Proto-Austroasiatic
Proto-language (reconstructed) · historical / hidden variety
Proto-Austroasiatic is the reconstructed ancestor of the Austroasiatic family — Vietnamese, Khmer, Mon and the Munda languages of India, among some 160 languages. It is often placed in the Middle Mekong region of mainland Southeast Asia, though its date is disputed, with estimates ranging from about 5000 to 2000 BCE.
Where it is spoken
31 core words in Proto-Austroasiatic
Water
*ɗaːk
/ɗaːk/
Fire
*ʔuːs
/ʔuːs/
Sun
*tŋiːʔ
/tŋiːʔ/
Moon
—
/—/
Star
—
/—/
Mother
*maʔ
/maʔ/
Father
—
/—/
I
*ʔaɲ
/ʔaɲ/
You
—
/—/
Name
—
/—/
Eye
*mat
/mat/
Hand
*tiːʔ
/tiːʔ/
Heart
—
/—/
Love
—
/—/
Tree
—
/—/
House
—
/—/
Dog
*cɔː
/cɔː/
Cat
—
/—/
Eat
*ɟaː
/ɟaː/
Drink
—
/—/
One
*muːj
/muːj/
Two
*ɓaːr
/ɓaːr/
Hello
—
/—/
Thank you
—
/—/
Good
—
/—/
Sources
- Shorto (2006) A Mon-Khmer Comparative Dictionary
- Sidwell & Blench (2011) The Austroasiatic Urheimat
Words compared
Compared with related Proto-language (reconstructed) languages
| Meaning | Proto-Austroasiatic | Goguryeo | Meroitic | Proto-Hmong-Mien | Nicaraguan Sign Language | Tartessian | Liburnian |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | *ɗaːk /ɗaːk/ | 買 /*mai/ | 𐦠𐦶 /ato/ | *ʔuwm /ʔuwm/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Fire | *ʔuːs /ʔuːs/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Sun | *tŋiːʔ /tŋiːʔ/ | — /—/ | 𐦨𐦯 /ˈmasa/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Moon | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Star | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Mother | *maʔ /maʔ/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Father | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| I | *ʔaɲ /ʔaɲ/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| You | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Name | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Eye | *mat /mat/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Hand | *tiːʔ /tiːʔ/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Heart | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Love | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Tree | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| House | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Dog | *cɔː /cɔː/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Cat | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Eat | *ɟaː /ɟaː/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Drink | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| One | *muːj /muːj/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Two | *ɓaːr /ɓaːr/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | *ʔwei /ʔwei/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Hello | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Thank you | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Good | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
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