Open AccessHainan Cham and the Chamic noun classifiers: New data on an old system
Author(s) -
Graham Thurgood
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
lsa annual meeting extended abstracts
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2377-3367
DOI - 10.3765/exabs.v0i0.497
Subject(s) - noun , linguistics , classifier (uml) , noun phrase , proper noun , class (philosophy) , computer science , artificial intelligence , natural language processing , philosophy
A comparison of the Hainan Cham classifiers with the systems in the other Chamic languages makes it clear that the various noun class system are not just typologically similar but are of common descent, dating from proto-Chamic.This paper sketches the noun classifier system of Hainan Cham, compares it with the known cognate systems in the Chamic languages, and speculates briefly on the likelihood that the Chamic noun class system developed under Mon-Khmer influence.