Macro-Chibchan languages
Macro-Chibchan is a proposed grouping of the languages of the Lencan, Misumalpan, and Chibchan families into a single large phylum (macrofamily).
| Macro-Chibchan | |
|---|---|
| (controversial) | |
| Geographic distribution | Central America and Colombia |
| Linguistic classification | Proposed language family |
| Subdivisions | |
| Glottolog | None |
The Chibchan, Misumalpan, and Lencan languages | |
History
The Lencan and Misumalpan languages were once included in the Chibchan family proper, but were excluded pending further evidence as that family became well established. Kaufman (1990) finds the Chibchan–Misumalpan connection convincing, if as yet unsubstantiated, though Campbell (1997) finds it doubtful. The Xincan family was once included in Macro-Chibchan, but this is now doubtful.
Constenla (2005) calls this proposed phylum Lenmichí (Lencan–Misumalpan–Chibchan) and provides 85 cognate sets which exhibit regular sound correspondences among the three families. He suggests that Chocoan may be related as well.
Greenberg proposed a broader conception of Macro-Chibchan, one dismissed by linguists working on the families in question. It included Yanomam, Purépecha, and Cuitlatec in addition to Chibchan–Misumalpan–Xinca–Lenca. Greenberg (1987) included Paezan languages in a Chibchan-Paezan stock with Barbacoan, Chibchan, Chocoan, Jirajaran, and the isolates Betoi, Kamsá (Sibundoy), Yaruro, Esmeraldeño, Mochica, Cunza, Itonama, and Yurumanguí.
An automated computational analysis (ASJP 4) by Müller et al. (2013)[1] also found lexical similarities between Chibchan and Misumalpan. However, since the analysis was automatically generated, the grouping could be either due to mutual lexical borrowing or genetic inheritance.
Reconstruction
Constenla (2005) reconstructed five vowels and eleven consonants for Proto-Lenmichian, with the following reflexes:
Vowels
| Proto-Lenmichian | *a | *e | *i | *o | *u |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proto-Chibchan | *a | *e | *i | *o | *u |
| Proto-Lencan | *a *e | *e | *i | *o *u | *u |
| Proto-Misumalpan | *a | *i | *i | *u | *u |
There are also a series of nasal vowels.
Consonants
| Proto-Lenmichian | *b | *d | *t | *k | *ʔ | *ts | *s | *h | *l | *ɾ | *w |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proto-Chibchan | *b | *d | *t | *k | *ʔ | *ts | *s | *h | *ɾ | ∅ | |
| Proto-Lencan | *p *m | *l *n | *t | *k | ∅ | *ts' | ∅ | *l | *w | ||
| Proto-Misumalpan | *b *p *m | *d *n | *t | *k | ∅ | *s | ∅ | *l | *ɾ | *w | |
Vocabulary
Below is a comparison of selected basic vocabulary items.[2]
gloss Xinca (Guazacapán)[3] Lenca (Chilanga)[4] Proto-Lencan[5] Proto-Misumalpan[6] Proto-Chibchan[7] head húš̱i oso hair múti alah *asak *ʦa eye hurayí sap *uᵐba ear mánka tokoro *tupal nose narí nepkuru *nep *nam *ⁿdii(k) tooth rajáj (Chiquimulilla)[8] neh *nek *ⁿduʔ tongue elahá nepal *tu *kuʔ(-Ba) mouth š̱ahá iɴ-ts’ats’a *in *ta *kah-ka hand pu koʃaka *kuuʔ; *haⁿd- ~ *hat- foot wapilí waʃaka *kihʦa ~ *kihsa breast šéke ts’ukiɴ 'nipple' *kãʔ; *ʦuʔ meat uwí waʃa *ᵑgaʔⁿda ~ *ᵑgaʔta; *sih blood káma ala *a *hapi ~ *apiʔ bone