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