Blažek : Current Progress in Altaic Etymology Linguistica ONLINE. Added: January, 30th 2006. tjurkskix jazykov: obščetjurkskie i mežtjurkskie leksičeskie osnovy na bukvy "k", "q", http://www.phil.muni.cz/linguistica/art/blazek/bla-004.pdf Moskva: Jazyki russkoj kuľtury 1997). In his publications O. Mudrak especially ISSN 1801-5336 concentrates on two topics, historical phonology of Chuvash (1987, 1989, 1993, 1994) and reconstruction of Jurchen (1985, 1988). I. Gruntov has published an article on the historical phonology of Japanese in the Altaic context (2000). [*] The first version of the present review was finished in May 2005. This new version Current Progress in Altaic Etymology originates to up-to-date the sources on the one hand. The second reason consists in the Václav Blažek unexpected death of the head of the author’s team, Sergei Starostin, on 30th September 2005. Sergei Starostin, Anna Dybo, Oleg Mudrak, with assistance of Ilya Gruntov and Vladi- The Etymological Dictionary of the Altaic Languages (= EDAL) is open by Preface mir Glumov: Etymological Dictionary of the Altaic Languages, Part One [A-K], Part (pp. 7-9) where the purposes of the present dictionary and a short history of Altaic Two [L-Z], Part Three [Indices], Leiden-Boston: Brill 2003, published in the prestigeous studies are described. The Introduction (pp. 11-236) starts with the Chapter One devoted series Handbook of Oriental Studies / Handbuch der Orientalistik 8/1-3, edited by Denis to The problem of Interlingual borrowings in Altaic languages (pp. 13-21). Here it is Sinor & Nicola di Cosmo [ISSN 0169-8524]. These three volumes are of a respectable demonstrated, how the phonetic criteria may serve to distinguish the borrowings from size: pp 1-858, 859-1556, 1557-2096 respectively. the inherited cognates, e.g. the correspondences of Turkic *ĺ, *ŕ (> late Turkic *š, *z, after the separation of the Bulgarian-Chuvash branch) vs. Mongolian *š, *s respectively The author’s team proper consists of three scholars: Sergei Starostin, Anna Dybo and indicate the borrowings from Turkic into Mongolian. In the Chapter Two the Compara- Oleg Mudrak. In the end of 80-ties I. Ševeršidze cooperated too. S. Starostin elaborated tive phonology of Altaic Languages is discussed. The authors start with the root-structure the data of the Japanese, Korean and Tungus languages, A. Dybo the Turkic and also of the canonical type CV(C)CV, occasionally also CV for pronominal, auxiliary and Tungus languages, O. Mudrak the Chuvash, Mongolian and Jurchen languages, plus some verbal roots, plus the trisyllabic pattern CVCVCV. The consonant inventory of the V. Glumov, compiling also the Tungus data, and I. Gruntov, compiling also the Altaic proto-language is reconstructed in the system: Mongolian data. The head of the author’s team, Sergei Starostin, initiated his interest in Altaic from the historical phonetics of Japanese (1972, 1975a, 1975b, 1990, 1997). The p‘- p b m preliminary sound correspondences and the lexicostatistic test among five Altaic t‘ t d n s z- -r- l branches were presented by Starostin in 1986. This study expanded into the monograph č‘ č ¸ ń š -j- ŕ ĺ Altajskaja problema i proisxoždenie japonskogo jazyka (Moskva: Nauka 1991) where k‘ k g ŋ Starostin discussed the classical Altaic theory, following G.J. Ramstedt and N. Poppe (Turkic + Mongolian + Tungus, plus ocassionally Korean), plus Korean and Japanese The system of basic consonant correspondences between five Altaic daughter protolan- following especially S. Martin and R.A. Miller respectively. In his book Starostin guages was established as follows (pp. 24-25): demonstrated the phonetic corresponences in details, including the new rules established by him for the first time. He has also published the 100-word-lists of all Altaic languages Rule Proto- Proto- Proto- Proto- Proto- Proto- here. A. Dybo has published, among others, a series of studies, analyzing in details the Altaic Turkic Mongolian Tungus Korean Japanese body-part-terms in Altaic (1985, 1986a, 1988a, 1988a, 1988b, 1989a, 1989b, 1989c, 1. *p‘- *∅ -, *j- *h-,*j- *p- *p- *p- 1991a, 1992, 1995a, 1995d, 1996) or the Altaic lexicon in general (1997a, 1997b, 2000) *p‘ *p *b, *h / -b *p *p *p or historical