Thao language
Thao (Thao: Thaw a lalawa), pronunciation [au], also 2 Morphology
known as Sao, is the language of the Thao people, a tribe
of Taiwanese aborigines in the region of Sun Moon Lake Thao has two or arguably three patterns of reduplication:
in central Taiwan. In 2000, there were 5 or 6 speak- Ca-reduplication, full reduplication, and rightward redu-
ers living in Ita Thaw ( ) village (traditionally called plication (which is sometimes considered to be a form of
Barawbaw), all but one of whom were over the age of full reduplication).
sixty. Two elderly native speakers died December 2014
including chief Tarma ( ), age 75. Thao verbs have the following types of focus (Blust
2003:239).
Thao is a Formosan language of the Austronesian family;
Barawbaw and Shtafari are dialects.
1. Actor: -um- (present), ma- (future)
2. Patient: -in, -in-
1 Phonology 3. Locative: -an
1.1 Consonants
3 Syntax
Orthographic notes:
Thao word order can be both SVO and VSO, although the
/ / are written . However, in Blusts dictionary former is derived from Taiwanese (Blust 2003:228).
// is written <c>.
The Thao personal marker is ti (Blust 2003:228). Neg-
atives include ani and antu"; ata tu is used in don't
// is written <lh>
constructions. The perfect is marked by iza, the past by
// is written <ng> an inx just after the primary onset consonant "-in-" and
the future by the prex a-". Imperatives are marked by "-
// is written <'> " and softer imperatives or requests roughly translated as
please by "-uan sometimes spelled "-wan which can
co-occur with "-".
Notes:
The glides /j w/ are derived from the underlying 4 Pronouns
vowels /i u/ to meet the requirements that syllables
must have onset consonants and to indicate stress
The Thao personal pronouns below are from Blust
placement accurately.
(2003:207). Note that there is only 1 form each for we
[v] is an allophone of /w/ occurring intervocalically. (exclusive), you (plural)" and they.
Other pronouns include:
1.2 Vowels minmihu - for you
Notes: panmihu - as for you
panihun - because of you
Stress is penultimate, otherwise can be written / /
as in dad", but doubling /aa ii uu/ is also frequently shanaihun - up to you
used, as in daduu.
shaunatazihun - go to your place
[e] and [o] occur as allophones of /i/ and /u/, re- shmunaihun - bring to you
spectively, when preceded or followed either by /q/
or /r/. nakin - for me
1
2 5 AFFIXES
panyakin - as for me ku- : 'to perform an action with X' (when used with
tools or weapons); less specic in other contexts
pashiyakin - leave me
kun- : 'sudden or abrupt action', 'to eat the X meal',
shanayayakin - up to me 'to do X times; meaning unclear sometimes
shmunayakin - bring me la- : usually found in expressions of quantity of de-
gree
5 Axes lhin- : causative sense
lhun- : swelling-related meanings, etc.
The following axes are sourced from Blust (2003:92-
188) and adjusted to the modern spelling. m- : marks the genitive in 'you (2s)' and 'we (incl.)'
ma- : marks stative verbs, occasionally nouns de-
a- : only found in /kan/ 'eat' rived from stative verbs
-ak : '1st person singular (I)' ma- : active verb prex
ak- ... -in : 'morning, noon, evening meals ma- : prex marking the future in actor focus verbs
an- : uncertain function ma- : 'tens (used with numbers)
-an : Verbal uses can be indicative, imperative, or mak- : intransitive verbs
adversative.
maka- : 'to resemble X' (people), 'produce X' (plant
i- : prex or clitic particle marking location or animal parts), 'from/in/to X' (deictic/directional
expressions)
-i : imperative
makin- : intransitive verbs; 'Xth from the bottom'
-ik : patient focus (1st person singular) (with numerals)
-in- : perfective or completive aspect makit- : 'happen gradually', 'perform X gradually'
-in : patient focus maku- : directional sense, and is followed by /na/-
(though it does not follow not in non-locative expres-
ish- : found most with intransitive verbs (uncommon
sions)
prex)
malhi- : 'give birth to an X'
ka- : 'to make an X', 'two times (with reduplication)
man- : generally used with dynamic, intransitive
ka- ... -an : meaning unclear verbs
kal- : 'X told' mana- : generally found with directional verbs
kalh- : 'to pile, spread' mapa- : 'reciprocal', 'collective action'
kash- : 'intensity, repetition' mash- : 'to speak X' (language), 'walk with an X'
(positions or conditions of the leg)
kashi- : meaning uncertain
masha- : relates to body positions, or may have a
kashi- ... -an : 'pull by the X'
directional meaning
kashun- : derives verbs referring to positions of the
mashi- : comparatives (with stative bases of mea-
human body, or sometimes objects such as boats
surement); often synonymous with /ma/- (stative
kat- : 'gradually become X' verb marker)
ki- : 'stand, stay'; other possible meanings as well mat- : derives intransitive or stative verbs
ki- ... -an : 'be aected with pain in the X' mati- : locative expressions
kilh- : 'search for, seek' matin- + full reduplication : 'X-ish' or 'spotted with
X' (colors)
kin- : 'to pick or gather X'
mi- : derives intransitive verbs, often with some
kit- ... -in : 'infested with X' form of base reduplication
3
mi- + Ca reduplication : 'do with a group of X' pu- ... -an : to wear X' (body ornaments)
mya- : used to derive various verbs pun- : 'to catch X' (animals used for food)
min- : derives inchoative verbs (Bunun loan?); 'be- qata- : bodily movement, observation, and the like
come an X' or 'become like an X' (with kinship
terms) sha- : directional sense ('facing', etc.)
