Chapter 9. Personal pronouns in Core Altaic

It is a well-established fact that several Eurasian languages and language families show conspicuous formal similarities in their systems of personal pronouns. These similarities have been cited in support of a common genetic origin of all the languages concerned, but they have also been explained by assuming a combination of mutual contacts and shared structural tend­encies. The similarities exhibited by the pronominal systems of the so-called Core Altaic families (Turkic, Mongolic, Tungusic) are, however, more specific and call for a more focused examination. The present paper discusses this issue with a view on possible genetic and nongenetic explanations.