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 THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO

THE RECONSTRUCTION OF OTOPAMEAN (MEXICO)

A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO

THE FACULTY OF THE DIVISION OF THE HUMANITIES

IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

DEPARTMENT OF LINGUISTICS

BY

DORIS AILEEN BARTHOLOMEW

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

DECEMBER 1965

i
 THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO

THE RECONSTRUCTION OF OTOPAMEAN (MEXICO)

A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO

THE FACULTY OF THE DIVISION OF THE HUMANITIES

IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

DEPARTMENT OF LINGUISTICS

BY

DORIS AILEEN BARTHOLOMEW

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

SEPTEMBER, 1965
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS...............................................................................................................................iii
PREFACE....................................................................................................................................................... v
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION..................................................................................................................... 1
Previous Contributions to the Reconstruction of Otopamean ..................................................................... 6
Sources of Data ........................................................................................................................................... 7
CHAPTER II FEATURE SURVEY OF THE PHONOLOGIES OF THE OTOPAMEAN LANGUAGES.. 8
Mazahua...................................................................................................................................................... 9
Group 1 ................................................................................................................................................. 13
Group II ................................................................................................................................................ 18
Group III ............................................................................................................................................... 20
Sample Derivations ................................................................................................................................... 22
List of Forms on Which the Analysis Is Based ..................................................................................... 23
Examples with Emphatic Person Markers” ........................................................................................... 25
North Pame ............................................................................................................................................... 28
Phonology of the Other Otopamean Languages........................................................................................ 39
CHAPTER III THE RECONSTRUCTION OF STEM-INITIAL CONSONANTS..................................... 43
POP Developments ................................................................................................................................... 45
North Pame Developments ....................................................................................................................... 45
Chichimeco Developments ....................................................................................................................... 47
Consonant Alternations in North Pame and Chichimeco Kinship Terms............................................. 48
Otomian Developments............................................................................................................................. 50
Mazahua Developments ............................................................................................................................ 52
Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco Developments................................................................................................. 53
Summary ................................................................................................................................................... 57
CHAPTER IV THE RECONSTRUCTION OF SYLLABLE NUCLEI OF ROOTS.................................. 58
Reflexes of POP Single Vowels................................................................................................................ 61
Reflexes of POP Vowel Clusters .............................................................................................................. 69
Distinctive Feature Rules for the Reflexes of POP Vowels and Vowels Clusters.................................... 81
The Otomian subgroup.............................................................................................................................. 82
Central Otomian.................................................................................................................................... 82
Southern Otomian ................................................................................................................................. 86
The Pamean Subgroup .............................................................................................................................. 92
North Pame ........................................................................................................................................... 92
Chichimeco ........................................................................................................................................... 93
The Glottal Elements of POP Sylable Nuclei ........................................................................................... 95
CHAPTER V THE RECONSTRUCTION OF POP STEM-FORMATIVE CONSONANTS..................... 98
Developments in the Otomian Subgroup ................................................................................................ 100
Rules for the Developments in Otomi ................................................................................................. 101
Rules for the Developments in Mazahua............................................................................................. 102
Rules for the Developments in Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco ................................................................ 103
Developments in the Pamean Subgroup.................................................................................................. 104
The Second Element of Compounds ....................................................................................................... 109
CHAPTER VI THE RECONSTRUCTION OF PERSON AND NUMBER MORPHEMES .................... 114
CHAPTER VII THE RECONSTRUCTION OF POP TONE ................................................................... 118
Synchronic Tone Systems ....................................................................................................................... 118
Chichimeco, Matlatzinca, and Ocuilteco ............................................................................................ 118

iii
 North Pame and South Pame............................................................................................................... 119
Otomi and Mazahua ............................................................................................................................ 119
Reconstruction of POP Tone................................................................................................................... 120
Reconstruction of Otomi-Mazahua Tone ................................................................................................ 128
Matlatzinca-Ocuilteco Tone................................................................................................................ 131
Otopamean Tone..................................................................................................................................... 131
Pamean Rules...................................................................................................................................... 134
CHAPTER VIII THE RECONSTRUCTION OF POP PREFIXES ........................................................... 137
The Noun Prefixes .................................................................................................................................. 138
The Verb Prefixes ................................................................................................................................... 144
CHAPTER IX OTOPAMEAN AND OTOMANGUEAN ......................................................................... 148
Proto-Otopamean and Proto-Popolocan-Mixtecan ................................................................................. 150
Otopamean -Popolocan - Mixtecan Cognate Sets ................................................................................... 153
Appendix A NORTH PAME VERB PARADIGMS .................................................................................. 157
Appendix B NORTH PAME NOUN PARADIGMS-ABCD PATTERN .................................................. 161
Appendix C NORTH PAME NOUN PARADIGMS-EFEF PATTERN .................................................... 162
Appendix D CHICHIMECO VERB PARADIGMS................................................................................... 164
Appendix E CHICHIMECO NOUN PARADIGMS-ABCD PATTERN ................................................... 169
Appendix F CHICHIMECO NOUN PARADIGMS-EFEF PATTERN ..................................................... 171
Appendix G CHICHIMECO NOUN PARADIGMS-NO CHANGE.......................................................... 172
Appendix H OCUILTECO AND MAZAHUA NOUN PARADIGMS ...................................................... 173
Appendix I NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO COGNATE SETS FOR NONPARADIGMATIC
MATERIAL................................................................................................................................................ 175
Appendix J OTOMI AND MAZAHUA COGNATE SETS FOR TONE RECONSTRUCTION ............. 179
Appendix K COGNATE SETS FOR OTOPAMEAN TONE .................................................................... 187
APPENDIX L LIST OF ALL COGNATE SETS ....................................................................................... 198
APPENDIX M LANGUAGES REPRESENTED IN THE COGNATE SETS ......................................... 279
Otomian and Pamean .............................................................................................................................. 279
Otomian .................................................................................................................................................. 279
Otomi and Mazahua ................................................................................................................................ 280
Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco ...................................................................................................................... 280
Pamean.................................................................................................................................................... 280
BIBLIOGRAPHY....................................................................................................................................... 281
General.................................................................................................................................................... 281
Otomi ...................................................................................................................................................... 283
Mazahua.................................................................................................................................................. 289
Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco ...................................................................................................................... 290
Pame ....................................................................................................................................................... 292
Chichimeco ............................................................................................................................................. 294
 PREFACE

PREFACE
This study grew out of a curiosity about dialect differences in Otomi, the
language which I was studying under the auspices of the Summer Institute of
Linguistics, Inc. From there, I did a comparative study of Otomi and Pame (just
those two) for my Master’s thesis at the University of Pennsylvania in 1959.
Several residual problems in that reconstruction impelled me to expand my study to
take in all six languages of the Otopamean family.

I am indebted to many people for their contributions to this study. Chapter I

lists those who supplied language data. Published sources are included in the
Bibliography. I profited much from my studies at Chicago under Professor Eric P.
Hamp. Professor Hamp’s interest in the study, his direction and crucial suggestions,
and his constant encouragements have made this dissertation possible. I am indebted
to James D. McCawley for an introduction to generative phonology (in spite of my
own imperfect grasp of it).

