Editing Isan language (section)

==Classification==
{{Further|Tai–Kadai languages}}

{{clade
|label1=[[Kra-Dai languages|Kra-Dai]]
|1={{clade
|    1=[[Hlai languages]]
|    2=[[Kam-Sui languages]]
|    3=[[Kra languages]]
|    4=[[Be language]]
|    label5=[[Tai languages]]
|    5={{clade
|       1=[[Northern Tai languages]]
|       2=[[Central Tai languages]]
|  label4=[[Southwestern Tai languages]]
|       4={{clade
|           label1=Northwestern Tai languages
|                1={{clade
|                  1=[[Khamti language]]            
|                  2=[[Shan language]]
|                  3=others}}
|           label2=Chiang Saen languages
|                2={{clade
|                  1=[[Northern Thai language]]
|                  2=[[Tai Lue language]]
|                  label3=Sukhothai language
|                       3={{clade
|                       1=[[Thai language]]
|                       2=[[Southern Thai language]]}}}}
|           label3=Lao-Phuthai languages
|                3={{clade
|                  1=[[Tai Yo language]]
|                  2=[[Phu Thai language]]
|                  3=[[Lao language]] (PDR Lao, '''Isan language''')
}}
}}
}}
}}
}}
As an umbrella term for the Lao varieties as spoken in Northeastern Thailand, Isan remains essentially the same as the Lao language of Laos, albeit nonetheless differentiated in orthography and some minor lexical elements.  Both right and left bank varieties are most closely related to the other Lao-Phuthai (Lao-Phoutai) languages such as [[Phu Thai language|Phuthai]] (Phoutai) and [[Tai Yo language|Tai Yo]] (Tai Gno), all which are mutually intelligible to each other. The Lao-Phuthai languages are closely related and somewhat mutually intelligible with the other [[Southwestern Tai languages|Southwestern]] branch [[Tai languages]] such as the Chiang Saen languages, which includes Standard Thai, and the Northwestern languages, comprising the speech of the [[Dai people|Dai]]/[[Shan people|Shan]] peoples. Lao and Thai, despite separate development, were pushed closer together due to proximity and adoption of the same Khmer, Sanskrit and Pali loan words. Lao is distantly related to the various [[Zhuang languages]] that comprise the [[Northern Tai languages|Northern]] and [[Central Tai languages|Central]] branches of Tai languages, and even more distantly to the other Kra-Dai languages.

Within Thailand, Isan is officially classified as a 'Northeastern' dialect of the Thai language and is referred to as such in most official and academic works concerning the language produced in Thailand. The use of 'Northeastern Thai' to refer to the language is re-enforced internationally with the descriptors in the [[ISO 639-3]] and ''[[Glottolog]]'' language codes.<ref name="SILI">SIL International (2020). '[https://iso639-3.sil.org/code/tts Northeastern Thai].' ISO 639-3 Registrar. Dallax, TX: Summer Institute of Linguistics.</ref><ref name="Glotto">Hammarström, H. and Nordhoff, S. (2011). '[https://glottolog.org/resource/languoid/id/nort2741 Northeastern Thai].' 'LangDoc: Bibliographic Infrastructure for Linguistic Typology.' ''Oslo Studies in Language.'' 3(2). pp. 31–43.</ref> Outside of official and academic Thai contexts, Isan is usually classified as a particular sub-grouping of the Lao language such as by native speakers, Laotian Lao and many linguists, it is also classified as a separate language in light of its unique history and Thai-language influence, such as its classification in ''Glottolog'' and ''[[Ethnologue]]''.<ref name="Identity"/><ref name="Glotto"/><ref name="ethny">{{e25|tts|Thai, Northeastern}}</ref>