Proto-Eskimo–Aleut language

Proto-Eskimo–Aleut was the common ancestor of the Eskimo languages and Aleut. Its existence is known through similarities in Eskimo and Aleut. The existence of Proto-Eskimo–Aleut is generally accepted among linguists. It was for a long time true that no linguistic reconstruction of Proto-Eskimo–Aleut had yet been produced, as stated by Bomhard (2008:209). Such a reconstruction was offered by Knut Bergsland in 1986. Michael Fortescue (1998:124-125) has offered another version of this system, largely based on the reconstruction of Proto-Eskimo in the Comparative Eskimo Dictionary he co-authored with Steven Jacobson and Lawrence Kaplan (1994:xi).

Phonology

Fortescue reconstructs the phoneme inventory of Proto-Eskimo-Aleut as follows:[1]

Consonants
Labial Alveolar Velar Uvular
  plain   palatalized
Nasal m n (nʲ)[decimal 1] ŋ
Plosive p t tʲ k q
Affricate c[decimal 2] sʲ[decimal 2]
Fricative voiceless
voiced v ð ɣ ʁ
Lateral fricative (ɬ)[decimal 3]
Approximant l j[decimal 4]
Vowels
Front Central Back
Close i u
Mid ə
Open a

Notes:

  1. ↑
    • /nʲ/ may not have been distinct from */n/; Fortescue reconstructs it for the correspondence of "Sirenikski Eskimo initial /j/, elsewhere /n/".
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 It is not clear from Fortescue's description whether the sounds denoted by */c/ and */sʲ/ were affricates [ts tsʲ] or fricatives [s sʲ].
  3. ↑
    • /ɬ/ may have been a later development from clusters of */l/ with a plosive.
  4. ↑
    • /j/ was most likely a fully palatal approximant, but it is grouped with the palatalized alveolars for convenience.

Possible relation to other language families

There are no generally accepted relations between Proto-Eskimo–Aleut and other language families. A substantial case for a genetic relationship between Proto-Eskimo–Aleut and several languages of northern Eurasia was published by Michael Fortescue in 1998 in Language Relations across Bering Strait (see Uralo-Siberian languages).

References

  1. ↑ Fortescue 1998, pp. 124–125

Bibliography