Historical Linguistics

1
Historical Linguistics

• language change

2
BASIC CONCEPTS
analogy
articulatory simplification
contact
reanalysis
language change
syncope
phonetic sound change
phonological sound change
apocope
comparative method
affrication
shifts
nasalization
palatalization
pragmatics
mergers
splits
sequential
borrowing
sound change
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Causes of Language Change

• Articulatory simplification
• Spelling pronunciation
• Analogy and reanalysis
• Language contact

4
Sound change

• Conditioned
• Unconditioned
• Phonetic
• Phonemic

5
Sound Change

• Assimilation
• Partial and Total
• Palatalization, Affrication, Nasalization, Umlaut
• Dissimilation
• Epenthesis
• Metathesis
• Weakening and deletion
• Consonantal strengthening
• Deaffrication

6
Specify the sound change/s.

• Tena
• c?umbi
• timbu
• nuktu
• agla
• wagli
• ukta
• kunga
• lyandu
• mukti
• pugyu
• indi
• sangu
• hambatu

• Gloss
• belt
• boil
• brains
• choose
• damage
• fast
• neck
• shade
• smell
• spring
• sun
• thick
• toad

• Proto-Quechan
• c?umpi
• timpu
• nutku
• akla
• wakli
• utka
• kunka
• lyantu
• mutki
• pukyu
• inti
• sanku
• hampatu

7
Identify the sound changes.
Sanskrit sneha Pali sineha
Old English hlaf English loaf
Latin iuvenis j Italian giovane d?
English triathlon dialect triath?lon
Latin vidua dw Spanish viuda wd
Sanskrit sapta Pali satta
Latin turtur English turtle
venre Spanish vendre
Italian mundo Sicilian munnu
Old French cire ts French cire s
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• Morphological change
• Addition/Loss of affixes, analogy, reanalysis
• Syntactic change
• Word order
• Lexical and semantic change
• Semantic broadening
• Semantic narrowing
• Amelioration
• Pejoration
• Weakening of meaning
• Semantic shift

9
Exercises

• Word
• moody
• uncouth
• aunt
• butcher
• witch
• sly
• accident
• argue

• Earlier meaning
• brave
• unknown
• fathers sister
• one who slaughters goats
• male of female sorcerer
• skillful
• an event
• make clear

10

• Word
• carry
• grumble
• shrewd
• praise
• ordeal
• picture
• seduce

• Earlier meaning
• transport by cart
• murmur, make low sounds
• depraved, wicked
• set a value on
• trial by torture
• a painted likeness
• persuade someone to desert his or her duty

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Comparative Method

• Procedure
• Compile cognate sets, eliminating borrowings.
• Determine sound correspondences.
• Reconstruct a sound for each position.
• Check for regularity of sound change.