Languages of Asia

There is a wide variety of languages spoken throughout Asia, comprising a number of families and some unrelated isolates. Asian languages usually have a long tradition of writing, but not always.

Language groups

The major families in terms of numbers are Indo-European in South Asia and Sino-Tibetan in East Asia. Several other families are regionally dominant.

Sino-Tibetan

Sino-Tibetan includes Chinese, Tibetan, Burmese, and numerous languages of the Tibetan Plateau, southern China, Burma, and North east India.

Indo-European

The Indo-European family is represented by the Indic branch, which includes Sindhi, Hindi, Urdu, Punjabi and many other languages of India (Assamese, Bengali etc.), Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and the Maldives; the Iranian branch, which includes Persian, Pashto, and other languages of Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Central Asia; the Slavic branch, which includes Russian in Siberia; Greek around the Black Sea; and Armenian; as well as extinct languages such as Hittite of Anatolia and Tocharian of (Chinese) Turkestan.

This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - https://wn.com/Languages_of_Asia

Latest News for: Asian languages

Mind your language – An Irishman’s Diary on learning Cantonese

The Irish Times 16 Jul 2018

Moving to Hong Kong forced me to take a deeper interest and became the catalyst for my unlikeliest attempt on a language to date ... English is by no means widely spoken in Hong Kong, but it remains an official language and is widespread enough for people to get by ... This can appear odd and even unsporting to westerners but it is their languages that are in the minority worldwide – most languages are tonal and Asian ones overwhelmingly so....

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Asia Society to present exhibition exploring Modernism in India

News India Times 16 Jul 2018

A selection of masterpieces of South Asian and East Asian art, including works from the Asia Society Museum Collection – Rajput miniatures, a sandstone figure, two Chola bronzes, and a Japanese landscape hanging scroll – is also included to show how the Progressives were inspired by South Asian and East Asian iconography and traditional forms in the creation of a new visual language for a new Indian nation....

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Class of cultures: Meet the mandarin students bringing the language of the world to the UAE

The National 15 Jul 2018

Nearly a billion people in the world speak Mandarin - and now classes of students at an Abu Dhabi school are voicing their support for the most popular language on the planet. Mandarin is by far the largest of the Chinese dialect groups, spoken by about 70 per cent of all people in the country, spreading from north to south of the vast Asian nation. But it's not just in China where the complex language is uttered....

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Here’s another reason why the “model minority” myth is so damaging

Fast Company 12 Jul 2018

As my colleague and I wrote recently, the myth of Asian-Americans as a model minority persists, painting a wildly diverse community as uniformly educated, hard-working, and successful ... But a report like this one reiterates why “Asian-American” is an umbrella term that can’t begin to account for the differences in culture, language, religion, and socioeconomic status across Asian countries. ....

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'Crazy Rich Asians' Director Eyes Thai Cave Rescue Movie

The Hollywood Reporter 12 Jul 2018

Jon M. Chu and Ivanhoe Pictures become the second Hollywood production group looking to adapt the inspirational story that captured the world's attention for the big screen ... Ivanhoe is re-teaming with Crazy Rich Asians helmer Jon M ... Not on our watch ... As well as Crazy Rich Asians, which is slated to hit theaters on Aug. 15, Ivanhoe, the local-language division of SK Global, has 3-part Indian thriller Ghoul debuting on Netflix on Aug ... ....

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View of the frog out of the well

Korea Times 12 Jul 2018

By Mark Peterson. In this series of articles, I will be sharing my perspectives on Korean culture and history ―what I've come to call the view of the frog that came out of the well ... In my view of Korean history, there have been remarkably few invasions ... For Korea, the 20th century was tumultuous ... Mark Peterson (markpeterson@byu.edu) is associate professor of Korean, Asian and Near Eastern languages at Brigham Young University in Utah . ....

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The case for more Asian-American public school teachers | Perspective

Philadelphia Daily News 11 Jul 2018

In early June, New York City’s Mayor de Blasio announced his intent to eliminate the Specialized High School Admission Test as the sole criterion for admission to the city’s elite public schools – a move expected to negatively impact Asian-Americans, who received more than 50 percent of the nearly 5,000 available seats at the district’s eight magnet schools for AY2018-19....

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Before the film, meet the real-life Instagram-blogging ‘Crazy Rich Asians’

South China Morning Post 10 Jul 2018

The romantic comedy-drama film Crazy Rich Asians, based on Kevin Kwan’s English-language novel of the same name, goes on worldwide release from Sunday. The first trailer for the film, which focuses on the story of a young Asian American woman as she meets her boyfriend's fabulously wealthy parents – reveals the extravagant life of a super-rich Singaporean family....

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After alarming post, foul-mouthed young rapper Lil Tay announces she will soon get her own ...

South China Morning Post 10 Jul 2018

Lil Tay – the controversial Asian child rapper who has scandalised the internet with her viral videos full of foul language and displays of wealth – has reportedly landed her own TV show. Lil Tay is going through a lot troubles and the most difficult time in her life at the moment, but she has a show coming out on July 13. Which she had filmed before these events, but Lil Tay will be back soon. ... ....

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Art of the caves revealed at Heritage Museum

Hong Kong Standard 10 Jul 2018

The Dunhuang Caves have come to Hong Kong - this time in the form of replicas and virtual caves at the Hong Kong Heritage Museum ... This cave has a pyramidal ceiling with a square wooden dome ... "You can see there are two different languages inscribed on this pagoda," said Brian Lam Kwok-fai, the acting museum director of the Heritage Museum. "One is the Asian Indian language and the other is Chinese ... "This one is the oldest." ... ....

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K-Pop India: Get set to groove again in Gangnam Style

Hindustan Times 09 Jul 2018

The group consists of six boys-over-flowers, who are 22-25 years old, debuted in 2015; and have gained popularity in Korea, Japan and other Asian countries. Many youngsters in India have familiarised themselves with Korean language, to be able to sing or dance on Korean pop songs ... language, then head to this event, and witness a contagious energy....

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Seoul's Central Asian enclave undergoes demographic change

Korea Times 08 Jul 2018

It's a home away from home for ethnic minorities from Mongolia, Uzbekistan and other Central Asian countries ... The Russians made a lump sum of money by taking advantage of foreign exchange rates during the Asian Financial Crisis that hit the country in late 1997 ... "The center is a place open for Mongolians and Central Asians who want to have access to Korean culture and learn the Korean language," said Lee Jung-mi, manager of the center....

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Spotlight: Maine lobsters boiled as trade tariffs take effect

Xinhua 07 Jul 2018

by Xinhua writers Wang Wen, Yang Shilong, Zhang Mocheng ... But U.S ... Lobsters are on the list ... lobsters ... Adams networked in the United States with Asian customers he was already dealing with at first and the company's first shipments to China were made possible through those customers who had contacts in China ... "We have as a company made a conscious decision to hire people with language skills both in Europe and Asian countries ... Now that U.S....

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