Reconsidering the Diachrony of Tone in Rma

Abstract

Prior work has suggested that proto-Rma was a non-tonal language and that tonal varieties underwent tonogenesis (Liú 1998, Evans 2001a-b). This paper re-examines the different arguments for the tonogenesis hypothesis and puts forward subgroup-internal and subgroup-external evidence for an alternative scenario in which tone, or its phonetic precursors, was present at the stage of proto-Rma. The subgroup-internal evidence comes from regular correspondences between tonal varieties. These data allow us to put forward a working hypothesis that proto-Rma had a two-way tonal contrast. Furthermore, existing accounts of how tonogenesis occurred in the tonal varieties are shown to be problematic. The subgroup-external evidence comes from regular tonal correspondences to two closely related tonal Trans-Himalayan subgroups: Prinmi, a modern language, and Tangut, a mediaeval language attested by written records from the 11th – 16th century. Regular correspondences among the tonal categories of these three subgroups, combined with the Rma-internal evidence allow us to more confidently reconstruct tone for proto-Rma.