Notes on Sources of Yurok Glottalized Consonants

NOTES ON SOURCES OF YUROK GLOTTA LIZED CONSONANTS JULIETTE BLEVINS University of Lulon I. INTRODUCTION. A genetic relationship has been established between Yurok. Wiyot and the Algonquian languages (Sapir 1913, Haas 1958, Teeter I974, Goddard I975. Bennan l982a. I984. I990). Yurok has ejectives as well as laryngealized fricatives and sonorants. Proto-Algonquian lacks ejectives and Iaryngealized sonorants, while Wiyot has no ejectives, but does show pre-glottalized fricatives and sonorants which could be considered unit phonemes. In this paper, I build on previous work on the sources of Yurok glottalized consonants, focusing primarily on the origins of ejectives. Yurok ejectives are less common than their non-ejective counterparts. and have a more limited distribution (see Appendix 11). As noted by Gensler (1986271) “The defective and skewed distribution of ejectives in Yurok. suggests that the ejective series is a relative newcomer in the historical phonology. ”. In this study. I provide support for this view based on internal reconstruction and comparison with Wiyot. In section 2, Ben'nan’s (l982a) proposal that glottalized consonants reflect *0 clusters is strengthened by providing further etyma, and suggesting a regular sound change in the history of Yurok taking q‘C'l g C? g C’. In section 3, I identify a morpheme associated with hairiness and bushiness, *-Vp-I, with -Vp' reﬂexes in Yurok terms for plants and other growing things. By demonstrating other *1/t correspondences, it is possible to derive all these instances of p’ from the same sound change proposed in section 3: * Vpi g Vpl g Vp? g Vp'. In sections 4 and 5 I discuss possible sources of Yurok c’ and t’ which both have limited distribution. In section 6 I identify ejectives which are unlikely to be inherited. and identify potential loan sources in languages of the area. Yurok data sources are Robins (I958) supplemented by Bennan (l982b). ' Wiyot sources are Teeter (I964) and Teeter and Nichols (1993). 2. ‘Ct CLUSTERS. The most obvious feature suggesting a relationship between Yurok, Wiyot and the Algonquian languages is the form of the pronominal preﬁxes (Sapir I913, Goddard I975). However. as pointed out by Goddard ( l975:250-54), a problem for the comparative method was the fact that Yurok preﬁxes are glottalized on nouns and verbs, but not in independent pronouns. (1) Pronominal preﬁxes PA YUROK Wwor (BEFORE ALIENABLE NOUNS. ’I‘: 39) 1*‘ *nc-. ‘ne(t)- ? ne- (cf. nck‘I‘) du? - 2qd ‘kc-, qke(t)- k'e- (cf. kc? | ‘you sg.’) kqu? - 3q' qwe- qwe(t)- ‘(we-_.? u hu? - An ingenious solution to this problem is presented in Berman (I982a:4l 8). where it is suggested that the source for glottalization in the pronominal preﬁxes of Yurok is the -t- inﬁx found in the related languages: qThe glottal element in these preﬁxes is cognate with the I which is inserted aﬁer the pronominal preﬁxes in Proto-Algonquian and in Wiyot when the following element begins with a vowel.q The quality of the preﬁxal vowel in all languages is predictable. and is treated as epenthetic. Proposed phonological fonns of preﬁxes on vowel- initial stems are shown in (2): ‘ Yurok data is from Robins (I958) unless noted otherwise. Abbreviations used are: B Berman (l982b); PA Proto-Algonquian; PAR Proto-Algouquian-Ritwan; T Teeter ( I964 ); TN Teeter and Nichols ( I 993. vol. I); WIY Wiyot; YUR Yurok.