Sino-Austronesian languages

Sino-Austronesian (now Sino-Tibetan-Austronesian) is a proposed language family. Its original version was presented by Laurent Sagart in 1990.^[1] Using reconstructions of the Old Chinese language, Sagart argued that the Austronesian languages are related to the Sinitic languages phonologically, lexically and morphologically. Sagart later acknowledged that the Sino-Tibetan languages are a valid group and extended his proposal to include the rest of Sino-Tibetan.^[2] Additionally, the Tai–Kadai languages were placed internally within the Austronesian family as a sister branch of Malayo-Polynesian (^[3]). In the same paper, Sagart presented a phylogeny of the early phase of the Austronesian family.

Laurent Sagart has also shown that his Sino-Austronesian proposal does not contradict genetic studies in any major way.^[4][5] If compared with genetic evidence, the Sino-Austronesian family would fall within Haplogroup O, a paternally-transmitted human Y-chromosome DNA haplogroup.

Related proposals include Austric (Wilhelm Schmidt), Austro-Tai (Paul K. Benedict), and Dené–Caucasian (Sergei Starostin).

Classification

• Sino-Austronesian (Sino-Tibetan–Austronesian)
  • Sino-Tibetan
    • Tibeto-Burman
    • Sinitic
  • Austronesian
    • Luilang, Pazeh, Saisiat
    • Pituish
      • Atayalic, Thao, Favorlang, Taokas, Papora, Hoanya
      • Enemish
        • Siraya
        • Walu-Siwaish
          • Tsouic, Paiwan, Rukai, Puyuma, Amis, Bunun
          • Muish
            • Northeastern Formosan (Kavalan, etc.)
            • Tai–Kadai (Daic or Kra–Dai)
            • Malayo-Polynesian

Criticism

Ostapirat (2005)^[6] supports the link between Austronesian and Kra–Dai (Sagart built upon Ostapirat's findings), but rejects a link to Sino-Tibetan. He notes that the apparent cognates are rarely found in all branches of Kra–Dai, and almost none are in core vocabulary.

Distributions

Distribution of Sino-Tibetan languages  Distribution of Tai–Kadai languages  Distribution of Austroasiatic languages  Distribution of Hmong–Mien languages  Distribution of Formosan languages  Distribution of Formosan languages – Blust (1999)  Distribution of Formosan languages – Greenhill, Blust & Gray (2008)  Distribution of Austronesian languages

See also

• Classification schemes for Southeast Asian languages
• Austric languages
• Austro-Tai languages
• Dené–Caucasian languages
• Austronesian languages
• Sino-Tibetan languages
• Old Chinese language
• Tibeto-Burman languages
• Haplogroup O (Y-DNA)
• Languages of China

References

• Sagart, Laurent 2005. "Sino-Tibetan–Austronesian: an updated and improved argument." In Laurent Sagart, Roger Blench & Alicia Sanchez-Mazas, eds. The Peopling of East Asia: Putting Together Archaeology, Linguistics and Genetics. London: Routledge Curzon, pp. 161–176.
• Sagart, Laurent. 2004. The higher phylogeny of Austronesian and the position of Tai–Kadai. Oceanic Linguistics 43:411–440.
• Sagart, Laurent. 1994. Proto-Austronesian and the Old Chinese evidence for Sino-Austronesian. Oceanic Linguistics 33:271–308.
• Sagart, Laurent. 1990. Chinese and Austronesian are genetically related. Paper presented at the 23rd International Conference on Sino-Tibetan Languages and Linguistics, October 1990, Arlington, Texas.
• Starosta, Stanley. 2005. "Proto-east Asian and the origin and dispersal of the languages of East and Southeast Asia and the Pacific." In Laurent Sagart, Roger Blench & Alicia Sanchez-Mazas, eds. The Peopling of East Asia: Putting Together Archaeology, Linguistics and Genetics. London: Routledge Curzon, pp. 182–197.

External links

• Laurent Sagart's list of Old Chinese words at the Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database