Zaiwa language

Not to be confused with Atsi dialect of Fang.

Zaiwa (autonym: tsau˧˩va˥˩; Tsaiwa, Tsaiva, 载瓦) is a language spoken in parts of China and Burma. There are around 100,000 speakers. It is also known as Atsi, its name in Jingpo. Zaiwa is a member of the Burmish languages. Pela (Bola), 400 speakers, was once classified as a dialect.

Distribution

There are more than 70,000 Zaiwa speakers in Yunnan, China, including in:

• Bangwa 邦瓦, Longchuan County 陇川县
• Zhanxi 盏西, Yingjiang County 盈江县
• Xishan 西山, Luxi County 潞西县

The Ethnologue lists Bengwa, Longzhun, and Tingzhu as dialects.

References

• Yabu Shirō 藪 司郎 (1982). アツィ語基礎語彙集 / Atsigo kiso goishū / Classified dictionary of the Atsi or Zaiwa language (Sadon dialect) with Atsi, Japanese and English indexes. Tokyo: 東京外国語大学アジア・アフリカ言語文化研究所 Tōkyō Gaikokugo Daigaku Ajia Afurika Gengo Bunka Kenkyūjo.
• Yabu Shirō 藪 司郎 (1988). A preliminary report on the study of the Maru, Lashi and Atsi languages of Burma. In Yoshiaki Ishizawa (ed.), Historical and cultural studies in Burma, 65-132. Tokyo: Institute of Asian Studies, Sophia University.
• Lustig, Anton (2010). A grammar and dictionary of Zaiwa. Leiden: Brill.