Macro-Mayan languages

Last updated
Macro-Mayan
(disputed)
Geographic
distribution		Mesoamerica
Linguistic classification Proposed language family
Subdivisions
Glottolog None

Macro-Mayan is a proposal linking the clearly established Mayan family with neighboring families that show similarities to Mayan. The term was apparently coined by McQuown (1942), but suggestions for historical relationships relevant to this hypothesis can be traced back to the Squier (1861), who offered comparisons between Mayan and Mixe-Zoquean languages, and Radin (1916, 1919, 1924), who did the same for Mixe-Zoquean, Huave, and Mayan.

Contents

History of proposals

McQuown (1942, 1956) defined Macro-Mayan as the hypothetical ancestor of Mayan, Mije-Sokean, and Totonacan, further promoting the hypothesis. However, his hypothesis relied on the presence of "a glottalized series" of consonants in both Mayan and Totonakan. Such a trait could have potentially spread through contact. McQuown also admitted that “the relatively small number of coincidences in vocabulary indicates to us that this kinship is quite distant” (McQuown 1942:37-38).

The hypothesis was not elaborated until 1979 when Brown and Witkowski put forth a proposal with 62 cognate sets and supposed sound correspondences between the two families. They also published two articles proposing a "Mesoamerican Phylum" composed of Macro-Mayan and other language families of Mesoamerica. This proposal was examined closely by Lyle Campbell and Terrence Kaufman who rejected the proposal because of serious flaws in the methodology that had been applied. They rejected almost all of the 62 cognates. First and foremost they found it important to identify all cases of linguistic diffusion before collecting possible cognates because diffusion has been widespread within the Mesoamerican Linguistic Area. The exchanges between Brown and Witkowski and Campbell and Kaufman took place in the journal American Anthropologist between 1978 and 1983.

In the late 1990s, Campbell (1997) expressed that he believed that Mayan would indeed some day prove to be related to Mixe–Zoquean and Totonacan, but that previous studies have not proven sufficient.

Nevertheless, since then, Brown et al. (2011) have presented arguments in favor of a Totozoquean, a common ancestor between Totonacan and Mixe-Zoquean. Moreover, Mora-Marín (2014, 2016) constitutes the most recent attempt to test the relationship between Mayan and Mixe-Zoquean. He proposes the existence of regular sound correspondences among lexical and grammatical comparanda between the two. By transitivity, these two proposals would connect all three language families, rekindling the Macro-Mayan hypothesis as framed by McQuown.

In Campbell's opinion, previous efforts to link Huave to Mayan, Mixe-Zoquean, Totonacan, or for that matter, any other language or family, has proven unfruitful, and Huave "should thus be considered an isolate" (1997:161).

Stark (1972) proposed a Maya–Yunga–Chipayan macrofamily linking Mayan with the Chimuan and Uru–Chipaya language families of South America. [1]

Vocabulary

Below is a comparison of selected basic vocabulary items.

