Vowel Shift in Zophei, an under-resourced Tibeto-Burman language
Samson Lotven, Indiana University, slotven@iu.edu
Kelly Berkson, Indiana University, kberkson@iu.edu
Kenneth Van Bik, California State University-Fullerton, kvanbik@fullerton.edu
Zophei, or Zyphe (ISO 639-3 ZYP) is a previously undescribed language from the understudied Maraic branch of South Central Tibeto-Burman (Kuki-Chin), spoken by <20,000 people in central Chin State, Burma/Myanmar and by thousands of refugees in Indiana.
In this presentation we share comparative data from the three major Zophei dialects which offers evidence of vowel shift between varieties.
Gallery 1. Where is Zophei Spoken?
Upper Zophei-speaking area is the oldest Zophei settlement, here is the likely timeline:
expansion northwestward into the Lower Zophei A-speaking area (in contact with Mara)
vowel shift in the Upper Zophei-speaking area (in contact with Senthang and Lautu/Lutuv)
expansion southwestward into the Lower Zophei B-speaking area (in contact with Mara & Lautu/Lutuv)
further innovations in Lower Zophei B, including innovations shared with Lower Zophei A
Image 2. Zophei Onset Inventory
Although vowel shift between dialects has led to innovation in Zophei rhymes, all three major varieties have identical phonemic onset inventories. The only permissible coda in Zophei is the velar nasal.
Gallery 3. Rhymes in Zophei Dialects
Before considering comparative data, it’s worth noting that rhymes differ by dialect. In this gallery we see full rhyme inventories for the three major Zophei dialects: Monophthongs (Left), Diphthongs (Center), Vowel-Nasal Rhymes (Right).
Image 4. Rhymes shared (black) by all varieties
Overlaying all of the schematics from Gallery 3 into a single image, we can see that very few rhymes (those in black font) are shared by all Zophei varieties, while many (those in red font) occur in only one or two dialects.
By comparing lexical items from these three Zophei dialects with the conservative South Central language Lai (in column 1), we observe a series of changes to the vowel system that reveals diachronic shift.
The tables and diagrams below offer comparative data and schematized representations of back and front vowel shift phenomena. Shading is intended to highlight like rhymes.
Table 5. Zophei back vowel shift
Image 6. Zophei back vowel shift
Considering the data in Table 5, Image 6 offers a schematized representation of back vowel shift:
Table 7. Zophei front vowel shift
Image 8. Zophei Front Vowel Shift
Considering the data in Table 7, Image 8 offers a schematized representation of front vowel shift:
While the comparative data shared above cannot provide insight into the precise timing or details of these shifts—which have developed over generations—what they can do is provide insight into the outcomes of these innovations.
Image 9. Zophei Long Vowel Shift Summary
By way of summary, the following image highlights some parallels in Zophei front and back shifts, focusing on long vowels (monophthongs and diphthongs).
Table 10. Phonological Process Summary Table
Conclusion
The comparative data presented here are pulled from a larger corpus, which can be used to expand on these analyses in future investigations (see Lotven 2021).
In addition to establishing complex patterns of vowel change in a previously undocumented language, this research also emphasizes one possible model for conducting scholarship in a changing world: these data were collected in Central Indiana, USA, which is home to a community of roughly 20,000 Burmese refugees from Chin State, Burma/Myanmar.
Like many other diaspora communities, Indiana’s Chin community is home to robust cultural and linguistic diversity— upwards of 30 un- and under-documented Chin languages are spoken in Indianapolis, meaning that many additional studies like this one are possible.
Given the Covid-19 pandemic and ongoing military aggression in Myanmar, fieldwork there is impossible for the foreseeable future.
The opportunities for scholarship and for service in the Indiana Chin community are especially important in this context. See more about the Chin Languages Research Project at chinlanguages.org
References
Eberhard, David M., Gary F. Simons, and Charles D. Fennig (eds.). (2021). Ethnologue: Languages of the World. Twenty-fourth edition. Dallas, Texas: SIL International. Online version: http://www.ethnologue.com.
Google. (n.d.). [Google Map of western Myanmar]. Retrieved October 19, 2020, from https://www.google.com/maps/@22.8667852,91.7703505,7z
Language and Social Development Organization. (2019). Main Languages of Chin State. map.
Lotven, S. (2021). The Sound Systems of Zophei Dialects and Other Maraic Languages. Doctoral Dissertation. Indiana University.
Van Bik, K. (2009). Proto-Kuki-Chin: A Reconstructed Ancestor of the Kuki-Chin Languages. STEDT Monograph Series, Vol. 8.: University of California, Berkeley.