Grateful acknowledgement is made for University of Chicago tuition

scholarships for the years 1963-64 and 1964-65. Two colleagues of the Summer
Institute of Linguistics helped in the preparation of the final copy: Joyce Goerz with
typing and Lucille Schneider with proofreading.

v
 LIST OF TABLES

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1 DISTRIBUTION AND POPULATION FIGURES FOR THE OTOPAMEAN LANGUAGES 1950
CENSUS ................................................................................................................................................. 1
Table 2 COGNATE PERCENTAGES--Manrique ......................................................................................... 4
Table 3 COGNATE PERCENTAGES--BARTHOLOMEW ......................................................................... 5
Table 4 DISTINCTIVE FEATURE MATRIX FOR THE MORPHOPHONEMIC SEGMENTS OF
MAZAHUA .......................................................................................................................................... 11
Table 5 RELATION OF MAZAHUA PHONEMES TO MORPHOPHONEMES NONGLOTTAL
CONSONANTS.................................................................................................................................... 27
Table 6 RELATION OF MAZAHUA PHONEMES TO MORPHOPHONEMES GLOTTAL
CONSONANTS.................................................................................................................................... 28
Table 7 DISTINCTIVE FEATURE MATRIX FOR THE MORPHOPHONEMES OF NORTH PAME ... 29
Table 8 RELATION OF NORTH PAME PHONEMES TO MORPHOPHONEMES................................ 38
Table 9 PHONEMES OF THE OTOPAMEAN LANGUAGES .................................................................. 39
Table 10 PITCH PHONEMES OF THE OTOPAMEAN LANGUAGES ................................................... 41
Table 11 POP STEM ALTERNANTS ......................................................................................................... 45
Table 12 NORTH PAME STEM ALTERNANTS....................................................................................... 46
Table 13 CHICHIMECO STEM ALTERNANTS........................................................................................ 47
Table 14 OTOMIAN STEM ALTERNANTS.............................................................................................. 51
Table 15 MAZAHUA STEM ALTERNANTS............................................................................................. 52
Table 16 OTOPAMEAN STEM-INITIAL CONSONANT CORRESPONDENCES.................................. 53
Table 17 REFLEXES OF POP SINGLE VOWELS..................................................................................... 61
Table 18 REFLEXES OF POP CLUSTERS INVOLVING *a and *o ......................................................... 69
Table 19 REFLEXES OF POP CLUSTERS INVOLVING *a and *i.......................................................... 72
Table 20 REFLEXES FOR POP CLUSTERS INVOLVING *I, *O, AND *E............................................ 77
Table 21 FEATURE SPECIFICATIONS FOR POP VOWELS AND CLUSTERS .................................... 82
Table 22 FEATURE SPECIFICATIONS FOR OTOMI AND MAZAHUA VOWELS ............................. 83
Table 23 FEATURE SPECIFICATIONS FOR MATLATZINCA AND OCUILTECO VOWELS ........... 87
Table 24 REFLEXES OF POP STEM-FORMATIVE CONSONANTS...................................................... 99
Table 25 OTOPAMEAN PERSON MARKERS ........................................................................................ 114
Table 26 OTOPAMEAN NUMBER MARKERS ...................................................................................... 116
Table 27 TONE PATTERNS IN NOUN PARADIGMS IN NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO ....... 126
Table 28 TONE PATTERNS IN VERB PARADIGMS IN NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO ........ 127
Table 29 TONE CORRESPONDENCES BETWEEN NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO................ 127
Table 30 STEWART’s RECONSTRUCTION OF PROTO-OTOMI TONE............................................. 128
Table 31 STEWART’s RECONSTRUCTION OF OTOMI-MAZAHUA TONE...................................... 129
Table 32 TONE CORRESPONDENCES BETWEEN OTOMI AND MAZAHUA .................................. 129
Table 33 OTOMI-MAZAHUA TONE RECONSTRUCTION COMPARISON OF THE TWO
RECONSTRUCTIONS ...................................................................................................................... 130
Table 34 TONE CORRESPONDENCES BETWEEN OTOMIAN AND PAMEAN............................... 131
Table 35 OTOPAMEAN TONE RECONSTRUCTIONS.......................................................................... 133
Table 36 NORTH PAME SINGULAR NOUN PREFIXES....................................................................... 139
Table 37 NORTH PAME PLURAL NOUN PREFIXES ........................................................................... 139
Table 38 OTOMI AND MAZAHUA NOUN PREFIXES.......................................................................... 141
Table 39 PREFIXES FOR NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO KINSHIP TERMS ............................ 143

vii
Table 40 OTOMIAN POSSESSOR PREFIXES ........................................................................................ 143
Table 41 NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO VERB PREFIX CORRESPONDENCES ...................... 144
Table 42 MATLATZINCA VERB PREFIXES MARKING NUMBER .................................................... 146
Table 43 NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO VERB PREFIXES MARKING NUMBER .................. 146
Table 44 SOME VERB PREFIXES IN OTOMI, MAZAHUA, AND MATLATZINCA......................... 147
 LIST OF FIGURES

LIST OF FIGURES
Fig. 1. The morphological composition of Mazahua verbs.......................................................................... 12
Fig. 2. Distinctive Feature Matrix of POP Vowels. ...................................................................................... 60
Fig. 3. Distinctive Features Matrix of Chichimeco Vowels. ......................................................................... 60
Fig. 4. Derivation of Otomian Tones .......................................................................................................... 133
Fig. 5. The Derivation of Otomi Tones....................................................................................................... 134
Fig. 6. The derivation of Mazahua Tones ................................................................................................... 134
Fig. 7. The Derivation of Pamean Tones .................................................................................................... 135
Fig. 8. The Derivation of Pame Tones ........................................................................................................ 135
Fig. 9. The Derivation of Chichimeco Tones.............................................................................................. 136
Fig. 10. Phoneme inventories of Popolocan-Mixtecan and Otopamean..................................................... 151

ix
 CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION

The scope of this dissertation is the reconstruction of Proto-Otopamean.1 The

Otopamean languages are divided into two subgroups, Otomian and Pamean.
Otomian is subdivided into Central Otomian and Southern Otomian. Central
Otomian consists of Otomi (with at least three major dialects) and Mazahua (which
has much less dialectal diversity). Southern Otomian includes Matlatzinca and
Ocuilteco. Pamean consists of North and South Pame and Chichimeco Jonaz.

The Otopamean languages are spoken in Central Mexico, clustered around

Mexico City chiefly in the states of México and Hidalgo and extending north to the
state of San Luis Potosí and somewhat west to Querétaro and Guanajuato. The
locations and population figures for the Otopamean languages according to the 1950
census are given in Table 1.

TABLE 1
DISTRIBUTION AND POPULATION FIGURES
FOR THE OTOPAMEAN LANGUAGES
1950 CENSUS

Language States Where Spoken Number of Speakers

Otomí Guanajuato, Hidalgo,2 185,656
México, Puebla,
Querétaro, San Luis
Potosí, Tlaxcala, Veracruz

1
Otopamean refers to the same group of languages as those in Jacques Soustelle, “La Famille
Otomi-Pame du Mexique Central,” Travaux et Memoires de l’Institut d’Ethnologie de l’Université de
Paris, No. 26 (Paris: Institut d’Ethnologie, 1937), pp. xvi-571.
I am indebted to Morris Swadesh for the term Otopamean which he uses in “The Oto-
Manguean Hypothesis and Macro Mixtecan,” IJAL, XXVI (1960), 79-111.
2
Hidalgo has 84,935 speakers; México has 79,077 speakers. The other states account for the
remaining 21, 644. The 1960 census (which lists only monolingual speakers) gives 14 for the Federal
District, 134 for Guanajuato, 27,856 for Hidalgo, 18, 835 for México, 6 for Morelos, 8 for Nayarit, 2
for Oaxaca, 1,302 for Puebla, 4,437 for Querétaro, and 5,127 for Veracruz. The total of monolingual
Otomi speakers is 57,721.

