Talk:Old Japanese language

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I would like to expand this topic with much more detailed linguistic informtaion. I would appreciate help in merging it with the content already here. I will try to complete it within the next few days, depending on time constraints. Bendono 11:05, 1 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Questions

Am I correct in understanding that "Quadrigade" corresponds to the modern consonant-stem verbs, such as aruku, tatsu, etc., while "Upper Monograde" corresponds to modern vowel-stems? Do the "k-irregular", etc., mean that they end in ko₂, ki₁, ku, kuru, kure, ko₂? What is the difference between the two rows on each of the adjective types? E.g., what's the difference between -ki₁ and -karu? What are the differences between teh various pronouns listed, such as wa, a, ware, and are? Nik42 07:23, 16 October 2006 (UTC)

Thank you for the review. I added a few notes of clarification to the verbs and adjective sections. I will add more to the pronoun section a little later. The article is rather bare now and I plan on updating it in the near future. Bendono 08:53, 16 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Subscript numbers

Maybe I'm just missing it, but I don't see any explanation of what the distinction is between vowels with subscript 1s and vowels with subscript 2s. Kairos 21:55, 7 December 2006 (UTC)

It is discussed in the both the Phonemes and Transcription sections. Also, there is a link to Jōdai Tokushu Kanazukai. As stated, it applies to the entire syllable, not necessarily only the vowel. There are various theories, but there is no general academic agreement. In time it would be nice to discuss the theories in more detail. It is one of the most hotly debated topics in Japanese historical linguistics. If the wording is not sufficiently clear, please feel free to improve it or make suggestions as necessary. Bendono 00:30, 8 December 2006 (UTC)