What does the Hani language mean?

The Hani language is not a single language, but rather a collection of closely related languages spoken by the Hani people in southern China, northern Vietnam, and northern Laos. It's part of the Lolo-Burmese branch of the Tibeto-Burman language family.

"Hani" does not directly translate to anything, but rather identifies the people and their language.

However, the Hani people themselves call their language "Akha", "A-kha", "A-k'a", "A-xa", or other variations depending on the specific dialect. These terms might be related to the concept of "brotherhood", "brotherly", or "sibling" in their culture, but there's no universally accepted meaning.

Therefore, when you ask what the Hani language means, you're asking for the meaning of a cultural identifier rather than a literal translation.