Rade language

Rade (Rhade; Rade: klei Êđê; tiếng Ê-đê or tiếng Ê Đê) is an Austronesian language of southern Vietnam. There may be some speakers in Cambodia. It is a member of the Chamic subgroup, and is closely related to the Cham language of central Vietnam.

Dialects
Đoàn Văn Phúc (1998:24) lists nine dialects of Rade. They are spoken mostly in Đắk Lắk Province in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam.


 * Kpă: spoken throughout Buôn Ma Thuột
 * Krung: spoken in Ea H'leo and Krông Năng; some Krung also live among the Jarai in Gia Lai Province
 * Adham: spoken in Krông Buk, Krông Năng, and Ea H'leo
 * Ktul: spoken in Krông Bông and the southern part of Krông Pắk
 * Drao (Kơdrao): spoken in M'Đrăk (in the townships of Krông Jing, Cư M'Ta, and Ea Trang)
 * Blô: spoken in M'Đrăk (small population)
 * Êpan: spoken in M'Đrăk (small population)
 * Mdhur: spoken in Ea Kar and M'Đrăk; also in Gia Lai Province and Phu Yen Province
 * Bih: spoken in Krông Ana and in the southern part of Buôn Ma Thuột

Bih, which has about 1,000 speakers, may be a separate language. Tam Nguyen (2015) reported that there are only 10 speakers of Bih out of an ethnic population of about 400 people.

A patrilineal Rade subgroup known as the Hmok or Hmok Pai is found in the Buôn Ma Thuột area (Phạm 2005:212).

Classification
Đoàn Văn Phúc (1998:23) provides the following classification for the Rade dialects. Đoàn (1998) also provides a 1,000-word vocabulary list for all of the nine Rade dialects.
 * Area 1
 * Area 1.1: Krung, Kpă, Adham
 * Area 1.2: Drao. Êpan, Ktul
 * Blô (mixture of areas 1.1 and 1.2, as well as Mdhur)
 * Area 2
 * Mdhur
 * Bih

Đoàn Văn Phúc (1998:23) assigns the following cognacy percentages for comparisons between Kpă and the other eight dialects of Rade, with Bih as the most divergent dialect.
 * Kpă – Krung: 85.5%
 * Kpă – Adham: 82%
 * Kpă – Ktul: 82%
 * Kpă – Mdhur: 80%
 * Kpă – Blô: 82%
 * Kpă – Êpan: 85%
 * Kpă – Drao: 81%
 * Kpă – Bih: 73%

Vocabulary

 * Khoa sang – the most senior in age and authority
 * Dega – Protestant of Christian (single word identity of E-de)
 * Ih – you
 * Ung – husband
 * Ñu – her/him
 * Diñu – they
 * Drei – we
 * Khăp – love
 * Bi êmut – hate
 * idai – younger sibling
 * amĭ – mom/mother
 * yah – grandma/grandmother
 * aê – grandma/grandfather
 * Ama – father, dad daddy
 * Jhat – ugly, bad
 * Siam – pretty
 * Siam mniê – beautiful girl
 * Jăk – good
 * Khăp – love
 * Brei – give
 * Djŏ – true
 * Nao – go
 * Kâo – I/me
 * anăn – name
 * Čar – country
 * Čiăng – want/like
 * Aê Diê – God
 * Blŭ – speak
 * Klei blŭ – language
 * Bur – rice porridge
 * Êmŏng – fat
 * Êwang – skinny
 * Jŭ – black
 * Hriê/hrê – to be from
 * Mơ̆ng – from
 * Sa, dua, tlâo, pă, êma – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
 * Năm, kjuh, sa-băn, dua-păn, pluh: 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
 * Čar Mi/čar amêrik – America
 * Čar Kŭr – Cambodia
 * Anak – person
 * Hriăm – learn
 * Roă/ruă – sound of displeasure/pain
 * Ƀuôn Ama Y'Thuôt – Buôn Ma Thuôt
 * Čih – type/write
 * Klei Mi – English
 * Klei Êđê – Rade/Ede
 * loo – A lot
 * klei Prăng-xê – French
 * mluk-crazy

Phonology
The spelling is shown in italics.

Vowels

 * Vowels can also be heard as more centralized-back.

Consonants

 * can also be heard as a more bilabial.
 * Glottalized final consonant sounds are heard only in final position.