Region Arunachal Pradesh Native speakers 1,700 (2011) Glottolog bugu1246 | Ethnicity Bugun (Khowa) ISO 639-3 bgg | |
Language family Possibly Sino-Tibetan or Puroik
Kho-Bwa
Khowa | ||
Khowa, or Bugun, is a small Sino-Tibetan language spoken in India. They numbered about 1,700 in 2011. Sherdukpen speakers live just to the west of them.
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Classification
Bugun is classified as a Kho-Bwa language in Blench & Post (2013), although Blench (2015) believes Bugun may be actually be unrelated to the rest of the Kho-Bwa languages. Rather, it had borrowed heavily from Mey of Shergaon since the Bugun had a subordinate relationship with the Mey of Shergaon. A number of scholars have noted a similarity between Bugun and Puroik languages. It is possible that Puroik is not in fact a language isolate but actually part of a small language family with Bugun.
Distribution
Bugun is spoken in the following villages in southern West Kameng District, Arunachal Pradesh (Dondrup 1990:iv). The total population numbered 800 in 1981. Names in parentheses are spellings as given in Ethnologue.
Ethnologue also lists Mangopom village. These villages are located on the mountains on both sides of Rupa River, and are interspersed among Aka villages.