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A Comparative Study of the Yao Tone System

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 April 2026

Run Chang
Run Chang*
Affiliation:
University of California, Berkeley
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Extract

In my article ‘On the tone system of the Miao-Yao languages‘ I dealt chiefly with Miao data. With the additional data on Yao made available in recent publications I can now reconstruct the tonal system of Proto-Yao in greater detail and with more certainty.

The terms Miao and Yao refer both to peoples and to languages. The Yao people speak Mien, a Yao language; Punu, a Miao language; and Laka, a language whose relations are still uncertain. Yao, in contrast to Miao, has a complicated system of finals: vowels may occur in final position, or they may be followed by -y, -w, -p, -m, -t, -n, -k (in some dialects _?), or -η). Miao, on the other hand, has a complicated system of initials, with both simple consonants and consonant clusters, which Yao for the most part lacks. Some differences in vocabulary also characterize the two.

Information

Type
Research Article
Information
Language , Volume 42 , Issue 2: April-June , June 1966, pp. 303 - 310
Copyright
Copyright © 1966 Linguistic Society of America

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References

1 Lg. 29.374–8 (1953); a more extensive Chinese version of this article appeared in the Bulletin of the Institute of History and Philology (Academia Sinica) 16.93–110 (1947).

2 Mao Tsung-wu and Chou Tsu-yao, ‘Yao-tsu yü-yen kai-k'uang’, Zhōngguó yǔwén 113.141–8 (March 1962) identify Laka as a Tai language because of the many vocabulary items that Laka shares with Kam.

3 Hartford studies in linguistics, no. 15 (May 1965).

4 In quoting examples I retain the original orthography except where this poses typographical problems. Thus, I indicate the tones of TPY and HNY by the raised letters a-e.

5 BSOAS 24.431–41 (1961).

6 Op.cit. fn. 2.

7 ‘Han-yü tsai Yao-tsu yü-yen feng-fu fa-chan chung te tso-yung’, Zhōngguó yǔwén 109.62–71, 87 (October–November 1961).

8 BEFEO 26.11–225 (1926).

9 Lingnan science journal 18.425–55 (1939).

10 This is obviously related to AC (Ancient Chinese) *thei (A).

11 AC *kei (A).

12 In some Miao dialects (e.g. that of Machia T'un) the word for ‘neck’ points to *q- (A), in others to *q- (B). In the dialects of Kaop'o and Kecheng, there are two forms: qw (Al) ‘nape of the neck’ and qaŊ (Bl) ‘neck’. Cf. AC kiεŊ (B).

13 Some Miao dialects (Kaop'o, Kecheng) have forms for ‘face’ whose initials derive from *b- (B). These are not cognates of the Yao forms.

14 Some Miao dialects (Shihtungk'ou, Chengfeng, Kaop'o, Kecheng, Machia T'un) have words for ‘oil’ whose initials derive from *dl- (C) (cf. ntlo [C2] ‘oil’ in the Punu dialect of Tu-an). The Miao dialects of Hunan (Fenghuang, Layi P'ing) have a voiceless palatal spirant which may derive from Proto-Miao *mh-, e.g. (1) Kaop'o mhoŊ (Al), Fenghuang śioŊ (Al), Layi P'ing śõ (Al) ‘people’; (2) Fenghuang éiε (Al), Layi P'ing śe (Al) ‘oil’.

15 The words for ‘green’ in the different Miao dialects show a variety of initials: mpr-, mpl-, mpj-, mp-, nts-, ntsr-, nz-, nz-, n-, z-. All of these words belong to tone category A2, which implies a voiced initial : *mbr-. The Yao forms have m- and belong to tone category Al. The Proto-Yao initial is *?m- (A).

16 Some Miao dialects have a velar-stop initial: Shihmenk'an ku (Bl), Tananshan ko (Bl), Machia T'un ko (Bl). Others, in Hunan, have w-: Fenghuang we (B2), Layi P'ing we (B2).

17 For 'people (in general)' the Miao dialects derive from *n-: Kaop'o ne (A2), T'aikung ne (A2), Kaot'ung nai (A2); for '(the Miao) people' they derive from *mh-: Kaop'o mhoŊ (Al), T'aikung mho (Al), Kaot'ung mu (Al). The Yao forms point to *m- (A).

18 Some Miao dialects agree with the Yao dialects in indicating *mn- (A) in words for ‘you (sg.)‘; others, however, derive from *g- (A), e.g. Tananshan kǎu (A2), Yaolu kɔi (A2), Tu'an kau (A2).

19 In view of the tone category, these are probably not related to AC *dam (C), in spite of the latter's initial and final.

20 Wong Sik-ling suggests a Chinese origin for PPY -ddong. AC *deŊ (B) should, however, give modern forms belonging to tone category B2.

21 The word for ‘scissors’ reconstructed from the forms in the Miao dialects of Hunan (Tungt'ou Chai, Chiwei, Hsiaochang, and Wuchia Chai) has *nts- and belongs to tone category A.

22 AC *tsǎu (B).

23 Forms for ‘meat’ in the Miao dialects, e.g. Kecheng nqai (A2), point to a Proto-Miao *ng (A). PPY 'gui 'meat' is cognate with these forms.

24 The Yao forms with *mh- (B) are probably not related to AC *mei (B) ‘hulled rice’ : Chinese *ma (B) ‘horse’ and *mai (B) ‘buy’ correspond to Yao forms with *m- (B).

25 Some Miao dialects (Kaop'o, Kecheng, and Lushan) have a Chinese loanword with a voiced initial, AC *d'iuk (D), contrary to the *tiuk suggested by Ch'ieh-yün, the seventh-century rhyme book used to reconstruct Ancient Chinese.

26 The Miao dialects of Kaop'o and Kecheng have forms cognate with the Yao: Kaop'o ne (B1), Kecheng nǎi (Bl).

27 AC *ma (B).

28 AC *mai (B).

29 AC *həu (B).

30 The Miao dialects have forms for the upper part of the leg indicating *p- (A) ; for the part below the knee, *?l- (A) or *lh- (A); and for the foot, *t- (C).

31 The form for ‘trousers’ in the Miao dialect of Fenghuang suggests *n qh- (C) ; the forms in the Miao dialects of Kaot'ung and Kecheng indicate *d- (B).

32 AC *pok (D).

33 AC *tək (D).

34 AC *?ap (D).

35 AC *táhinεk (D)?

36 The discrepancy between PKT -q and TPY -t may reflect a difference in origin: Proto-Miao-Yao for PKT, AC *thet (D) for TPY.

37 AC *b ᥓk (D).

38 AC *zinεk (D).

39 AC *?iět (D).

40 AC *miwᥓt (D).