Proto-Tai language

Short description: Reconstructed ancestor of the Tai languages

Proto-Tai

Reconstruction of| Tai languages

Reconstructed
ancestor

Proto-Kra–Dai

Proto-Tai is the reconstructed proto-language (common ancestor) of all the Tai languages, including modern Lao, Shan, Tai Lü, Tai Dam, Ahom, Northern Thai, Standard Thai, Bouyei, and Zhuang. The Proto-Tai language is not directly attested by any surviving texts, but has been reconstructed using the comparative method.

It was reconstructed in 1977 by Li Fang-Kuei[1] and by Pittayawat Pittayaporn in 2009.[2][3]

## Contents

* 1 Phonology
* 1.1 Consonants
* 1.2 Consonant clusters
* 1.3 Vowels
* 1.4 Tones
* 1.5 Proto-Southern Kra-Dai
* 1.6 Syllable structure
* 2 Morphology
* 3 Syntax
* 4 Lexical isoglosses
* 5 Proto-Tai prenasalized nasals and Old Chinese
* 6 See also
* 7 References
* 8 Further reading
* 9 External links

## Phonology

### Consonants

The following table shows the consonants of Proto-Tai according to Li Fang-Kuei's A Handbook of Comparative Tai (1977), considered the standard reference in the field. Li does not indicate the exact quality of the consonants denoted here as [tɕ, tɕʰ and dʑ], which are indicated in his work as [č, čh, ž] and described merely as palatal affricate consonants.

Proto-Tai consonants
(Li 1977)  | Labial  | Alveolar  | Palatal  | Velar  | Glottal

|
|
|
|
|

Stop  | Voiceless | p  | t  | tɕ | k  |
Voiceless aspirated | pʰ | tʰ | tɕʰ | kʰ |
Voiced | b  | d  | dʑ | ɡ  |
Glottalized | ʔb  | ʔd  | ʔj  |  | ʔ
Fricative  | Voiceless | f  | s  |  | x  | h
Voiced | v  | z  |  | ɣ  |
Nasal  | Voiceless | m̥ | n̥ | ɲ̊ | ŋ̊ |
Voiced | m  | n  | ɲ  | ŋ  |
Liquid
or semivowel  | Voiceless | w̥ | r̥, l̥ |  |  |
Voiced | w  | r, l  | j  |  |

The table below lists the consonantal phonemes of Pittayawat Pittayaporn's reconstruction of Proto-Tai.[2]: p. 70 Some of the differences are simply different interpretations of Li's consonants: the palatal consonants are interpreted as stops, rather than affricates, and the glottalized consonants are described using symbols for implosive consonants. However, Pittayaporn's Proto-Tai reconstruction has a number of real differences from Li:

1. Pittayaporn does not allow for aspirated consonants, which he reconstructs as secondary developments in Southwestern Tai languages (after Proto-Tai split up into different languages).
2. He also reconstructs a contrastive series of uvular consonants, namely */q/, */ɢ/, and */χ/. No modern dialect preserves a distinct series of uvular consonants. Pittayaporn's reconstruction of the sounds is based on irregular correspondences in differing modern Tai dialects among the sounds /kʰ/, /x/ and /h/, in particular in the Phuan language and the Kapong dialect of the Phu Thai language. The distinction between /kʰ/ and /x/ can be reconstructed from the Tai Dón language. However, words with /x/ in Tai Dón show three different types of correspondences in Phuan and Kapong Phu Thai: some have /kʰ/ in both languages, some have /h/ in both, and some have /kʰ/ in Phuan but /h/ in Kapong Phu Thai. Pittayaporn reconstructs the correspondence classes as reflecting Proto-Tai /x/, /χ/ and /q/, respectively.[4]

There is a total of 33–36 consonants, 10–11 consonantal syllable codas and 25–26 tautosyllabic consonant clusters.

Proto-Tai consonants
(Pittayaporn 2009)  | Labial  | Alveolar  | Palatal  | Velar  | Uvular  | Glottal

|
|
|
|
|
|

Stop  | Voiceless | p  | t  | c  | k  | q  |
Voiced | b  | d  | ɟ  | ɡ  | ɢ  |
Glottalized | ɓ  | ɗ  | ʔj  |  |  | ʔ
Fricative  | Voiceless |  | s  | (ɕ)  | x  | χ  | h
Voiced |  | z  | (ʑ)  | ɣ  |  |
Nasal  | Voiceless | m̥ | n̥ | ɲ̊ | (ŋ̊) |  |
Voiced | m  | n  | ɲ  | ŋ  |  |
Liquid
or semivowel  | Voiceless | w̥ | r̥, l̥ |  |  |  |
Voiced | w  | r, l  |  |  |  |

Tai languages have many fewer possible consonants in coda position than in initial position. Li (and most other researchers) construct a Proto-Tai coda inventory that is identical with the system in modern Thai.

