Hmongic is one of the primary branches of the
Hmong–Mien language family, with the other being
Mienic. Hmongic is a diverse group of perhaps twenty languages, based on mutual intelligibility, but several of these are dialectically quite diverse in phonology and vocabulary, and are not considered to be single languages by their speakers. There are probably over thirty languages taking this into account. •
Miao •
Eastern • Jung-chiang (
Rongjiang, in Gaotongzhai) • East A • Cheng-feng (
Zhenfeng) • Tʻai-chiang (
Taijiang, in Taigongzhai) • Lu-shan (Lushan, in Kaitang) • Kʻai-li (
Kaili, in Yanghao 养蒿 / 養蒿) • Tai-kung (Daigong, in Shidongkou 石洞口) •
Northern • Hua-yuan (
Huayuan, in Jiwei 吉卫 / 吉衛) • Central • Kwei-chu • Lung-li (
Longli, in Shuiwei) • Western • Wei-ning (
Weining, in Shimenkan) =
A Hmao • Kwang-shun (Guangshun, in Ke-cheng-chai) • West A • Hua-chieh (
Bijie, in Dananshan 大南山) • Su-yung (
Xuyong) •
Tak •
Petchabun Strecker (1987) Strecker's classification is as follows: •
Hmongic (Miao) • West Hunan = Xong =
Xiangxi (Northern Hmongic) • East Guizhou = Mhu =
Qiandong (Eastern Hmongic) •
Pa Hng • Hm Nai =
Wunai • Kiong Nai =
Jiongnai • Yu Nuo =
Younuo • Sichuan–Guizhou–Yunnan =
Chuanqiangdian (Western Hmongic, including Bu–Nao) (See) In a follow-up to that paper in the same publication, Strecker tentatively removed Pa-Hng, Wunai, Jiongnai, and Yunuo, positing that they may be independent branches of Miao–Yao, with the possibility that Yao was the first of these to branch off. Effectively, this means that Miao/Hmongic would consist of six branches:
She (Ho-Nte), Pa-Hng, Wunai, Jiongnai, Yunuo, and everything else. In addition, the 'everything else' would include nine distinct but unclassified branches, which were not addressed by either Matisoff or Ratliff (see West Hmongic#Strecker).
Matisoff (2001) Matisoff followed the basic outline of Strecker (1987), apart from consolidating the
Bunu languages and leaving
She unclassified: •
Hmongic (Miao) •
Bunu •
Younuo •
Wunai •
Bu–Nao:
Pu No,
Nao Klao,
Nu Mhou,
Nunu,
Tung Nu •
Jiongnai •
Chuanqiangdian Miao (See) •
Pa-Hng •
Qiandong Miao (Hmu, 3 languages) •
Xiangxi Miao (Xong, 2 languages)
Wang & Deng (2003) Wang & Deng (2003) is one of the few Chinese sources which integrate the
Bunu languages into Hmongic on purely linguistic grounds. They find the following pattern in the statistics of core
Swadesh vocabulary: •
She • (main branch) • (Hunan–Guangxi) •
Jiongnai • (other) •
Western Hunan (Northern Hmongic / Xong) •
Younuo–
Pa-Hng • (Guizhou–Yunnan) •
Eastern Guizhou (Eastern Hmongic / Hmu) • (Western) •
Bu–Nao •
Western Hmongic •
A-Hmao •
Hmong Matisoff (2006) Matisoff (2006) outlined the following. Not all varieties are listed. • Northern Hmong = West Hunan (
Xong) •
Western Hmong (See) • Central Hmong •
Longli Miao •
Guizhu • Eastern Guizhou (
Hmu) •
Daigong •
Kaili (= Northern) •
Lushan •
Taijiang (= Northern) •
Zhenfeng (= Northern) •
Phö •
Rongjiang (= Southern) • Patengic •
Pateng •
Yongcong Matisoff also indicates Hmongic influence on
Gelao in his outline.
Ratliff (2010) The Hmongic classification below is from
Martha Ratliff (2010:3). •
Hmongic (Miao) •
Pa-Hng – 32,000 speakers • Main branch •
Kiong Nai – 1,100 speakers •
She – 910 speakers • Core Hmongic •
West Hmongic (Chuanqiandian) •
Hmong – 3,712,000 speakers •
Gha-Mu - 84,000 speakers •
A-Hmao – 300,000 speakers in Guizhou and
Yunnan •
Bu–Nao – 390,000 speakers in
Guangxi •
Gejia - 60,000 speakers •
A-Hmyo - 61,000 speakers •
Mashan - 140,000 speakers •
Guiyang - 190,000 speakers •
Huishui - 180,000 speakers •
Pingtang - 24,000 speakers •
Xong – 900,000 speakers mostly in
Hunan •
Hmu – 2,100,000 speakers mostly in
Guizhou Ratliff (2010) notes that
Pa-Hng,
Jiongnai, and
Xong (
North Hmongic) are phonologically conservative, as they retain many Proto-Hmongic features that have been lost in most other daughter languages. For instance, both Pa-Hng and Xong have vowel quality distinctions (and also tone distinctions in Xong) depending on whether or not the Proto-Hmong-Mien rime was open or closed. Both also retain the second part of Proto-Hmong-Mien diphthongs, which is lost in most other Hmongic languages, since they tend to preserve only the first part of Proto-Hmong-Mien diphthongs. Ratliff notes that the position of Xong (
North Hmongic) is still quite uncertain. Since Xong preserves many archaic features not found in most other Hmongic languages, any future attempts at classifying the Hmong-Mien languages must also address the position of Xong.
Taguchi (2012) Yoshihisa Taguchi's (2012, 2013) computational phylogenetic study classifies the Hmongic languages as follows. •
Hmongic •
Pahngic •
Pa Hng • Northern •
Xong • Core Hmongic • Central •
Hmu • Western • Hmong–Hmyo •
Hmong •
Hmyo •
Pu Nu – Nao Klao •
Pu Nu •
Nao Klao • Eastern •
Kiong Nai • Ho Ne – Pana •
Ho Ne •
Pana Hsiu (2015, 2018) Hsiu's (2015, 2018) computational phylogenetic study classifies the Hmongic languages as follows, based primarily on lexical data from Chen (2013). •
Hmongic •
Pahengic •
Pa Hng •
Hm Nai •
Xiongic • Western (Xiong) • Eastern (Suang) •
Sheic •
She–
Jiongnai •
Younuo •
Pana •
Hmuic • North-East • West (
Raojia) • South •
West Hmongic •
Bu–Nao •
Bunu •
Nao Klao •
Numao •
Hmong (Chuanqiandian) • (various) ==Comparison==