Reconstruction:Proto-Uto-Aztecan/kaLi

This Proto-Uto-Aztecan entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Uto-Aztecan

Alternative forms

  • *kanni (Northern Uto-Aztecan)

Etymology

The split between Northern *kanni and Southern *kaLi reflects a common alternation between Northern *-n- (nasal) and Southern *-L- (liquid). The exact value of *-L- remains unclear, as most daughter languages have either one liquid or none, though some (like Mayo) show both *l and *r in similar environments.

Other words sharing this correspondence include *suna/*suLa (“heart”), *sanaC/*saLaC (“pitch, pine gum”) and *wïnï/*wïLï (“to stand”).

Noun

*kaLi (Stubbs 2011)

  1. house, dwelling
    Synonyms: *can, *kiC, *nopiC, *paʼaki, *pïCtï
  2. (by extension, in compounds) cave
    Synonyms: *tïm-kani, *tïm-ki, *tïN-po-ki

Usage notes

Only found in Southern Uto-Aztecan. The Northern Uto-Aztecan form is *kanni.

Reconstruction notes

While earlier reconstructions (Miller, Voegelin, Manaster Ramer) posit a single proto-form with a liquid, Stubbs (2011) argues for separate Northern and Southern proto-forms based on the systematic nature of the nasal/liquid correspondence across the family. This reflects a broader debate about the treatment of liquids in Proto-Uto-Aztecan reconstruction, particularly in cases where Northern branches show nasals and Southern branches show liquids.

Alternative reconstructions

  • *kaliR (Manaster Ramer 1993)
  • *kali (Voegelin 1962)

Derived terms

  • *moʼo-kaLi (“hat”, literally “head house”)
  • *sap(a)kaL (“lungs”, literally “lung house”)
  • *tawa-kaLi (“sky”, literally “sun house”)
  • *ki-tu, *ki-ta (“to build a house”)
  • *pïC- (“to go home”)

Descendants

*kaLi (unmarked)

  • Southern Uto-Aztecan:
    • Tarahumaran:
      • Central Tarahumara: carí (“house”)
      • Huarijio: karí (“house”)
    • Tubar:

*kaLi-ta (absolutive)

  • Southern Uto-Aztecan:

References

  • Stubbs, Brian D. (2020) [2011], “1213. *kanni (NUA) / *kaLi (SUA) ‘house’”, in Uto-Aztecan: A comparative vocabulary‎[1], revised online edition, Flower Mound, Texas: Shumway Family History Services, page 218
  • Manaster Ramer, Alexis (1993), “*kaliR ‘house’”, in “Blood, tears, and murder: the evidence for Proto-Uto-Aztecan syllable-final consonants”, in Marle, Jaap van, editor, Historical Linguistics 1991: Papers from the 10th International Conference on Historical Linguistics, Amsterdam, 12-16 August 1991, Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company, page 203 of 199–209
  • Voegelin, C. F.; Voegelin, F. M.; Hale, Kenneth L. (1962), “(141) *kali house”, in Typological and Comparative Grammar of Uto-Aztecan: I (Phonology) (Indiana University Publications in Anthropology and Linguistics; Memoir 17), Baltimore: Waverly Press, Inc., page ?
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