Proto-Tai consonantal syllabic codas
(Li 1977)  | Labial  | Alveolar  | Palatal  | Velar  | Glottal

|
|
|
|
|

Stop  | -p  | -t  |  | -k  | -ʔ
Nasal  | -m  | -n  |  | -ŋ  |
semivowel  | -w  |  | -j  |  |

Pittayaporn's Proto-Tai reconstructed consonantal syllable codas also include *-l, *-c, and possibly *-ɲ, which are not included in most prior reconstructions of Proto-Tai.[2]: p. 193 Below is the consonantal syllabic coda inventory:

Proto-Tai consonantal syllabic codas
(Pittayaporn 2009)  | Labial  | Alveolar  | Palatal  | Velar

|
|
|
|

Stop  | -p  | -t  | -c  | -k
Nasal  | -m  | -n  | (-ɲ)  | -ŋ
Liquid or semivowel  | -w  | -l  | -j  |

Norquest (2021) reconstructs the voiceless retroflex stop /ʈ/ for Proto-Tai. Examples of voiceless retroflex stops in Proto-Tai:[5]

Gloss | proto-Tai | p-North Tai | p-Central Tai | p-Southwest Tai

|
|
|
|

‘lift’ | *ʈaːm | *r̥aːm | *tʰraːm | *haːm
‘head louse’ | *ʈaw | *r̥aw | *tʰraw | *haw
‘to see’ | *ʈaȵ | *r̥aȵ | *tʰran | *hen
‘eye’ | *p-ʈaː | *p-ʈaː | *p-tʰraː | *taː
‘die’ | *p-ʈaːj | *p-ʈaːj | *p-tʰraːj | *taːj
‘grasshopper’ | *p-ʈak | *p-ʈak | *p-tʰrak | *tak

Norquest (2021) also reconstructs a series of breathy voiced initials (*bʱ, *dʱ, *ɡʱ, *ɢʱ) for Proto-Tai. Examples of breathy voiced initials in Proto-Tai:[5]

Gloss | proto-Tai | p-North Tai | p-Central Tai | p-Southwest Tai

|
|
|
|

‘person’ | *bʱuːʔ | *buːʔ | *pʰuːʔ | *pʰuːʔ
‘bowl’ | *dʱuəjʔ | *duəjʔ | *tʰuəjʔ | *tʰuəjʔ
‘eggplant’ | *ɡʱɯə | *gɯə | *kʰɯə | *kʰɯə
‘rice’ | *ɢʱawʔ | *ɣawʔ | *kʰawʔ | *kʰawʔ

Some sound correspondences among Proto-Tai, Proto-Northern Tai, and Proto-Southern Tai (i.e., the ancestor of the Central and Southwestern Tai languages) uvular initials given in Ostapirat (2023) are as follows.[6]

p-Tai | p-Northern Tai | p-Southern Tai

|
|

*q- | *k- | *x-
*ɢ- | *ɣ- | *g-
*ɢʰ- | *ɣ- | *kʰ-

Initial velar correspondences, on the other hand, are identical.[6]

p-Tai | p-Northern Tai | p-Southern Tai

|
|

*x- | *x- | *x-
*ɣ- | *ɣ- | *ɣ-

### Consonant clusters

Li (1977) reconstructs the following initial clusters:

Proto-Tai consonant clusters
(Li 1977)  | Labial  | Alveolar  | Velar

|
|
|

Unvoiced Stop  | pr-, pl-  | tr-, tl-  | kr-, kl-, kw-
Aspirated unvoiced stop  | pʰr-, pʰl-  | tʰr-, tʰl-  | kʰr-, kʰl-, kʰw-
Voiced Stop  | br-, bl-  | dr-, dl-  | ɡr-, ɡl-, ɡw-
Implosive  | ʔbr-, ʔbl-  | ʔdr-, ʔdl-  |
Voiceless Fricative  | fr-  |  | xr-, xw-
Voiced Fricative  | vr-, vl-  |  |
Nasal  | mr-, ml-  | nr-, nl-  | ŋr-, ŋl-, ŋw-
Liquid  |  |  |

Pittayaporn (2009) reconstructs two types of complex onsets for Proto-Tai:

1. Tautosyllabic clusters – considered one syllable.
2. Sesquisyllabic clusters – "one-and-a-half" syllables. ("Sesquisyllabic" is a term coined by James Matisoff.) However, sesquisyllabic clusters are not attested in any modern Tai language.

Tautosyllabic consonant clusters from Pittayaporn[2]: p. 139 are given below, some of which have the medials *-r-, *-l-, and *-w-.

