| Lepcha | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Spoken in | Sikkim, India; parts of Nepal and Bhutan | |
| Total speakers | 50,000 | |
| Language family | Sino-Tibetan
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| Writing system | Lepcha script | |
| Language codes | ||
| ISO 639-1 | None | |
| ISO 639-2 | – | |
| ISO 639-3 | lep | |
| Note: This page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. | ||
Lepcha language, or Róng language (Lepcha: ; Heleen Plaisier: Róngríng), is a language spoken by the Lepcha people in Sikkim, and parts of Nepal and Bhutan. The Lepcha script (also known as "róng") is a syllabic script which has a lot of special marks and requires ligatures. Its genealogy is unclear. Early Lepcha manuscripts were written vertically, a sign of Chinese influence. Lepcha is considered to be one of the aboriginal languages of the area in which it is spoken. Total number of speakers numbers near 50,000.
Lepcha is difficult to classify, but Van Driem (2001) suggests that it may be closest to the Mahakiranti languages.
External links
- Information on the Government of Sikkim website
- Script
- Ethnologue Report
- Heleen Plaisier's Lepcha Page
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