The Tungusic languages (; also known as Manchu–Tungus and Tungus) form a language family spoken in eastern Siberia and northern China by Tungusic peoples. There are approximately 75,000 native speakers of the dozen living languages of the Tungusic language family. Today, the most spoken language in the family is Xibe, a southern Tungusic language spoken by a group that migrated from Manchuria to Xinjiang in the 18th century. It is followed by the northern Tungusic languages Evenki, spoken in Northeast China and the Russian Far East, and Even, in northeastern Siberia. Many Tungusic languages are critically endangered, including Manchu, the most historically influential of this family and an official language of the Qing Empire. The term "Tungusic" is from an exonym for the Evenk people (Ewenki) used by the Yakuts ("tongus").
Classification Linguists working on Tungusic have proposed a number of different classifications based on different criteria, including morphological, lexical, and phonological characteristics. Some scholars have criticized the tree-based model of Tungusic classification and argue that the long history of contact among the Tungusic languages makes them better treated as a dialect continuum.
The main classification is into a northern branch and a southern branch (Georg 2004) although the two branches have no clear division, and the classification of intermediate groups is debatable.
Four mid-level subgroups are recognized by Hölzl (2018),Hölzl, Andreas. 2018. The Tungusic language family through the ages: Interdisciplinary perspectives: Introduction. International Workshop at the 51st Annual Meeting of the Societas Linguistica Europaea (SLE). 29 August – 1st September 2018, Tallinn University, Estonia. namely Ewenic, Udegheic, Nanaic, and Jurchenic.
Alexander VovinVovin, Alexander. Why Manchu and Jurchen Look so Un-Tungusic? notes that Manchu and Jurchen are aberrant languages within South Tungusic but nevertheless still belong in it, and that this aberrancy is perhaps due to influences from the Para-Mongolic Khitan language, from Old Korean, and perhaps also from Chukotko-Kamchatkan and unknown languages of uncertain linguistic affiliation.
Tungusic Southern Tungusic (Jurchenic–Nanaic) Jurchenic (Southwestern Tungusic) ("Manchu group") Jurchen† (extinct, developed into Manchu in the 17th century) Manchu: speakers originated from the Sungari Ula River area (they founded the Jin and Qing or Manchu dynasties of China) Xibe: spoken in Qapqal Xibe Autonomous County, Xinjiang. (Developed separately since 1764 from a Qing military garrison) Chinese Kyakala† (恰喀拉Mu, Yejun 穆晔骏. 1987: Balayu 巴拉语. Manyu yanjiu 满语研究 2. 2‒31, 128.) Bala†? (巴拉) Alchuka† (阿勒楚喀) Nanaic (Southeastern Tungusic) ("Nanai group" / "Amur group") Nanai (Gold, Goldi, Hezhen) (Akani, Birar, Samagir) Upper Amur Right-bank Amur Sungari Bikin (Ussuri) Central Amur Sakachi-Alyan Naykhin (basis of standard Nanai but not identical) Dzhuen Lower Amur Bolon Ekon Gorin Uilta Northern (Northeast Sakhalin, Village Val of Nogliksky) Southern (South Sakhalin, Poronaysky) Ulch / Olcha Northern Tungusic (Ewenic–Udegheic) Ewenic Even (Lamut) (in eastern Siberia) Arman† (transitional between Even and Evenki) Indigirka Kamchatka Kolyma-Omolon Okhotsk Ola Tompon Upper Kolyma Sakkyryr Lamunkhin Evenki Evenki (obsolete: Tungus), spoken by the Evenki in central Siberia and Manchuria Solon (Solon Ewenki) Hihue/Hoy (basis of the standard, but not identical) Haila'er Aoluguya (Olguya) Chenba'erhu (Old Bargu) Morigele (Mergel) Siberian Ewenki / Ewenki of Siberia Northern (spirant) Ilimpeya (subdialects: Ilimpeya, Agata and Bol'shoi, Porog, Tura, Tutonchany, Dudinka/Khantai) Yerbogachen (subdialects: Yerbogachen, Nakanno) Southern (sibilant) Hushing Sym (subdialects: Tokma/Upper Nepa, Upper Lena/Kachug, Angara) Northern Baikal (subdialects: Northern Baikal, Upper Lena) Hissing Stony Tunguska (subdialects: Vanavara, Kuyumba, Poligus, Surinda, Taimura/Chirinda, Uchami, Chemdal'sk) Nepa (subdialects: Nepa, Kirensk) Vitim-Nercha/Baunt-Talocha (subdialects: Baunt, Talocha, Tungukochan, Nercha) Eastern (sibilant-spirant) Vitim-Olyokma (subdialects: Barguzin, Vitim/Kalar, Olyokma, Tungir, Tokko) Upper Aldan (subdialects: Aldan, Upper Amur, Amga, Dzheltulak, Timpton, Tommot, Khingan, Chul'man, Chul'man-Gilyui) Uchur-Zeya (subdialects: Uchur, Zeya) Selemdzha-Bureya-Urmi (subdialects: Selemdzha, Bureya, Urmi) Ayan-Mai (subdialects: Ayan, Aim, Mai, Nel'kan, Totti) Tugur-Chumikan (subdialects: Tugur, Chumikan) Sakhalin (no subdialects) Negidal Lower Negidal † Upper Negidal Oroqen Gankui (basis of standard Oroqen but not identical) Selpechen Kumarchen Selpechen Orochen Kili (previously thought to be a dialect of Nanai) Udegheic (Oroch–Udege; strongly influenced by Southern Tungusic) Oroch †? Tumninsky dialect †? Khadinsky dialect †? Hungarisky dialect †? Udege / Udihe Kur-Urmi Northern (Udihe) Xor Anjuj (Xungari) Southern (Kekar Kyakala) Samarga Iman; Bikin
Glottolog v5.2.1 classifies the Tungusic languages as follows:
Tungusic Central–Western Tungusic / Nanaic Nanai Lower Ussari Nuclear Nanai Central Nanai Bolon Nanai Dzhuen Torgon Garin Bicin Samar Sakachi–Alyan Ulchaic Orok (Uilta) Poronaisk Val-Nogliki Ulch Manchu–Jurchen / Jurchenic Jurchen Manchu–Xibe Manchu Alechuxa / Alchuka Bala (China) Jing Lalin Xibe Aigun Ibuci Ilan Boo Sibe Northeastern Tungusic / Ewenic–Udegheic Central–Eastern Tungusic / Udegheic Kilen Kili of Amur Sungari Upper Ussuri Oroch–Udihe Oroch Kjakela Namunka Orichen Tez Udihe / Udege Anjuski Bikin Iman Khor Khungari Samargin Sikhota Alin Northern Tungusic / Ewenic Evenki Manchurian Evenki Aoluguya Borzya Khamnigan Evenki Solon Amur basin Solon Hulun Buir Solon Morigele Nonni basin Solon Ongkor Solon Urulyungui Khamnigan Evenki Siberian Evenki Eastern Evenki Bareya-Amgun Barguzin Evenki Chul'man-Gilyui Sakhalin Evenki Uchur-Zeya Vitim-Olyokma Northern Evenki Ilimpeya Yerbogachon Southern Evenki Hissing Evenki Hushing Evenki Ewenic Arman Even Eastern Even Berjozovka Kamchatka Kolyma-Omolon Okhotsk Ola Sakkyryr Upper Kolyma Middle Even Allaikha Moma Even Tompon Western Even Indigirka Lamunkhin Tjugasjir Negidalic Kur–Urmi Negidal Nizovsk Samagir Verkhovsk Oroqen Central Oroqen Northeastern Oroqen Southeastern Oroqen Birar Shengli Western Oroqen
History Proto-Tungusic
Some linguists estimate the divergence of the Tungusic languages from a common ancestor spoken somewhere in Eastern Manchuria around 500 BC to 500 AD. (Janhunen 2012, Pevnov 2012) Other theories favor a homeland closer to Lake Baikal. (Menges 1968, Khelimskii 1985) While the general form of the protolanguage is clear from the similarities in the daughter languages, there is no consensus on detailed reconstructions. As of 2012, scholars are still trying to establish a shared vocabulary to do such a reconstruction. The Lake Khanka region was found to present the most likely homeland, based on linguistic and ancient genetic data.