Proto-Tai consonant clusters
(Pittayaporn 2009)  | Labial  | Alveolar  | Palatal  | Velar  | Uvular

|
|
|
|
|

Unvoiced Stop  | pr-, pl-, pw-  | tr-, tw-  | cr-  | kr-, kl-, kw-  | qr-, qw-
Implosive  | br-, bl-, bw-  |  |  | ɡr-, (ɡl-)  | ɢw-
Fricative  |  | sw-  |  | xw-, ɣw-  |
Nasal  | ʰmw-  | nw-  | ɲw-  | ŋw-  |
Liquid  |  | ʰrw-, rw-  |  |  |

Pittayaporn's Proto-Tai reconstruction also has sesquisyllabic consonant clusters. Michel Ferlus (1990) had also previously proposed sesquisyllables for Proto-Thai-Yay.[7] The larger Tai-Kadai family is reconstructed with disyllabic words that ultimately collapsed to monosyllabic words in the modern Tai languages. However, irregular correspondences among certain words (especially in the minority non-Southwestern-Tai languages) suggest to Pittayaporn that Proto-Tai had only reached the sesquisyllabic stage (with a main monosyllable and optional preceding minor syllable). The subsequent reduction to monosyllables occurred independently in different branches, with the resulting apparent irregularities in synchronic languages reflecting Proto-Tai sesquisyllables.

Examples of sesquisyllables include:

Voiceless stop + voiceless stop (*C̥.C̥-)

* *p.t-
* *k.t-
* *p.q-
* *q.p-

Voiceless obstruent + voiced stop (*C̥.C̬-)

* *C̥.b-
* *C̥.d-

Voiced obstruent + voiceless stop (*C̬.C̥-)

* *C̬.t-
* *C̬.k-
* *C̬.q-

Voiceless stops + liquids/glides (*C̥.r-)

* *k.r-
* *p.r-
* *C̥.w-

Voiced consonant + liquid/glide

* *m.l-
* *C̬ .r-
* *C̬ .l-

Clusters with non-initial nasals

* *t.n-
* *C̬ .n-

Other clusters include *r.t-, *t.h-, *q.s-, *m.p-, *s.c-, *z.ɟ-, *g.r-, *m.n-; *gm̩.r-, *ɟm̩ .r-, *c.pl-, *g.lw-; etc.

### Vowels

Below are Proto-Tai vowels from Pittayaporn.[2]: p. 192 Unlike Li's system, Pittayaporn's system has vowel length contrast. There is a total of 7 vowels with length contrast and 5 diphthongs.

Proto-Tai vowels
(Pittayaporn 2009)  | Front  | Back

|
|

unrounded  | unrounded  | rounded
short | long | short | long | short | long
Close  | /i/
| /iː/
| /ɯ/
| /ɯː/
| /u/
| /uː/

Mid  | /e/
| /eː/
| /ɤ/
| /ɤː/
| /o/
| /oː/

Open  |  |  | /a/
| /aː/
|  |

The diphthongs from Pittayaporn (2009) are:

* Rising: */iə/, */ɯə/, */uə/
* Falling: */ɤɰ/, */aɰ/

### Tones

Proto-Tai had three contrasting tones on syllables ending with sonorant finals ("live syllables"), and no tone contrast on syllables with obstruent finals ("dead syllables"). This is very similar to the situation in Middle Chinese. For convenience in tracking historical outcomes, Proto-Tai is usually described as having four tones, namely *A, *B, *C, and *D, where *D is a non-phonemic tone automatically assumed by all dead syllables. These tones can be further split into a voiceless (*A1 [1], *B1 [3], *C1 [5], *D1 [7]) and voiced (*A2 [2], *B2 [4], *C2 [6], *D2 [8]) series. The *D tone can also be split into the *DS (short vowel) and *DL (long vowel) tones. With voicing contrast, these would be *DS1 [7], *DS2 [8], *DL1 [9], and *DL2 [10].[4][8] Other Kra–Dai languages are transcribed with analogous conventions.

Proto-Tai tone notation  Type of voicing  | *A  | *B  | *C  | *D

|
|
|
|

Voiceless series
(Letter notation)  | A1  | B1  | C1  | D1
Voiceless series
(Numerical notation)  | 1  | 3  | 5  | 7
Voiced series
(Letter notation)  | A2  | B2  | C2  | D2
Voiced series
(Numerical notation)  | 2  | 4  | 6  | 8

The following table of the phonetic characteristics of Proto-Tai tones was adapted from Pittayaporn.[2]: p. 271 Note that *B and *D are phonetically similar.

