Proto-Kra-Dai
Proto-language (reconstructed) · historical / hidden variety
Proto-Kra-Dai (Tai-Kadai) is the reconstructed ancestor of the Kra-Dai family — Thai, Lao, Shan, Zhuang and many others. It is generally placed on the southern coast of China roughly in the 3rd–1st millennium BCE (perhaps c. 2500–1000 BCE), before the spread south into mainland Southeast Asia. Its deeper reconstruction is less secure than that of its Tai branch, so many cells are left blank.
Where it is spoken
31 core words in Proto-Kra-Dai
Water
*naːm
/naːm/
Fire
*vɤj
/vɤj/
Sun
—
/—/
Moon
—
/—/
Star
—
/—/
Mother
—
/—/
Father
—
/—/
I
*kuː
/kuː/
You
—
/—/
Name
*ɟɯː
/ɟɯː/
Eye
*taː
/taː/
Hand
*mɯː
/mɯː/
Heart
—
/—/
Love
—
/—/
Tree
*maːj
/maːj/
House
—
/—/
Dog
*hmaː
/hmaː/
Cat
—
/—/
Eat
—
/—/
Drink
—
/—/
One
*nɯŋ
/nɯŋ/
Two
*soːŋ
/soːŋ/
Hello
—
/—/
Thank you
—
/—/
Good
—
/—/
Sources
- Pittayaporn (2009) The Phonology of Proto-Tai
- Ostapirat (2005) Kra-Dai and Austronesian
Words compared
Compared with related Proto-language (reconstructed) languages
| Meaning | Proto-Kra-Dai | Proto-Hmong-Mien | Goguryeo | Nicaraguan Sign Language | Tartessian | Liburnian | Meroitic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | *naːm /naːm/ | *ʔuwm /ʔuwm/ | 買 /*mai/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | 𐦠𐦶 /ato/ |
| Fire | *vɤj /vɤj/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Sun | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | 𐦨𐦯 /ˈmasa/ |
| Moon | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Star | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Mother | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Father | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| I | *kuː /kuː/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| You | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Name | *ɟɯː /ɟɯː/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Eye | *taː /taː/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Hand | *mɯː /mɯː/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Heart | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Love | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Tree | *maːj /maːj/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| House | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Dog | *hmaː /hmaː/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Cat | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Eat | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Drink | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| One | *nɯŋ /nɯŋ/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Two | *soːŋ /soːŋ/ | *ʔwei /ʔwei/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Hello | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Thank you | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Good | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
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