Lalo, Central

YWT

threatened

Alternate Names: Lalo, Lalopa, Laluo, Misapa, Xishanba Lalo

Dialects: None known. Not intelligible with other Lalo languages.

Status Notes: Language of recognized nationality: Yi.

Genealogy:

Sino-Tibetan
Tibeto-Burman
Ngwi-Burmese
Ngwi
Central

Demographics: 213,000 (2010 SIL). Over 500,000 in subgroup; many living further west, south or east do not speak the language; less than half are speakers, not all fluent and not many children (Bradley 2007).

Language Use: In many areas it is extinct or severely endangered; vital in some areas where parents teach their children and use it in most domains. High bilingualism in Chinese [cmn], especially among young people.

Language Development: Poetry. Dictionary. Grammar.

Typology: SOV; 5 tones.

Nation of Origin: China

Other Comments: Western Yi dialect. Traditional religion.