Proto-Tai tonal characteristics
(Pittayaporn 2009)  | *A  | *B  | *C  | *D

|
|
|
|

Type of final  | sonorant  | sonorant  | sonorant  | obstruent
Pitch height  | mid  | low  | high  | low
Contour  | level  | low rising  | high falling  | low rising
Vowel duration  | –  | long  | short  | –
Voice quality  | modal  | creaky  | glottal
constriction  | –

Proto-Tai tones take on various tone values and contours in modern Tai languages. These tonal splits are determined by the following conditions:

1. "Friction sounds": Aspirated onset, voiceless fricative, voiceless sonorant
2. Unaspirated onset (voiceless)
3. Glottalized/implosive onset (voiceless)
4. Voiced onset (voiceless)

In addition, William J. Gedney developed a "tone-box" method to help determine historical tonal splits and mergers in modern Tai languages. There is a total of 20 possible slots in what is known as the Gedney's Tone Box.[9][10][11][12]

Gedney Box template  | *A  | *B  | *C  | *DS  | *DL

|
|
|
|
|

Voiceless
(friction)  | A1  | B1  | C1  | DS1  | DL1
Voiceless
(unaspirated)  | A1  | B1  | C1  | DS1  | DL1
Voiceless
(glottalized)  | A1  | B1  | C1  | DS1  | DL1
Voiced  | A2  | B2  | C2  | DS2  | DL2

Proto-Tai tones correspond regularly to Middle Chinese tones.[13][14] (Note that Old Chinese did not have tones.) The following tonal correspondences are from Luo (2008). Note that Proto-Tai tone *B corresponds to Middle Chinese tone C, and vice versa.

Sinitic–Tai tonal correspondences  Proto-Tai
Tone  | Notes
(Written Thai orthography)  | Middle Chinese
Tone  | Chinese name  | Notes
(Middle Chinese)

|
|
|
|

*A  | Unmarked  | A  | 平 Level (Even)  | Unmarked
*B  | Marked by -่ (mai ek)  | C  | 去 Departing  | Marked by -H in Baxter's notation (mai tho), historically perhaps from [-s] later [-h]
*C  | Marked by -้ (mai tho)  | B  | 上 Rising  | Marked by -X in Baxter's notation, historically perhaps from [-ʔ]
*D  | Unmarked or marked by -๊ (mai tri)  | D  | 入 Entering  | Marked by -p, -t, -k

Gedney (1972) also included a list of diagnostic words to determine tonal values, splits, and mergers for particular Tai languages. At least three diagnostic words are needed for each cell of the Gedney Box. The diagnostic words preceding the semicolons are from Gedney (1972), and the ones following the semicolons are from Somsonge (2012)[15] and Jackson, et al. (2012).[16] Standard Thai (Siamese) words are given below, with italicised transliterations.

Diagnostic words for Tai tones  | *A  | *B  | *C  | *DS  | *DL

|
|
|
|
|

1: Voiceless
(friction)  | huu หู ear,
khaa ขา leg,
hua หัว head;
sɔɔŋ สอง two,
maa หมา dog  | khay ไข่ egg,
phaa ผ่า to split,
khaw เข่า knee;
may ใหม่ new,
sii สี่ four  | khaaw ข้าว rice,
sɨa เสื้อ shirt,
khaa ฆ่า to kill,
khay ไข้ fever,
haa ห้า five;
thuay ถ้วย cup,
mɔɔ หม้อ pot,
naa หน้า face,
to wait  | mat หมัด flea,
suk สุก cooked/ripe,
phak ผัก vegetable;
hok หก six,
sip สิบ ten  | khaat ขาด broken/torn,
ŋɨak เหงือก gums,
haap หาบ to carry on a shoulder pole;
khuat ขวด bottle,
phuuk ผูก to tie,
sɔɔk ศอก elbow,
khɛɛk แขก guest,
fruit
2: Voiceless
(unaspirated)  | pii ปี year,
taa ตา eye,
kin กิน to eat;
kaa กา teapot,
plaa ปลา fish  | paa ป่า forest,
kay ไก่ chicken,
kɛɛ แก่ old;
taw เต่า turtle,
paw เป่า to blow,
pii ปี flute,
short (height)  | paa ป้า aunt (elder),
klaa กล้า rice seedlings,
tom ต้ม to boil;
kaw เก้า nine,
klay ใกล้ near,
short (length)  | kop กบ frog,
tap ตับ liver,
cep เจ็บ to hurt;
pet เป็ด duck,
tok ตก to fall/drop  | pɔɔt ปอด lung,
piik ปีก wing,
tɔɔk ตอก to pound;
pɛɛt แปด eight,
paak ปาก mouth,
taak ตาก to dry in the sun,
to embrace
3: Voiceless
(glottalized)  | bin บิน to fly,
dɛɛŋ แดง red,
daaw ดาว star;
bay ใบ leaf,
nose  | baa บ่า shoulder,
baaw บ่าว young man,
daa ด่า to scold;
ʔim อิ่ม full,
(water) spring  | baan บ้าน village,
baa บ้า crazy,
ʔaa อ้า to open (mouth);
ʔɔy อ้อย sugarcane,
daam ด้าม handle,
daay ด้าย string  | bet เบ็ด fishhook,
dip ดิบ raw/unripe,
ʔok อก chest;
dɨk ดึก late,
to extinguish  | dɛɛt แดด sunshine,
ʔaap อาบ to bathe,
dɔɔk ดอก flower;
ʔɔɔk ออก exit
4: Voiced  | mɨɨ มือ hand,
khwaay ควาย water buffalo,
naa นา ricefield;
ŋuu งู snake,
house  | phii พี่ older sibling,
phɔɔ พ่อ father,
ray ไร่ dry field;
naŋ นั่ง to sit,
lɨay เลื่อย to saw,
ashes,
urine,
beard  | nam น้ำ water,
nɔɔŋ น้อง younger sibling,
may ไม้ wood,
maa ม้า horse;
lin ลิ้น tongue,
thɔɔŋ ท้อง belly  | nok นก bird,
mat มัด to tie up,
lak ลัก to steal;
sak ซัก to wash (clothes),
mot มด ant,
lep เล็บ nail  | miit มีด knife,
luuk ลูก (one's) child,
lɨat เลือด blood,
nɔɔk นอก outside;
chɨak เชือก rope,
raak ราก root,
nasal mucus,
to pull

