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Ethnologue > Web version > Country index > Asia > Bhutan > Dzongkha

Dzongkha

A language of Bhutan

ISO 639-3: dzo

Population  160,000 in Bhutan (2006). Population total all countries: 171,300.
Region  Ha, Paru, Punakha districts. Also in India, Nepal.
Alternate names   Bhotia of Bhutan, Bhotia of Dukpa, Bhutanese, Drukha, Drukke, Dukpa, Jonkha, Rdzongkha, Zongkhar
Dialects  Wang-The (Thimphu-Punakha), Ha, Northern Thimphu. As different from Central Tibetan [bod] as Nepali [nep] is from Hindi. Partially intelligible with Sikkimese [sip] (Drenjoke). Dialects may be separate languages. Lexical similarity: 48% with Tshangla [tsj], 47% to 52% with Bumthangkha [kjz], 77% with Adap [adp].
Classification  Sino-Tibetan, Tibeto-Burman, Himalayish, Tibeto-Kanauri, Tibetic, Tibetan, Southern
Language use  Official language.
Language development  Literacy rate in L1: 54%. Literacy rate in L2: Below 5%. Common school language. Radio programs. Grammar. NT: 2000.
Writing system  Tibetan script, Uchen style. Tibetan script, Umed style.
Comments  Buddhist.

Also spoken in:

India

Language name   Dzongkha
Population  11,000 in India (2007).
Region  West Bengal, Kalimpong, Darjeeling, just inside the Indo-Bhutan border; Sikkim; Assam; Arunachal Pradesh; Nagaland; Manipur; Meghalaya.
Alternate names  Drukpa, Lhoskad, Hloka
Comments  Buddhist.
 

Nepal

Language name   Dzongkha
Population  300 in Nepal (2007).
Region  Some in Kathmandu.
Language map  Western Nepal, reference number 30
Alternate names  Bhotia of Bhutan, Bhutanese, Drukha, Drukke, Jonkha, Zongkhar
Comments  ‘Lhoke’ means ‘southern language’. Traders; shopkeepers.
 

Entries from the SIL Bibliography about this language:

Academic Publications

WATTERS, Stephen, author. 1995. Feature licensing in Dzongkha.

WATTERS, Stephen, author. 1996. A preliminary study of prosody in Dzongkha.