There are some proposed sound correspondences for Tungusic languages. For example, Norman (1977) supports a Proto-Tungusic *t > Manchu s when followed by *j in the same stem, with any exceptions arising from loanwords. Some linguists believe there are connections between the vowel harmony of Proto-Tungusic and some of the neighboring non-Tungusic languages. For example, there are proposals for an areal or genetic correspondence between the vowel harmonies of Proto-Korean, Proto-Mongolian, and Proto-Tungusic based on an original RTR harmony. This is one of several competing proposals, and on the other hand, some reconstruct Proto-Tungusic without RTR harmony.
Some sources describe the Donghu people of 7th century BC to 2nd century BC Manchuria as Proto-Tungusic. Other sources sharply criticize this as a random similarity in pronunciation with "Tungus" that has no real basis in fact.The Chinese and Their Neighbors in Prehistoric and Early Historic China
The historical records of the Korean kingdoms of Baekje and Silla note battles with the Mohe () in Manchuria during the 1st and 2nd centuries. Some scholars suggest these Mohe are closely connected to the later Jurchens, but this is controversial.
Alexander Vovin (2015)Vovin, Alexander. 2015. Eskimo Loanwords in Northern Tungusic. Iran and the Caucasus 19 (2015), 87–95. Leiden: Brill. notes that Northern Tungusic languages have Eskimo–Aleut loanwords that are not found in Southern Tungusic, implying that Eskimo–Aleut was once much more widely spoken in eastern Siberia. Vovin (2015) estimates that the Eskimo–Aleut loanwords in Northern Tungusic had been borrowed no more than 2,000 years ago, which was when Tungusic was spreading northwards from its homeland in the middle reaches of the Amur River.
Wang and Robbeets (2020) place the Proto-Tungusic homeland in the Lake Khanka region.
Liu et al. (2020) revealed that Haplogroup C-F5484 and its subclades are the genetic markers of Tungusic-speaking peoples. C-F5484 emerged 3,300 years ago and began to diverge 1,900 years ago, indicating the approximate age of differentiation of Tungusic languages.
Jurchen-Manchu language The earliest written attestation of the language family is in the Jurchen language, which was spoken by the rulers of the Jin dynasty (1115–1234). The Jurchens invented a Jurchen script to write their language based on the Khitan scripts. During this time, several stelae were put up in Manchuria and Korea. One of these, among the most important extant texts in Jurchen, is the inscription on the back of "the Jin Victory Memorial Stele" (Da Jin deshengtuo songbei), which was erected in 1185, during the Dading period (1161–1189). It is apparently an abbreviated translation of the Chinese text on the front of the stele.Tillman, Hoyt Cleveland, and Stephen H. West. China Under Jurchen Rule: Essays on Chin Intellectual and Cultural History. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1995, pp. 228–229. . Partial text on Google Books. The last known example of the Jurchen script was written in 1526.
The Tungusic languages appear in the historical record again after the unification of the Jurchen tribes under Nurhaci, who ruled 1616–1626. He commissioned a new Manchu alphabet based on the Mongolian alphabet, and his successors went on to found the Qing dynasty. In 1636, Emperor Hong Taiji decreed that the ethnonym "Manchu" would replace "Jurchen". Modern scholarship usually treats Jurchen and Manchu as different stages of the same language.
Currently, Manchu proper is a dying language. , it was spoken natively by 18 residents of the village of Sanjiazi. It is spoken by a small number of learners as a second language, most of whom learn from universities, public schools, or individual instruction by other speakers. The closely related Xibe language spoken in Xinjiang, which historically was treated as a divergent dialect of Jurchen-Manchu, maintains the literary tradition of the script and has around 30,000 speakers. As the only language in the Tungusic family with a long written tradition, Jurchen-Manchu is a very important language for the reconstruction of Proto-Tungusic.
Other Tungusic languages Other Tungusic languages have relatively short or no written traditions. Since around the 20th century, some of these other languages can be written in a Russian-based Cyrillic script or, in China, Pinyin-based or Mongolian-based scripts, but the languages remain primarily spoken languages.
Lexical comparison Numerals in various Tungus languages:
{|class=wikitable style=text-align:center; |- ! rowspan=2| GLOSA ! colspan=4| Northern Tungus ! colspan=4| Southeast Tungus ! colspan=3| Southwest Tungus ! rowspan=2|PROTO-TUNGUS |- ! Even !! Evenki !! Negidal !! Oroqen !! Udihe