Reconstruction:Proto-Japonic/uma

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This Proto-Japonic 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-Japonic

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Etymology 1

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Possibly derived as a nativized borrowing from Old Chinese (OC *mraːʔ),[1] from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *k-m-raŋ ~ s-raŋ (horse). See the Proto-Sino-Tibetan entry for more details.

The ma sound denoting "horse" is common to a number of languages of central Asia, where horses were first domesticated, which has led some to speculate about a possible cognate root (but no consensus on any kind of relation exists). Compare Manchu ᠮᠣᡵᡳᠨ (morin, horse), Mongolian морь (morʹ, horse), Korean (mal, horse), Mandarin (, horse), Sanskrit मर्य (márya, stallion; young man) and Proto-Indo-European *márkos (horse) and descendants such as Irish marc (horse, archaic) or English mare (female horse). More at *márkos.

Alternative reconstructions

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Noun

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*uma

*uma: a horse.
  1. horse
Descendants
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  • Old Japanese: (ma, uma, muma)
  • Proto-Ryukyuan: *Cma
    • Northern Ryukyuan: 烏馬 (uma) (Liúqiú guăn yìyŭ, 1469-1470)[2]
      • Kikai: (ma, uma)
      • Kunigami: ('mā)
      • Northern Amami Ōshima: ('mā)
      • Okinawan: ('nma, 'nmā)
      • Okinoerabu: ()
      • Southern Amami Ōshima: ('mā)
      • Tokunoshima: ()
      • Yoron: (uma)
    • Southern Ryukyuan: *Vma (Bentley, 2008b)
      • Miyako: (mma)
      • Yaeyama: (mma)
      • Yonaguni: (nma)

Etymology 2

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Might originally be an interjection; compare English mmm.

Samuel Martin compares *ama (sweet).[3]

Alternative reconstructions

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Adjective

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*uma

  1. good
    Antonym: *warə (bad)
  2. delicious
Descendants
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References

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  1. ^ Vovin, Alexander (2014) “Out of Southern China?”, in XXVIIes Journées de Linguistique d'Asie Orientale[1]
  2. ^ Lin (2015)
  3. ^ Samuel E. Martin (1987) The Japanese Language Through Time, New Haven, London: Yale University Press, →ISBN, page 843