Proto-Hmong-Mien | |
---|---|
Proto-Miao–Yao | |
Reconstruction of | Hmong-Mien languages |
Region | Yangtze River Basin |
Era | c. 500 BCE |
Lower-order reconstructions |
Proto-Hmong–Mien (PHM), also known as Proto-Miao–Yao (PMY; Chinese: 原始苗瑶语), is the reconstructed ancestor of the Hmong–Mien languages. Lower-level reconstructions include Proto-Hmongic and Proto-Mienic.
Ratliff (2021) estimates that the split between Hmongic and Mienic had occurred before 2500 BP, since the Old Chinese words 鐵 tiě ‘iron’ and 下 xià ‘descend’ were both borrowed separately by Proto-Hmongic and Proto-Mienic.[1]
In earlier studies, the date of proto-Hmong-Mien has been estimated to be about 2500 BP by Sagart, Blench, and Sanchez-Mazas (2004),[2] as well as by Ratliff (2021:247).[1] It has been estimated to about 4243 BP by the Automated Similarity Judgment Program (ASJP),[3] however, ASJP is not widely accepted among historical linguists as a sufficiently rigorous method to establish or evaluate relationships between language families, since it only makes use of 40 basic vocabulary items.[4]
Reconstructions of Proto-Hmong–Mien include the following.[5]
In China, the first comprehensive reconstruction of Proto-Hmongic (Proto-Miao) was undertaken by Wang Fushi (1979).[13] Wang's 1979 manuscript was subsequently revised and published as Wang (1994).[14]
Proto-Mienic (Proto-Mjuenic; reconstruction excludes Biao Min and Zao Min) has been reconstructed by Luang-Thongkum (1993).[15] A comprehensive reconstruction of Proto-Mienic has been published by Liu (2021).[16]
Martha Ratliff (2010) used 11 criterion languages for her reconstruction.
Wang & Mao (1995) base their Proto-Hmong–Mien reconstruction on the following 23 criterion Hmong-Mien languages.
Martha Ratliff's 2010 reconstruction contains the following phonemic inventory.
The full set of Proto-Hmong–Mien initial consonants is (Ratliff 2010: 31):
Bilabial | Alveolar | Postalveolar | Palatal | Velar | Uvular | Glottal | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Plain stop | aspirated | pʰ | tʰ | tsʰ | cʰ | kʰ | ||
voiceless | p | t | ts | c | k | q/(qʷ) | ʔ | |
voiced | b | d | dz | ɟ | ɡ | ɢ | ||
Pre-nasalized stop | aspirated | ᵐpʰ | ⁿtʰ | ⁿtsʰ | ᶮcʰ | ᵑkʰ | ||
voiceless | ᵐp | ⁿt | ⁿts | ᶮc | ᵑk | ᶰq | ||
voiced | ᵐb | ⁿd | ⁿdz | ᶮɟ | ᵑɡ | ᶰɢ | ||
Nasal | voiced | m | n | ɲ/(ɲʷ) | (ŋ)/(ŋʷ) | |||
pre-glottalized | ˀm | ˀn | ˀɲ | |||||
aspirated | ʰm | ʰn | ʰɲ | |||||
Glide | voiced | w | j | |||||
pre-glottalized | ˀw | ˀj | ||||||
aspirated | (ʰw) | ʰj | ||||||
Fricative | voiceless | s | ɕ | h | ||||
voiced | (ɣ) | (ɦ) |
The 3 medial consonants are *-j-, *-l-, and *-r-.The 6 final stop consonants are *-p, *-t, *-k, *-m, *-n, and *-ŋ.
The Proto-Hmong–Mien vowels are (11 total) (Ratliff 2010: 108):
Front | Central | Back | |
---|---|---|---|
High | i | ɨ, ʉ | u |
Mid-high | e | o | |
Central | ə | ||
Mid-low | ɛ | ɔ | |
Near-low | æ | ||
Low | a |
Proto-Hmong–Mien has the following syllable structure (Ratliff 2010:10):
(C) C [j/w/l] [i̯/u̯] (V) V C (C)T
Ratliff (2010) does not reconstruct vowel length for either Proto-Mienic or Proto-Hmong–Mien; in contrast, Li (2018) reconstructs vowel length for both.[12] Even though Mienic languages usually have vowel length, Ratliff ascribes this to areal features that were borrowed after the breakup of Proto-Mienic.[17] Neighboring languages with vowel length include Yue Chinese and Zhuang.
Ostapirat (2016)[11] revises various reconstructed Proto-Hmong–Mien consonant initials proposed by Ratliff (2010). He suggests that many proto-initials are in fact sesquisyllables, in line with Baxter & Sagart's (2014) Old Chinese reconstruction and Pittayaporn's (2009) Proto-Tai reconstruction. Examples include reconstructing *m.l- and *m.r- where Ratliff (2010) reconstructs *mbl- and *mbr-, respectively. Hmong-Mien presyllables are further discussed in Strecker (2021).[18]
Ostapirat (2016) also reconstructs velarized initial consonants (*Cˠ-) where Ratliff (2010) reconstructs -j- or -w-. Similarly, Norquest (2020) also reconstructs velarized initial consonants for Proto-Kra–Dai.[19]
Additionally, Ostapirat revises Ratliff's uvulars (*q-, etc.) as velars (*k-, etc.), and her palatals as either alveolars or palatals.
