Proto-Kra–Dai language
Proto-Kra–Dai (typically abbreviated as PKD) is the proposed reconstructed ancestor of the Kra–Dai languages.
| Proto-Kra–Dai | |
|---|---|
| PKD | |
| Reconstruction of | Kra–Dai languages |
| Region | Pearl River region |
| Lower-order reconstructions | |
Background
No full reconstruction of Proto-Kra–Dai has been published to date, although tentative reconstructions of many Proto-Kra–Dai roots have been attempted from time to time. Some preliminary Proto-Kra–Dai forms have been reconstructed by Benedict (1975)[1] and Wu (2002). Wu (2002) presents a reconstruction of Proto-Kra–Dai phonemes, which is based on data from the Tai, Kam-Sui, Hlai, and Kra branches.[2]
Liang & Zhang (1996) propose a reconstruction of Proto-Kra–Dai (Chinese: 原始侗台语) initials and finals, using data from all Kra–Dai branches except for Kra and Jiamao.[3]
Phonology
Proto-Kra–Dai has the finals *-l and *-c, which have been lost in most present-day Kra–Dai languages.[4] It also has the final stops *-p, *-t, *-k and final nasals *-m, *-n, *-ŋ.[4]
Ostapirat (2023) proposes the following consonant inventory for Proto-Kra–Dai, which is relatively simple compared to that of Proto-Tai and other lower-level reconstructions.[5]
| p | t | ts | k | q | ʔ |
| b | d | ɟ | g | ||
| θ | s | ||||
| m | n | ɲ | ŋ | ||
| w | r | j | |||
| l |
Norquest (2020) proposes the preglottalized sonorants *ʔb, *ʔd, *ʔɖ, *ʔɟ for Proto-Kra–Dai, as part of a four-way phonation distinction in Kra-Dai sonorants consisting of preaspirated, voiceless, plain, and preglottalized sonorants. Norquest (2020) also reconstructs velarized initial consonants (*Cˠ-) in Proto-Kra–Dai.[6]
Below is a table of Proto-Kra–Dai pre-syllables and their developments as proposed by Norquest (2020).[6]
| p-Kra-Dai | p-Lakkja | p-Kam-Sui | p-Ong-Be | p-Tai | p-Hlai |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *C-b | *w̥ | *C-b | *ʔb | *C-b | *ʋ |
| *C-d | *l̥ | *C-ʔɖ | *r̥ | *C-d | *ɾ |
| *C-ɖ | *j̊ (< *r̥) | *C-ʔɖ | *r | *C-ɖ | *ɾ |
| *C-ɟ | *l̥ | *ʔj | *j̊ | *ʔj | *hj |
| *Cəʔb | *ʔb | *ʔb | *ʔb | *ʔb | *ɓ |
| *Cəʔd | *l̥ | *ʔd | *r̥ | *ʔd | *ɗ |
| *Cəʔɖ | *l̥ | *ʔɖ | *r̥ | *ʔd | *ɗ |
| *Cəʔɟ | *j̊ | *ʔɟ | *j̊ | *ʔɟ | *tɕ |
| *Cəm | *m̥ | *ʔm | *m̥ | *m̥ | *ʔm |
| *Cən | *n̥ | *ʔn | *n̥ | *n̥ | *ʔn |
| *Cəȵ | *ȵ̥ | *ʔȵ | *ȵ̥ | *ȵ̥ | *ʔȵ |
| *Cəŋ | *ŋ̊ | *ʔŋ | *ŋ̊ | *ŋ̊ | *ʔŋ |
| *Cəl | *l̥ | *l̥ | *l̥ | *l̥ | *ʔl |
| *Cər | *j̊ (< *r̥) | *ʔr | *ʃ | *Cr | *hr |
| *Cəʀ | (*j̊) | *ʔʀ | (*ʃ) | (*ʀ̥) | (*hr) |
| *Cəw | *w̥ | *ʔw | *w̥ | *ʔw | (*ʔw) |
| *Cəj | *j̊ | *ʔj | *j̊ | *ʔj | (*ʔj) |
