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Historical linguistics: Historical linguistics: Language families, sound changeLanguage families, sound change
LING 400LING 400
Winter 2010Winter 2010
OverviewOverview
Concepts, termsConcepts, terms Language families and isolatesLanguage families and isolates Types, examples of historical changeTypes, examples of historical change
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Synchronic Synchronic linguisticslinguistics How language works at one point in timeHow language works at one point in time
DiachronicDiachronic linguistics linguistics A.k.a. historical linguisticsA.k.a. historical linguistics How language changes over timeHow language changes over time Includes study of word histories (Includes study of word histories (etymologyetymology))
diachronic: diachronic: [f. Gr. [f. Gr. διάδιά “ “throughout, during” + throughout, during” + χρόυχρόυ--οςος “time” + -IC.] “time” + -IC.] synchronic: synsynchronic: syn = [Latinized form of Gr. = [Latinized form of Gr.συνσυν- (= - (= σύνσύν prep. with), prep. with),
“together, similarly, alike” …]“together, similarly, alike” …]
ChallengingChallenging
Synchronic vs. diachronic linguisticsSynchronic vs. diachronic linguistics
Similarities in form and meaningSimilarities in form and meaning
May be due toMay be due to borrowingborrowing
English English beefbeef < Old French < Old French boefboef coincidencecoincidence
Sahaptin [Sahaptin [ʔɨʔɨ||ʃɨʃɨt] ‘worthless, useless’t] ‘worthless, useless’ inheritance from common ancestorinheritance from common ancestor
Question: Question: which languages seem most similar?which languages seem most similar?
‘‘water’: A- [twater’: A- [thhe], B-[e], B-[ʧʧi:i:ʃʃ], C-[t], C-[thho], D-[to], D-[thhu]u] ‘‘person’: A-[tperson’: A-[təə||nnɑ], B-[ti:n], C-[t], B-[ti:n], C-[təə||ni], D-[ni], D-[||ttəəne]ne] ‘‘sun’: A-[nosun’: A-[no ||ʔʔoj], B-[oj], B-[ʔʔɑ:n], C-[s:n], C-[sɑ], D-[s], D-[sɑ]] ‘‘I’: A-[se], B-[I’: A-[se], B-[ʔʔink], C-[sink], C-[səəj], D-[j], D-[||ssɪɪni]ni] ‘‘scab’: A-[’: A-[ɬet], B-[], B-[||ʔʔɑwtɑʃʃ], C-[], C-[ɬot], D-[], D-[ɬut]] ‘‘hand’: A-[hand’: A-[loʔʔ], B-[], B-[ʔʔɨ||pɑp], C-[], C-[le], D-[], D-[lɑ� ʔʔ]] ‘‘abdomen’: A-[abdomen’: A-[vəət], B-[], B-[nɑ||wɑt], C-[pəət], D-
[pə�ə�t]
A: Deg Xinag, B: Sahaptin, C: Witsuwit’en, D: Tsek’ene
Athabaskan family
A. Deg Xinag
D. Tsek’ene
C. Witsuwit’en
Sahaptian family
Sahaptin
Nez Perce
Language familyLanguage family
FamilyFamily
Language Language …Language Language …
Dialect Dialect … Dialect Dialect…Dialect Dialect … Dialect Dialect…
Idiolect Idiolect Idiolect … Idiolect Idiolect …Idiolect Idiolect Idiolect … Idiolect Idiolect …
Indo-Indo-European European languageslanguages
Language familiesLanguage families•Trees: show divergence over time
Proto-Romance (Latin)
Spanish Portuguese Italian French Romanian ...
