Rabha language

Rabha is a Sino-Tibetan language of Northeast India. The two dialects, Maitori and Rongdani, are divergent enough to cause problems in communication. According to U.V. Joseph,^[1] there are three dialects, viz. Rongdani, Maitori and Kocha (page ix). Joseph writes that "the Kocha dialect, spoken along the northern bank of the Brahmaputra, is highly divergent and is not intelligible to a Rongdani or Maitori speaker" (page ix). Joseph also writes that "The dialect variations between Rongdani and Maitori, both of which are spoken on the southern bank of the Brahmaputra, in the Goalpara district of Assam and belong to the northern slopes of Meghalaya, are minimal" (pages ix-x). He concludes the paragraph on dialectal variation with: "The Rongdani-Maitori dialectal differences become gradually more marked as one moves further west" (page x).

In 2007, U.V. Joseph published a grammar of Rabha with Brill in their series Languages of the Greater Himalayan Region.^[2]

A representation of different Rabha dialects

A representation of different Rabha numbers

Geographical distribution

According to the Ethnologue, Rabha is spoken in the following areas of India.

• Darrang district, Goalpara district, and Kamrup district, western Assam
• Nagaland
• Jalpaiguri district and Alipurduar district, West Bengal
• Tufanganj subdivision, Koch Bihar district
• East Garo Hills district and West Garo Hills district, Meghalaya

There are also 1,600 Rabha in 9 districts of Bhutan.^[3]

See also

• Rabha people
• Rabha Hasong Autonomous Council
• Rabha Baptist Church Union

References

1. ^ Joseph, U.V. 2000. Rabha–English dictionary khúrangnala. Guwahati: Don Boco Publications.
2. ^ Joseph, U.V. 2007. Rabha. Leiden: Brill.
3. ^ Joshua Project