03-01-002

2

TIBETO-BURMAN FAMILY.

　we shall anticipate the detailed account and put together the totals for the sub-groups. We shall further add the figures returned at the Census of 1901. In comparing the two it must be borne in mind that the last Census was extended to Burma, which province was not included under the operations of this Survey.

　The number of speakers were then returned as follows:-

Number of speakers.	Name of group.
	Estimated number.	Census of 1901.
Tibetan...	45,024	235,229
Himalayan...	194,234	190,585
North Assam...	36,910	41,731
Bodo...	617,989	596,411
Ng...	292,799	247,780
Kachin...	1,920	125,775
Kuki-Chin...	564,091	624,149
Burmese...	62,652	7,498,794
TOTAL...	1,815,619	9,560,454

　Of the 9,560,454 speakers of Tibeto-Burman languages enumerated at the last Census, only 1,803,611 were found within the territory included in this Survey. The rest were enumerated in Burma.

　 It is impossible to form even an approximate idea of the number of speakers out- side British India. The population of Tibet has been estimated at 6 million people. No estimates are available for the States of Nepal and Bhutan or for the number of speakers in China. We may say, however, that the total number of speakers of Tibeto-Burman languages can hardly be estimated at less than twenty millions.

　The Tibeto-Burman languages are very closely related to the Siamese-Chinese. The vocabulary is, to a great extent, the same. It will be suffi- cient to give some few examples. I shall give the words in Tibetan, Burmese, Khmt, and Chinese. Khmt has been chosen to represent the Tai family, because it falls within the scope of this Survey. With regard

	Tibetan.	Burmese.	Khmt.	Chinese.
One...	gchig	tach	lng	yit
Two...	gnyis	nhach	shng	ri
Three...	gsum	th	shm	sm
Four...	bzhi	le	sh	ss
Five...	lnga	ng	h	ngu

to Tibetan and Burmese, I shall give the written and not the spoken form.