mu- : most frequently derives verbs of motion; 'go shan-na-Ca- ... : 'its up to X' (often with pronouns)
into X; enter X' (with concrete nouns that refer
shau- : 'go to X' or 'arrive at X' (with bases that have
to structures or places capable of being entered);
an inherently locative sense or temporal sense)
'search for X' (with names of useful plants); 'do X
times (numeral bases and expressions of quantity) shi- : appears to mark past tense (as opposed to the
perfective aspect marker -/in/-)
mun- : intransitive verbs
-n : derives accusative pronouns from nominative shi- : sometimes appears with commands
bases shi-X-X : 'X-ish, somewhat X'
na- : most commonly with verbs indicating change shi-X-iz: 'X times
of location; 'its up to X'
shu- : 'bring X' or 'take X' (with pronominal and
pa- : causative of dynamic verbs (verbs with -/um/-
deictic bases)
); 'make X do Y' or 'let X do Y'; active transitive (or
intransitive) verb with no causative argument/sense tana- : generally directional sense (from Bunun
/tana/- 'prex of direction')
pak- : 'exude X' (body uids, other natural u-
ids/substances); intransitive verb prex tau- : 'to carry X' (with concrete nouns); 'to turn to
X' (with bases having a directional meaning)
pan- : 'perform X in a downward direction'
tish- : forms both transitive and intransitive verbs;
pan- ... -an : used with terms for lineal consanguines
often refers to results of non-deliberate actions
to derive the corresponding collateral terms of the
same generation (e.g., 'father' > 'uncle', 'grandpar- tu-Ca- ... : 'the odor of X'
ent' > 'grandparental sibling')
-um- : actor focus inx
pash- ... -an : 'place in which X is kept'
un- ... -an : 'undesirable bodily conditions or aic-
pashi- : generally causative sense (often with Ca- tions; 'gurative extension of a physical aiction'
reduplication); 'let X do it' or 'let X have it' (with the
accusative forms of personal pronouns) -un : equivalent of -/in/ 'patient focus (borrowed
from Bunun)
pashi- ... -an : 'put X on' or 'wear X'
-wak : 1st person singular actor (apparently distinct
pat- : generally causative sense
from -/ak/)
pi- : causative verbs of location (can be paired with
-wan : 'Xs turn (to do something)'
/i/- 'at, in, on'); may also form non-locative verbs
ya- : only comes after /mapa/- 'reciprocal or collec-
pya- : forms causative verbs (usually have stative
counterparts with /ma/-; note that /pa/- and -/um/- tive action'
are also counterparts.); simulative verb -zan : 'X paces (used with numerals)
pik- : generally causative sense
Quasi-axes
pin- : generally forms causative verbs or deverbal
nouns
kan 'step, walk'
pish- : 'play X' (musical instruments); inchoative
sense (sometimes with an implied element of sud- lhqa 'live, living'
denness); causative sense pasahy 'to use'
pu- : causative or transitive counterpart of the move- qalha 'much, many'
ment prex /mu/-, which is intransitive; 'use an X'
or 'put in an X' (with names of some tools); 'send sa (usually almost impossible to translate in most en-
out an X' (with names of plant parts) vironments)
4 8 EXTERNAL LINKS
6 Notes
[1] Thao at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
[2] Hammarstrm, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath,
Martin; Bank, Sebastian, eds. (2016). Thao. Glottolog
2.7. Jena: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human
History.
[3] PAN *ni-ku
[4] PAN *ni-Su
[5] PAN *ni-a
7 References
Blust, Robert (2003). Thao dictionary. Taipei:
Institute of Linguistics (Preparatory Oce),
Academia Sinica. ISBN 9789570147858.(Thao)
8 External links
Robert Blust's audio recordings of Thao are archived
with Kaipuleohone
5
9 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses
9.1 Text
Thao language Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thao_language?oldid=765326097 Contributors: N-true, Kwamikagami, Sl, IJzeren
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