She Language

  The She language (Chinese: 畲語 shēyǔ), spoken by the She people, is a Hmong-Mien language. Most of the over 709,000 She people today speak Hakka Chinese. Those who retain their own language - approximately 1,200 individuals in Guangdong province - call themselves Ho Ne "mountain people" (Chinese: 活聂 huóniè). The She have strongly influenced, and been strongly influenced by, the Hakka Chinese, both in language and culture. The She language is thu... more

The She language (Chinese: 畲語 shēyǔ), spoken by the She people, is a Hmong-Mien language. Most of the over 709,000 She people today speak Hakka Chinese. Those who retain their own language - approximately 1,200 individuals in Guangdong province - call themselves Ho Ne "mountain people" (Chinese: 活聂 huóniè). The She have strongly influenced, and been strongly influenced by, the Hakka Chinese, both in language and culture. The She language is thus not easily compared to other Hmong-Mien languages. It is generally either included in the Hmong branch, or left as a posited third branch of that family. less