Thakali language

Thakali is a Sino-Tibetan language of Nepal spoken by the Thakali people, mainly in the Myagdi and Mustang Districts. Its dialects have limited mutual intelligibility.

Thakali
थकाली
Native to	Nepal
Ethnicity	12,000 Thakali (2021 census)[1]
Native speakers	4,200 (2002–2021 census)[1]
Language family	Sino-Tibetan Tamangic Gurung–Tamang Gurungic Thakali
Dialects	Thakali Tangbe Tetang Chuksang
Writing system	Devanagari (modern)[2] Tibetan script (historical)[3]
Language codes
ISO 639-3	Either: ths – Thakali skj – Seke
Glottolog	thak1245  Thakali seke1240  Seke
ELP	Thakali
	Seke (Nepal)[4]
Thakali is classified as Definitely Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger

Seke (Serke, Tangbe, Tetang, Chuksang) is sometimes considered a separate language.^[1] Other names and dialect names are Barhagaule, Marpha, Panchgaunle, Puntan Thakali, Syang, Tamhang Thakali, Thaksaatsaye, Thaksatsae, Thaksya, Tukuche, Yhulkasom.^[5] Seke (Serke) is spoken in the villages of Tangbe, Tetang, Chuksang, Chaile, and Gyakar in Mustang District, northern Nepal. Martine Mazaudon has documented the Tangbe dialect of Seke as spoken by an expatriate speaker in Paris.^[6] Honda (2002) also documented two other dialects of Seke, Tetang and Chuksang.^[7]

Geographical distribution

Thakali is spoken in the middle of the Kali Gandaki River valley and in the upper part of the Kali Gandaki Gorge (also known as Thak Khola), in Mustang District, Gandaki Province. The Thakali area is bounded by Annapurna Himal on one side and Dhawalagiri Himal on the other, with Tatopani village in the south and Jomsom in the north (Ethnologue).

The Tukuche dialect is spoken from Tukuche to Thaksatsae, in 13 villages: Tukuche, Khanti, Kobang, Larjung, Dampu, Naurikot, Bhurjungkot, Nakung, Tithi, Kunjo, Taglung, Lete, Ghansa. Many live outside the area.

Seke is spoken by Gurung of Chuksang, Tsaile, Tangbe, Tetang, and Gyakar villages of Mustang District, Dhawalagiri Zone. There are only 700 native speakers of this language, 100 of whom live in New York City. Reportedly, half of the New York City speakers live in the same apartment building.^[8][9][10]

Dialects

Ethnologue lists the following dialects of Thakali.

• Tukuche (Tamhang Thakali, Thaksaatsaye, Thaksatsae)
• Marpha (Puntan Thakali)
• Syang (Yhulkasom)

Seke has the following dialects.

• Tangbe
• Tetang
• Chuksang