The Himalayas afford a fascinating area of linguistic study, especially for those interested in language documentation, historical linguistics, language contact, and linguistic typology. Scattered throughout the many peaks and valleys are numerous language communities representing hundreds of distinct language varieties, embedded in a highly complex fabric of social interaction. Most of these varieties are undocumented and many are endangered. There is an urgent need for basic documentary work. Languages of this region come primarily from two great linguistic families: Sino-Tibetan and Indo-European. Cross-cutting this distinction are distinct linguistic typologies sometimes referred to as “Sinospheric” (with features such as analytical structure, multiple tones, and serial verb constructions) and “Indospheric” (with polysyllabic structures, complex morphology, stress or word-based tone systems, and morphologically marked clause linkage). The typological patterns do not simply align with linguistic family; instead, language contact and genetic relationship have interacted to produce a complex distribution of distinct typological features.