Abbreviations
gloss Proto-Mayan [4] Chitimacha [5] Proto-Totozoquean [6] Proto-Totonacan [3] Proto-Mixe-Zoquean [7] Proto-Huave [8]
headSM *joʔlkut*kuk-*ko-pɑk*-mála
hair*wiʔkuh (hair, fur, feathers)*wɑ(ʔ)y*-ndɪ̀ca
eye*Hatykani*-nìːka, *-nɪːko
ear*xikinwaʔaš*akə*tɑːcɨk*-làːka
nose*nhiiʔ*kʸin*hɨp(ɨ)*-síngi
tooth*ʔeehʔiʔM *ta¢a-*tɨːc*-láːkɪ
tongue*ʔaʔq’wenʔ*kAːtM *siimaq’aati*toːc*-nìwi
mouth*tyiiʔšaʔ*kʸwehʔɬM *kiɬni*ʔɑw*-mbeye
hand*q’ab’waši*məhʔkʸ; *ɬkʸəːʔM *maka- (prefix)*kɨʔ*-wísi
foot*ʔaqansoʔ, soʔo*mɑŋ-kuy (P-Zoquean)*-lehe
breast*ʔiimmiʔM *¢’ík’iiti*kuk-pɑk (P-Zoquean)
meatCM *tiʔ.b’ejkipi*kʸiniː*kiníːt*sis(i)*-nìhi
blood*kèheʔuybi*pIn*nɨʔpin*kèhe
bone*b’aaqkaci*pak*lukuti*pɑk*-làːca
person*winaqpanš*pǝn*hɑyɑ́(w), *pɨn*na-sɨ̀yɪ
name*b’ih*nɨyi (P-Zoquean)*-natɪ
dogCM *tz’iʔ*tɑkɑ*kɪsA; *patɪ
fish*karmakš*ʔɑksɑ, *kɑkʔe
louse*ʔuk’*skʸwaːtM *skaata*ʔɑːwɑt*mbáta
tree*tyeeʔ*kʸƗCI*kuy*simi-sata
leaf*xaqči·š*ʔɑy*(-)opo
flowerša·mu*ša'ná (v.)*pɨhi(k)*mbáha
water*Haʔkuʔ*nəhnq*škaːn*nɨːʔ*ewe
fire*q’ahq’tep*Hikʸʔ ~ *Hukʸʔ*šqu*hukʔ-ut*(m)bìmbɨ
stoneSM *toonhnuš*čahʔM *čiwiš*cɑːʔ*kanga
earth*ch’ohch’neyʔ*ti'ya't*nɑːs*ìtɨ
salt*ʔaʔtz’aam*ma¢*kɑːnɑ*kɪnìkɨ
road*b’eehmiš*tu:ʔ-ʔɑw*tɪ̀ːtɨ
eat*waʔgušt-M *wahin-ya 'eats'*muks (~ una cosa tostada)*-tɪ
die*kamnu·p-*ʔoːʔk (P-Mixean); *kɑʔ (P-Zoquean)*-ndewe
I*ʔiin*ʔɨːci ~ *ʔɨc*sik-V
you*ʔat*mwiš*miš (Proto-Oaxaca Mixean)*ikV

See also

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References

  1. ↑ Stark, Louisa R. (1972). "Maya-Yunga-Chipayan: A New Linguistic Alignment". International Journal of American Linguistics. 38 (2): 119–135. doi:10.1086/465193. ISSN   0020-7071. S2CID   145380780.
  2. ↑ MacKay, Carolyn J.; Trechsel, Frank (2018). "An alternative reconstruction of Proto-Totonac-Tepehua". International Journal of American Linguistics. The University of Chicago. 84 (1): 51–92. doi:10.1086/694609.
  3. 1 2 Brown, Cecil H.; Søren Wichmann; David Beck. 2014. Chitimacha: a Mesoamerican language in the Lower Mississippi Valley. International Journal of American Linguistics 80: 425-474.
  4. ↑ Kaufman, Terrence (2017). Aspects of the lexicon of proto-Mayan and its earliest descendant. In: Judith L. Aissen, Nora C. England, and Roberto Zavala Maldonado (eds). The Mayan languages, 62-111. Routledge language family series. New York: Routledge.
  5. ↑ Swadesh, Morris. 1950. Chitimacha-English Dictionary. Unpublished manuscript.
  6. ↑ Brown, Cecil H., David Beck, Grzegorz Kondrak, James K. Watters, and Søren Wichmann (2011). Totozoquean. International Journal of American Linguistics 77, 323–372.
  7. ↑ Wichmann, Søren (1995). The Relationship Among the Mixe–Zoquean Languages of Mexico. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press. ISBN   978-0-87480-487-4.
  8. ↑ Suaréz, Jorge A (1975). Estudios Huaves. Collección científica. Vol. 22. México: INAH. OCLC   2632814.
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