phonology of Turkic, Tungus or Altaic at all (1990, 1991, 1995b). She also 2. *p- *b- *b-, h- *p- *p- *p- belongs in the author’s teams preparing the ‘Comparative-historical grammar of Turkic *p *b *b *b *p *p languages’ (Sravniteľno-istoričeskaja grammatika tjurkskix jazykov, 4: Leksika, Moskva: 3. *b- *b *b- *b- *p- *p- / Nauka 1997) and ‘Etymological dictionary of Turkic languages’ (Ėtimologičeskij slovaŕ *b[a,‰,Vj] *b *b *h / [*R]b, *b *b / -p *p[*iV,*j] [*] To be also published in Philologica Fenno-Ugrica. An earlier version published in Folia Orientalia. Reproduced with permission. [Editor’s note] b[Vg] /-b w 1 Blažek : Current Progress in Altaic Etymology 4. *m- *b- *m- *m- *m- *m- 23. *g- *g- *g- *g- *k- *k- *m *-m- *m *m *m *m *g *g *h [= ¦], g[Vh] *g *∅, h / -k *k / 5. *t‘- *t-, *dV *t- / č[i] *t- *t- *t- / -g [*iV]∅ [B, /, r] 24. *ŋ- *∅-, *j- *∅-,*j-/ g[u] *ŋ- *n- *∅-/ *n- *t‘ *t *t / č[i] / -d *t *t *t /n[a,o,e] (/*m[Ô]-) 6. *t *d- *t- / č[i] *d- /*¶[Ï] *t- *t- / *ŋ *ŋ *ŋ, n, m, h *ŋ *ŋ, ∅ *m / *n *d[i, ə] *-t- *t *t / č[i] *t *r / -t *t In the following text (pp. 25-90) all consonant correspondences are commented in de- 7. *d- *j- *d / ¸[i] *d *t- *d- / t[V+ tails. In the end of this part a synoptic table of the consonant clusters is presented. Very *p‘,*t‘,*k‘ important is the explanation of the problem of Khalaj h- (pp. 26-28). For G. Doerfer it is ,*č‘] always a witness of the Altaic *p‘- (1971, 1981-82). The authors of EDAL conclude: *d *d *d / ¸[i] *d *r / -t *t / [*iV, ‘absence of h- in Khalaj is therefore an almost certain sign of *∅- (or *ŋ) in Altaic, but *j]j its presence may be original or secondary.’ 8. *n- *j- *n- *n- *n- *n- The most radical change in confrontation with the ‘classical’ Altaic reconstructions were *n *-n- *n *n *n *n realized in vocalism (pp. 90-135). The authors reconstruct five vowels *i, *e, *u, *o, *a 9. *-r- *-r- -r- *-r- *-r- *r,*t and three diphthongs *Ôu, *Ôo, *Ôa which have to occur only in the first syllable. They 10. *l- *j- *n-, l- *l- *n- *n- admit that the diphthongs could also be reinterpreted as *ü, *ö, *ä respectively. The *l *l *l *l *r *r most revolutionary change consists in the idea of the influence of the vowel of the last 11. *s- *s- *s- *s- *s-, h- *s- syllable (usually lost) on the preceding vowel, i.e. umlaut. It means, the quality of the *s *s *s *s *s *s vowel of the first syllable in the Altaic proto-language should depend on the quality of 12. *z- *j- *s- *s- *s- *s- the vowels of the following syllable(s). A similar principle is accepted in Uralic & 13. *č‘- *č- *č- *č- *č- *t- Fenno-Ugric linguistics for a long time. Tungus languages preserved the vocalic system *č‘ *č *č *č *č *t best of all; that is why they are quoted at the first column. The authors summarized the 14. *č- *d- *d-/¸[i] *s *č *t- vocalic correspondences as follows (pp. 92-93): *č *č *č *¸-, *-s- *č *-s- 15. *¶ *j- *¸ *¸ *č- *d- Proto- Proto- Proto-Mongolian Proto- Proto- Middle Altaic Tungu Turkic Japanese Korean *¶ *j *¸ *¸ *č *j s 16. *ń- *j- *¸- *ń- *n- *m- *a…a a a a (Pa-/P%-) a A *ń *ń *j, n ń *ń *n, *m *a…e a a [i] a-, æ ə A 17. *ŕ *ŕ *r *r *r *r / t[i,u] *a…i a a [e] e [a] i A [i] 18. *ĺ- *j *d-/¸[i] *l *n- *n- *a…o a a [i, e] o (ja, aj) a ǎ [o] *ĺ *ĺ *l *l *r *s *a…u e a [U] a u A [U] 19. *š- *s-/*č[*A] *s-/*č[*A] *š- *s- *s- *e…a e a [e] a (%) [e] a A *š *s *s *š *s *s *e…e e e (ja-) e (kR; ja-) ə A [i, æ] 20. *j *j *j, h *j *j, *∅ *j, *∅ *e…i e e [i] e (kR; ja-) i i [æ, A] 21. *k‘- *k- *k- *x- *k *k- *e…o e a [e, % [k] ə [a] 5 [U] *k‘ *k *k, g[Vh] / -g *k/x *k, h *k Pü/Pö,üP/öP] 22. *k- *g- *k-, -g- *k-, *g *k- *k- *e…u e e [a, Po, oP] e [a, %] u U [a] *k *k,g[(V)r] *g/-g *k *∅, h / -k *k 2 Blažek : Current Progress in Altaic Etymology *i…a i i æ [i] a A Proto-Altaic Proto- Proto- Proto- Korean Japanese *i…e i e [i] e (kR) i i [æ] Tungus Turkic Mongolian *i…i i i (Pe) i i I *÷´ *÷ *÷ *V *`V *V´ *i…o i i æ i [ə] U [æ] *ø *÷ *÷ *V *V´ *`V *i…u i i æ [i] u i [æ] *ù´ *÷ *ù *V *`V *V´ *o…a U U o a Ǎ *`ù *ù *÷ *V *V´ *`V *o…e U ö [ü, o] ö [o] ə æ [U] *o…i U ö ö [o] u U The Chapter Three (pp. 136-172) is devoted to the detailed description of the *o…o U u o ə Ă comparative-historical phonologies of the Altaic branches (Turkic by A.