အစ်မ

See also: အမ

Burmese

Etymology

The first syllable, အစ် (ac), is likely from Proto-Lolo-Burmese *ʔwyik (“elder sibling”), from Proto-Tibeto-Burman *ʔik (“older brother”), and cognate with the second syllable of Akha [script needed] (a-yui, “elder sibling”) (see also အစ်ကို (ackui, “elder brother”)). The second syllable, မ (ma.), isn't linked to a root by STEDT, but bears resemblance to various Sino-Tibetan words for "sister" starting with an initial "m-", including Proto-Tani *me (“elder sister”) and Old Chinese 妹 (OC *mɯːds, “younger sister”).

Pronunciation

• Phonetic respelling: အ'မ
• IPA^(key): /ʔəma̰/
• Romanization: MLCTS: acma. • ALA-LC: ʼacʻma • BGN/PCGN: ăma. • Okell: ămá

Noun

အစ်မ • (acma.)

1. elder sister

Coordinate terms

• ညီ (nyi, “younger brother”)
• ညီမ (nyima., “younger sister”)
• အစ်ကို (ackui, “elder brother”)

Further reading

• “အစ်မ” in Myanmar–English Dictionary (Myanmar Language Commission 1993). Searchable online at SEAlang.net.