Ostapirat (2023) considers many Proto-Tai spirants and rhotics to have developed from the intervocalic lenition of Proto-Kra–Dai medial obstruents. Voicing in the Proto-Tai initial is determined by the voicing of the preceding consonant in the Proto-Kra–Dai form.[5]
| p-Kra–Dai | p-Tai |
|---|---|
| *(C)-p- | *v- [β] |
| *(C̥)-p- | *f- [βʰ] |
| *(C)-t- | *r- |
| *(C̥)-t- | *rʰ- |
| *(C)-ts- | *z- [ɮ] |
| *(C̥)-ts- | *s- |
| *(C)-k- | *ɣ- |
| *(C̥)-k- | *x- |
| *-q- | *-ɢ- |
Some Proto-Kra–Dai sesquisyllabic consonant onsets reconstructed by Ostapirat (2023) are:[5]
| Gloss | p-Kra–Dai | p-Tai | p-Kam–Sui |
|---|---|---|---|
| taro | *b.r- | *prɨak D | *ʔraːk D |
| thin | *b.r- | *proːm A | *ʔruːm A |
| forehead | *p.r- | *praːk D | *praːk D |
| hair | *p.r- | *prom A | *pram A |
| ribs | *g.r- | *kraːŋ C | |
| "Kra"; slave | *k.r- | *kraː C |
Liang & Zhang (1996)
Liang & Zhang (1996) propose the following reconstructions of Proto-Kra–Dai (Chinese: 原始侗台语) initials and finals, using data from all Kra–Dai branches except for Kra and Jiamao.[3]
- Initial consonants
- Plain stop initials
- *p, *pw, *pl, *plw, *pr
- *t, *tl, *tr
- *k, *kw, *kl, *klw, *kr, *krw
- *q, *ql, *qr, *ʔ
- *b, *bw, *bl, *blw, *br
- *d, *dl, *dr
- *g, *gw, *gl, *glw, *gr, *grw, *ɢ
- Voiced aspirated initials
- *bɦ, *bwɦ, *brɦ
- *dɦ, *ndlɦ
- *gɦ, *gwɦ
- *ɣɦ, *ɣwɦ, *ɢɦ, *ʁɦ, *sɢrɦ
- Preglottalized initials
- *ʔb, *ʔbw, *ʔbl, *ʔblw
- *ʔd, *ʔdl, *ʔdr
- *ʔm, *ʔml, *ʔmr
- *ʔn, *ʔnl, *ʔnr, *ʔȵ, *ʔŋ, *ʔŋw
- Voiceless nasal initials
- *m̥, *m̥w, *m̥l, *m̥r, *m̥rw
- *n̥, *n̥l, *ȵ̥, *ȵ̥w, *ŋ̥, *ŋ̥w
- Plain nasal initials
- *m, *mw, *ml, *mr
- *n, *nr, *ȵ, *ŋ, *ŋw, *ŋr, *ɴl
- Prenasalized initials
- *mp, *mpl, *mpr
- *nt, *ntl, *ntr
- *ŋk, *ŋkw, *ŋkl
- *mb, *mbl, *mbr
- *nd, *ndl, *ndr
- *ŋg, *ŋgl, *ŋgr
- Glide and liquid initials
- *ʔw, *ʔr, *ʔj
- *w̥, *l̥, *r̥, *j̥
- *w, *l, *r, *j
- Fricative initials
- *s, *sw, *sl, *sr, *ɕ, *x, *xw, *xl, *xr, *h
- *z, *zl, *zr, *ʑ, *ɣ, *ɣw, *ɣl, *ʁ, *ɦ
- Initial clusters beginning with fricatives
- *xp, *xpl, *xpr, *xt, *xk, *xkw, *xkl, *xklw, *xkr, *xkrw, *xq, *xql
- *sp, *spw, *spl, *st, *stl, *str, *sk, *skw, *skl, *skr, *skrw, *sq, *sqr
- *zb, *zd, *zdw, *zgr
- Vowels and diphthongs
- *a, *a, *i̯a, *u̯a, *ɯ̯a
- *ə̯, *i̯ə, *u̯ə
- *ɛ, *i̯ɛ, *e, *i̯e
- *ɔ, *u̯ɔ, *ɯ̯ɔ, *o, *i̯o, *u̯o, *ɯ̯o
- *i̯, *u̯i, *ie ,iə, *ia, *iɛ
- *u, *i̯u, *ɯ̯u, *ue, *uə, *ua, *uo, *uɔ, *uɯ
- *ɯ, *ɯe, *ɯə, *ɯa, *ɯɔ, *ɯu
Lexicon
Ostapirat (2018, 2023)
Weera Ostapirat (2018a)[7] reconstructs disyllabic forms for Proto-Kra–Dai, rather than sesquisyllabic or purely monosyllabic forms. His Proto-Kra–Dai reconstructions also contains the finals */-c/ and */-l/.[8] Ostapirat (2018b:113)[9] lists the following of his own Proto-Kra–Dai reconstructions.