Note that the diagnostic words listed above cannot all be used for other Tai-Kadai branches such as Kam–Sui, since tones in other branches may differ. The table below illustrates these differences among Tai and Kam–Sui etyma.

Tai vs. Kam–Sui tones  Gloss  | Tai  | Kam–Sui

|
|

pig  | A1  | B1
dog  | A1  | A1
rat  | A1  | C1
ricefield  | A2 (na)  | B1 (ja)
tongue  | A2 (lin)  | A2 (ma)

### Proto-Southern Kra-Dai

In 2007, Peter K. Norquest undertook a preliminary reconstruction of Proto-Southern Kra-Dai, which is ancestral to the Hlai languages, Ong Be language, and Tai languages.[17] There are 28 consonants, 5–7 vowels, 9 closed rimes (not including vowel length), and at least 1 diphthong, *ɯa(C).

Proto-Southern Kra-Dai consonants
Norquest (2007)  | Labial  | Alveolar  | Retroflex  | Palatal  | Velar  | Uvular  | Glottal

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Unvoiced Stop  | (C-)p  | (C-)t  | ʈ  | (C-)c  | (C-)k  | (C-)q  | (Cu)ʔ
Voiced Stop  | (C-)b  | (Ci/u)d  | (Cu)ɖ  | (C-)ɟ  | (Ci/u)g  | (C-ɢ)  |
Unvoiced Fricative  | f  | s  |  | ɕ  | x  |  | h
Voiced Fricative  | (C[i])v  | z  |  |  | ɣ  |  |
Voiced Nasal  | (H-)m  | (H-)n  |  | ɲ  | (H-)ŋ(w)  |  |
Liquid or Semivowel  | (H-)w, j  | (H-)l, r  |  |  |  |  |

Proto-Southern Kra-Dai medial consonants also include:

* *C(V)-m
* *C(V)-n
* *C(V)-ɲ
* *C(V)-ŋ
* *C(V)(i)l
* *C(u)r
* *p(i)l
* *k-l

Proto-Southern Kra-Dai open rimes
Norquest (2007)  Height  | Front  | Central  | Back

|
|
|

Close | /iː/ | /ɯː/ | /uː/
Mid | (/eː/)  |  | (/oː/)
Open | /ɛː/ | /aː/ |
Proto-Southern Kra-Dai closed rimes
Norquest (2007)  Height  | Front  | Central  | Back

|
|
|

Close | /i(ː)C/ | /ɯ(ː)C/ | /u(ː)C/
Mid | /e(ː)C/ | /ə(ː)C/ | /o(ː)C/
Open | /ɛːC/ | /aːC/ | /ɔC/

Proto-Southern Kra-Dai also includes the diphthong *ɯa(C).

### Syllable structure

Unlike its modern-day monosyllabic descendants, Proto-Tai was a sesquisyllabic language (Pittayaporn 2009). Below are some possible Proto-Tai syllable shapes from Pittayaporn.[2]: p. 64

Proto-Tai syllable structure
(Pittayaporn 2009)  | Open syllable  | Closed syllable

|
|

Monosyllable  | *C(C)(C)V(:)T | *C(C)(C)V(:)CT
Sesquisyllable  | *C(C).C(C)(C)V(:)T | *C(C).C(C)(C)V(:)CT

Legend:

* C = consonant
* V = vowel
* (:) = optional vowel length
* T = tone

During the evolution from Proto-Tai to modern Tai languages, monosyllabification involved a series of five steps.[2]: p. 181

1. Weakening (segment becomes less "consonant-like")
2. Implosivization
3. Metathesis
4. Assimilation
5. Simplification (syllable drops at least one constituent)

## Morphology

Robert M. W. Dixon (1998) suggests that the Proto-Tai language was fusional in its morphology because of related sets of words among the language's descendants that appear to be related through ablaut.[18]

## Syntax

Proto-Tai had a SVO (subject–verb–object) word order like Chinese and almost all modern Tai languages. Its syntax was heavily influenced by Chinese.

