔa-cɔːʔ/ | sɔ /sɔ/ | chỏ /cɔ/ | braɲ /braɲ/ |
| Cat | mɛːw /mɛːw/ | — /—/ | miao: /miau/ | — /—/ | ʔəŋaw /ʔəŋaw/ | mèo /mɛw/ | meo /meo/ |
| Fish | kaʼ /kaʔ/ | *kaʔ /kaʔ/ | kax /kaʔ/ | *ʔa-kaːʔ /ʔa-kaːʔ/ | ka /kaː/ | cả /kaː/ | kaʼ /kaʔ/ |
| Bird | sim /sim/ | *ciːm /ciːm/ | sim /sim/ | *ciːm /ciːm/ | sim /sim/ | chim /cim/ | ʔat /ʔat/ |
| Butterfly | tlaːmpaːm /tlaːmpaːm/ | — | pung piang /puŋ piaŋ/ | — | kərla /kərla/ | pươm pưởm /pɨəm pɨəm/ | rɨp phɛp /rɨp pʰɛp/ |
| Egg | kədoŋ /kədoŋ/ | *ktam /ktam/ | tawm ia /tɔm ʔia/ | *k-ləːŋʔ /k-ləːŋʔ/ | kadam /kaɗam/ | tlởng /tləːŋ/ | khay /kʰaj/ |
| Bear | huəl /huəl/ | — | krih /krih/ | *c-guːʔ /c-guːʔ/ | — | củ /kuː/ | bɛk /bɛk/ |
| House | gaːŋ /ɡaːŋ/ | *ɲaːʔ /ɲaːʔ/ | nyiex /ɲiɛʔ/ | *ɲaː /ɲaː/ | gaŋ /ɡaŋ/ | nhà /ɲaː/ | tu /tu/ |
| Salt | hmaar /hmaːr/ | *ɓɔːh /ɓɔːh/ | kih /kih/ | *ɓɔːjʔ /ɓɔːjʔ/ | sɔʔ /sɔʔ/ | bỏi /ɓɔːj/ | chuʌk /tʃuʌk/ |
| Rice | ʰŋɔʔ /ʰŋɔʔ/ | *rŋkoːʔ /rŋkoːʔ/ | gaox /ɡauʔ/ | — | — | — | — |
| Iron | cndroh /cndroh/ | — | lhek /l̥ek/ | — | — | khách /kʰac/ | lhek /lhek/ |
| Book | pɨːm /pɨːm/ | — | phuk lai /pʰuk lai/ | — | boʔok /boʔok/ | chẩy /cəj/ | naŋ sɨ /naŋ sɨ/ |
| Eat | mah /mah/ | *ɟaː /ɟaː/ | ih /ʔih/ | *ʔan /ʔan/ | hɔm /hɔm/ | ăn /an/ | ʔə /ʔə/ |
| Drink | ʔɨək /ʔɨək/ | *ɲuʔ /ɲuʔ/ | nyaux /ɲaɯʔ/ | *ʔɔːŋʔ /ʔɔːŋʔ/ | tiəŋ /tiəŋ/ | ỏng /ɔŋ/ | wək /wək/ |
| Sleep | sih /sih/ | *ɓic /ɓic/ | it /ʔit/ | — | ʔit /ʔit/ | táy /taj/ | nɔn /nɔn/ |
| One | moj /moj/ | *muːj /muːj/ | tix /tiʔ/ | *moːc /moːc/ | ʔu /ʔu/ | mộch /moːtʃ/ | mɔy /mɔi/ |
| Two | baar /baːr/ | *ɓaːr /ɓaːr/ | ra /ra/ | *haːr /haːr/ | ar /ʔar/ | hal /haːl/ | bɛr /bɛːr/ |
| Three | peʼ /peʔ/ | *peʔ /peʔ/ | loe /lɤ/ | *paː /paː/ | ʼuai /ʔuaj/ | pa /paː/ | pɛʼ /pɛʔ/ |
| Four | pon /pon/ | *punʔ /punʔ/ | pon /pon/ | *poːnʔ /poːnʔ/ | phon /pʰon/ | pổn /pon/ | pon /pon/ |
| Hello | lɔh /lɔh/ | — /—/ | nawp nawm /nɔp nɔm/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | đám rộ /ɗaːm roː/ | hahɔ /hahɔ/ |
| Thank you | ɔrkun /ʔɔrkun/ | — /—/ | bwanson /buan son/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | cám ơn /kaːm ɤn/ | knɔŋ /knɔŋ/ |
| Good | ləʔ /ləʔ/ | — /—/ | mhawm /m̥ɔm/ | — /—/ | laʔ /laʔ/ | thốch /tʰoc/ | pja kle /pja kle/ |
| New | həmmeʔ /həmmeʔ/ | *tmeːʔ /tmeːʔ/ | khraox /kʰrauʔ/ | *ɓəːjʔ /ɓəːjʔ/ | kənmɛ /kənmɛ/ | mởi /məːj/ | hmɛʔ /hmɛʔ/ |
| Red | jim /jim/ | *roːŋ /roːŋ/ | raoh /rauh/ | *tɔh /tɔh/ | kho /kho/ | tó /tɔ/ | lɛŋ /lɛŋ/ |
| White | klɔɔk /klɔːk/ | *ɓɔːk /ɓɔːk/ | paing /paɲ/ | *k-laŋʔ /k-laŋʔ/ | blɔʔ /blɔʔ/ | tlẳng /tlaŋ/ | bəlaak /bəlaːk/ |
| Black | hiəŋ /hiəŋ/ | *Cjoŋ /Cjoŋ/ | lung /luŋ/ | — | yim /jim/ | dầm /jəm/ | pha dam /pʰa dam/ |
| Green | siw /siw/ | — | klai /klai/ | — | ɲər /ɲər/ | xenh /sɛɲ/ | bɨn liŋ /bɨn liŋ/ |
| Blue | siːw /siːw/ | — | — | — | — | — | si fa /si fa/ |
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