6/9/2010 1
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 2

Mazahua México, Michoacán3 84,125

Matlatzinca México, (Michoacán)4 250

Ocuilteco México 550

North Pame San Luis Potosí 1,1785

South Pame Hidalgo 66

Chichimeco Guanajuato 5017

The subgrouping of Otopamean outlined in the first paragraph is essentially

that of Soustelle in 1937.8 On the basis of shared vocabulary he groups the
languages into two subdivisions: Otomi-Matlatzinca and Pame-Chichimeco. He
notes that Matlatzinca is more closely related to Pame-Chichimeco than is Otomi
and that Pame presents more similarities with Otomi than does Chichimeco. He says
that Otomi and Chichimeco constitute the two extremities of the chain of languages,
those that present the least number of similarities. He is not content to base
statements of relationship on vocabulary alone, however, and so he turns to
grammatical features such as the stem alternants, use of prefixes or suffixes
(typological), occurrence of a distinct form for third person plural (not based on
third person singular), and affixation versus juxtaposition. Such considerations
confirm the grouping made on the basis of vocabulary, but there are a few
contradictory isoglosses. He asserts that the contrastive third person plural form
occurs in nouns and verbs in the Northern languages (Pamean) but not in the
Southern ones (Otomian). (The form occurs in Otomi and Mazahua verbs but with
the function of a pseudo passive, i.e., impersonal subject, rather than third person
plural. Soustelle apparantly missed this little feature.) A distinctive third person
plural occurs in the independent pronouns of all the languages and thus serves no
diagnostic purpose. Matlatzinca shares with Pame the habit of juxtaposing the

3
México has 77,790 speakers; Michoacán has 6,335 speakers. The 1960 census lists 15,721
monolingual Mazahua speakers, all in the state of México.
4
Matlatzinca used to be spoken in Michoacán by a group which had migrated from the state
of México. The population figures for Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco are from the field notes of Juan
Hasler.
5
Lorna Gibson reports that by the 1960 census the number of North Pame speakers had risen
to 2,000. This figure probably includes bilinguals because the official census books list only 1,022
monolinguals in S.L.P. under the category “otros” (i.e., not Hausteco nor Aztec).
6
Leonardo Manrique lists one speaker for Pacula, Hidalgo, and four or five speakers for
Jiliapan, Hidalgo (“Structural Sketch of South Pame [Jiliapan Dialect],” to appear in Handbook of
Middle American Indians, ed. N. A. McQuown.)
7
The 1960 monolingual figure for non-Otomí speakers of indigenous languages in
Guanajuato is 164.
8
Soustelle, loc. Cit., p. 414.
 3 I Introduction

personal pronoun, but this isogloss is considered to be an indication of the essential

unity of all of Otopamean rather than a basis for subgrouping.

In 1960, Morris Swadesh9 suggested a rather different subgrouping of

Otopamean: A Chichimeco Jonaz, B Pame-Matlatzinca, and C Otomian (Otomi and
Mazahua). His subgrouping is based on percentage of cognates in non-cultural basic
vocabulary and the lexico-statistic interpretation in minimum centuries of
divergence. Swadesh’s innovation is that of grouping Matlatzinca with Pame into a
subgroup and the separation of Chichimeco and Pame, thus dissolving the old
Pamean subgroup. Leonardo Manrique has computed the internal relationships of
Otopamean on the basis of revised lexico-statistic counts (subsequent to Swadesh’s
1960 article) and in a more conservative way groups the languages into five groups:
I Otomi-Mazahua, II South Pame, III North Pame, IV Matlatzinca-Ocuilteco, and V
Chichimeco.10Although he resists grouping Pame and Matlatzinca in a single sub-
group, he sharply distinguishes between North Pame and South Pame (which is
probably justified) but he specifically isolates Chichimeco from the other languages.

The somewhat closer relationship in vocabulary between Matlatzinca and

North Pame that between other Northern and Southern languages was noted by
Soustelle, as we have already seen. His figures for cognate percentages, though not
restricted to non-cultural vocabularies, still clearly group Matlatzinca with Otomi
rather than with Pame:

Matlatzinca and Otomi……………………………66 per cent

Atzinca (Ocuilteco) and Otomi……………………58 per cent

Matlatzinca and North Pame………………………35 per cent

Matlatzinca and South Pame………………………35 per cent

Atzinca and North Pame…………………………..34 per cent

Atzinca and South Pame…………………………..26 per cent

Matlatzinca and Chichimeco………………………25 per cent

Atzinca and Chichimeco…………………………..20 per cent

Otomi and Pame (NP and SP)…………………….33 per cent

Otomi and Chichimeco……………………………21 per cent

9
Ibid., p. 83.
10
Manrique, Leonardo, “Structural Sketch of South Pame (Jiliapan Dialect),” to appear in
Handbook of Midddle American Indians, ed. N. A. McQuown, pp. 2 and 3 of manuscript. See also
Leonardo Manrique, “Sobre la Classificatión del Otomí-Pame,” Actas del 33o Congreso Internacional
de Americanistas, II (San Jose, Costa Rica: n.p., 1958), 551-59.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 4

Manrique’s figures, reproduced in Table 2, show Mtz-Oc sharing 40 per cent

of the basic vocabulary with SP and 32 per cent with NP as opposed to only 26 per
cent with Ot-Maz. My cognate counts, based on substantially the same lists, differ
with those of Manrique in several crucial places. My figures are given in Table 3.
They show about the same percentage of cognates between Mtz-Oc and NP-SP (39
per cent with SP, 40 per cent with NP), but they show a much higher figure for
cognates between Mtz-Oc and Ot-Maz (50 per cent with Otomi and 43 or 49 per
cent with Mazahua). Manrique’s figures for cognates between North and South
Pame and Chichimeco are low (only 35 per cent for each pairing), 5 per cent less
than his figure of 40 per cent cognate between SP and Mtz. My figures, however,
show 47 per cent cognate between SP and Ch and 50 per cent cognate between NP
and Ch as opposed to 39 per cent cognate between SP and Mtz or 40 per cent
between NP and Mtz. Manrique’s figures for cognates between Chichimeco and Ot-
Maz and Mtz-Oc are very low (19 per cent), whereas my figures show 39 per cent
cognate between Ot and Ch, 37 per cent cognate between Maz and Ch, and 38 per
cent cognate between Mtz and Oc.

My figures tend to contradict those of Manrique at those points which are

crucial to his subgrouping. To adequately justify my counts would involve
reproducing all the lists on which the counts are based and a detailed discussion of
each decision as to cognacy. I do not consider it important to do this in this
introductory chapter because the criterion for subgrouping is not so much shared
retentions (including percentage of cognates) but rather shared innovations.

TABLE 2
COGNATE PERCENTAGES11--MANRIQUE

Ot-Maz Mtz-Oc SP NP Ch
Ot-Maz ----- 26 33 25 19
Mtz-Oc ---- 40 32 19
SP ---- 59 35
NP --- 35
Shared innovations, however, cannot be determined until the proto-structure
has been reconstructed on the basis of the testimony of all of the constituent
languages. Once the features of the proto-language are determined, then ordered
rules can be formulated to specify the developments in each daughter language. The
rules specify only the innovations, not the retentions, because they rewrite the input
symbol as something else, not itself.

