Khitan language


Khitan or Kitan.svg|35px in large script or . It was the official language of the Liao Empire and the Qara Khitai.

Classification

Khitan appears to have been related to the Mongolic languages; Juha Janhunen states, "he conception is gaining support that Khitan was a language in some respects radically different from the historically known Mongolic languages. If this view proves to be correct, Khitan is, indeed, best classified as a Para-Mongolic language."
Alexander Vovin argues that Khitan has several Koreanic loanwords. Since both of the Korean Goryeo dynasty and Khitan Liao dynasty claimed to be successors of Goguryeo, it is possible that the Koreanic words in Khitan were borrowed from the language of Goguryeo.

Script

Khitan was written using two mutually exclusive writing systems known as the Khitan large script and the Khitan small script. The small script, which was a syllabary, was used until the Jurchen-speaking Jin dynasty replaced it in 1191. The large script was logographic like Chinese.

Records

The History of Liao contains a volume of Khitan words transcribed in Chinese characters titled "Glossary of National Language". It is found in Chapter 116.
The Qianlong Emperor of the Qing dynasty erroneously identified the Khitan people and their language with the Solons, leading him to use the Solon language to "correct" Chinese character transcriptions of Khitan names in the History of Liao in his Imperial Liao-Jin-Yuan Three Histories National Language Explanation project.
The Liao dynasty referred to the Khitan language with the term Guoyu 國語 "National language", which was also used by other non-Han Chinese dynasties in China to refer to their languages like Manchu of the Qing, Classical Mongolian during the Yuan dynasty, Jurchen during the Jin, and Xianbei during the Northern Wei. Even today, Mandarin is referred to in Taiwan as Guoyu.

Vocabulary

There are several closed systems of Khitan lexical items for which systematic information is available. The following is a list of words in these closed systems that are similar to Mongolic. Mongolian and Daur equivalents are given after the English translation:

Seasons

KhitanTranslationMongolian scriptmodern Mongolian pronunciationDaur
heu.urspringqaburhavarhaor
ju.unsummerjunzunnajir
n.am.urautumnnamurnamarnamar
u.ulwinterebülövöluwul

Numerals

KhitanTranslationMongolian scriptmodern Mongolian pronunciationDaur
*omconeonca 'unique'onts enqu
j.ur.ersecondjirin 'two'jirin, jiremsen jieeq
hu.ur.erthirdgurba 'three'gurav, gurvan, guramsan guarab
durer/durenfourthdörbendöröv, dörvöndurub
taufivetabuntav, tavantaawu
t.ad.o.hofifthtabu-dakitav dahitaawudar
*nilsixjirguganzurgaa jirwoo
da.lo.erseventhdologa 'seven'doloodoloo
n.ie.emeightnayim 'eight'naimnaim
*isnineyesüyüs, yüsönis
par tenarbanaravharbin
jauhundredjagunzuu, zuunjao
mingthousandmingganmyanga, myanganmianga

Compared with Khitan, The Tungusic numerals of the Jurchen language differ significantly: three=ilan, five=shunja, seven=nadan, nine=uyun, hundred=tangu.

Animals

KhitanTranslationMongolian scriptmodern Mongolian pronunciationDaur
te.qo.achickentaqiyatahiakakraa
ni.qodognoqainohoinowu
s.au.abirdsibugashuvuudegii
em.agoatimagayamaaimaa
tau.li.arabbittaulaituulaitauli
mo.rihorsemorimorimori
unicowüniyeüneeunie
mu.ho.osnakemogoimogoimowo

Directions

KhitanTranslationMongolian scriptmodern Mongolian pronunciationDaur
ud.ureastdorunadornogarkui
dzi.ge.nleftjegünzüünsolwoi
bo.ra.ianrightbaragunbaruunbaran
dau.ur.unmiddledumdadundduand
xe.du.unhorizontalköndelenhöndölön
ja.cen.iborderjaqazasan, zaagjag

Time

KhitanTranslationMongolian scriptmodern Mongolian pronunciationDaur
suninightsönishönösuni
un.n/un.enow, presentönöönöönee

Personal relations

KhitanTranslationMongolian scriptmodern Mongolian pronunciationDaur
c.i.isbloodcisutsusqos
mo kufemaleemeememwun
deuyounger brotherdegüdüüdeu
n.ai.cifriendnayijanaizguq
na.ha.anunclenagacanagatsnaoq
s.ia/s.engoodsayinsainsain
g.en.unsadness, regretgenü='to regret' in the letter of Arghun Khan)genen, gemgemxbei
kupersonkümünhün, hümünhuu

Tribal administration

KhitanTranslationMongolian scriptDaur
cau.urwarcagur, as in "tsa'urgalan dairakh"quagur
nai/nai.dheads, officials"-d" is a plural suffix=noyan, noyad for pluralnoyin
t.em-to bestow a titletemdeg 'sign'temgeet
k.emdecreekem kemjiye 'law/norm'hes
us.giletterüsegjiexgen
uimatterüileurgil
qudugblessedqutughireebei
xe.se.gepart, section, provincekesegmeyen
ming.anmilitary unit of thousandmingganmiangan

Basic verbs

KhitanTranslationMongolian script
p.obecomebol-
p.o.juraisebos-
on.a.anfalluna-
x.ui.ri.ge.eitransferkür-ge-
u-giveög-
sa-to residesagu-
a-bea- 'live', as in "aj ahui"

Natural objects

KhitanTranslationMongolian scriptmodern Mongolian pronunciationDaur
eu.ulcloudegüleüüleulen
s.eu.kadewsigüderishüüdersuider
sairmoonsarasarsaruul
nairsunnaranarnar
m.em/m.ngsilvermönggömöngmungu

The Liaoshi records in Chapter 53:
'Tao Saiyier' corresponds to Mongolian 'tavan sar'. The Turkic Kyrgyz equivalent would be 'beshinchi ay' while the Manchu equivalent would be 'sunja biya'.