## Lexical isoglosses

Examples of Kra-Hlai-Tai isoglosses as identified by Norquest (2021):[5]

Gloss | p-Tai | p-Be | p-Hlai | p-Kra |  | p-Kam-Sui | p-Biao-Lakkja

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

‘beard’ | *mumh | *mumX | *hmɯːmʔ | *mumʔ  |  | *m-nrut | *m-luːt
‘wet field’ | *naː | *njaː | *hnaːɦ | *naː  |  | *ʔraːh | *raːh
‘crow’ | *kaː | *ʔak | *ʔaːk | *ʔak  |  | *qaː | *kaː
‘needle’ | *qjem | *ŋaːʔ | *hŋuc | *ŋot  |  | *tɕʰəm | *tɕʰəm
‘mortar’ | *grok | *ɦoːk | *ɾəw | *ʔdru  |  | *krˠəm | –

Examples of Hlai-Be-Tai isoglosses as identified by Norquest (2021):[5]

Gloss | p-Tai | p-Be | p-Hlai |  | p-Kra | p-Kam-Sui | p-Biao-Lakkja

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

‘tongue’ | *linʔ | *liːnX | *hliːnʔ  |  | *l-maː | *maː | *m-laː
‘wing’ | *piːk | *pik | *pʰiːk  |  | *ʀwaː | *C-faːh | –
‘skin’ | *n̥aŋ | *n̥aŋ | *n̥əːŋ  |  | *taː | *ŋʀaː | –
‘to shoot’ | *ɲɯː | *ɲəː | *hɲɯː  |  | – | *pɛŋh | –
‘to fly’ | *ʔbil | *ʔbjən | *ɓin  |  | – | *C-pˠənʔ | *[C-]pənh

Examples of Be-Tai isoglosses as identified by Norquest (2021):[5]

Gloss | p-Tai | p-Be |  | p-Hlai | p-Kra | p-Kam-Sui | p-Biao-Lakkja

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

‘bee’ | *prɯŋʔ | *ʃaːŋX  |  | *kəːj | *reː | *luk | *mlet
‘vegetable’ | *prak | *ʃak  |  | *ɓɯː ʈʂʰəj | *ʔop | *ʔmaː | –
‘red’ | *C-djeːŋ | *r̥iŋ  |  | *hraːnʔ | – | *hlaːnʔ | –
‘to bite’ | *ɢɦap | *gap  |  | *hŋaːɲʔ | *ʈajh | *klət | *kat
‘to descend’ | *N-ɭoŋ | *roːŋ  |  | *l̥uːj | *caɰʔ | *C-ɭuːjh | *lojʔ

## Proto-Tai prenasalized nasals and Old Chinese

Ostapirat (2023) notes that as in Proto-Hmong–Mien, prenasalized consonant initials in Proto-Tai often correspond with prenasalized consonant initials in Old Chinese (with the Old Chinese reconstructions below from Baxter & Sagart 2014[19]).[6]

Gloss | Proto-Tai | Old Chinese

|
|

collapse | *mbaŋ A | 崩 *Cə.pˤəŋ
daughter-in-law | *mbaɰ C | 婦 *mə.bəʔ
bet | *ndaː C | 賭 *mə.tˤaʔ
ford | *ndaː B | 渡 *[d]ˤak-s
price | *ŋgaː B | 價 *mə.qˤaʔ-s (?)
hold in mouth | *ŋgam A | 含 *Cə-m-kˤ[ə]m
early | *ndʑaw C | 早 *Nə.tsˤuʔ

## See also

* List of Proto-Tai reconstructions (Wiktionary)
* Proto-Kra language
* Proto-Hlai language
* Proto-Austronesian language
* Austro-Tai languages