11
In his article, Manrique’s figures are stated in minimum centuries. The cognate
percentages are recovered according to a table for computing minimum centuries from percentages of
cognates, prepared by Manrique. The table is published in Evangelina Arana Osnaya, “Relaciones
Internas del Mixteco-Trique,” INAH-A, XII (1959-60), 219-273.
 5 I Introduction

TABLE 3
COGNATE PERCENTAGES--BARTHOLOMEW

Ot Maz Mtz SP NP Ch
Ot -- 74 50 34 39 39
Maz -- 43/49 37 34 37
Mtz -- 39 40 38
SP -- 65 47
NP -- 50
The point at issue in the subclassification of Otopamean is the place of
Matlatzinca-Ocuilteco, whether it belongs with the Northern (Pamean) or with the
Southern (Otomian) subgroup. The development of the stem-initial consonants does
not tell us much about this because Mtz-Oc have eliminated all alternations of initial
consonants within noun and verb paradigms and preserve the B, C, or D form only
in nouns derived from verbs, or occasionally in a verb stem where the C form has
been generalized. Perhaps Mtz-Oc and Ot-Maz shared the merger of B and C forms
before Mtz-Oc proceded to eliminate the ABCD alternations altogether, but duplicate
merger may have taken place rather than a shared innovation. Phonetically, Mtz-Oc
share with Ot-Maz the palatalization of *s to š and the desyllabification of a C form
metathesized *i to y. Mtz-Oc specifically does not share the NP-Ch voicing of a
weakened *t in clusters with *R and *h.

Mtz-Oc share with Ot-Maz the centralization of *i and *o to S and ø in the

environment of the centralizing element HC and also the coalescence of *io to S.
They share the desyllabification of *i and *o to y and w in certain environments.
Mtz-Oc and Ch both have rules which delete the second member of a vowel cluster.
These rules do not constitute a shared innovation, however, because the rules are
similar only in form, not in their placement with respect to the other rules in each
language nor in the statement of environments in which the rules operate. The Ch
rules for deletion of the second vowel are context-free, for example, whereas the
Mtz-Oc rules are context-sensitive.

Mtz-Oc share with Ot-Maz the insertion of the vowel i after the stem-
formative consonants. This important innovation is responsible for the greater
retention of stem-formative consonants in Otomian and the resultant greater
similarities in the forms of Otomian stems in contrast to the Pamean stems.

Mtz-Oc and Ot-Maz share the deletion of glottal stop from root nuclei and
from stem-formative suffixes.

Finally, Mtz-Oc and Ot-Maz share the development of the segment w in the
dual suffix wi and *i.

Swadesh and Manrique both give an isolated position to Chichimeco whereas

the traditional grouping of Chichimeco with Pame is marked by shared innovations
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 6

as well as by distinctive retentions. Both Ch and NP voice weakened *t in clusters

with *R and *H (Ch has r, NP has l). Both Ch and NP accord full vocalic status to
the metathesized *i of C forms.

The rules for stem-formative consonants are almost completely shared

between Ch and NP. The Ch deletion of stem-formative U presupposes the mergers
whose results are seen in NP U.

Ch and NP clearly group together in the developments from POP tone in

contrast to the developments in Ot-Maz.

Previous Contributions to the Reconstruction of Otopamean

Apart from the early collections of material on Mexican languages by people
like Pimentel12 and Belmar,13 the most thorough collection of material of Otopamean
languages is that of Jacques Soustelle whose good-sized volume contains lots of
information and extensive comparison of the Otopamean languages.14

The first attempt at a reconstruction of the parent language was done by

Newman and Weitlaner15 in 1950. They reconstructed Proto-Otomi and Proto-
Otomi-Mazahua. In 1953, Weitlaner published the reconstruction of Proto-Otomi-
Matla-tzinca.16 In 1960, Juan Hasler published the reconstruction of Matlatzinca-
Ocuilteco.17 Also in 1960, my revision of Proto-Otomi consonants was published.18

In 1959, I submitted to the University of Pennsylvania a master’s thesis

reconstructing Proto-Otomi-Pame, i.e., the language underlying those two specific
languages. The present study is the first attempt to reconstruct the parent language
of Otopamean as a whole.

12
Francisco Pimental, Obras Completas (5 vols.; México: Tipografía Económica, 1903).
Also, Cuadro Descriptivo y Comparativo de las Lenguas Indígenas de México, o Tratado de Filología
Mexicana (3 vols.; México: Tipografía Isidoro Epstein, 1874).
13
Francisco Belmar, Glotología Indígena Mexicana (México: n.p., 1921)
14
Soustelle, loc. Cit.
15
Stanley Newman and Robert J. Weitlaner, “Central Otomian I: Proto-Otomi
Reconstructions,” IJAL, XVI (1950), 1-19. “Central Otomian II: Primitive Central Otomian
Reconstructions,” IJAL, XVI (1950), 73-81
16
Robert J. Weitlaner, “Proto-Otomi-Matlatzinca: Reconstrucciones del Proto-Otomi III,”
Memorias del Congreso Científico Mexicano, IV Centenario de la Universidad Autónoma de México,
XII (México: n.p., 1953), 199-206.
17
Juan Hasler, “Reconstrucciones Matlatzinca-Ocuiltecas,” INAH-A, XIII (1960), 269-79.
18
Doris Bartholomew, “Some Revisions of Proto-Otomi Consonants,” IJAL, XXVI (1960),
317-29.
 7 I Introduction

The reconstruction of Otopamean will provide some of the controls necessary

for incorporating it into the reconstruction of Proto-Otomanguean along with
Mixtecan, Popolocan, Amuzgo, Chinantecan, Zapotecan, and Chiapanec-Mangue.

Sources of Data
In addition to published sources and unpublished manuscripts, which are
listed in the bibliography, I have made use of materials supplied by the following
people. A full description of the materials supplied would be prohibitively long.
Instead, I simply indicate the language(s) for which material has been contributed
with a brief note of the nature of those materials.
Henrietta Andrews: Matlatzinca (a long lexical list), Otomi (a sizable Santa Clara word list).
Lorna F. Gibson: North Pame (lexical material, paradigmatic noun and verb forms), Chichimeco
(notebook of a short field trip).
Vola Griste: Eastern Otomi (ms. Dictionary).
Juan Hasler: Matlatzinca, Ocuilteco (word lists).
Harwood Hess: Mezquital Otomi (word lists, grammatical notes).
Joyce Jenkins: Eastern Otomi (word list, grammatical notes).
Leonardo Manrique: South Pame (long Swadesh list).
Moisés Romero: Chichimeco (long Swadesh list).
Donald and Isabel Sinclair: Mezquital Otomi (word list).
Hazel Spotts: Mazahua (word list, grammatical notes).
Donald Steward: Mazahua (word list, material on tone and stem-initial consonant alternations).
Oscar Uribe: Matlatzinca (short word list, phonemic chart).
Katherine Voigtlander: Eastern Otomi (word list).
Robert J. Weitlaner: North and South Pame, Otomi, Mazahua, Ocuilteco (word lists).
 CHAPTER II
FEATURE SURVEY OF THE PHONOLOGIES
OF THE OTOPAMEAN LANGUAGES
The purpose of this chapter is to survey the phonological systems of the
Otopamean languages in order to provide a basis for interpreting the forms listed in
the cognate sets. For some of the languages a listing of the phonemes is adequate.
For others, specifically Mazahua and North Pame, it is important to explain the
recent phonological developments within the particular language.

