Theiling Online    Sitemap    Conlang Mailing List HQ   

Re: THEORY: questions

From:Nik Taylor <yonjuuni@...>
Date:Monday, March 10, 2003, 6:42
Rachel Klippenstein wrote:
> > Is there any sound that [h] is likely to change into?
Well, there are a number of /h/ -> /k/ changes in borrowings from languages with /h/ to languages without, for example, Chinese _Han_ to Japanese _Kan_ (altho, Japanese later developed an /h/ of its own, but at the time of borrowing, there was no /h/), thus Mandarin Hanzi (Han Latters) -> Japanese Kanji. /?/ seems reasonable, too.
> And suppose a language loses its markers for noun > plurality and verb past tense through a regular sound > change. How is a language likely to deal with that? > Develop periphrastic constructions? Do without??
It could do either, it depends on whether the speakers feel that distinction to be important. It could also adapt another already-existing form. For example, suppose the language has a perfect form. If it lost the original past, the perfect could be changed into a simple past form. Modern Spoken French has done this, for example. The original simple past is rarely (never?) used in the spoken language. I think German, or at least some dialects, has also done that. Altho, in those cases it wasn't sound change that motivated it. -- "There's no such thing as 'cool'. Everyone's just a big dork or nerd, you just have to find people who are dorky the same way you are." - overheard ICQ: 18656696 AIM Screen-Name: NikTaylor42

Reply

Tristan <kesuari@...>