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Tu

A language of China

ISO 639-3: mjg

Population	152,000 (1999 K. Li). Very few monolinguals. Ethnic population: 190,000.
Region	East Qinghai Province, Huzhu Tu Autonomous County; Gansu Province.
Language map	China
Alternate names	Mongor, Mongour, Monguor
Dialects	Huzhu (Mongghul, Halchighol, Naringhol), Minhe (Mangghuer). Said to be most divergent of all Mongolian languages. Dialects reported not inherently mutually intelligible. Huzhu: 150,000 people, 50,000 speakers; Minhe: 25,000. Dongren Huzhu considered standard. Dialects of Huzhu: Halchi, Karlong (18,000), Naringhol.
Classification	Altaic, Mongolic, Eastern, Mongour
Language use	Positive attitude. Most also use Chinese [cmn] or Tibetan [bod]. Written Chinese or Tibetan are used. 30,000 people have shifted to Chinese.
Language development	Literacy rate in L1: About 2,000 can read, 200 can write. Literacy rate in L2: 77%. Magazines. Films. Dictionary. Grammar.
Writing system	Latin script, Pinyin-based.
Comments	Classified as Tu nationality. SOV; postpositions; genitives, adjectives, numerals, and relative clauses precede head noun; question word appears in the position of the thing being questioned; verbs may bear up to 3 or 4 suffixes; word order distinguishes subject and direct object; topicalized noun phrases are often fronted; case is marked by enclitic postpositions; verbs are marked for the pragmatic category of perspective (a binary distinction between the perspective of the speaker and that of anyone else); causatives are extremely common; syllables (C)(C)V(C) (clusters must involve a glide in Mangghuer, while Mongghul allows a wider range of onset clusters); stress falls on the final syllable of a phonological word; no vowel harmony (in Mangghuer). Agriculturalists. Buddhist (Lamaist), traditional religion.

Entries from the SIL Bibliography about this language:

Academic Publications

ÅKERMAN, Vesa, author. 2008. Mongghul phonology sketch.  

ÅKERMAN, Vesa, author. 2012. "Inflection of Finite Verbs in Mongghul."  

CHEN Zhaojun; LI Xingzhong; LÜ Jinliang; SLATER, Keith W.; STUART, Kevin; WANG Xianzhen; WANG Yongwei; WANG Zhenlin; XIN Huaizhi; ZHU Meilan; ZHU Shanzhong; ZHU Wenhui; ZHU Yongzhong, compilers. 2005. Folktales of China's Minhe Mangghuer = Zhongguo minhe tuzu minjiangushi.

DPAL-LDAN-BKRA-SHIS; SLATER, Keith W.; ZHU Yongzhong, compilers. 1996. Language materials of China's Monguor minority: Huzhu Mongghul and Minhe Mangghuer.

SLATER, Keith W., author. 1998. Minhe Mangghuer: a mixed language of the Inner Asian frontier.

SLATER, Keith W., author. 2003. "Mangghuer."

SLATER, Keith W., author. 2003. A grammar of Mangghuer: a Mongolic language of China’s Qinghai-Gansu sprachbund.

SLATER, Keith W.; STUART, Kevin; ÜJIYEDIIN Chuluu; ZHU Yongzhong, authors. 1997. "Gangou Chinese dialect: A comparative study of a stronglyaltaicized Chinese dialect and its Mongolic neighbor."