The model which lends itself to the specification of phonological rules is that
of generative transformational grammar, originated by Noam Chomsky. In this
model it is assumed that the best description of a language is in terms of a set of
rules that will specify (generate) the set of all the grammatical sentences. The
grammar that will do this has several components: the syntactic component, the
phonological component,19 and the semantic component. The phonological
component builds on the output of the syntactic component, namely on the
sequences of morphemes in the surface syntactic structure. Each morpheme is
specified by a phonological matrix which consists of the distinctive features of the
string of segments which constitute the morpheme. Morphological features which
are idiosyncratic for that morpheme are also specified. A set of ordered rules
performs various operations on the string of segments produced by the juxtaposition
of morphemes and specifies the correct sequence of segments and features for the
systematic phonetic representation of the spoken chain. Further rules convert the
systematic phonetic representation into the true phonetic features, including various
phonetic details.

Certain aspects of a complete generative treatment have of necessity been

modified in these brief sketches. The scope has been narrowed to that part of the
morphophonemics which reflects relatively recent processes. The older layer of
morphophonemics found in the stem alternants is not treated here because those
phenomena belong to Otopamean as a whole and will be treated in the chapter on
stem-initial consonants. The present sketches begin with the morphophonemic

19
Morris Halle is chiefly responsible for the development of the phonological component:
“Phonology in Generative Grammar,” Word, XVIII (1962), 54-72. See also “On the Bases of
Phonology,” The Structure of Language, ed. Jerry A. Fodor and Jerrold J. Katz (Englewood Cliffs:
Prentice-Hall, 1964), pp. 324-33. Current developments in generative phonology have not yet been
widely published. The treatment in this study is based on materials presented in lectures by James D.
McCawley at the University of Chicago, 1964-1965.

6/9/2010 8
 9 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

segments necessary for distinguishing the stem alternants without attempting to

explain the phonological relations between them.

The generative model provides a set of rules which will specify the
distributional restrictions of segments and features within the morpheme. The
redundant features due to these restrictions are not specified in the phonological
matrix assigned to a given morpheme. The matrix contains only the nonredundant
information necessary for distinguishing that morpheme from all others. The
redundant features are filled in by rules called morpheme structure rules. An
example of a morpheme structure rule is the one that specifies that a consonantal
segment preceding a stop in an English word is a sibilant. The present sketches will
not attempt to state the morpheme structure rules but will start with the complete
feature specifications necessary for the operation of the morphophonemic rules. In
other words, they will build on the output of the morpheme structure rules.

For various reasons it is infeasible to have generative treatments of all the

Otopamean languages at this time. It is desirable, therefore, to have some means of
specifying the relationship between the output of the generative morphophonemic
rules and the phonemes of Mazahua and North Pame. This will be done via a chart
like that devised by Hoenigswald to specify the relationships between the phonemes
of the parent language and those of the daughter language. The morphophonemes
will be listed across the top of the chart on the analogy of the phonemes of the
parent language. The phonemes of the specific language are listed down the left
hand side. The number of the rule responsible for a given phoneme “reflex” of the
morphophoneme will be specified in the intersecting cells.

Rather than treating the languages in some logical or geographical order, I

will first describe Mazahua and North Pame in the generative model and then I will
take up the remaining languages. The phoneme inventories of the other languages
will be presented along with appropriate comments on specific rules or phenomena
parallel to those found in the generative descriptions of the first two languages.

Mazahua
In 1951, Eunice Pike described the tone contrasts in Mazahua and the
correlations between them and the intonational contrasts found on stem-final
syllables when they were phrase-final.20 In 1953, Hazel Spotts described the vowel
harmony which operates in the stem-formative syllables and the consonant clusters
which result from the deletion of the stem-formative vowel before certain other
suffixes.21 In a footnote, Spotts expressed the intention to publish a paper later

20
Eunice V. Pike, “Tonemic-Intonemic Correlation in Mazahua (Otomi),” IJAL, XVII
(1951), 37-41.
21
Hazel Spotts, “Vowel Harmony and Consonant Sequences in Mazahua (Otomi),” IJAL,
XIX (1953), 253-58.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 10

“describing the rather intricate morphophonemics of Mazahua.”22 Unfortunately,

that paper has not yet appeared.

The present sketch of Mazahua phonology in terms of distinctive features and

morphophonemic rules is based on data in Spott’s article, supplemented by data
supplied by her and her colleagues Donald and Shirley Stewart, all members of the
Summer Institute of Linguistics.

The phonemes of Mazahua, as listed by Spotts, are as follows: (Phonemes

preceded by * are not necessary for specifying the base forms of morphemes.) p, t,
k, *kw, *b, *d, *g, *gw, *c, *X, s, š, *z, *Y, m, n, *ñ, w, *r, *l, y, i, e, [, S, ø, a, u, o,
ö, ], ^, S_, ã, a, and õ. The phoneme l occurs in Spanish loan words and in
onomatopoetic words. The other starred phonemes are the result of phonological
rules.

The segments to which generative phonology assigns distinctive features are

those which are necessary to distinguish the base forms of morphemes before the
application of the morphophonemic rules. The number of contrastive morpho-
phonemic segments is often substantially less than the number of segments needed
to handle the phonemic contrasts of the language, especially if the morphophonemic
rules are at all extensive. Only enough features are specified for the segments to
distinguish each segment from every other segment. The acoustic or articulatory
properties of the segments are one consideration for assigning features to segments,
but equally important is the structural consideration of assigning some common
feature to the segments which behave alike in the rules. Thus, the distinctive
features make possible a compact statement of the morphophonemic rules.

The features chosen to specify the morphophonemic segments of Mazahua

are: consonantal (cns), vocalic (voc), grave (grv), compact (cmp), continuant (cnt),
nasal (nas), glottal (gtl), diffuse (dff), and flat (flt). The presence of a feature is
marked with a. plus (+); the absence of a feature is marked with a minus (-) The
blank cells in the matrix indicate that the specification of that feature is irrelevant for
distinguishing the morphophonemes or for stating the rules. Table 4 shows the
distinctive features assigned to the specific segments. The segments w and y are
marked +consonantal and +vocalic in this treatment. McCawley marks w and y as
–consonantal and –vocalic. The w and y belong to the syllable onset in Mazahua,
but they are derived from elements of the syllable nucleus of POP.

In stating the rules, segments are specified by the minimum number of

features which will unambiguously identify them. The features specified to the right
of the arrow are only those which are different from those on the left. The arrow,

, is to be read “rewrite as” or “becomes.” Features belonging to the same
segment are enclosed in square brackets [ ]. Optional features or segments are
enclosed in parentheses ( ). Reference to a choice between two specifications for the
operation of a rule is symbolized by placing those items in curly brackets { }. Zero

22
Ibid., p. 256.
 11 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

is symbolized by ø. Word juncture is symbolized by #; morpheme juncture is

symbolized by &. Degree of morpheme juncture is marked by a subscript, e.g., &2.

