A phonological reconstruction of Proto-Dâw–Hup
 
Andrey Nikulin (Instituto de Formação Superior Indígena Takinahakỹ, Federal University of Goiás; nikulin@ufg.br)
 
Journal of Language Relationship, № 23/3-4, 2025 - p.307-343
 
Abstract: In this paper, I examine the sound correspondences between Dâw, Yuhup, and Hup, which constitute a clade within the Naduhup language family of South America, and propose a phonological reconstruction of the ancestral language of this clade. The most common shape of morphemes in Proto-Dâw–Hup is */CVC/, but some */CV/-shaped morphemes are reconstructed as well, in addition to a few sesquisyllabic and disyllabic morphemes. I reconstruct 22 consonants for Proto-Dâw–Hup, including voiceless stops, glottalic stops, plain and glottalized glides, fricatives, nasals, and voiced stops. As for the vowels, I identify 45 nuclei, with contrastive length and nasality; some of these nuclei may have been diphthongs rather than monophthongs. Long vowels in Proto-Dâw–Hup presented a tonal distinction between rising and falling tones, though the opposition in question is not relevant with most voiceless codas.
 
Keywords: Naduhup languages, comparative method, phonological reconstruction
 
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