Sino-Tibetan languages

Tai Languages

The Tai or Thai subfamily of Sino-Tibetan is made up of the Thai language (formerly called Siamese) of Thailand, the Lao tongue of Laos, the Shan language of Myanmar, possibly the Vietnamese tongue of Vietnam, and a number of others. The Miae and Yao of China are sometimes classified as Tai or Thai and sometimes as Tibeto-Burman.

See also Southeast Asian languages.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

• • Cite
  • Print