TABLE 4
DISTINCTIVE FEATURE MATRIX FOR THE MORPHOPHONEMIC
SEGMENTS OF MAZAHUA

p t k s š w y m n 8 h
cns + + + + + +
gtl – – – – – – – – – + +
cnt – – – + + – +
nas – – – – + +
grv + – + – + + – + –
voc – – + +
cmp – +

i e : ; ø a u o ö
voc + + + + + + + + +
nas – – – – – – – – –
flt – – – + + +
grv – – – + + + + + +
cmp – – + – – + – – +
dff + – + – + –

? @ ;A ã C õ
voc + + + + + +
nas + + + + + +
flt – – + +
grv – – + + + +
dff + – + – + –
Greek letters are used instead of + or – in order to mark agreement for
stating rules of assimilation or dissimilation. The notation i grave, for instance,
means that that segment has the same specifications for graveness as that indicated
by i for some other segment in the rule. The notation –i grave means that that
segment has the opposite value for graveness from that marked by i elsewhere in
the rule.

Mazahua words are composed of a prefix, a stem and certain suffixes. The
morphophonemics of the interaction between prefix and stem are not treated in this
study nor are the alternations of initial consonants, which belong to an earlier
stratum of morphophonemic rules, some of which go back to Otopamean. There are
similarities between the rules which must have operated on the stem-initial
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 12

consonants and those which account for the combinations of suffix consonants. The
difference is that the conditioning environment for the operation of the rules for the
suffix consonants is found in the synchronic material whereas it must be
reconstructed from comparative evidence for the stem initial consonant alternations.

The stem is made up of a root which consists of an open syllable and usually
a stem formative suffix which is a consonant or a consonant cluster involving a
glottal element and/or a nasal. Verb stems may be followed by an object suffix or
by a benefactive suffix. The latter two suffix classes appear to be mutually
exclusive in the data upon which this study is based. The morphemes for the first
and second persons are the same for object or benefactive: -k for first person and –
kR for second person. Third person is unmarked for the object suffix. It is –p for
the benefactive. An object or benefactive suffix entails the insertion of an h between
the root vowel and a stem-formative suffix which does not contain a nasal or a
continuant. A benefactive suffix entails an extra degree of juncture which impedes
palatalization. Three degrees of morpheme juncture are distinguished between the
stem and the suffixes. The first degree is between the stem and the object suffix.
The second degree is between the stem and the benefactive suffix. Morpheme
junctures of the first and second degree entail the insertion of h. The third degree of
morpheme juncture is between the stem and the emphatic person suffix. The second
and third degree junctures impede palatalization.

Emphatic person markers are in a looser syntactic relationship to the word, as

is indicated by the third degree morpheme juncture. They may be suffixed to either
nouns or verbs. First person is –kö and second person is –kR[. Note that the person
markers here carry their own vowel as opposed to the corresponding suffixes cited
above. Presumably, the bound forms were derived by the deletion of the vowel from
the fuller forms. There is a further suffix order which marks the categories of
number and inclusive/exclusive. Figure 1 shows the morphological composition of
Mazahua verbs.

Prefix ROOT Stem-Formative &1 Object &3 Emphatic Number

Suffix &2 Benefactive Person Incl./excl.
Fig. 1. The morphological composition of Mazahua verbs

The morphophonemic rules described here are those which handle the
modifications resulting from sequences of suffix consonants. Because of insufficient
data they will not deal with the last suffix position (i.e., number and
inclusive/exclusive). The rules are divided into three groups. The first group
applies to the object and benefactive suffixes. The second group applies to the
emphatic person suffixes. The third group applies to the word as a whole, whether
or not there are any suffixes other than the stem-formative suffix.

The corpus of 86 forms upon which the present study is based was taken
from the illustrations of consonant clusters in the article by Spotts. The analysis of
the underlying forms is my own, suggested by Otomi cognate forms and confirmed
 13 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

in most instances by unaffixed Mazahua forms cited in other materials supplied by

Spotts and Stewart. The 86 forms are listed at the end of the rules along with the
analysis of their underlying forms and their meanings. The meanings are omitted in
the examples for the rules. The examples for the rules show the input for the rule in
parentheses, followed by the output of the rule. The input incorporates the result of
all previous rules.

Group 1
1. If an object or benefactive suffix is added to the stem, an h is inserted before a
stem-formative suffix which does not contain a nasal or a continuant. If there is no
stem-formative consonant, the h is inserted before the object or benefactive suffix.
The h introduced by this rule is subject to the later rules.

Expressed in distinctive features, the rule says that zero (Ø) becomes a
segment which is +glottal and +continuant (i.e., h) in the environment of a
preceding vowel and a following segment which is neither a nasal nor a continuant
or no segment at all and a morpheme juncture of first or second degree.

[− nas]
+ gtl  + voc  
∅→  in env. − cns  ___ [− cnt ] &1/ 2
+ cnt    ∅ 
 

Examples: 12 (phöt &2 p) phöht &2 p, 15 (tek &2 p) tehk &2 p, 16 p[t &2 p)
p[ht &2 p, 21 (RøtR &2 p) RøhtR &2 p, 22 (h^tR &2 p) h^htR &2 p, 41 (ta &2 p)
tah &2 p, 17 (ndek &2 k) ndehk &2 k, 18 (mb[t &2 k) mb[ht &2 k, 29 (mböt
&2 kR) mböht &2 kR, 30 (h[k &2 kR) h[hk &2 kR, 31 (h^tR &2 kR) h^htR &2 kR.

2. An h becomes a R if it precedes one or more stops followed by a R. The rule

applies to an h inserted by rule 1 as well as to an h of a stem-formative suffix.

+ gtl  − gtl  + gtl 

+ cnt  → [− cnt ] in env. ___ − cnt  − cnt 
   0  

Examples with inserted h from rule 1: 21 (RøhtR &2 p) RøRtR &2 p, 22 (h^htR
&2 p) h^RtR &2 p, 29 (mböht &2 kR) mböRt &2 kR, 30 (h[hk &2 kR) h[Rk &2 kR,
31 (h^htR &2 kR) h^RtR &2 kR. Examples with stem-formative h: 9 (penh &2
kR) penR &2 kR, 28 (tõh &2 kR) tõR &2 kR, 32 (wãmh &2 kR) wãmR &2 kR.

3. A R is inserted after –p if it is preceded by a consonant cluster containing a R. A R

is inserted between contiguous stops if a R follows.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 14

− gtl  + gtl  − cnt  

    &2   ___ 
+ gtl  − cnt  − cnt  + cmp 
∅→  in env.  
+ cnt  − gtl  ___ − gtl  + gtl  
− cnt  − cnt  − cnt  
     

Examples after –p: 21 (RøRtR &2 p) RøRtR &2 pR, 22 (h^RtR &2 p) h^RtR &2
pR, 23 (wãntR &2 p) wãntR &2 pR, 24 (w[ntR &2 p) w[ntR &2 pR. Examples
between stops: 29 (mböRt &2 kR) mböRtR &2 kR, 30 höRk &2 kR) höRkR &2
kR, 33 (hãnt &2 kR) hãntR &2 kR.

4. Delete R before –k except if the stem begins with a R.

+ gtl  − cnt 
− cnt  → ∅ in env. [− gtl] X___ &1/2 + cmp
   

Examples: 1 (zinR &1 k) zin &1 k, 19 (hñasR &2 k) hñas &2 k, 45 (kRasR &1
k) kRas &1 k, 47 (w[ntR &2 k) w[nt &2 k. Contrast 6 (Ry[nR &1 k) where R is
not deleted by this rule.

