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Mon language (iso-639-3:mnw)
The Mon language is an Austroasiatic language spoken by the Mon, who live in Burma (Myanmar) and Thailand. Mon, like the related language Cambodian—but unlike most languages in Mainland Southeast Asia—is not tonal. Mon is spoken by more than 10 million people today. In recent years, usage of Mon has declined rapidly, especially among the younger generation. Many ethnic Mon are monolingual in Burmese or Thai. In Burma, the majority of speakers live in Mon State, followed by Tanintharyi Division and Kayin State. In Thailand, Mon speakers are in Kanchanaburi, Samutsakhon, Ratchaburi, Nakhonpathom, Chiang Mai and several other provinces. The Mon script is derived from Indian Brahmi script and is the source of the Burmese and Thai scripts.
Mon is an important language in Burmese history. Up until the 12th century AD, it was the lingua franca of the Irrawaddy valley—not only in the Mon kingdoms of the lower Irrawaddy valley but also of upriver
