Layers of Chinese Loanwords in Protosouthwestern Tai as Evidence for the Dating of the Spread of Southwestern Tai

Bibliographic Data

ID14823314
AuthorsPittayawat Pittayaporn (0000-0003-2754-5548, corresponding author)
Year2014
Volume17
Issue3
Pages47-68
Publication date2014-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueManusya Journal of Humanities (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0859-9920 • E-ISSN: 2665-9077
PublisherWalter de Gruyter GmbH (PUBLISHER • DE)
DOI10.1163/26659077-01703004
OpenAlexW2945865213
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited8

The current ethno-linguistic landscape of mainland Southeast Asia is a result of the spread of Tai speakers from southern China. This study examines Chinese loanwords in Proto-Southwestern Tai, the hypothetical ancestor of all modern Southwestern Tai varieties and proposes a dating of the spread of Southwestern Tai languages. By comparing the reconstructed Proto-Southwestern Tai forms with corresponding Chinese forms, four layers of Chinese loanwords existed in Proto- Southwestern Tai, namely Pre-Later Han, Later Han Chinese, Early Middle Chinese, and Late Middle Chinese layers. These layers indicate that Proto-Southwestern Tai was in contact with Chinese at least until the Tang era. In collaboration with non-linguistic evidence, this paper therefore proposes that Southwestern Tai languages began to spread southward sometime during the eighth and the tenth centuries CE

Ancestor · Ancient history · Archaeology · China · Geography · Mainland · Mainland China · China's Ethnic Minorities and Relations · Chinese history and philosophy · History · Vietnamese History and Culture Studies

Tools

Open DOIOpen Access