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Article published In:
Journal of Historical Linguistics
Vol. 13:1 (2023) ► pp.82–114

Phonological features of Caijia that are notable from a diachronic perspective

ORCID logo | The Chinese University of Hong Kong
This study sets out several phonological features in Caijia that are notable from a diachronic point of view. The Caijia language is an endangered language spoken in northwestern Guìzhōu, China. It was first formally documented in the early 1980s and is generally viewed as a Sinitic language. Some aspects of Caijia phonology are noteworthy from the perspective of historical phonology. There exist features which cannot be accounted for in terms of Middle Chinese (MC), such as the retention of the contrast between Old Chinese (OC) T-type and L-type onsets in words with d- or dr- in Middle Chinese. Moreover, Caijia also demonstrates features which are observed or preserved in Middle Chinese, but absent in mainstream modern Sinitic varieties, including the retention of bilabial stops in words with initials Fēi/Fū/Fèng. This study will also explore the implications certain phonological features have for the classification of Caijia in the Sinitic clade and examine the relationship between Caijia and Bai.
Keywords: Caijia, phonology, diachronic, Sinitic, Old Chinese, Middle Chinese, historical linguistics
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Phonology of Caijia
  • 3.The phonology of Caijia from a diachronic perspective
    • 3.1Features which cannot be accounted for in terms of Middle Chinese
      • 3.1.1 Distinction between OC T-type and L-type onsets in words with d-/dr- in Middle Chinese
      • 3.1.2 Reflex of OC *ɡˁ- in the presence of a loosely attached preinitial
      • 3.1.3 Distinction between OC *ST- and voiceless sonorants in words with sy- in MC
      • 3.1.4 Fricative reflex of *r-
      • 3.1.5 Features confined to one word
        • 天 ‘sky’ – OC *l̥ˤin MC then Caijia khəŋ33
        • 風 ‘wind’ – OC *prəm MC pjuwng Caijia paŋ33
        • 食 ‘to eat’ – OC *mə-lək MC zyik Caijia ʑu21/33
        • 葉 ‘leaf’ – OC *lap MC yep Caijia ɕeɪ55
        • 嫂 ‘elder brother’s wife’ – MC sawX Caijia tsho55
        • 痛 ‘pain(ful)’ – OC *l̥ˤoŋ-s MC thuwngH Caijia sʊŋ22
        • 鹽 ‘salt’ – OC *ɢrom MC yem Caijia ɕaŋ33
    • 3.2Features observed/retained in Middle Chinese but lost in mainstream modern Sinitic varieties
      • 3.2.1Retention of bilabial stops in words with initials Fēi/Fū/Fèng
      • 3.2.2Preserving OC *Tr- as a coronal stop
      • 3.2.3 Distinction between finals -jo and -ju (in certain environments)
  • 4.Discussion
  • 5.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • Supplementary Material
  • Abbreviations
  • References
Published online: 26 September 2022
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https://doi.org/10.1075/jhl.21025.lee
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