Endangered Languages Project

ALSO KNOWN AS		Mlabri (Minor), Mla, Mla Bri, Mla-Bri, Mabri, Mrabri, Yumbri, Ma Ku, Yellow Leaf, Phi Thong Luang ("Spirits of yellow leaves"), มละบริ, เผ่าตองหลือง, ผีตองหลือง
CLASSIFICATION		Austro-Asiatic, Khmuic, Pray-Pram
CODE AUTHORITY		ISO 639-3
LANGUAGE CODE		mra
VARIANTS & DIALECTS		Mrabri (α Mlabri) Minor Mlabri (β Mlabri) Yumbri (γ Mlabri)
DOWNLOAD		As csv
MORE RESOURCES		OLAC search
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS		"Spirits of the yellow leaves" is derogatory. The dialectal varieties are not mutually intelligible.

Compare Sources (6)

Information from: “Mlabri” (1003-1032) . Bätscher, Kevin (2015) , Sidwell, Paul and Mathias Jenny · Brill

Threatened

100 percent certain, based on the evidence available
<400
Native speakers worldwide
Ethnic population
400
MORE ON SPEAKER NUMBERS
migration from Laos to Thailand in the second half of the 20th century

DOMAINS OF USE

SPEAKER NUMBER TRENDS

TRANSMISSION

MORE ON VITALITY

The Mlabri marry other Mlbari and speak the language to their children. But their society is changing very rapidly (from hunting-gathering to farming) which might affect the survival of the Mlabri languages given their low population.

OTHER LANGUAGES USED BY THE COMMUNITY

Nothern Thai; Standard Thai; White Hmong; Mien dialects

LANGUAGE CONTEXT COMMENTS

Educated people learn Standard Thai in school.

PLACES: Thailand; Laos

LOCATION DESCRIPTION: 5 villages in Nan and Phrae provinces of Thailand; Sayabouli Province of Laos.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Most ethnic Mlabri live in northern Thailand, and some live in Laos.

Endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available
149
Native speakers worldwide

Endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available
324
Native speakers worldwide
MORE ON SPEAKER NUMBERS
300 in Thailand (E. Long 1982).

PLACES: Laos; Thailand;

Endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available
324
Native speakers worldwide

Endangered

40 percent certain, based on the evidence available
~100
Native speakers worldwide
Ethnic population
~150
MORE ON SPEAKER NUMBERS
A group of about 150 speakers, disrupted by conflict along the Thai/Lao border where they lived. Some have now settled down; and are assimilating into nearby Hmong/Meo and Thai/Lao groups. Only about 100 still speak the language, with two lexically-distinct dialects, one much more endangered than the other, and some extinct dialects.

SPEAKER NUMBER TRENDS
LANGUAGE CONTEXT COMMENTS: Phi Tong Luang means ‘spirits of the yellow leaves’ in Thai and Lao, and refers to their hunter-gatherer lifestyle. Mrabri and Yumbri are other renderings of the group’s own name.

PLACES: Laos and Thailand

LOCATION DESCRIPTION: Laos: western Saignabouri Province; Thailand: northeastern Nan Province.

0199255911		2005	The World Atlas of Language Structures			Bernard Comrie and David Gil and Martin Haspelmath and Matthew S. Dryer	Oxford University Press	New York			2005. "The World Atlas of Language Structures." edited by Bernard Comrie et al. Oxford University Press.																	18.5,101.0
	16	2009	Ethnologue: Languages of the World, 16th Edition (2009)			M. Paul Lewis	SIL International	Dallas, TX	http://www.ethnologue.com/		Lewis, M. Paul (ed.). 2009. Ethnologue: Languages of the World, 16 edn. http://www.ethnologue.com/home.asp. (15 February, 2011.)	ll_pub		324	100-999	300 in Thailand (E. Long 1982).				Endangered (20 percent certain, based on the evidence available)						Laos; Thailand;
	3rd	2010	Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger				UNESCO Publishing	Paris	http://www.unesco.org/culture/en/endangeredlanguages/atlas	Christopher Moseley (ed.)	Moseley, Christopher (ed.). 2010. Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger, 3rd edn. http://www.unesco.org/culture/en/endangeredlanguages/atlas. (03 June, 2011.)	ll_pub		149	100-999					Endangered (20 percent certain, based on the evidence available)								18.4796,101.0961
		2007	East and Southeast Asia	Encyclopedia of the World's Endangered Languages	349-424	C. Moseley	London & New York: Routledge			David Bradley	Bradley, David. 2007. "East and Southeast Asia." In Encyclopedia of the World's Endangered Languages, edited by C. Moseley. 349-424. London & New York: Routledge.	HHOLD	~150	~100	10-99	A group of about 150 speakers, disrupted by conflict along the Thai/Lao border where they lived. Some have now settled down; and are assimilating into nearby Hmong/Meo and Thai/Lao groups. Only about 100 still speak the language, with two lexically-distinct dialects, one much more endangered than the other, and some extinct dialects.		Phi Tong Luang means ‘spirits of the yellow leaves’ in Thai and Lao, and refers to their hunter-gatherer lifestyle. Mrabri and Yumbri are other renderings of the group’s own name.		Endangered (40 percent certain, based on the evidence available)				12		Laos and Thailand	Laos: western Saignabouri Province; Thailand: northeastern Nan Province.
			World Oral Literature Project						http://www.oralliterature.org		"World Oral Literature Project." Online: http://www.oralliterature.org.			324	100-999					Endangered (20 percent certain, based on the evidence available)
		2015	Mlabri	The Handbook of Austroasiatic Languages	1003-1032	Sidwell, Paul and Mathias Jenny	Brill	Leiden		Bätscher, Kevin			400	<400	100-999	migration from Laos to Thailand in the second half of the 20th century	Nothern Thai; Standard Thai; White Hmong; Mien dialects	Educated people learn Standard Thai in school.	all	Threatened (100 percent certain, based on the evidence available)	11	The Mlabri marry other Mlbari and speak the language to their children. But their society is changing very rapidly (from hunting-gathering to farming) which might affect the survival of the Mlabri languages given their low population.	12	11	Most ethnic Mlabri live in northern Thailand, and some live in Laos.	Thailand; Laos	5 villages in Nan and Phrae provinces of Thailand; Sayabouli Province of Laos.

Mlabri

Language metadata

Language information by source

Threatened

100 percent certain, based on the evidence available

<400

Endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

149

Endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

324

Endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

324

Endangered

40 percent certain, based on the evidence available

~100

Discussion

Mlabri

Language metadata

Language information by source

Threatened

100 percent certain, based on the evidence available

<400

Endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

149

Endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

324

Endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

324

Endangered

40 percent certain, based on the evidence available

~100

Discussion

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