Akha People - Language

Language

Called "Avkavdawv," meaning "Akha language," by its native speakers, Akha is a tonal language in the Lolo/Yi branch of the Sino-Tibetan Family. The vast majority of Akha speakers can understand the Jeu G’oe (“Jer Way”) dialect spoken in southern China, Thailand and Myanmar. Some basic and systematic variations in regional dialects of Akha are discussed by Paul Lewis in his Akha-English-Thai Dictionary. Very few dialects of Akha do not share mutual intelligibility. The Akha have no written language but there are several competing scripts that have been written by missionaries and other foreigners.

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