Vowel Development in the Mam Subgroup of Mayan

Evgeniya Korovina, RSUH

Structure of the Mamean Subgroup

• [Campbell1988:fig.2]• pGreater Mamean 6 B.C.• pMamean 5 A.D.• pIxilan 6 A.D. [Kaufman1974]

Dialects of the Mam language near 14 A.D. [Pérez2000]

Mamean vowel systems

pM (Kaufman)

*V - *V· *Vh - *Vʔ - - - *Vx

pM (Brown / Wichmann)

*V *Vs *VV *Vh *VVh *V’ *VV’ *V’h *VV’h *Vj

pMam (Kaufman)

*V - *V· *V· - *Vʔ - - - *VxV1

pMam (Brown / Wichmann)

*V *V *VV *VV *VV *V’ *V’ *V *VV *VjV

Tectiteco V V VV VV VV Vʔ Vʔ V VV VjVMam V V VV VV VV Vʔ Vʔ V VV VjVIxil V V V V V Vʔ Vʔ V V VjVAwakatek V V VV VV VV Vʔ Vʔ V VV VjV

Problems

• Dialects of Mam and Ixil• Forms of word f.e. possesive form of noun

Glottalization in dialects of Mam

• V or VV/ _b’, q’ -> V’CAJ, CAB, CHM, TAC a’b’j ‘stone’CAJ, CAB, CHM, SBA, TSA q’a’q’ ‘fire’

Relation between vowel quantity in the dialects of Mam

• pM *juun ‘one’ CAJ jun CHQ jun OST jun MAR jun CAB jun IXT juun PTZ juun SSE jun NEC jun SBA jun GAS jun CHM jun ATI juun TSA1 juunx TSA2 jun TSA3 juun TEC jun TAC jun SIG jun =

• pM *q’ahq’ ‘fire’ CAJ q'a'q' CHQ q'aq' OST q'aq' MAR q'aq' CAB q'a'q IXT q'aaq' PTZ q'aa' SSE q'aq' NEC q'a' SBA q'a'q GAS q'aaq' CHM q'a'q ATI q'aq' TSA1 q'aq TSA2 q'a'q TSA3 q'a'q TEC q'aaq' TAC1 q'aaq' TAC2 aa' TAC3 aq' SIG q'aq'

• pM *baaq’ ‘bone’ CAJ b'aaq CHQ b'aaq OST b'aaq MAR b'aaq CAB b'aaq IXT nb'aqiila PTZ b'aaq SSE b'aaq NEC qb'aaqal SBA b'aq GAS b'aaq CHM b'aaq ATI baq TSA1 b'aq TSA2 b'aaq TSA3 b'aaq TEC b'aq TAC1 b'aaq TAC2 b'aq TAC3 b'aq SIG b'aaq

Elongation in the possesive form

• pGMamean *V or *V’hAWA b’uch (nb’uuch), TEK ub’ech (wub’eech), MAM

ub’ech (tu(u)b’ech) ‘flower’AWA jal (nja(a)l) TEK jal (njaal) MAM jal (tjaal) ‘ear of

corn’AWA tzaj (ntzaaj) TEK tzaj (ntzaaj) MAM tzaj (ttzaj) ‘pine’BUT pM *b’Aty ‘corkwood tree’ Mam b’atz (tb’atz)pM *mAp ‘coyol’ Tek map (nmap)• Mamean V’ -> VV’ -> V’ if VV’ impossibleMAM chi’l (tchiil) TEK chi’l (nchi’il)

Conclusions

• *A and *a was different sounds in pMam and pEM (this position remains in possesive form)

• There are two different developmen of pMam *VV in the dialects of Mam

Reduction