JPN494/598: History of the Japanese Language - Introduction
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JPN494/598: History of the Japanese Language Introduction
Transcript of JPN494/598: History of the Japanese Language - Introduction
JPN494/598: History of the Japanese Language
Introduction
1. Basic concepts & methodologies in historical linguistics
2. The overview of the history of the Japanese language
1. Sound changes 2. Syntactic changes3. Vocabulary changes4. Development of writing systems
3. The formation of modern Japanese and ongoing changes
Historical studies of languages What is historical linguistics about? What’s the advantage of studying the history
of a particular language (or languages in general)?
Linguistic/Cognitive Interests Historical Interests Cultural Interests
1. Linguistic/Cognitive Interests(Campbell 1999:2)“[H]uman cognition and the human capacity for language learning are central research interests in linguistics, and historical linguistics contributes significantly to this goal.”
“As we determine more accurately what can change and what cannot change in a language, and what the permitted versus impossible ways are in which languages can change, we contribute significantly to the understanding of universal grammar,language typology and human cognition in general – fundamental to understanding our very humanity.”
Permitted (common) vs. Impossible (unlikely) ways of language changesExample #1: Directionality of sound change
Unidirectional It is common for the [k] sound (velar stop) to change
into [h] (glottal fricative), but not vice versa. It is common for the [ʧ] ([č]; alveolar affricate) sound
to change into [ʃ] (alveolar fricative), but not vice versa. (deaffrication)e.g. chief vs. chef
→ perceptual reason?, “ease of articulation”?
voicing of a consonant between two vowels caput (Latin) > cabo (Spanish) ‘head’
“It is easy to voice stops between vowels, since vowels are inherently voiced.” (Campbell 1999:130)
Bidirectional diphthongization
mouse: /mūs/ > /maʊs/ monophthongization
tire: /taɪɝ/ > /tɑ(ɝ)/ (in some dialects) autre: /aut/ > /ot/ (French) auru- (Latin) > or (French)
Example #2: Directionality of semantic change/extension
‘see’ > ‘know, understand’ senses of touch/taste > emotions/propensitie
s(e.g. feeling, bitter, sweet, sour)
body-part > spatial location > temporal location (e.g. in front of, ahead of, behind)
ability > obligation/permission > necessity/probability (e.g. can, may, must)
→ understanding of abstract concepts in terms of concrete concepts and their metaphorical extensions
Historical/Anthropological Interests “Historical linguistic findings have been utilize
d to solve historical problems of concern to society which extend far beyond linguistics” (Campbell 1999:1)
Example #1: “What was our ancestors’ life like?”
Many languages spoken in the area covering Europe and the Indian Subcontinent (which include English, Iranian, Hindi) are linguistically proven to be “relatives” (i.e. descendants of a single language).
Their ancestor language, called the Proto-Indo-European, left no written record, but it was reconstructed by the hand of linguists (using the comparative method).
The reconstructed Proto-Indo-European vocabulary had words corresponding to: *h2erh3trom ‘plough’, *seh- ‘sow’, *peis- ‘thresh’, … *sū- ‘pig’, *h2egwno- ‘lamb’, *wakeh2- ‘cow’, …as well as ‘honey’, ‘purchase’, ‘penalty’, ‘wheel’, ‘axe’, ‘fort’, ‘beech’, etc. …
Such information, along with material evidence (relics), helps us infer whatthe society and culture of the ancient people were like.
Example #2: “Where did our ancestors come from?”
linguistic migration theory (the center of gravity model)
Assumption: when a language family splits up, it is more likely for the various daughter languages to stay close to where they started out and it is less likely for them to move very far or very frequently.
A
B
C
EF
G
D
http://www.danshort.com/ie/mapmaker.php?Map=sprea (the Pontic steppes and Caspian region)
Example #3: “What is/was the relation between people A, people B, and people C?”
genealogical relation (in the linguistic sense) language contact (borrowing)
Cultural Interests
Knowledge of an ancient language (or an older phase of a language) help us understand/appreciate old writings (historical records, literary works, etc.)