Spanish, Portuguese, Italian are daughters (descendants) of Proto-Romance
Ancestor languagesAncestor languages
Actually attested: Latin
Hypothetical, reconstructed: Proto-Romance
Interpreting historical treesInterpreting historical trees Order of nodes on same level doesn’t matterOrder of nodes on same level doesn’t matter Equivalent treesEquivalent trees
Proto-Anglo-Frisian
Old English Old Frisian
Middle English
Modern English Modern Frisian
https://depts.washington.edu/llc/olr/linguistics/clips/#mother
“Frisian” clip
‘‘Cognate’ and ‘reflex’Cognate’ and ‘reflex’ Word descended from same sourceWord descended from same source Proto-Indo-European *ped/pod ‘foot’Proto-Indo-European *ped/pod ‘foot’ * = not attested* = not attested Greek pod-, English Greek pod-, English footfoot are reflexes of are reflexes of
*ped/pod ‘foot’*ped/pod ‘foot’ Greek pod-, English Greek pod-, English footfoot are cognates are cognates
Language isolateLanguage isolate
No known No known related languagesrelated languages Basque (France, Basque (France,
Spain)Spain) Sumerian Sumerian
(extinct lg. of (extinct lg. of Iraq)Iraq)
Haida and Zuni Haida and Zuni (N. America)(N. America)
Sound changeSound change
Phonetic changePhonetic change change in pronunciation of phonemeschange in pronunciation of phonemes English rhotic: [r] > [English rhotic: [r] > [ɹɹ] (most varieties of English)] (most varieties of English)
Phonological changePhonological change Change in phoneme inventoryChange in phoneme inventory
Regularity of sound changeRegularity of sound change
Change in phoneme inventoryChange in phoneme inventory
Proto-Indo-European > Old IrishProto-Indo-European > Old Irish *p*pəəttēēr ‘father’ > athair [ar ‘father’ > athair [a ||θθararjj]] *nepot- ‘nephew’ > nie*nepot- ‘nephew’ > nie *tepent-s ‘warm’ > t*tepent-s ‘warm’ > tëëe e
PIE had /p/; Old Irish lacks /p/PIE had /p/; Old Irish lacks /p/
Unconditioned sound changeUnconditioned sound change
merger
Grimm’s LawGrimm’s Law
Conditioned sound changeConditioned sound change
Old English /Old English /ü/ > Modern English /ü/ > Modern English /ʌʌ/ / ___rC/ / ___rC wyrstwyrst [würst] > [würst] > worstworst wyrcanwyrcan [würkan] > [würkan] > workwork gyrdelgyrdel [gürd [gürdɛɛl] > l] > girdlegirdle byrþenbyrþen [bür [bürθθɛn] ɛn] > > burdenburden
Elsewhere, Elsewhere, Old English /Old English /ü/ > Modern English /ü/ > Modern English /ɪɪ// cynn cynn [kü[künn] > ] > kinkin hyllhyll [hü [hüll] > ] > hillhill synnsynn [sü [sünn] > ] > sinsin pyttpytt [pü [pütt] > ] > pitpit
Modern English voiced fricativesModern English voiced fricatives Old English /f Old English /f θθ s/ s/
fiiffiif ‘five’, ‘five’, wulfwulf ‘wolf’, ‘wolf’, oferofer ‘over’, ‘over’, weorweorþþan, wearan, wearþþ ‘to ‘to become’/’became’, become’/’became’, þþinging ‘thing’, ‘thing’, sendansendan ‘to send’, ‘to send’, nosunosu ‘nose’, ‘nose’, wesan/wwesan/wææss ‘to be’/’was’ ‘to be’/’was’
700 A.D. addition of intervocalic voicing rule700 A.D. addition of intervocalic voicing rule [over], [weor[over], [weorððan], [nozu]; [v an], [nozu]; [v ð z] in complementary distribution with [f ð z] in complementary distribution with [f
θθ s]s] Other changes to the languageOther changes to the language
Borrowings from Kentish (dialect map next slide)Borrowings from Kentish (dialect map next slide) Fricatives voiced fricatives word-initially in KentishFricatives voiced fricatives word-initially in Kentish
vvæætt ‘barrel’ replaced ‘barrel’ replaced ffæætt vyxenvyxen ‘female fox’ replaced ‘female fox’ replaced fyxenfyxen
Shortening of intervocalic long voiceless fricatives: [ff] > [f], [Shortening of intervocalic long voiceless fricatives: [ff] > [f], [θθθθ] > ] > [[θθ], [ss] > [s]], [ss] > [s]
Middle English final [Middle English final [əə] loss: [b] loss: [bāðə] ‘bathe’ > āðə] ‘bathe’ > [b[bāð] āð] Now [f v] (etc.) contrast in all environments; splitNow [f v] (etc.) contrast in all environments; split
Major OE dialect areas
West Saxon (most OE docs)
Mercian > Modern English
Kentish
Northumbrian
SummarySummary
Historical linguisticsHistorical linguistics language change over timelanguage change over time is challengingis challenging
Language families and isolatesLanguage families and isolates