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Article published In: Diachronica
Vol. 41:5 (2024) ► pp.635–677

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Mutual predictiveness of sound correspondences for reconstruction and language subgrouping

The case of Gyalrongic preinitials

ORCiD logo with link | Nanyang Technological University | Trinity College Dublin
Published online: 20 December 2024
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https://doi.org/10.1075/dia.23025.lai
Abstract
This paper uses Gyalrongic languages, a conservative branch of Sino-Tibetan, to illustrate a new method to evaluate proto-language reconstructions in general historical linguistics and to conduct exploratory analyses in language phylogeny. It first reconstructs a proto-system of Gyalrongic preinitials and computes and compares the implicative entropies between reconstructed and modern systems. In a second step, Mutual Implicative Entropy (MIE) is used to measure genetic distances between related languages and to generate Neighbornet networks to visualize the subgrouping of Gyalrongic languages. The resulting networks are in agreement with qualitative historical linguistic analyses and allow adjustments to previous subgroupings obtained by Bayesian phylogenetic inference. Thus, this method can be used to detect nuances in lower sub-branches, which are sometimes neglected by lexicon-based methods. Using MIE in historical linguistics is therefore a quick and efficient means of checking the effectiveness of reconstructions and establishing the accurate preliminary shape of language subgrouping.
Résumé
Cet article utilise les langues gyalronguiques, une branche conservatrice du sino-tibétain, pour illustrer une nouvelle méthode d’évaluation des reconstructions de proto-langues dans la linguistique historique générale, ainsi que pour mener des analyses exploratoires dans la phylogénie des langues. Il commence par reconstruire un proto-système des préinitiales gyalronguiques, calcule et compare les entropies implicatives entre les systèmes reconstruits et modernes. Dans une deuxième étape, l’entropie implicative mutuelle (Mutual implicative entropy, MIE) est utilisée pour mesurer la distance génétique entre les langues apparentées et générer des réseaux Neighbornet pour visualiser la sous-classification des langues gyalronguiques. Les réseaux résultants sont en accord avec les analyses linguistiques historiques qualitatives et permettent des ajustements par rapport aux sous-classifications précédentes obtenues par l’inférence phylogénétique bayésienne. Ainsi, cette méthode peut être utilisée pour détecter des nuances dans les sous-branches inférieures, parfois négligées par les méthodes basées sur le lexique. L’utilisation de la MIE en linguistique historique est donc un moyen rapide et efficace de vérifier l’efficacité des reconstructions et d’élaborer une forme préliminaire précise de la sous-classification linguistique.
Zusammenfassung
Dieser Artikel verwendet die gyalrongischen Sprachen, ein konservativer Zweig des Sino-Tibetischen, um eine neue Methode zur Bewertung von Rekonstruktionen von Ursprungssprachen in der allgemeinen historischen Linguistik zu illustrieren und um explorative Analysen in der Sprachphylogenie durchzuführen. Zunächst wird ein Proto-System der gyalrongischen Präinitiale rekonstruiert, und die implikative Entropie zwischen rekonstruierten und modernen Systemen wird berechnet und verglichen. In einem zweiten Schritt wird die gegenseitige implikative Entropie (Mutual implicative entropy, MIE) verwendet, um die genetische Distanz zwischen verwandten Sprachen zu messen und Neighbornet-Netzwerke zu generieren, um die Untergruppierung der gyalrongischen Sprachen zu visualisieren. Die resultierenden Netzwerke stimmen mit qualitativen Analysen in der historischen Linguistik überein und ermöglichen Anpassungen an vorherige Untergruppierungen, die durch die bayessche phylogenetische Inferenz erhalten wurden. Diese Methode kann daher dazu genutzt werden, Nuancen in unteren Teilzweigen zu erkennen, die manchmal von lexikonbasierten Methoden vernachlässigt werden. Die Verwendung von MIE in der historischen Linguistik ist somit ein schnelles und effizientes Mittel, um die Wirksamkeit von Rekonstruktionen zu überprüfen und eine genaue vorläufige Form der Sprachuntergliederung zu erstellen.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Gyalrongic languages
    • 2.1Syllable structure of Gyalrongic languages
    • 2.2Tangut syllable types and transphonologization
  • 3.Reconstruction of the preinitial system
    • 3.1The preinitial system of Proto-Khroskyabs
    • 3.2Correspondences between Proto-Khroskyabs and Tangut
    • 3.3A three-way syllabicity contrast among Proto-Gyalrongic preinitials
      • Overview of preinitial correspondences
      • Reconstruction of syllabicity
      • Reconstruction of articulation types
  • 4.Predictiveness of the reconstructed system using implicative entropy
    • 4.1An overview of implicative entropy
    • 4.2Sound correspondences are implicative
    • 4.3Mutual predictiveness from PPK and Siyuewu to Tangut
      • Mutual implicative entropy (MIE)
  • 5.Implications of mutual predictiveness for historical linguistics
  • 6.Gyalrongic subgrouping based on MIE of preinitial correspondences
    • 6.1Data presentation
    • 6.2Subgrouping of Gyalrongic languages
      • The position of Tangut in West Gyalrongic
      • Relations among Japhug, Tshobdun and Zbu
    • 6.3MIE of preinitial correspondences
      • Tangut and Horpa
      • Japhug and Tshobdun
    • 6.4Neighbornet networks inferred from MIE
      • Neighbornet networks for Gyalrongic preinitial correspondences
      • Neighbornet networks for Gyalrongic initial correspondences
    • 6.5Test with Sinitic varieties
  • 7.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
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Cited by one other publication

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2025. New origins to vowel tensing in Tangut: internal and comparative evidence. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 88:1 ► pp. 103 ff. DOI logo

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