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Ethnologue > Web version > Country index > Asia > China > Wa, Vo

Wa, Vo

A language of China

ISO 639-3: wbm

Population  40,000 (2000). Many monolinguals.
Region  Southwest Yunnan, Lincang Prefecture, Yongde and Zhenkang counties.
Language map  Southwestern China
Alternate names   Awa, K’awa, Kawa, Va, Vo, Wa Proper, Wa Pwi, Wakut
Classification  Austro-Asiatic, Mon-Khmer, Northern Mon-Khmer, Palaungic, Eastern Palaungic, Waic, Wa
Language use  Vigorous. All domains. All ages. Positive attitude. Also use Mandarin Chinese [cmn], Lü [khb], or Lahu [lhu].
Language development  Literacy rate in L1: 1%. Literacy rate in L2: 76%. NT: 1938.
Writing system  Latin script.
Comments  Part of the Va (Wa) nationality. Agriculturalists: potatoes, cotton, hemp, tobacco, sugarcane, tea, rice, beans, buckwheat, maize; ironsmiths; weavers; bamboo craftsmen; brewers; animal husbandry. Traditional religion, Buddhist, Christian.

Entries from the SIL Bibliography about this language:

Academic Publications

HOPPLE, Paulette, author. 1988. "In their own language: finding communication centers among selected dialects of Wa."

PHANINTRA Teeranon, author. 2007. "The intrinsic pitch and intrinsic length of high and low vowels in Mon-Khmer language."  Available online