Re: Language Identification?

On Sat, 15 Nov 2003 19:47:54 EST, David Peterson <ThatBlueCat@...>
wrote:
> Muke:
>
> <<Well, there's always the process of elimination :x)
> It's not Serbo-Croat or Russian, but it's closer to the latter.>>
>
> Wait, wait, wait.   How is it *not* Russian?   Take into account the
> following:
>
>> <<Neither I nor the person I learned it from knew how it was spelled,
>> so here's an improvised transcription:>>
>
> The only word I see that doesn't look like an exact one-to-one
> correspondant is "utra" for open, but that could be explained fairly
> easily.   Since the C sequence should be /tkr/, then either: (1) The /t/
> geminated, or (2) it was interpreted by the listener as just another
> part of the /t/--in other words, it got lost between the /t/ and /r/.
I figured that was possible.

> As for the following:
>
> <<> Búdes spádats útro.
>> "It will rain tomorrow.">>
>
> I'd argue the "rain" word is "padat", or something like it, and "utro" is
> really "zavtra" pronounced [saftra], with possibly the /f/ going silent
> since it's in coda position.   It is a very weak fricative.   As for the
> rain word itself, it doesn't look like /dozhd'/, but it could be some
> other local word.
My doubts on "-s útro" being "завтра" are based on that Serbo-Croat form
is "sutra", which is closer, so it being "sutro" directly wouldnt be too
farfetched.


JS Bangs wrote:
> Actually, I'm not sure that it's not Russian either. It doesn't *look*
> much like a good transliteration of Russian, but it's not far off from
> what we might expect of a naive non-native speakers transcription.
It could be, certainly.  But it could just as easily be a similar language
(and they do get very similar, cf. 'sutra', and Belarus 'дзьверы' for
'door').

*waves I Am Not A Slavicist flag*




        *Muke!
--
http://frath.net/
http://kohath.livejournal.com/

E jer savne zarjé mas ne   (You put music in my heart
Se imné koone'f metha       And with the spirit of an artist
Brissve mé kolé adâ.        I will make the dreamtime)

Reply