< Reconstruction:Proto-Mongolic

Reconstruction:Proto-Mongolic/bi

This Proto-Mongolic entry contains reconstructed words 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-Mongolic

Reconstruction

Nugteren derives earlier *bï by comparison with other first-person pronouns, but all descendants clearly derive from *bi and some authorities even reject *ï as a separate phoneme.

Etymology

Very similar to Proto-Turkic *ben and Proto-Tungusic *bi. Compare Turkish ben, Evenki би (bi).

Whether this similarity is due to inheritance, borrowing or coincidence is a highly contentious question among specialists in these languages which is of crucial significance for the Altaic debate.

Adjective

*bi

  1. I (personal pronoun)

Descendants
  • Middle Mongolian:
  • Mongolian:
    • Classical: ᠪᠢ (bi)
    • Khalkha: би (bi)
    • Ordos: /bi/
  • Buryat: би (bi)
  • Khamnigan Mongol: bi
  • Kalmyk: би (bi)
  • Daur: bii
  • Eastern Yugur: bu
  • Monguor:
    • Mangghuer: bi
    • Mongghul: bu
  • Bonan: be
  • Kangjia: bi
  • Dongxiang: bi
  • Mogholi: bi

Further reading
  • Nugteren, Hans (2011) Mongolic phonology and the Qinghai-Gansu languages (dissertation)‎, Utrecht: LOT, page 281
  • Janhunen, Juha (2013) Personal pronouns in Core Altaic. In Shared Grammaticalization With Special Focus on the Transeurasian Languages [Studies in Language Companion Series 132], Martine Robbeets & Hubert Cuyckens (eds)
  • Schütz, Edmond (1974) Remarks On Altaic Personal Pronouns. In Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae, Vol. 28, No. 1
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