Janice Lam Hiu Wah - Historical Linguistics

8/4/2019 Janice Lam Hiu Wah - Historical Linguistics

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Historical Linguistics

By: Janice Lam Hiu Wah


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What is Historical Linguistics?

Campbell

Study language change

What kind of language change?

Historical Linguistic =

Diachronic Linguistics

(Language change over time)


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What Historical Linguistics

covers?

Sound change

Borrowing

Lexical diffusion

Analogical changeLinguistic Reconstruction

Semantic change

Lexical change

Syntactic change


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What is Sound Change?

Change in pronunciation of words

over time Neogrammarians 1870

All sound changes, asmechanical processes, take placeaccording to laws with noexception

A matter of physiology, beyondthe awareness of the speaker


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Really no exceptions?

Yes, there are rules to be

captured regarding the soundchanges.

X Some words are mispronounced,

but not the others.


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Sound change according to

laws?

Qing dynasty: discovery of the

change of sound from [f] to [b] or[p].

E.g.) (fuk6) - (bau1)(fung1) - (bong1)

(f>b) High plosive sounds


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Sound change according to

laws?

Nowadays, some Cantonese

words still keep high plosivesounds

E.g.)/fu1//bou6//fuk6//buk6/

/fu5//pou5/

/fu6//puk1/


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What EXCEPTIONS?

No changes in words like

(fuk6 sin3) (fu5 yan4)


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The change isbeyond the

awareness of speaker

Lisp () -Cantonese

Indistinguishable and-

n e.g.)(la5)

not (lan5)

> n/la


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The change isbeyond the

awareness of speaker

e.g. ) (hyn3) not (gyn3)

h>g

(dzik9) not (dz3)i, k >

(fei1) not (fei2) (yam4) not (yam6)


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What is Sound Change?

Shift of Tones

From upper level to upper rising

e.g. (hn1) not (hn2) (su1) not (su2)


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How words can be borrowed?Borrowing

External borrowing From another language

Analogical change

Internal borrowing

From some of its own patterns to

change to other patterns


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How Chinese has been modified by

foreign language over time?

First upsurge of borrowing

Buddhist scriptures

First borrowing from Western

Regions ()

Borrowing continued arrival ofWestern scholars


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How has Chinese changed

over time?

Official translation agencies were

set up in large cities

Second upsurge after defeat in

Opium War

Borrowing from Japanese words


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How has Chinese changed

over time?

1966-76: Cultural Revolution

1949-early 1970s: Communist rule

Borrowing from Russians

Now: in the midst of the thirdupsurge


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External borrowingFirst borrowing from Western

Regions (

)

Transliteration

Flora and faunaSecond syllable not stressed

e.g.) Persia - Arabia - India


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External borrowingFirst upsurge of borrowing

Buddhist scriptures

Concepts

Loan translation

e.g.) (yoga)

- Zen - Truth In the past

- Future


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External borrowing

Arrival of Western scholars

-Marco Polo (1254-1324)

-Matteo Ricci (1552-1610)

Official translation agencies

- Shanghai, Beijing, Tianjin


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External borrowing

Borrowing from Japanese words

Kanji

Readily transplanted into Chinese

e.g.)


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External borrowing1949-1970: Borrowing from

Russians

Concepts of Communisme.g.) Semantically,

Collective farm

Communism


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External borrowingCultural Revolution until Now-

the midst of the third upsurge

1) Greater tendency for sound

translationNumber of syllables

Tones

Consonants and vowels

e.g.) Vitamin (wei4ta1ming6)Disney - (dik6si6ni4)

tart- (tat8)


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External borrowingCultural Revolution until Now-

the midst of the third upsurge

2) Semantic translation

Meaning of part-word is translated.

e.g.) miniskirt (mi2ni3qun2)Credit card +

(xin4yong4ji1)


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Summary

Reasons for borrowing in

Chinese language

1)Insufficient lexiconswithin the language

2)Need to learn from the

West3)Ease of translation


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Analogy

Two types of analogy:

1)Analogical levelling2)Analogical creation


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Analogy

1)Analogical levelling

Simplification of rules Eliminating the

alternation


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Analogy(Analogical levelling)

:

Nowadays, refers to the things

which are larger in size.

eg.)

v.s.


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Analogy

2) Analogical creation

Lexical and conceptual

resources are updated.Produces new forms by

extending an existing

form or function.


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Analogy(Analogical creation)

Examples in ChineseBackformation

e.g.)

Morphologicalcomposition Deletion of the upper parts

Semantically, half of the children

Very small kids


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Examples in ChineseBlending

e.g.)+ =

Two different wordsCombined to form a new word

(Semantically related)


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Examples in ChineseFolk etymology

e.g.)

Meaningful associations

New form was createdbecause of the associations


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Summary

1)To avoid confusion-> Analogical levelling

2) To create more lexicons-> Analogical extension


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Summary

Sound changes(any exceptions?)

Borrowing - externally

Analogy internal

change


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The End

Janice Lam Hiu Wah - Historical Linguistics

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