5. Following a front vowel the consonants t, k, and n are palatalized (add the feature
+sharp) to become X, c, and ñ, respectively. If the n is followed by a t or k with no
intervening R or juncture of more than the first degree, the stop is palatalized but not
the nasal. If there is an intervening R or a juncture of the second degree or greater,
then the nasal is palatalized but not the following stop. The palatalizable consonants
in a stem-formative suffix are always palatalized; those in an object suffix are
palatalized under the conditions just cited; those of a benefactive suffix or of an
emphatic person marker are never palatalized. Palatalization does not extend past
the first stop.

− cnt 
   + cns   
 − grv     ___ 
   
+ cmp  + voc  + nas  
     
  → [+ sharp] in env. − cns   & 2/3  
+ cns   − grv   ___ + gtl   
+ nas   
    − cnt   
− grv     

The morpheme junctures are not necessary for all of the rules. To simplify
the notation, the morpheme junctures will be omitted in the output of rule 5 and
elsewhere unless they are necessary for the statement of the rule.

Examples: 1 (zin &1 k) zinc, 4 (Rwin &2 p) Rwiñp, 5 (Rwin &1 kR) RwincR, 6
(Ry[nR &1 k) Ry[ñRk, 7 (Ry[nR &1 kR Ry[ñRkR, 9 (penR &2 kR) peñRkR, 15 (tehk
&2 p) tehcp, 16 (p[ht &2 p) p[hXp, 17 (ndehk &2 k) ndehck, 18 (mb[ht &2 k)
 15 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

mb[hXk, 22 (h^RtR &2 pR) h^RXRpR, 24 (w[ntR &2 pR) w[nXRpR, 30 (h[RkR &2
kR) h[RcRkR, 43 (zin &2 k) zink, 47 (w[nt &2 k) w[nXk, 48 (šenk &2 k) šenck.

Numbers 1 and 5 show palatalization of an object suffix because the stem-

formative is a nasal and there is no intervening R. The original R in number 1 was
deleted by rule 4. Number 43 has the same input as number 1 except for the
different morpheme juncture. The suffix in number 1 is an object; that in number 43
is a benefactive. The second degree juncture in 43 impeded palatalization. In
numbers 6, 7, and 9, the palatalization is impeded by a R intervening between the
nasal and the object suffix. The R in number 9 came from an original h via rule 2.

6. An m preceding a R or h, followed by a stop, loses its nasality completely

following an oral vowel (i.e., becomes p) or partially following a nasalized vowel
(i.e., becomes mp) if no juncture of more than second degree intervenes.

− nas   + voc 

    
  − cmp  − cns  
+ cns    − nas  
+ nas  → − cnt 
  + cns  − nas   in env.   ___ [+ gtl] &1/ 2 [− cnt ]
 + voc 
+ grv     
 + nas  − cmp  − cns  
    
+ grv  − cnt   + nas  

Examples: 20 (tøRmRp) tøRpRp, 27 (ndøRmRkR) ndøRpRkR, 32 (wãmRkR)

wãmpRkR, 40 (Xamhk) Xamphk, 38 (wãmhp) wãmphp.

7. Delete p when it is preceded by p and a glottal segment.

− cnt  − cnt 
− cmp → ∅ in env. − cmp [+ gtl] ___
   
+ grv  + grv 

Examples: 20 (tøRpRp) tøRpR, 38 (wãmphp) wãmph.

8. Delete a R between a nasal and a stop if the stem begins with a R or h.

 + gtl   + cns   − gtl 

 − cnt  → ∅ in env. [+ gtl ] X  + nas  ___  − cnt 
     

Examples: 6 (Ry[ñRk) Ry[ñk, 7 (Ry[ñRkR) Ry[ñkR, 42 (honRp) honp.

9. A predictable vowel is inserted after the suffix consonant(s) and before word
boundary. The five ordered rules which specify the predictable features of the
inserted vowels are grouped together under the same rule number. The first rule
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 16

generates a R as a stem-final consonant where none existed before. The remaining

rules share certain specifications of environment and may be considered parts of the
same rule.

(a) Insert a R before word boundary if there is no suffix consonant.

+ gtl  + voc
∅→  in env. − cns  ___ #
− cnt   

Examples: (ta) taR, cf. number 2; (pö) pöR, cf.number 11.

(b) Insert a copy of the root vowel before word boundary if the suffix
consonant is R or h. Note that (b) operates on the output of (a). Part (a) produces an
intermediate stage which does not appear in a terminal string as such.

+ voc
− cns  [+ gtl] #
 
1 2 3→ 1 2 1 3

Examples: (taR) taRa, cf. number 2; (pöR) pöRö, cf. number 11; (tõh),
tõhõ, cf. number 10.

(c) Insert a copy of the root vowel after the suffix consonant(s) if the root
vowel is –diffuse, -compact, and –flat (i.e., e, ø, ^, and ã).

+ voc 
− cns 
 
− dff 
  [+ cns]0 #
− cmp
− flt 
 
− grv 
1 2 3→ 1 2 1 3

Examples: (peñh) peñhe, cf. number 9; (RøtR) RøtRø, cf. number 21; (h^XR)
h^XR^, cf. number 31; (wãntR) wãntRã, cf. number 23.

(d) Insert a diffuse front vowel after the suffix consonant(s) and before word
boundary if the root is a front vowel (i.e., the vowels i and ] follow i, [, and ],
respectively). The ordering of part (d) after part (c) makes it unnecessary to specify
the root vowel by any more than –grave because the –diffuse, -compact front vowel
no longer occurs in this environment.
 17 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

+ voc 
− cns  + voc 
  − cns 
∅ → + dff  in env.   [+ cns]0 ___ #
  − grv 
− grv   
∝ nas ∝ nas

Examples: (siñR) siñRi, cf. number 1; (R[ñR) R[ñRi, cf. number 6; no example
of root ] in the corpus.

(e) Insert a diffuse central vowel (+diffuse, +grave, -flat) if the root vowel
is a nonfront vowel (+grave). The inserted vowel agrees in nasality with the root
vowel: the vowel S follows S, u, o, ö and a; S_ follows S_, a and õ.

+ voc 
− cns 
  + voc 
+ dff  − cns 
∅ →  in env.   [+ cns]0 ___ #
+ grv  + grv 
− flt   
∝ nas 
 
∝ nas 
Examples: (thSht) thShtS, cf. number 14; no example of oral u; (ponR) ponRS,
cf. number 8; (ph[t) ph[tS, cf. number 12; (wasR) wasRS, cf. number 36;
(hñS_hp) hñS_hpS_, cf.number 13; (hñasR) hñasRS_, cf. number 19; (tõhp)
tõhpS_, number 10.

10. An h and a following stop are transposed if the h is preceded by a nasal and if
the stop is followed by a vowel.

+ cns  + gtl  − gtl  + voc

+ nas  + cnt  − cnt  − cns 
       
1 2 3 4 → 1 3 2 4

Examples: 25 (kSnhpS) kSnphS, 26 (kSnhkS) kSnkhS.

11. Insert an h after a stop if the stop is preceded by a stop and an h.

− gtl  + gtl  − gtl  + voc

− cnt  + cnt  − cnt  − cns 
       
1 2 3 4 → 1 2 3 2 4

Examples: 40 (XamphkS_) XamphkhS_.

