Kwang language

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Kwang
Wa Kwan
Pronunciation[wá kwã́]
EthnicityKwang
Native speakers113,394,000  (2021)
Language family
Ngerupic
  • Quoncic
    • Kwang
Early forms:
DialectsStandard Kwang
Awarahli Kwang
Angnyaiq Kwang
Yi Kwang
Xuni Kwang
Wo Amiyant Kwang
Jo Amiyant Kwang
Lan Kwang
Yi Kwang
Phaw Kwang
Central Kwang
Official status
Official language inQonklaks, Karduv, Ru, Angnyaiq
CWS codesdq

Kwang is a Ngerupic language official in Qonklaks. It is the second most widely spoken Ngerupic language, second only to Terminian, with around 113 million speakers, depending on which dialects one considers. While much of the core vocabulary shared with other Ngerupic languages, there is a substantial amount of vocabulary with no cognates in other branches.

There are several dialects of Kwang, traditionally considered dialects but increasingly considered by linguists outside Qonklaks to be separate languages. This article will describe the standard Kwang variety, official in Qonklaks and predominantly originating from a standardized register of Central Kwang.

Standard Kwang is a standardized register of Capital Central Kwang, which is a subdialect of Central Kwang, which itself derives from Middle Kwang. The dialect earned its prestige after the Phõ Dynasty relocated the capital from Paseinsẽ to Jikhein, as the Imperial Court increasingly employed personnel from Central Kwang-speaking areas. Attempts to standardize Central Kwang began in the 18th century when imperial scholars attempted to create a unified Terminianization system for the capital dialect. Voara II noted the communication difficulties from the diverse linguistic situation in Qonklaks during a meeting between his father Jestrún IV and officials from Wa Sein province, who spoke Jo Amiyant Kwang. Their lack of fluency in Central Kwang necessitated the use of translators.

Standard Kwang, then known as Celestial Standard Kwang was first promulgated during Olboros Qonklaks as part of Voara II's reforms in 1845, and schools across the nation began to teach this standard alongside regular classes in their own native dialects in order to boost literacy rates and aid in creating a single common linguistic identity.

The language was promptly renamed to "Standard Kwang" during the Qonklese Republic in 1903. Standard Kwang was heavily promoted during the Qonklese Empire in conquered territories, specifically in occupied Riyana. The Supreme Commune of Qonklaks officially abandoned the Qonklese logography, favouring the easier Terminian alphabet instead. Under the kúúlist regime, the language underwent deliberate changes to remove "ideologically incompatible vocabulary" from public use, but the endeavour was abandoned in 1972.

Kwang is written with the Letso-Terminian alphabet.

Phonology

Consonants

Bilabial Labio-dental Dental Alveolar Post-alveolar Retroflex Palatal Velar Uvular Pharyngeal Epiglottal Glottal
Nasal
Plosive
Fricative
Affricate
Approximant
Trill
Flap or tap
Lateral fric.
Lateral app.
Lateral flap

Vowels

Front Near-front Central Near-back Back
Close
Near-close
Close-mid
Mid
Open-mid
Near-open
Open

Phonotactics

Orthography

The Kwang language is written using Qonklese logograms.

Grammar

Morphology

Syntax

Further reading