Reconstruction:Proto-Sino-Tibetan/s-mjak ~ s-mik

• Proto-Sino-Tibetan: *(s-)myəːk (Chou, 1972), *myikw (Coblin, 1986)
  • Proto-Tibeto-Burman: *s-myak ⪤ *s-mik (Matisoff, STEDT); *(s-)myəːk (Chou, 1972); *myikw (Coblin, 1986); *mya[a]k (LaPolla, 1987)

This root shows alternation between medial *ya and *i.

In some languages (e.g. Burmish, Karenic) this word also means "face", a relationship perhaps reminiscent of Vietnamese mắt (“eye”) ~ mặt (“face”).

Compare:

• Proto-Hmong-Mien *mu̯ɛjH (“eye”) (Hmong (RPA): muag)
• Proto-Mon-Khmer *mat (“eye”) (Vietnamese mắt, Modern Mon မတ် (mòt))
• Proto-Austronesian *maCa (“eye”) (Malay mata)
  • Proto-Tai *p.taːᴬ (“eye”) (Thai ตา (taa))
• Japanese 目 (め, me, “eye”), 見る (みる, miru, “to see”)

*s-mjak ~ s-mik

1. eye

• Old Chinese: 目 (*C.muk (B-S); *mug (ZS), “eye”)
  • Middle Chinese: 目 /mɨuk/
    • Modern Mandarin
      • Beijing: 目 (mù) /mu⁵¹/
    • Cantonese
      • Guangzhou: 目 /mʊk̚²/
    • Wu
      • Shanghai: 目 /mʊ̆ʔ¹²/
  • Min
    • Min Nan
      • Taiwan: 目 /bak̚⁵/ (colloquial), /bok̚⁵/ (literary)
• Himalayish
  • Tibeto-Kanauri
    • Bodic
      • Tibetan
        • Written Tibetan: མིག (mig, “eye”)
• Tangut-Qiang
  • Northern Tangut
    • Tangut: 𗑉 (mej, /*mɛj⁵⁵/, “eye”)
  • rGyalrongic
    • Situ: tə-mɲak
• Lolo-Burmese-Naxi
  • Lolo-Burmese
    • Burmish
      • Burmese: မျက် (myak, “eye, face, knot in wood”)
    • Loloish
      • Northern Loloish
        • Sichuan Yi (Liangshan): ꑓ (nyuo, “eye”)
• Karen: *mɛɁᴰ (Luangthongkum, 2013)
  • Sgaw: မဲာ် (mä̌, “eye, face, knot in wood”)

• *ken ~ m-kjen (“to see; to know”)
• *mraŋ (“to see”)
• *hjen (“to look, to see; to hear, to listen”)