Reconstruction:Proto-Sino-Tibetan/ŋa-j ~ ka

This Proto-Sino-Tibetan entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Sino-Tibetan

Etymology

• Proto-Sino-Tibetan: *ngaɣ/ngay (Coblin, 1986)
  • Proto-Tibeto-Burman: *ŋa (Chou, 1972; Benedict, 1972); *ŋɑ (Chou, 1972); *ŋay (Benedict, 1972); *ŋǎy (Matisoff, 1985); *ŋay (Weidert, 1987); *ka ⪤ ŋa (LaPolla, 1987); *ŋa-y (Matisoff, 2003); *ŋa-y ⪤ *ka (Matisoff, STEDT)

Pronoun

*ŋa-j ~ ka

1. I, me

Descendants

• Old Chinese: 吾 /*ŋˤa/ (B-S); /*ŋaː/ (ZS) ("I"), 我 /*ŋˤajʔ/ (B-S); /*ŋaːlʔ/ (ZS) ("I")

  (Note: Gong Hwang-cherng (Gong Huangcheng) argued that the distinction between 吾 and 我 was that of the nominative/accusative or subject/oblique cases. 吾 (*ŋag in his reconstruction) was the nominative case pronoun, and 我 (*ŋal) was the accusative case pronoun.)

  (我 in the oracle bone script)

  • Middle Chinese: 吾 (ŋuo), 我 (ŋɑX) (Both words survive in compounds and as literary readings. Listed below are the colloquial words for "I" in each dialect, all from this etymon.) **:

    → Japanese: 我 (が, ​ga)
    Korean: 아 (我, a)
    Vietnamese: ngã (我)

    • Modern Mandarin
      • Beijing: 我 /u̯ɔ˨˩˦/
      • Jinan: 我 /uə˥/, 俺 /ŋæ̃˥/ (fusion with 們／们)
      • Shenyang: 我 /uə˨˩˧/, /ə˨˩˧/
      • Xi'an: 我 /ŋə˥˧/
      • Chengdu: 我 /ŋo˥˧/
      • Kunming: 我 /uo˥˧/
      • Hefei: 我 /u˨˦/, /u˨˩˨/
      • Yangzhou: 我 /o˦˨/
    • Wu
      • Suzhou: 我 /ŋəu˧˩/
      • Shanghai: 我 /ŋu˨˧ ~ ɦu˨˧/, /ŋu˥˧/
      • Wenzhou: 我 /ŋ̍˨˦/
    • Xiang
      • Changsha: 我 /ŋo˦˩/
    • Gan
      • Nanchang: 我 /ŋə˨˩˧/
    • Hakka
      • Meixian: 𠊎 (ái) /ŋai˩/
    • Cantonese
      • Guangzhou: 我 /ŋo˩˧/
      • Yangjiang: 我 /ŋɔ˨˩/
  • Min
    • Amoy: 我 /ɡua˥˧/
    • Teochow: 我 /ua˥˧/
    • Fuzhou: 我 /ŋuai˧˩/
• Kamarupan
  • Bodo-Garo = Barish
    • Bodo:
      • Dimasa: ang
    • Garo: aŋ, anga
• Himalayish
  • Tibeto-Kanauri
    • Bodic
      • Kurtöp: ངཏ (ngat)
      • Tibetan: ང (nga, “I”) /ŋa˩˨/
  • Mahakiranti
    • Kham-Magar-Chepang-Sunwar
    • Kiranti
      • Eastern Kiranti = Rai
        • Chamling: ka-ŋa
        • Limbu: ᤀᤅ (aṅa) /əŋa/
        • Waling: aŋ-ka
        • Yamphu: का (kā)
      • Western Kiranti
      • Kulung: aŋ
• Tangut-Qiang
  • Northern Tangut
    • Tangut: 𗧓 (*ŋa², “I, me”)
  • rGyalrongic
    • Situ: ŋa (“I”)
    • Zbu: ŋəʔ (“I”)
• Jingpho-Asakian
  • Nungic
    • Anong: ŋa
• Proto-Kuki-Chin: *kaj ~ kaj-maʔ (VanBik, 2009)
  • Central Chin
    • Mizo: ka, kei
• Lolo-Burmese-Naxi
  • Proto-Lolo-Burmese: *ŋa¹ (Weidert, 1987)
    • Burmish: *C-ŋa¹/ (Bradley, 1979)
      • Burmese: ငါ (nga, “I”) /ŋà/
    • Proto-Loloish: *C-ŋa¹
      • Northern Loloish
        • Yi (Liangshan): ꉢ (nga), ꉡ (ngax, “I, me”)
• Proto-Tani: *ŋoo
  • Nyishi: ngo
  • Tangam: ŋoo
• Proto-Kuki-Chin: *kay
  • Khomic
    • Khumi Chin: kai
• Kho-Bwa
  • Proto-Western Kho-Bwa: *ga (see there for further descendants)