Lexical Comparisons between Proto-Kuki-Chin and Jinghpaw: Evidence for a Central Branch of Trans Himalayan

Abstract

This paper presents a set of lexical correspondences between Jinghpaw and Proto-Kuki-Chin as reconstructed by VanBik (2009) which have no attested comparanda outside the hypothesized Central branch of Trans-Himalayan/Sino-Tibetan suggested by Bradley (1997) and DeLancey (2021). Jinghpaw and South Central/Kuki-Chin represent two hypothesized groupings, Sal and Kuki-Naga, which are the major constituents of this proposed branch, so these comparisons are adduced as potential evidence for the Central hypothesis. Included in these lexical comparisons is a substantial number of sets where there are Jinghpaw comparanda for one or the other, or both, of the alternating verbal stems reconstructed for PKC. It is argued that these represent particularly strong evidence for a special genealogical connection between the languages.