Below are some reconstructions from Ostapirat (2016) compared with those of Ratliff (2010).
Gloss | Proto-Hmong-Mien (Ostapirat 2016) | Proto-Hmong-Mien (Ratliff 2010) | Proto-Mienic (Ratliff 2010) | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
fruit | *pˠeuB | *pji̯əuX | ||
float | *mbˠeuA | *mbi̯əuA | < OC 浮 | |
bedbug | *pˠiA | *pji | ||
three | *pˠuA | *pjɔu | ||
burn | *pˠuB | *pɔuB | ||
name | *mpˠuC | *mpɔuH | ||
hand | *bˠuB | *-bɔuX | ||
to know | *peiA | *pei | ||
to dream | *mpeiC | *mpeiH | ||
to sleep | *pˠeiC | *pu̯eiH | ||
to boil | *mpˠeiC | *mpuæiH | ||
to rake | *baA | *baA | < OC 耙 | |
thin | *bˠeD | *bi̯ɛkD | < OC 薄 | |
father | *pˠeB | *pjaX | < OC 父 | |
to mend | *mpˠeB | *mpjaX | < OC 補 | |
chaff | *mphˠeD | *mpʰi̯ɛk | ||
dog | *kluB | *qluwX | < OC 狗 | |
cucumber | *klˠaA | *Kʷa | < OC 瓜 | |
to cross over | *klˠaiC | *KʷajH | < OC 過 | |
wide | *klˠaŋB | *Kʷi̯aŋX | < OC 廣 | |
far | *klˠuA | *qʷuw | < OC 迂[e] | |
bear | *klˠepD | *qrep |
Taguchi (2023) discusses several revisions in the phonological reconstruction of Proto-Hmong–Mien and suggests a classification based on lexical evidence rather than phonological sound changes.[20] Rimes are simplified, while nasal codas in open rimes in Proto-Hmongic are posited to have derived from historical nasal initial consonants.[21] Taguchi (2023) also suggests that Ratliff's (2010) Proto-Hmongic *k- and *q- are in fact secondary developments from Proto-Hmong–Mien *kr- and *k-, respectively.
Below are some words roughly belonging to the semantic domains of agriculture and subsistence from Ratliff (2004),[22] with the Proto-Hmong-Mien and Proto-Hmongic reconstructions from Ratliff (2010), and Old Chinese reconstructions from Baxter & Sagart (2014)[23] for comparison (note that the Old Chinese forms are not necessarily cognate with the Hmong–Mien forms). Terms for domesticated animals and non-rice crops are usually shared with Chinese, while vocabulary relating to hunting, rice crops, and local plants and animals are usually not shared with Chinese.
Proto- Hmong–Mien | Proto-Hmongic | Old Chinese | English |
---|---|---|---|
*ntsʰʉC | *s-daŋʔ (象) | elephant | |
*ʔlinA | *ɢʷan[f] (猿) | monkey | |
*ŋgu̯eiB | *krun (麇) | river deer | |
*tsjɔB | *qʰˁraʔ (虎) | tiger | |
*ɢləŋB | *tsʰˁoŋ (蔥) | Chinese onion | |
*NKan | *C.mˁru (茅) | cogon grass | |
*ʰnænB | *C.nˁaʔ (弩) | crossbow | |
*pənX | *Cə.lak-s (射) | to shoot | |
*ndroC | *lriwk (逐) | to track, follow | |
*Kəi | *kˁe (雞) | chicken | |
*m-nɔk | *tˁiw (雕) | bird | |
*qluwX | *hmaŋC | *Cə.kˁroʔ (狗) | dog |
*ʔap | *qraːb[g] (鴨) | duck | |
*mpæC | *pˁra (豝) | pig | |
*juŋ | *ɢaŋ (羊) | sheep/goat | |
*ŋiuŋ | *s.ɢijʔ (兕) | water buffalo | |
*dup | *N.tˁo-s (豆) | bean | |
*N-peiX | *s-t(ʰ)uk (菽) | soybean | |
*wouH | *ɢʷa-s (芋) | taro | |
*mbləu | *lˁuʔ (稻) | rice plant; growing/unhusked rice | |
*ntsuwC | *(C.)mˤejʔ (米) | husked rice | |
*hnrəaŋH | *bonʔ-s (飯) | cooked rice |
The ethnonym Hmong is reconstructed as *hmʉŋA in Proto-Hmongic by Ratliff (2010), while Mien is reconstructed as *mjænA in Proto-Mienic. In comparison, William H. Baxter and Laurent Sagart (2014)[24] reconstruct the Old Chinese name of the Mán 蠻 (Nanman 南蠻, or southern foreigners) as 蠻 *mˤro[n]; additionally, Sidwell & Rau (2015) reconstruct the Proto-Austroasiatic word for 'person' as *mraʔ.[25]
Proto-Hmong–Mien shares many lexical similarities with neighboring language families, including Austroasiatic, Kra-Dai (Tai-Kadai), Austronesian, and Tibeto-Burman (Ratliff 2010). Martha Ratliff (2010:233-237) lists the following lexical resemblances between Proto-Hmong–Mien (abbreviated below as PHM) and other language families. Proto-Hmongic and Proto-Mienic are provided if the Proto-Hmong–Mien form is not reconstructed.
