Old Chinese: A New ReconstructionOUP USA, 2014 - 431 pages This book introduces a new linguistic reconstruction of the phonology, morphology, and lexicon of Old Chinese, the first Sino-Tibetan language to be reduced to writing. Old Chinese is the language of the earliest Chinese classical texts (1st millennium BCE) and the ancestor of later varieties of Chinese, including all modern Chinese dialects. William Baxter and Laurent Sagart's new reconstruction of Old Chinese moves beyond earlier reconstructions by taking into account important new evidence that has recently become available: better documentation of Chinese dialects that preserve archaic features, such as the Min and Waxiang dialects; better documentation of languages with very early loanwords from Chinese, such as the Hmong-Mien, Tai-Kadai and Vietnamese languages; and a flood of Chinese manuscripts from the first millennium BCE, excavated or discovered in the last several decades. Baxter and Sagart also incorporate recent advances in our understanding of the derivational processes that connect different words that have the same root. They expand our knowledge of Chinese etymology and identify, for the first time, phonological markers of pre-Han dialects, such as the development of *r to -j in a group of east coast dialects, but to -n elsewhere. The most up-to-date reconstruction available, Old Chinese: A New Reconstruction brings the methodology of Old Chinese reconstruction closer to that of comparative reconstructions that have been used successfully in other language families. It is critical reading for anyone seeking an advanced understanding of Old Chinese. |
Contents
1 Introduction | 1 |
2 The evidence for Old Chinese | 9 |
3 An overview of the reconstruction | 42 |
4 Old Chinese onsets | 68 |
5 Old Chinese rhymes | 194 |
6 Conclusion | 316 |
Appendix of reconstructed forms | 327 |
Notes | 379 |
405 | |
419 | |
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Common terms and phrases
acute codas affricates Attested correspondences Baxter Baxter-Sagart character chóngniū chū clear examples codas correspondences for Old dialect division-IV early earthly branch evidence final front vowels Guángyin Guǎngyùn heavenly stem Hmong–Mien initial consonant Jiānyāng Karlgren kwru Lakkia languages loanwords loosely attached MC pMin VN Middle Chinese reflexes Mǐn nasal nonpharyngealized Norman Northern Min notation obstruents OC MC pMin ºff Old Chinese Old Chinese rhymes Old Chinese voiceless onsets palatalization pharyngealized phonetic element pl/ſin pMin VN pHM prefix preinitial prenasalized presyllable prevocalic pronunciation Proto-Min Pulleyblank Qièyùn reconstruct rhyme group root Sagart script Shāng Shijing shū ſº summarized in Table syllable onsets texts tone traditional type-A syllables unaspirated uvular velar verb Vietic Vietic language Vietnamese voiced obstruents voiced resonants voiceless aspirated voiceless resonants Wáng Wén words written Xiàmén xiéshēng yān Yuán zhèn Zhèngzhāng zhòu zhū