Lyngngam language


Lyngngam is an Austroasiatic language of Northeast India closely related to Khasi. Once listed as a dialect of Khasi, Lyngam has in recent literature been classified as a distinct language. Lyngam speakers have food and dress similar to the neighboring Garo people.

Phonology

Consonant inventory

The following table lists the consonants attested in Lyngam.
The main difference with the Khasi language is that Lyngngam does not possess the voiced aspirated series. Furthermore, Lyngngam does not have the phoneme. Words which have in Khasi typically have or in Lyngngam, as in the following pairs of cognates:

Vowel inventory

The following table lists the vowel inventory of the language. The only vowels showing a length distinction are and, in contradistinction to Khasi, where length is distinctive for all vowels.
Words with diphthongs in Khasi have monophthongs in Lyngam, as in the following pairs of cognates: