COMonCA2011042

COM.on C.A.5:e42/255-262 Online published on Dec.15, 2011.
doi:10.4236/coca.2011.51042

PROCEEDING
The Evolutionary Consequences of Monosyllabic-word Languages

Di Jiang

1. Lab. of Phonetics and Computational Linguistics, Institute of Ethnology & Anthropology, CASS, Beijing 100081, China; 2. Comparative Linguistic Division, E-Institutes of Shanghai Universities, Shanghai 200234, China.

Abstract: This paper proposes that Chinese and other languages in East-Asia are languages of monosyllabic-word(Mw) superiority, in which nearly each syllable is used as a word or a morpheme, while languages with the advantage of polysyllabic words are polysyllabic-word(PW) languages in Europe, Africa, America and Pacific, etc.. Mw languages stand with the basis of syllabic synaesthesia, which shows their features of so-called isolating languages. The Mw languages are so unique to Pw ones that they always made different changes from Pw languages in history, and gave never expected consequences of evolutions on phonology, vocabulary, morphology, syntax and writings. It is hoped that the paper tries to give hints to those questions, why are Chinese monosyllables phonological planning units in speech production experiments, why do Mw languages need mark tones, why are most of Mw words compound words, why are word orders important in Mws, etc.

Key words: language evolution, Monosyllabic-word languages, polysyllabic-word languages, syllabic synaesthesia

音节型语言演化的后果

江荻

1.中国社会科学院民族学与人类学研究所，语音学与计算语言学实验室，北京 100081；2.上海高校比较语言学E-研究院，上海 200234

摘要：文章提出以汉语为代表的东亚区域单音节词优势语言属于音节型语言，而欧洲、非洲、美洲、南太平洋等地的多音节词优势语言属于音链型语言。音节型语言以音节联觉为基础，形成独特的孤立语特征，该特征对语言演化造成完全不同于音链型语言的演化模式，并在语音、词汇、形态、句法和文字发展方面产生以往不曾设想到的后果。该项研究尝试回答为什么汉语乃至其他东亚语言研究倾向声韵描写、标注声调、复合词分析、词序重要等方法，这些研究倾向都与音节型语言演化的后果密切相关。

关键词：语言演化；音节型语言；音链型语言；音节联觉

收稿日期：2011年9月18日 修回日期：2011年11月30日 联系人：江荻 jiangdi@cass.org.cn

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