Notes:
- */K-/: either /k-/ or /q-/
- */C-/: unspecified consonant
- */T-/ and */N-/ are distinct from */t-/ and */n-/.
| Gloss | Proto-Kra–Dai |
|---|---|
| blood | *pɤlaːc |
| bone | *Kudɤːk |
| ear | *qɤrɤː |
| eye | *maTaː |
| hand | *(C)imɤː |
| nose | *(ʔ)idaŋ |
| tongue | *(C)əmaː |
| tooth | *lipan |
| dog | *Kamaː |
| fish | *balaː |
| horn | *paquː |
| louse | *KuTuː |
| fire | *(C)apuj |
| stone | *KaTiːl |
| star | *Kadaːw |
| water | *(C)aNam |
| I (1.SG) | *akuː |
| thou (2.SG) | *isuː; amɤː |
| one | *(C)itsɤː |
| two | *saː |
| die | *maTaːj |
| name | *(C)adaːn |
| full | *pətiːk |
| new | *(C)amaːl |
Some additional tentative Proto-Kra–Dai reconstructions by Ostapirat (2023) include the following.[5]
| Gloss | Proto-Kra–Dai |
|---|---|
| chin | *ləqaːŋ A |
| shoulder pole | *ləqaːn A |
| person | *niqun A |
| bitter | *təqam A[lower-alpha 1] |
| excrement | *taqiː C[lower-alpha 2] |
| rice | *rəquː C |
| young chicken | *rəqaːŋ B |
| fire | *apuy A |
| tooth | *ipan A |
| rain | *kipun A |
| millet | *kipaːŋ C |
| vomit | *utaːk D |
| we (incl.) | *atuː A |
| carry on pole | *kətaːp D |
| break | *kətak D |
| pestle | *tsaːk D |
| sour | *qatsum C |
| wash | *(C)atsak D |
| left | *(C)itsaːy |
| thatch grass | *ikaː A |
| field dike | *ikal A |
| knee | *tukuː B |
| to crow | *tikal A |
| moon | *bulaːn A |
| flower | *baluːk D |
| to weed | *bəlaːy A[lower-alpha 3] |
| spotted | *bəlaːŋ B[lower-alpha 4] |
Norquest (2020)
Norquest (2020) lists the following of his own Proto-Kra–Dai and other lower-level reconstructions.[6]
| Gloss | p-Kra-Dai | p-Lakkja | p-Kam-Sui | p-Ong-Be | p-Tai | p-Hlai |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| thin | *C-báːŋ | *w̥aːŋ | *C-baːŋ | *ˀbjaŋ | *C-baːŋ | – |
| bone | *Cudə́ːk | – | *C-ˀɖaːk | *r̥ɯk | *C-dwoːk | *Cuɾɯːk |
| boat | *Cuɖáː | *j̊waː | *C-ˀɖrwaː | *rwaː | *C-ɖwaː | *Cuɾaː |
| borrow | *C-ɟáːm | *l̥aːm | *ˀjaːm | – | *ˀjɯːm | – |
| village | *Cəˀbáːnʔ | *ˀbaːnʔ | *ˀbaːnʔ | – | *ˀbaːnʔ | – |
| winnow basket | *Cəˀdóŋʔ | *l̥oŋʔ | *ˀdɔŋʔ | *r̥oːŋ X | *ˀdoŋʔ | *ɗoŋʔ |
| to stand | *Cəˀɟún | *j̊uːn | *ˀɟun | *j̊un | *ˀɟɯn | *tɕuːn |
| dog | *kʰ[u]máː | *kʰ-mwaː | *k-hmaː | *m̥aː | *m̥aː | *hmaː |
| ditch | *[t]-m̥ˠáːŋ | – | *T-m̥jaːŋ | *m̥aŋ | *m̥ɯəŋ | – |
| ant | *r-móȶ | *mot | *r-mət | *muːʔ | *moc | *hmuȶ |