## References

Notes

1. ↑ Li, Fang-Kuei. (1977). A handbook of comparative Tai. Manoa: University Press of Hawaii.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Pittayaporn, Pittayawat. (2009a). The Phonology of Proto-Tai (Doctoral dissertation). Department of Linguistics, Cornell University.
3. ↑ Pike, Kenneth Lee; Pike, Evelyn G.. Comparative Kadai: Linguistic Studies Beyond Tai. Summer Institute of Linguistics, 1977. pp. 16. ISBN 0883120666.
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Pittayaporn, Pittayawat (2009b). Proto-Southwestern-Tai Revised: A New Reconstruction. Journal of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society, 2, 121–144.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Norquest, Peter (2021). "Classification of (Tai-)Kadai/Kra-Dai languages". The Languages and Linguistics of Mainland Southeast Asia. De Gruyter. pp. 225–246. doi:10.1515/9783110558142-013. ISBN 9783110558142.
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Ostapirat, Weera (2023). "Proto-Kra–Dai consonants: an outline and outstanding issues". 32nd Annual Meeting of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society (SEALS 2023), May 18, 2023. Chiang Mai University. https://seals32.human.cmu.ac.th/.
7. ↑ Ferlus, Michel (1990). Remarques sur le Consonnantisme du Proto-Thai-yay. Paper presented at the 23rd International Conference on Sino-Tibetan Languages and Linguistics. University of Texas at Arlington, Oct. 5–7.
8. ↑ Liao, Han-Bo. (2016). Tonal Development of Tai Languages (master's thesis). Payap University, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
9. ↑ Gedney, William J. (1972). A Checklist for Determining Tones in Tai Dialects. In M. E. Smith (Ed.). Studies in Linguistics: In Honor of George L. Trager (pp. 423–437). Mouton.
10. ↑ Owen, R. W. (2012). A tonal analysis of contemporary Tai Khuen varieties. Journal of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society (JSEALS), 5, 12–31.
11. ↑ Manson, Ken. (2009). Prolegomena to Reconstructing Proto-Karen. La Trobe Papers in Linguistics, 12. Available at [1]
12. ↑ Morey, Stephen. (2014). Studying tones in North East India: Tai, Singpho and Tangsa. Language Documentation & Conservation, 8, 637–671.
13. ↑ Downer, G.B. (1963). "Chinese, Thai, and Miao-Yao". in Shorto, H.L.. Linguistic Comparison in South East Asia and the Pacific. School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. pp. 133–139. http://sealang.net/sala/archives/pdf8/downer1963chinese.pdf.
14. ↑ Luo, Yong-Xian (2008). "Sino-Tai and Tai–Kadai: Another Look". in Diller, Anthony; Edmondson, Jerold A.; Luo, Yong-Xian. The Tai–Kadai Languages. Routledge Language Family Series. Psychology Press. pp. 9–28. ISBN 978-0-7007-1457-5.
15. ↑ "Tones of Thai Song Varieties". http://pacling.anu.edu.au/series/SEALS-PDFs/Somsonge2012tones.pdf.
16. ↑ Jackson, Eric M., Emily H.S. Jackson, and Shuh Huey Lau (2012). A sociolinguistic survey of the Dejing Zhuang dialect area. SIL Electronic Survey Reports 2012-036, SIL International, East Asia Group.
17. ↑ Norquest, Peter K. 2007. A Phonological Reconstruction of Proto-Hlai. PhD dissertation. Tucson: Department of Anthropology, University of Arizona.
18. ↑ Dixon, R. M. W. (1998). The Rise and Fall of Languages. Cambridge University Press. pp. 42–43. ISBN 978-0-521-62654-5.
19. ↑ Baxter, William H.; Sagart, Laurent (2014). "The Baxter-Sagart reconstruction of Old Chinese (Version 1.1, 20 September 2014)". University of Michigan. https://ocbaxtersagart.lsait.lsa.umich.edu/. (supplementary data for: Baxter, William H., and Laurent Sagart. 2014. Old Chinese: a new reconstruction. New York: Oxford University Press.)

Sources

* Gedney, William J., and Thomas J. Hudak. William J. Gedney's Southwestern Tai Dialects: Glossaries, Texts and Translations. [Ann Arbor, Mich.]: Center for South and Southeast Asian Studies, University of Michigan, 1994. Print.
* Thurgood, Graham. 2002. "A comment on Gedney's proposal for another series of voiced initials in Proto-Tai revisited." Studies in Southeast Asian Languages, edited by Robert Bauer. Pacific Linguistics. pp. 169–183. (updated 2006)

