Endangered Languages Project

A diaspora group (since 1763) of Manchu from Manchuria

ALSO KNOWN AS		Sibe, Sibo, Xibo, Xibe, Sibin, Colloquial Manchu, 錫伯語
CLASSIFICATION		Tungusic, Southern Tungusic, Jurchenic
CODE AUTHORITY		ISO 639-3
LANGUAGE CODE		sjo
DOWNLOAD		As csv
MORE RESOURCES		OLAC search

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Information from: “Encyclopedia of the World's Endangered Languages” . Christopher Moseley (2007) Routledge

Vulnerable

100 percent certain, based on the evidence available
~27,000
Native speakers worldwide
CHILDREN
many
MORE ON SPEAKER NUMBERS
Information here refers to members of Xibo nationality in Xinjiang Province (Northwest China). There are also members of the same nationality in Liaoning Province (Northeast China) for whom the language is long extinct.

DATE OF INFO: 2000

DOMAINS OF USE
SPEAKER NUMBER TRENDS
TRANSMISSION

PLACES: Qapqal County, Xinjiang Province, China

LOCATION DESCRIPTION: Spoken in Qapqal County and various urban areas of Xinjiang Province in Northwest China.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Divergent variety of Manchu spoken by the descendants of a Manchu army sent to Xinjiang in 1764.

Threatened

80 percent certain, based on the evidence available
<10,000
Native speakers worldwide
Ethnic population
<20,000
MORE ON SPEAKER NUMBERS
There are also groups and individuals in Manchuria identifying themselves with the Sibe, rather than the Manchu nationality, raising the number of the total Sibe population in China close to 80,000; the linguistic background and geographical dimensions of this figure remain unclarified.

DATE OF INFO: 1993

SPEAKER NUMBER TRENDS

TRANSMISSION

MORE ON VITALITY

There are reports that the language is still being learnt by children, though apparently not in all families.

OTHER LANGUAGES USED BY THE COMMUNITY

Kazakh
Uigur
Chinese

LANGUAGE CONTEXT COMMENTS

degree of speakers' competence: apparently mainly fluent, but with interference from Written Manchu, which is used as the literary language

PLACES: China

LOCATION DESCRIPTION: in the Ili (Yili) region of Sinkiang (Xinjiang), within the Kazakh Autonomous District of the Xinjiang Uigur Autonomous Region

Vulnerable

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available
27,000
Native speakers worldwide

Vulnerable

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available
30,000
Native speakers worldwide
Ethnic population
188,824
MORE ON SPEAKER NUMBERS
Speaker number data: (J. An 2000). Few monolinguals. Ethnic population data: 2000 census.

PLACES: China

			2000	Red Book on Endangered Languages: Northeast Asia				UNESCO	http://www.helsinki.fi/~tasalmin/nasia_report.html	Juha Janhunen; Tapani Salminen	Juha Janhunen; Tapani Salminen. 2000. "UNESCO RED BOOK ON ENDANGERED LANGUAGES: NORTHEAST ASIA." Online: http://www.helsinki.fi/~tasalmin/nasia_report.html		<20,000	<10,000	1993	1000-9999	There are also groups and individuals in Manchuria identifying themselves with the Sibe, rather than the Manchu nationality, raising the number of the total Sibe population in China close to 80,000; the linguistic background and geographical dimensions of this figure remain unclarified.	Kazakh, Uigur, Chinese	degree of speakers' competence: apparently mainly fluent, but with interference from Written Manchu, which is used as the literary language	Threatened (80 percent certain, based on the evidence available)	11	There are reports that the language is still being learnt by children, though apparently not in all families.		13		China	in the Ili (Yili) region of Sinkiang (Xinjiang), within the Kazakh Autonomous District of the Xinjiang Uigur Autonomous Region
		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		27,000		10000-99999				Vulnerable (20 percent certain, based on the evidence available)								43.6599,81.3427
070071197X	3	1	2007	Encyclopedia of the World's Endangered Languages		Routledge	Abingdon			Christopher Moseley	Moseley, Christopher. 2007. Encyclopedia of the World's Endangered Languages, 1 edn. Abingdon: Routledge. ISBN 070071197X	ll_pub		~27,000	2000	10000-99999	Information here refers to members of Xibo nationality in Xinjiang Province (Northwest China). There are also members of the same nationality in Liaoning Province (Northeast China) for whom the language is long extinct.			Vulnerable (100 percent certain, based on the evidence available)	10		12	11	Divergent variety of Manchu spoken by the descendants of a Manchu army sent to Xinjiang in 1764.	Qapqal County, Xinjiang Province, China	Spoken in Qapqal County and various urban areas of Xinjiang Province in Northwest China.
		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	188,824	30,000		10000-99999	Speaker number data: (J. An 2000). Few monolinguals. Ethnic population data: 2000 census.			Vulnerable (20 percent certain, based on the evidence available)						China

Xibe

Language metadata

Language information by source

Vulnerable

100 percent certain, based on the evidence available

~27,000

Threatened

80 percent certain, based on the evidence available

<10,000

Vulnerable

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

27,000

Vulnerable

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

30,000

Discussion

Xibe

Language metadata

Language information by source

Vulnerable

100 percent certain, based on the evidence available

~27,000

Threatened

80 percent certain, based on the evidence available

<10,000

Vulnerable

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

27,000

Vulnerable

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

30,000

Discussion

Suggest information or improvement

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Sources of information

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