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Notes on the Syllable Structure of Lushai

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 December 2009

Eugenie J. A. Hendebson
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Extract

These notes are based on the pronunciation of Mr. Lai Mama, of the Baptist Mission at Lungleh, whose recent presence in London afforded an opportunity, rare in this country, of studying Lushai at first hand. The investigation was short and incomplete, but sufficient phonetic data were collected to enable certain principles governing the structure of the monosyllable in isolation to be stated.

Type
Articles
Information
Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies , Volume 12 , Issue 3-4 , October 1948 , pp. 713 - 725
Copyright
Copyright © School of Oriental and African Studies 1948

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References

page 713 note 1 See “The Structure of the Chinese Monosyllable in a Hunanese Dialect”, by J. R. Firth and B. B. Rogers, BSOS., VIII, Part 4.

page 713 note 2 Phonetic length is here regarded as being added to the vowel sound.

page 715 note 1 i.e. that used in J. H. Lorrain′s Dictionary of the Lushai Language, which was published at Calcutta in 1940 by the Royal Asiatic Society of Bengal.

page 715 note 2 For further discussion of the pronunciation and distribution of syllables containing US, and ia, see pp. 718 and 721.Google Scholar

page 717 note 1 The syllable initials and finals are transcribed systematically, as contrasted with phonetically. In these notes the italic fount indicates the systematic or phonological level of analysis, while heavy type is used to transcribe the phonetic sequence. For a discussion of “systematic transcription “see “The Monosyllable in Szechuanese ”, by N. C. Scott, BSOAS., XII, pt. i, 1947.

page 717 note 2 Or with its variant, the low level tone.

page 718 note 1 Tone distribution is related in this investigation to the phonetic finals, and not to the initials. In the material studied no correlation was observed between the phonetic initials and tone.

page 721 note 1 We have in this instance phonetic corroboration of the method of structural analysis put forward by Firth and Rogers in the article already quoted, which groups “the contrasted ‘y ’-like and ‘w ’-like elements with the consonantal terms of the initial alternance ”.

page 721 note 2 Symbols to show tone and quantity are avoided here in order not to imply a “place ”for these features.

page 721 note 3 See p. 717.

page 721 note 4 See J. R. Firth, “Word-Palatograms and Articulation ”, in this same volume.

page 722 note 1 The orthography writes t, th, which suggests a retroflex plosive.

page 722 note 2 See footnote on p. 717 describing use of italic fount for systematic transcription.

page 722 note 1 Nasality is “less useful ”here since to omit to realize it leaves one with g, which cannot be confused with any other term in the group, but not to realize voice would result in ŋ, which could not be distinguished from hŋ.

page 725 note 1 For convenience the tones are numbered in this table, the key to the numbers being: -1 = High Level, 2 = High Falling, 3 = Low Rising, 4 = Low Falling.