Yunnan Shangri-la Naxi Language Study

In this paper, we are going to research on the Naxi language of Xinren town from Shangri-la in Yunnan province. In the language classification, Naxi language belongs to Yi branch of Tibeto-Burman group from Sino-Tibetan. The previous research on Naxi language done by scholars is focused on Naxi language from Lijiang and part of Weixi. However, this is the first paper that comprehensively surveys, records and systematically studies Naxi language of Xinren town from Shangri-La.Based on the predecessors'exploration and practice, the author summarizes the phonetic system of Naxi language, introduces some basic knowledge including vocabulary and grammar. Besides, a summary of the corresponding relationship between Naxi language of Xinren town and Yunnan dialect as well as other Tibeto-Burman language is also made in this paper.This paper is divided into five parts:In the first part, an introduction on the Naxi people, their language profiles, Shangri-La County's geography, ethnic distribution, Naxi language use profiles is given. Meanwhile, the content, meaning, research methods as well as materials source of this paper will also be discussed..In the second part, the author is going to comprehensively describe the phonetic system of Naxi language of Xinren town, and compare it with the Naxi language from Lijiang in order to sum up the differences and similarities between these two branches.The third part will concentrate on analyzing vocabulary of Naxi language in the means of basic vocabulary and general vocabulary. In addition, combined with language habits, social and cultural background of Naxi people, the author discuss about the nationality and cultural connotation embodied in Naxi language.The fourth part touches upon the grammar of Naxi language of Xinren town, including word formations and function of phrases. Analysis of word formations will be conducted mainly from the angle of pronunciation, meaning and structure. And study on the function of phrases will be carried on from three aspects: noun, verb and adjective.In the last, we will give a comparison between Naxi language of Xinren town and Yunnan dialect as well as other Tibeto-Burman language, furthermore, analyze and summarize the corresponding relationship between these three languages as well.