Re: Another Urianian phonology problem.

>>> Now, the unaspirated labiovelars regularly turn into fricatives in
>>> an early stage. /gw/ > /j/, /kw/ > /C/. In the lowlands the voiced
>>> ones generally lose their voice and merge with the unvoiced ones,
>>> and in the highlands they suffer the same voicing changes as the
>>> stops, otherwise they are not changed since this early phase.
>As for the mentioned problem, I think /gWh/ > /w/ and /gWh/ > /x/
>(which is the most likely source for the _ch_, _kh_ representation)
>both are possible, and I think I can explain them consistently by
>having a /gWh/ > /xWh/ change in Old Urianian, while the highland
>dialects preserve the rounding element more and drop the fricative
>and the lowland ones drop it while keeping the fricative.
>
>Then the unaspirated labiovelars must keep some rounding too, so I
>will make them /gW/ > /jW/ and /kW/ > /CW/ for Old Urianian. This
>also is more consistent with the y in the highland word cyni and
>several other similar highland words.
>
>Also the PIE to OU change in the voiced aspirated velar is less
>direct, I think. Not /gh/ > /h/ as I thought before, but /gh/ > /xh/.
>But I think this will quickly collapse to an /h/, so I will continue
>writing it with an _h_ in OU text.
>
>LEF
That's a pretty strange development. The labiopalatalization is weird in
itself, tho probably still within the boundaries of plausibility; but you'll
need at least one intermediate step to get from /g/ to /x/, and it seems
unlikely that aspiration would hang around for the course. /g/ > /G/ would
make sense giv'n /gw)/ > /jw)/, but /Gh)/ just doesn't look plausible. On
the other hand, I don't think you even need the aspiration; /x/ can turn to
/h/ easily enuff. Just do it before making a new /x/ out of /gwh))/.

I think your step-by-step chronology could most likely go like this:
kw) gw) gwh)) > cw) J\w) J\wh)) (labiovelars spontaneously palatalize)
gh) J\hw)) > G j\w) > x Cw) (voiced aspirates spirantize, then devoice)
x > h (lenition of the least marked dorsal fricativ)
Cw) > x / w (the labiopalatal fricativ changes to something less marked)
cw) J\w) > cCw)) J\j\w)) > Cw) j\w)  (labiopalatal stops spirantize)
Cw) j\w) > C j (labiality of palatals finally lost)

but it might not quite fit what happens to other consonants, like the
palato- & plain velars, or the labial & dental voiced aspirates…

John Vertical

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