Proto-Kuki-Chin initials according to Toru Ohno and Kenneth VanBik

Abstract

Relying on the legacy of Ohno (1965), several scholars have made more recent forays into the reconstruction of Kuki-Chin initials (Khoi 2001, VanBik 2009, Button 2011). A comparison of Ohno’s and VanBik’s systems permits an overview of progress made so far. VanBik accepts all of Ohno’s correspondences, adding a few of his own. Mizo provides a convenient language to contrast their proposals in detail. As the source of Mizo f-, Löffler’s *dz- has advantages over Ohno’s *ź- [ʒ-] and VanBik’s *θ-. VanBik’s is right to distinguish *s- and *sʰ, although the phonetic value of *sʰ is not clear. The evidence for his *pr- and *phr- is unsatisfactory. In light of their importance, I propose to name two sound laws (*kr, *kl > ṭ- [ʈ], tl- ‘Ohno’s law’ and *r > g- ‘Shafer’s law’). Considering proposals not known to VanBik, there is good evidence for Peterson’s *yh- [ ȷ̊] (2000), but little for Button’s (2011) labio-velars. A number of splits, especially of *r-, require further attention. Show more