Reconstruction:Proto-Vietic/-bəːʔ

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This Proto-Vietic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Vietic

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Etymology

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There are two competing theories around the origin of this word. Shorto (2006) connects it with Proto-Mon-Khmer *(ʔ)boʔ (mother); the shift “mother > wife, woman” is present in Jehai baboʔ (woman, female) too. Other researchers, especially in the sinological department, see this word as an early borrowing from Old Chinese (OC *bɯʔ) (Alves, 2015).

Compare also Indonesian babu (servant, (literary) mother) and ibu (mother).

Noun

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*-bəːʔ

  1. wife

Descendants

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  • Viet-Muong:
    • Muong: bợ, vợ
    • Middle Vietnamese: 𡞕 (ꞗợ), 𡢼 (ꞗợ)

See also

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