Program

The academic program is displayed below. Printed copies will be available at the meeting.

SEASL34 Program 8 JunePRINT.pdf

Keynote Talk

Alex Smith: Bridging the gap between Island and Mainland Southeast Asia: Austronesian and Kra-Dai Vowel Evolution

The languages of Island and Mainland Southeast Asia, despite their sometimes enormous differences, have been subject to multiple attempts at unification into numerous macro-families of sometimes dubious validity (cf Larish 2006; Starosta 2005 and others). The Austro-Tai hypothesis, however, which unites the Kra-Dai and Austronesian languages into such a regional macrofamily, seems to have gained more mainstream appeal. Despite increased acceptance, a large hurdle to greater acknowledgement of the shared history between these two families is the lack of viable phonological reconstructions, not only to a putative Proto-Austro-Tai but even to Proto-Kra-Dai. As part of ongoing efforts to bridge the gap between Kra-Dai and Austronesian comparative linguistics and to provide a more systematic comparative analysis of potential cognates, I provide a wholistic analysis of vowel evolution in both families. I propose that the complexities of Kra-Dai vowel systems and the relative simplicity of Austronesian vowel systems can be ultimately derived from a common ancestor whose vowel inventory was somewhere in-between: *a(ː), *ə, *u(ː), *o(ː) *i(ː), *e(ː)

Particular points of interest are the central vowel series, *a, *aː, and *ə, the length distinction, and the interaction of schwa with the other central vowels. In deriving Kra-Dai and Austronesian vowels from a common ancestor via phonetically plausible and systematically regular sound changes, I hope to further demonstrate the fundamental validity of the Austro-Tai hypothesis.

Dr. Alexander David Smith is a Principal Investigator at Fudan University and a next-generation leader in Austronesian historical-comparative linguistics. Trained at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa under the late Robert Blust, he is in charge of managing the Austronesian Comparative Dictionary. Alex has made waves with his research on the phonological and syntactic evolution of Austronesian languages, focusing on the island languages of Southeast Asia, particularly those of Borneo. His recent work exploring connections between the Kra-Dai and Austronesian language families is pushing boundaries in the field.

Google Meet Links

Day 1

Session 1, Wednesday, 11 June

Video call link: https://meet.google.com/aiy-gdxr-ozd

Or dial: ‪(AU) +61 3 8594 9854 PIN: ‪403 449 372#

Session 2, Wednesday, 11 June

Video call link: https://meet.google.com/agr-ipoc-cbc

Or dial: ‪(AU) +61 2 9051 5666 PIN: ‪543 843 484#

Session 3, Wednesday, 11 June

Video call link: https://meet.google.com/kwr-kpup-ski

Or dial: ‪(AU) +61 3 8594 7563 PIN: ‪670 460 086#

Day 2

Session 1, Thursday, 12 June

Video call link: https://meet.google.com/zov-emrw-msp

Or dial: ‪(AU) +61 2 9051 7805 PIN: ‪188 249 412#

Session 2, Thursday, 12 June

Video call link: https://meet.google.com/rrj-vdkf-wgs

Or dial: ‪(AU) +61 2 9051 5437 PIN: ‪314 153 258#

Session 3, Friday, 12 June

Video call link: https://meet.google.com/fyr-wjzw-smx

Or dial: ‪(AU) +61 2 9051 7370 PIN: ‪940 114 522#

Day 3

Session 1, Friday, 13 June

Video call link: https://meet.google.com/htd-gjei-fbv

Or dial: ‪(AU) +61 2 9051 3033 PIN: ‪138 417 470#

Session 2, Friday, 13 June

Video call link: https://meet.google.com/mnz-hypm-nsv

Or dial: ‪(AU) +61 3 8594 9146 PIN: ‪390 311 736#

Session 3, Friday, 13 June

Video call link: https://meet.google.com/pbi-dphh-exy

Or dial: ‪(AU) +61 3 8594 7960 PIN: ‪946 747 138#

Page updated

Google Sites

Report abuse