Home > Austroasiatic languages

Austroasiatic languages have a disjunct distribution across India and Southeast Asia, separated by regions where other languages are spoken. It is widely believed that the Austroasiatic languages are the autochthonous languages of Southeast Asia and eastern India, and that the other languages of the region, including the Indo European, Tai-Kadai, and Sino-Tibetan languages, are the result of later movements of people. Some linguists have attempted to prove that Austroasiatic languages are related to Austronesian languages, thus forming the Austric superfamily.

Linguists recognize two major divisions of Austroasiatic, the Mon-Khmer languages of Southeast Asia and the Munda languages of east-central and central India. The Ethnologue identifies 168 Austroasiatic languages, of which 147 are Mon-Khmer languages and 21 are Munda languages. The major subdivisions of the Austroasiatic family are listed below:

• Mon-Khmer languages
  • Aslian languages (19 languages) of peninsular Malaysia.
  • Eastern Mon-Khmer languages (67 languages) includes the Khmer languageKhmer is one of the main Austroasiatic languages, and has had considerable influence from Sanskrit and Pali. These influences come from the influence of Buddhism and Hinduism on Khmer culture; while other influences from Thai and Laotian are the result of of CambodiaThe Kingdom of Cambodia (Kampuchea, Khmer ) is a country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered in the south by the Gulf of Thailand, in the west by Thailand, Laos in the north, and Vietnam in the east. The majority of Cambodians are the Khmer people. Cambodia and other languages of Cambodia, LaosThe Lao People's Democratic Republic is a landlocked country in southeast Asia, bordered by Myanmar (commonly known in the west as Burma) and the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south, and Thailand to the, and VietnamThe Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a country in Southeast Asia. It borders China, Laos, Cambodia, and the Gulf of Tonkin. Cng Hoa Xa Hi Ch Nghia Vit Nam ( In Detail) (Full size) National motto: Dc lp, t do, hnh phuc (Independence, Liberty, Happiness Off.
  • Monic (2 languages) includes the Mon languageThe Mon language is an Austroasiatic language spoken in Myanmar. Phonology Consonants Bilabial Dental Palatal Velar Glottal Stops Voiceless Unaspirated p t [ty] k Voiceless Aspirate [ph] [th] [tyh] [kh] Implosive ['b] ['d] Fricatives s (S) h Nasals m n n of MyanmarThe Union of Myanmar is a country in Southeast Asia, formerly known as Burma . The name of the country was changed in 1989, and this change of name has been officially recognized by the United Nations. Some national governments, such as the United States and the Nyahkur language of ThailandThe Kingdom of Thailand is a country in southeast Asia, bordering Laos and Cambodia to the east, the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia to the south, and the Andaman Sea and Myanmar to the west. Thailand is also known as Siam which was the country's official n.
  • Nicobar languages (6 languages) includes the languages of the Nicobar IslandsThe Nicobar Islands are an island chain in the eastern Indian Ocean, and are part of India. The Nicobar islands include 22 islands of various sizes, the largest being Great Nicobar. The total land area of the chain is 1841 sq km. The highest point on the, part of India.
  • Northern Mon-Khmer languages (38 languages), includes the Khasi language of India's Meghalaya province, the Khmu language of Laos, and other languages of northern Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand, and southern China.
  • Palyu, a language of southern China.
  • Viet-Muong languages (10 languages), includes the Vietnamese language, which has the most speakers of any Austroasiatic language, and other languages of Vietnam and Laos.
  • four Mon-Khmer languages of southern China are as yet unclassified.

• Munda languages
  • North Munda languages (12 languages)
  • South Munda languages (9 languages)