hararí ʃila-ts’e *ts’ek *kãⁿd-, *ⁿdaⁿdi ~ *ⁿdaiⁿd- / *saⁿdi ~ *saiⁿd- person šurúmu, hurákɨ iʃko *ᵐbaⁿdi ~ *ᵐbaiⁿd name š̱a *haka ~ *akaʔ dog čúčo (Chiquimulilla)[9] ʃuʃu *su *tau fish séma ʃok’ín *ᵑgwa ~ *uᵑg louse tɨmáƚi tem *tem *kũʔ tree hútu suɴ *ban *ˈkàr; *kaˈri (C) leaf píya aw *ka flower túƚu ʃila *sula water uy *was *li *ⁿdiʔ fire uráy ik’aɴ *juk’a *ᵑgi 'firewood' stone híš̱i ke *ke *walpa *hak ~ *kaʔ earth náru omoɴ *taB(a) salt tíʔla ts’epe *ⁿdaᵑg road táƚma k’iɴ *k’in *hi eat rúka rom- *kuⁿdi ~ *kuiⁿd die teró ʃil- I nin unani *unani *jam *ⁿdaH(ⁿd) you náka manani *amanani *man *ᵐbaʔ
References
- Müller, André, Viveka Velupillai, Søren Wichmann, Cecil H. Brown, Eric W. Holman, Sebastian Sauppe, Pamela Brown, Harald Hammarström, Oleg Belyaev, Johann-Mattis List, Dik Bakker, Dmitri Egorov, Matthias Urban, Robert Mailhammer, Matthew S. Dryer, Evgenia Korovina, David Beck, Helen Geyer, Pattie Epps, Anthony Grant, and Pilar Valenzuela. 2013. ASJP World Language Trees of Lexical Similarity: Version 4 (October 2013).
- Constenla Umaña, Adolfo (1987). "Elementos de Fonología Comparada de las Lenguas Misumalpas," Revista de Filología y Lingüística de la Universidad de Costa Rica 13 (1), 129-161.
- Schumann Galvez, Otto. 1966. Fonemica del dialecto xinca de Chiquimulilla. In Antonio Pompa y Pompa (ed.), Summa antropológica de homenaje a Roberto J. Weitlaner, 449-454. Mexico: Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH).
- del Río Urrutia, Ximena. 2004. El lenca de Chilanga: Léxico. Revista de Filología y Lingüística XXX. 289-313.
- Arguedas Cortés, Gilda Rosa. 1988. Los Fonemas Segmentales del Protolenca: Reconstrucción Comparativa. Filología y lingüística XIV. 89-109.
- Constenla Umaña, Adolfo (1987). "Elementos de Fonología Comparada de las Lenguas Misumalpas," Revista de Filología y Lingüística de la Universidad de Costa Rica 13 (1), 129-161.
- Pache, Matthias J. 2018. Contributions to Chibchan Historical Linguistics. Doctoral dissertation, Universiteit Leiden.
- McArthur, Harry S. 1966. Xinca [word list]. In Marvin K. Mayers (ed.), Languages of Guatemala, 309-312. 23: Janua Linguarum, series practica.
- Schumann Galvez, Otto. 1967. Xinca de Guazacapán. (MA thesis, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; 140pp.)
- Campbell, Lyle (1997). American Indian languages: the historical linguistics of Native America. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-509427-1.
- Constenla Umaña, Adolfo (2002). "Acerca de la relación genealógica entre las lenguas lencas y las lenguas misumalpas" (PDF). Revista de Filología y Lingüística de la Universidad de Costa Rica. 28: 189–206. doi:10.15517/rfl.v28i1.4509.
- Constenla Umaña, Adolfo (2005). "¿Existe relación genealógica entre las lenguas misumalpas y las chibchenses?". Estudios de Lingüística Chibcha. 24: 7–85.
- Greenberg, Joseph H. (1987). Language in the Americas. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press.
- Kaufman, Terrence (1990). "Language History in South America: What we know and how to know more." In Doris L. Payne, ed. Amazonian Linguistics, pp. 13–74. Austin: University of Texas Press.