## Further reading

* Akharawatthanakun, Phinnarat. (2010). Phonological Variation in Phuan. MANUSYA: Journal of Humanities, 13(2), 50–87.
* Brown, J. Marvin. From Ancient Thai to Modern Dialects. Bangkok: Social Science Association Press of Thailand, 1965.
* Ferlus, Michel. 1990. "Remarques sur le consonantisme de Proto Thai-Yay (Révision du pro tai de Li Fangkuei)." Paper presented at the 23 rd International Conference on Sino-Tibetan Languages and Linguistics. University of Texas at Arlington
* Gedney, William J. 1989. "Future directions in Comparative Tai Linguistics." Selected papers on Comparative Tai Studies, ed. by Robert J. Bickner, John Hartmann, Thomas John Hudak and Patcharin Peyasantiwong, 7–116. Ann Arbor: Center for Southeast Asian Studies, University of Michigan.
* Li, Fang-kuei. 1977. Handbook of Comparative Tai. Honolulu, Hawaii: University of Hawaiʼi Press.
* Miyake, Marc. 2014. What the *-hɛːk is going on?
* Miyake, Marc. 2014. Proto-Tai *j-, *ˀj-, or *ʄ-?.
* Miyake, Marc. 2014. Is Thai yuan 'Vietnamese' a loanword from Lao?
* Miyake, Marc. 2014. Tone codes: XK'G- + -vqhslc.
* Miyake, Marc. 2014. Black and white evidence for Vietnamese phonological history.
* Miyake, Marc. 2014. D-ou-b-led letters in Tai Viet.
* Miyake, Marc. 2014. *(C).r-usters in Black Tai and Bao Yen.
* Miyake, Marc. 2014. S-implificaition in Black Tai and Bao Yen.
* Miyake, Marc. 2013. Dyeing in the south: evidence for earlier Southern Chinese *-om.
* Miyake, Marc. 2013. Saek.
* Miyake, Marc. 2013. The other Kra-Dai numerals (Parts 1, 2).
* Miyake, Marc. 2012. Pondering over water.
* Miyake, Marc. 2012. 3itting on fire.
* Miyake, Marc. 2012. Speaking of heaven in Zhuang.
* Miyake, Marc. 2011. Can Proto-Tai live without *ʔy-(uu)?
* Miyake, Marc. 2011. From 'you' to 'yuu'.
* Miyake, Marc. 2011. The roots of rawness.
* Miyake, Marc. 2011. Sawgun stratography?
* Miyake, Marc. 2010. Brown's (1979) "Vowel length in Thai".
* Miyake, Marc. 2010. Was there a *krp-orate cluster in 'cloth'?
* Miyake, Marc. 2010. Lao x ex ... ?
* Miyake, Marc. 2008. Proto-Tai 'nine': evidence for unexpected emphasis?
* Miyake, Marc. 2008. Li Fang-kuei's Proto-Tai diphthongs.
* Miyake, Marc. 2008. 布央 Cloth center consonants.
* Miyake, Marc. 2008. A fiery theory.
* Miyake, Marc. 2008. ƧЗЧƼƄ
* Ostapirat, Weera. (2009). Proto-Tai and Kra-Dai Finals *-l and *-c. Journal of Language and Culture, 28(2), 41–56.
* Ostapirat, Weera. (2013). The Rime System of Proto-Tai. Bulletin of Chinese Linguistics, 7(1), 189–227.
* Pittayaporn, Pittayawat. 2008. "Proto-Southwestern Tai: A New Reconstruction". Paper presented at the 18th Annual Meeting of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society. Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi.
* Puttachart, P. & Thananan, T. (1998). The position of Tak Bai in Tai dialects. In S. Burusphat (Ed.), Proceedings of the International Conference on Tai Studies (pp. 313–322).
* Sarawit, Mary. 1973. The Proto-Tai Vowel System. University of Michigan, Department of Linguistics: PhD dissertation.

## External links

* ABVD: Proto-Tai word list
* ABVD: Proto-Southwestern Tai word list
* ABVD: word lists of Kra-Dai languages

Dictionaries

* Database query to Tai–Kadai etymology
* Thai Lexicography Resources

* v
* t
* e

Kra–Dai languages

Kra|

* Laha
* Gelao
* Lachi
* Paha
* Buyang
* En
* Qabiao

Kam–Sui|

* Mulam
* Kam (Dong)
* Cao Miao
* Naxi Yao
* Sanqiao
* Then
* Maonan
* Chadong
* Sui
* Mak
* Ai-Cham

Biao–Lakkia|

* Biao
* Lakkia

Hlai|

* Hlai
* Cun

Jiamao|

* Jiamao

Be–Jizhao|

* Be
* Jizhao

Tai
(Zhuang)|

| Northern|

* Standard Zhuang
* Bouyei
* Hezhang Buyi
* Yei Zhuang
* Longsang Zhuang
* E
* Saek
* Tai Yo (Nyaw)
* Yoy
* Tai Pao

|

Central|

* Nong Zhuang
* Dai Zhuang
* Min Zhuang
* Yang Zhuang
* Pyang Zhuang
* Myang Zhuang
* Nung
* Tày
* Tsʻün-Lao

Southwestern
(Thai)|

| Northwestern|

* Shan
* Tai Ya
* Tai Nuea
* Tai Long
* Tai Hongjin
* Khamti
* Tai Laing
* Tai Phake
* Tai Aiton
* Khamyang
* Ahom
* Turung

|

Lao–Phutai|

* Lao
* Phu Thai
* Isan
* Nyaw
* Lao Nyo
* Kaloeng

Chiang Saen|

* Thai (Siamese)
* Northern Thai
* Tai Daeng
* Tai Dón
* Tai Hang Tong
* Tai Lue
* Tai Dam
* Khun
* Phuan
* Thai Song
* Tày Tac

Southern|

* Southern Thai

(other)|

* Sapa
* Pa Di
* Tai Muong Vat
* Tai Thanh
* Tai Khang
* Yong
* Kuan

(mixed)|

* Caolan

(mixed origins)|

* Hezhang Buyi
* E
* Caolan
* Sanqiao
* Jiamao

proposed groupings|

* Kam–Tai

Proto-languages|

* Proto-Kra
* Proto-Tai
* Proto-Kam–Sui
* Proto-Hlai

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