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Proto-Nahuan (also called Proto-Aztecan) is a hypothetical daughter language of the Proto-Uto-Aztecan language. It is the common ancestor from which the modern Nahuan languages have developed.
| Proto-Nahuan | |
|---|---|
| Proto-Aztecan | |
| Reconstruction of | Nahuan languages |
Reconstructed ancestor | |
There is some controversy about where and when Proto-Nahuan was spoken. Following Nahuan ethnohistorical sources describing a southward migration of Nahuatl speakers, as well as the fact that all other Uto-Aztecan languages are north of the Nahuan languages, the homeland has traditionally been considered to be located to the north of the current area of extension.
An alternative hypothesis by Jane Hill is that Proto-Nahuatl arose within Mesoamerica, and the Nahuas are the only remainders after a large-scale northward migration.
The following phonological changes are shared by all Nahuan languages:
- Proto-Uto-Aztecan *t becomes Proto-Nahuan lateral affricate *t͡ɬ before Proto-Uto-Aztecan *a[1] (Proto-Uto-Aztecan *taːka 'man' becomes Proto-Nahuan *tlaːka-tla 'man').
- Proto-Uto-Aztecan initial *p is lost in Proto-Nahuan[2] (Proto-Uto-Aztecan *pahi 'water' becomes Proto-Nahuan *aː-tla 'water').
- Proto-Uto-Aztecan *u merges with *i in Proto-Nahuan *i[3] (Proto-Uto-Aztecan *muki 'to die' becomes Proto-Nahuan *miki 'to die').
- Proto-Uto-Aztecan sibilants *ts and *s split into *ts, *ch and *s *ʃ, respectively.[4]
- Proto-Uto-Aztecan's fifth vowel, reconstructed as *ɨ or *ə, merged with *e in Proto-Nahuan *e[5] (Proto-Uto-Aztecan *nɨmi 'to walk' becomes Proto-Nahuan *nemi 'to live, to walk').
- Many metatheses in which Proto-Uto-Aztecan roots of the shape *CVCV become *VCCV[6] (Proto-Uto-Aztecan *puːli 'to tie' becomes Proto-Nahuan *ilpi 'to tie').
Proto-Nahuan was an agglutinative language, and its words used suffix complexes for a variety of purposes, with several morphemes strung together.
Some Proto-Aztecan (i.e., Proto-Nahuan) reconstructions by Davletshin (2012):[7]
| gloss | Proto-Aztecan |
|---|---|
| all (todos) | *mochɨ-m |
| ashes | *nɨx-tlɨ |
| bark | *ɨwaː-yoː-tl |
| belly | *-ɨhtɨ |
| big | *wehey(ɨ) |
| bird | *toːtoː-tl |
| bite | *-kɨh-tzoma |
| black | *tliːl-tɨ-k |
| blood | *ɨs-tlɨ |
| bone | *oːmɨ-tl |
| breast | *-chiːchiːwal |
| burn tr. | *-tla-tɨ-ha |
| claw (nail) | *-ɨstɨ |
| cloud | *mix-tlɨ |
| cold | *sese-k |
| come | *wiːtz (preterit-as-present form) |
| die | *mɨki |
| drink | *-ihi |
| dry | *waːk |
| ear | *nakas-tlɨ |
| earth | *tlaːl-lɨ |
| eat | *-kwa-haː |
| eye | *-iːx |
| feather | *-ɨ?wɨ |
| fire | *tlahi-tl |
| fish | *mɨ-chɨ-m |
| fly | *patlaːni |
| foot | *-ɨkxɨ |
| full | *teːn-tok |
| give tr. | *-maka |
| good | *yeːk-tlɨ |
| hair | *-tzom |
| hand | *-mah |
| head | *-kwah |
| hear | *-kaki |
| heart | *-yoːl |
| I | *naha |
| kill | *mɨk-tɨ-ha |
| knee | *-tlan-kwah |
| know | *mati |
| leaf | *ɨswa-tl |
| lie | *mo-teːka |
| long | *weheya-k |
| louse | *atɨmɨ-tl |
| man | *tlaːka-tl |
| many | *mɨyak |
| meat | *naka-tl |
| moon | *meːtz-tlɨ |
| mountain | *tɨpeː-tl |
| mouth | *teːn-tlɨ |
| name | *toːkaːhɨ-tl |
| neck | *kəch-tlɨ |
| new | *yankwi-k |
| night | *yowal-lɨ |
| nose | *yaka-tl |
| one | *seː(m) |
| red | *chiːl-tɨ-k ? |
| road | *oh-tlɨ |
| root | *nelwa-tl ? |
| round | *yawal-tɨ-k ? |
| sand | *xaːl-lɨ |
| see | *-ɨhta |
| seed | *aːch-tlɨ |
| sit | *mo-tlalɨ-ha |
| skin | *eːwa-tl |
| sleep | *kochɨ |
| smoke | *poːk-tlɨ ? |
| stand | *kɨtza |
| star | *sitlalɨ-m |
| stone | *tə-tl |
| tail | *-kwitla-pɨl |
| that | *oːn- ? |
| this | *in- ? |
| thou | *təha |
| tongue | *-nɨnɨ-pɨl |
| tooth | *-tlan |
| tree | *kwa-wɨ-tl |
| two | *oːmə |
| walk (go) | *nɨh-nɨmi |
| warm (hot) | *to-toːnɨ-k ? |
| water | *aː-tl |
| we | *təha-mɨ-t |
| what | *tla-(hi ?) |
| white | *istaː-kɨ ? |
| who | *aːk |
| woman | *si/owaː-tl |
| yellow | *kos-tɨ-k ? |
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