| bear | *kəˀmˠúj | *k-Nuːj | *ˀmjeː | – | *m̥wiː | *ˀmuj |
| thick | *tsəˀnáː | *ts-Naː | *ˀɳaː | *n̥aː | *n̥aː | *ˀnaː |
| cold | *kəˀȵít | *k-Niːt | *ˀȵit | *n̥iːt | *n̥it | – |
| stupid | *Cəˀŋáːŋh | *ˀŋaːŋh | *ˀŋaːŋh | *ŋ̊əːŋ X | – | – |
| gills | *Cəˀŋˠáːk | – | *ˀȵaːk | *ŋaːk | *ŋ̊ɯək | *ˀŋaːk |
| taro | *pəˀrˠáːk | *j̊aːk (< *r̥aːk) | *ˀrjaːk | *ʃaːk | *prɯək | *hraːk |
| moan | *gəˀráːŋ | *j̊aːŋ (< *r̥aːŋ) | *ˀraːŋ | – | *graːŋ | – |
| hungry | *məˀjáːk | – | *m-ˀjaːk | *j̊ak | *ˀjaːk | – |
| stupid | *Cəˀwáːʔ | – | *ˀwaːʔ | – | *ˀwaːʔ | – |
Lower-level reconstructions
Norquest (2021) provides the following lower-level reconstructions for each branch of Kra–Dai.[10]
| Gloss | p-Biao–Lakkja | p-Kam–Sui | p-Kra | p-Hlai | p-Be | p-Tai |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| house | *ljaːk | *r̥aːn | *qran | *hrɯːn | *raːn | *rɤːn |
| road | *tsaːŋ | *qʰwən | *qron | *kuːn | *ʃwən | *r̥wɤn |
| heavy | *N-tsak | *C-dʑan | *qχəl | *kʰɯn | *xən | *n̥ak |
| leg | *puk | *p-qaː | *C-qaː | *kʰok | *kok | *f-qaː |
| neck | *ʔən | *ʔdənʔ | *C-joː | *hljoŋʔ | *liəŋX | *ɣoː |
| beard | *m-luːt | *m-nrut | *mumʔ | *hmɯːmʔ | *mumX | *mumh |
| wet field | *raːh | *ʔraːh | *naː | *hnaːɦ | *njaː | *naː |
| crow | *kaː | *qaː | *ʔak | *ʔaːk | *ʔak | *kaː |
| needle | *tɕʰəm | *tɕʰəm | *ŋot | *hŋuc | *ŋaːʔ | *qjem |
| mortar | – | *krˠəm | *ʔdru | *ɾəw | *ɦoːk | *grok |
| tongue | *m-laː | *maː | *l-maː | *hliːnʔ | *liːnX | *linʔ |
| wing | – | *C-faːh | *ʀwaː | *pʰiːk | *pik | *piːk |
| skin | – | *ŋʀaː | *taː | *n̥əːŋ | *n̥aŋ | *n̥aŋ |
| to shoot | – | *pɛŋh | – | *hɲɯː | *ɲəː | *ɲɯː |
| to fly | *[C-]pənh | *C-pˠənʔ | – | *ɓin | *ʔbjən | *ʔbil |
| bee | *mlet | *luk | *reː | *kəːj | *ʃaːŋX | *prɯŋʔ |
| vegetable | – | *ʔmaː | *ʔop | *ɓɯː ʈʂʰəj | *ʃak | *prak |
| red | – | *hlaːnʔ | – | *hraːnʔ | *r̥iŋ | *C-djeːŋ |
| to bite | *kat | *klət | *ʈajh | *hŋaːɲʔ | *gap | *ɢɦap |
| to descend | *lojʔ | *C-ɭuːjh | *caɰʔ | *l̥uːj | *roːŋ | *N-ɭoŋ |
Note that like Jiamao, Proto-Be does not distinguish between tone categories B and C, but rather only has an X category, which Chen (2018) names as tone category BC.[11]
See also
Further reading
- Sagart, Laurent. 2019. A model of the origin of Kra-Dai tones. Cahiers de Linguistique Asie Orientale, 48(1), 1–29. doi:10.1163/19606028-04801004