Many lexical resemblances are found between the Hmong-Mien and Austroasiatic language families (Ratliff 2010), some of which had earlier been proposed by Haudricourt (1951).[26] Proto-Austroasiatic (PAA) reconstructions are from Sidwell (2024).[27]
Other Austroasiatic parallels listed by Kosaka (2002:94) are:[28]
Ostapirat (2018:116-117)[29] lists compares the following basic vocabulary items in Hmong-Mien and Austroasiatic. Proto-Palaungic as reconstructed by Sidwell (2015) has also been reconstructed.[30]
Gloss | Proto-Hmong–Mien (Ratliff 2010) | Proto-Vietic (Ferlus 1991)[31] | Proto-Wa (Diffloth 1980)[32] | Proto-Palaungic (Sidwell 2015)[30] |
---|---|---|---|---|
louse | *ntshjeiX | *ciʔ | *siʔ | *ciːʔ |
fruit | *pji̯əuX | *pleʔ | *pliʔ | *pliːʔ |
road | *kləuX | *khraʔ | *kraʔ | *kraːʔ |
shoot | *pənX | *paɲʔ | *pɤɲ | *ɓaŋ |
blood | *ntshjamX | *asaːmʔ | *hnam | *snaːm |
weep | *ʔɲæmX | *jaːmʔ, *ɲaːmʔ | *jam | *jaːm |
hawk | *qlaŋX | *klaːŋʔ | *klaŋ | *klaːŋ |
cooked | *sjenX (Proto-Hmongic) | *ciːnʔ | *sin | *ciːn |
heavy | *hnjeinX | *naŋʔ | (*s-jen) | *kəɟan |
full | *pu̯ɛŋX | pɔiŋ (Mon) | phoiɲ (Khasi) | - |
nose | *mbruiH | *muːs | *mɨs | *muːs |
name | *mpɔuH | jhmoh (Middle Khmer) | *mɨs | *muːs |
horn | *klɛɔŋ | *kərəŋ | *ʔrɤŋ | *-rɤŋ |
water | *ʔu̯əm | ʔom (Palaung) | *rʔom | *ʔoːm |
live, alive | *ʔjəm | ʔim (Palaung) | *ʔem | *ʔiːm |
I | *ʔja (Proto-Mienic) | ʔoa (Mon) | *ʔɨʔ | *ʔɔːʔ |
thou | *mu̯ei | mày (Vietnamese) | me (Khasi) | *miːʔ |
one | *ʔɨ | - | ʔu (Palaung) | (*moːh) |
two | *ʔu̯i | - | ʔa (Palaung) | (*ləʔaːr) |
three | *pjɔu | paj (Kui) | - | (*ləʔɔːj) |
Further lexical resemblances between Hmong-Mien and Austroasiatic are listed in Hsiu (2017).[33]
Many lexical resemblances are found between the Hmong-Mien and Kra-Dai language families, although the tones often do not correspond (Ratliff 2010). Proto-Tai (abbreviated here as PT) reconstructions are from Pittayaporn (2009).[34] Many of the Proto-Tai forms also have close parallels with Proto-Austronesian.
Kosaka (2002)[28] lists many lexical resemblances between Kra-Dai and Hmong-Mien languages, and proposes that they form part of a larger Miao-Dai language family.
Many lexical resemblances are found between the Hmong-Mien and Austronesian language families, some of which are also shared with Kra-Dai and Austroasiatic (Ratliff 2010). Proto-Austronesian (abbreviated here as PAN) and Proto-Malayo-Polynesian (abbreviated here as PMP) reconstructions are from Blust (n.d.).[35]
Ratliff notes that the Hmong-Mien numerals from 4-9 and various culture-related vocabulary have been borrowed from Tibeto-Burman. The Proto-Tibeto-Burman (abbreviated as PTB) forms provided below are from James Matisoff (2003).[36]
Additionally, Paul K. Benedict (1987)[37] notes that Proto-Hmong–Mien contains loanwords from an unknown Tibeto-Burman language or branch, which Benedict refers to as Donor Miao-Yao. Benedict (1987:20) believes that these Tibeto-Burman loanwords predate Hmong-Mien's contact with Old Chinese. Some numerals that Benedict (1987) reconstructed for Proto-Donor Miao-Yao are given below.
Guillaume Jacques (2021) notes that there are Tibeto-Burman parallels for various Hmong-Mien words that are found specifically in rGyalrongic and neighboring Qiangic languages. These include the words for 'snow' (cf. Jiangdi Mien bwan5), 'scold' (Proto-Hmongic *qeC), 'walnut' (Proto-Hmongic *qlowC), and 'bamboo' (Proto-Hmong-Mien *hləwX).[38]
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