- Sagart, Laurent. 2020. "Labial fortitions in Kra-Dai." In Sino-Tibetan-Austronesian.
- Norquest, Peter (2021). "Classification of (Tai-)Kadai/Kra-Dai languages". The Languages and Linguistics of Mainland Southeast Asia. De Gruyter. pp. 225–246. doi:10.1515/9783110558142-013. ISBN 9783110558142. S2CID 238672319.
Notes
References
- Benedict, Paul K. 1975. Austro-Thai: language and culture, with a glossary of roots. New Haven: Human Relations Area Files Press.
- Wu, Anqi 吴安其. 2002. Hanzangyu tongyuan yanjiu 汉藏语同源研究. Beijing: Minzu University Press 中央民族大学出版社. ISBN 7-81056-611-3
- Liang Min 梁敏 & Zhang Junru 张均如. 1996. Dongtai yuzu gailun 侗台语族概论 / An introduction to the Kam–Tai languages. Beijing: China Social Sciences Academy Press 中国社会科学出版社. ISBN 9787500416814
- Ostapirat, Weera. 2009. Proto-Tai and Kra-Dai Finals *-l and *-c. Journal of Language and Culture, 28(2), 41–56.
- Ostapirat, Weera (2023). Proto-Kra–Dai consonants: an outline and outstanding issues. 32nd Annual Meeting of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society (SEALS 2023), May 18, 2023. Chiang Mai University.
- Norquest, Peter. 2020. A Hypothesis on the Origin of Preglottalized Sonorants in Kra-Dai. 38th West Coast Conference on Formal Linguistics. Vancouver: Department of Linguistics, University of British Columbia. doi:10.14288/1.0389866
- Ostapirat, Weera. 2018a. Reconstructing Disyllabic Kra-Dai. Paper presented at the 28th Annual Meeting of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society, held May 17–19, 2018 in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
- Ostapirat, Weera. 2009. Proto-Tai and Kra–Dai finals *-l and *-c. Journal of Language and Culture Vol. 28 No. 2 (July – December 2009).
- Ostapirat, Weera. 2018b. "Macrophyletic Trees of East Asian Languages Re examined." In Let's Talk about Trees, ed. by Ritsuko Kikusawa and Lawrence A. Reid. Osaka: Senri Ethnological Studies, Minpaku. doi:10.15021/00009006
- Norquest, Peter (2021). "Classification of (Tai-)Kadai/Kra-Dai languages". The Languages and Linguistics of Mainland Southeast Asia. De Gruyter. pp. 225–246. doi:10.1515/9783110558142-013. ISBN 9783110558142. S2CID 238672319.
- Chen, Yen-ling (2018). Proto-Ong-Be (PDF) (Ph.D. dissertation). University of Hawaii at Manoa.