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 18

Group II
The rules in Group II resemble in part some of the rules in Group I, but there
are important differences conditioned by the different morpheme juncture. The first
group of rules dealt with the object and benefactive suffixes where the differences
between first and second person pivoted around the presence of R in the second
person form. The rules for adjusting the glottal elements in the suffixes never
permitted the contrast between –k and –kR to be disturbed. The second group of
rules deals with the emphatic person markers which are distinguished by different
vowels as well as by the glottal element. The morphophonemic rules of Group II
permit the modification of the glottal element of the suffixes because the vowels
maintain the contrast between first and second person.

12. A glottal segment and the following stop are transposed if a nasal consonant or a
nasalized vowel precedes the glottal segment and if a third degree juncture
intervenes between the glottal segment and the stop. This rule differs from rule 10 in
Group I in that a R may be transposed with a k of a first person marker whereas rule
10 permitted only an h to be transposed.

− gtl 
[+ nas] [+ gtl] &3   [− gtl]
− cnt 
1 2 3 4 → 1 3 2 4
Examples: 58 (kiñh &3 kö) kiñkhö, 65 (tamh &3 kö) tamkhö, 69 (kSnh &3 kö)
kSnkhö, 70 (peñh &3 kö) peñkhö, 74 (tøRmR &3 kö) tøRmkRö, 76 (šimR &3 kö)
šimkRö, 79 (pønR &3 kö) pønkRö, 80 (RonR &3 kö,) 81 (RomR &3 kö) RomkRö,23
82 (R[ñR &3 kö) R[ñkR[, 83 (pSnR &3 kö) pSnkRö, 84 (hS_mR &3 kö) hS_mkRö,
85 (tømR &3 kö) tømkRö.

13. Delete R after s and before –kö if a third degree juncture intervenes and if a
nonnasal segment precedes the sR.

− gtl  − gtl 
+ gtl     
− cnt  → ∅ in env. [− nas] + cnt  ___ &3 − cnt  [− gtl]
  − grv + cmp

Example: 62 (wasR &3 kö) waskö.

14. A sibilant preceding a stop which is not followed by a R is not specified for
graveness and may be preceded or followed by a glottal continuant. This means that
there is a neutralization of the point of articulation of sibilants in this environment
and that there may be an extra segment of glottal aspiration preceding or following
the sibilant.

23
The nasal before the k is phonetically a velar but is considered by Spotts as an allophone of
the bilabial nasal because it contrasts with n as in number 80 and because it is etymologically an m.
 19 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

− voc 
− gtl  OPT + gtl − voc + gtl
    − gtl 
− cnt  [− gtl]
  − gtl in env. ___
 
+ cnt  → + cnt   
 + cnt 
+ cnt     
 
∝ grv 

Examples: 19 (hñas &2 kS_) hñahskS_, 45 (kRas &1 kS) kRaška, 63 (paš &3
kö) pašh &3 kö.

15. A copy of the preceding glottal segment is inserted after a stop if the
preceding glottal element is preceded by a nonnasal consonant and if a third degree
juncture intervenes between the glottal segment and the stop.

− gtl  − gtl 
− voc [+ gtl] &3   [− gtl]
  − cnt 
1 2 3 4 → 1 2 3 2 4
Examples: 55 (oph &3 kö) ophkhö, 56 (bath &3 kö) bathkhö, 63 (pašh &3 kö)
pašhkhö, 71 (hicR &3 kö hicRkRö, 75 (paRtR &3 kö) paRtRkRö, 77 pSnsR &3 kö)
pSnsRkRö, 78 (matR &3 kö) matRkRö.

16. The R is deleted from –kR[ if preceded by ht and if a third degree juncture
intervenes. Contrast rule 2 in Group I where the juncture is of first or second degree
and the preceding h becomes a R.

+ gtl  + gtl  − cnt  − cnt 

− cnt  → ∅ in env. + cnt  − grv  &3 + cmp ___
      

Example: 51 (kwaht &3 kR[) kwahtk[.

17. The geminate cluster kk is simplified. Probably the rule could be generalized to
eliminate all geminate clusters, but only the simplification of kk is found in the
present corpus.

− cnt  − cnt 
+ cmp → ∅ in env. + cmp ___
   

Example: 24 (tShk &3 kö) tShkö.

The rule must be ordered after the palatalization rule as is seen in numbers 48
and 60 where the first in the sequence of two k’s is palatalized and the cluster is not
simplified: 48 (šenk &2 k) šenck, 60 (tek &3 kö) teckö.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 20

Group III
The rules in Group III are later rules. They are not conditioned by the
specific suffix classes or degrees of juncture.

18. After a vowel or a nasal, a stop (or sequence of stops) is voiced if followed by a
vowel with no intervening glottal segment. The segments X and c participate in this
rule because they are specified as –continuant.

+ voc 
 
− gtl  − cns   + voc
− cnt  → [+ vcd ] in env.   ___  
 0 + cns   − cns 
+ nas  
 
Examples: 4 (Rwiñpi) Rwiñbi, 3 (hñãntkã) hñãndgã, 6 (Ry[ñki) Ry[ñgi, 43
(zinki) zingi, 1 (zinci) zinki, 47 (w[nXki) w[nlgi, 48 (šencke) šenkge, 59
(cheXkö) chelgö, 60 (teckö) tekgö, 61 (phötkö) phödgö.

19. A voiced consonant becomes a continuant if it is +sharp or if it occurs after a

vowel.

+ sharp  
  
+ cns   _____  
+ vcd  → [+ cnt ] in env.  
  + voc ____ 
− cns  
  
Examples: (h[ki) h[zi, cf. 30; (p[li) p[Yi, cf. 16; 47 (w[nlgi) w[nYgi; 60
(tekgö) tezgö; 61 (phödgö) phörgö; (phödS) phörS, cf. 61. There are no
examples in the corpus of b or g in this position.

20. An h and the preceding nasal are metathesized if a vowel follows the h.

− cns  + gtl  + voc

+ nas  + cnt  − cns 
     
1 2 3 → 2 1 3

Examples: (peñhe) pehñe, cf. 9; (kSnhS) kShnS, cf.26; (wãmhã) wãhmã, cf.
32; (tamhS_) tahmS_, cf. 40; (kiñhi) kihñi, cf. 58.

21. A nasal consonant preceding R loses its nasality and is specified as +voiced if
the cluster occurs between oral vowels.
 21 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

− nas  + voc + voc

+ cns    − cns  ___ + gtl  − cns 
+ nas → − cnt  in env.   − cnt   
  + vcd − nas    − nas 
 

Examples: (ponRS) podRS, cf. 8; (tømRø, tøbRø, cf. 20; (siñRi) sidyRi, cf. 1;
(R[ñRi) R[dyRi, cf. 6; (šimRi) šibRi, cf. 76; (tøRmRø) tøRbRø, cf. 74.

22. Optionally, delete h after a nasalized vowel and before a stop.

+ gtl  OPT + voc − gtl 

+ cnt  ∅ in env.   ___  
  → + nas  − cnt 

Examples: 2 (tahkS_) takS_, 41 (tahpS_) tapS_. Contrast 54 tõkhö, where the h

was metathesized by rule 12.

23. Optionally insert an n after a nasalized vowel and before a stop.

+ cns 
OPT  + voc − gtl 
∅  + nas in env. + nas  ___ − cnt 
→     
− grv 

Examples: 2 (takS_) tankS_, 41 (tapS_) tanpS_. Again, contrast 54 tõkhö,

where no n is inserted.

The ordering of this rule after the voicing rule explains the fact that k and p
are not voiced after the n in numbers 2 and 41.

24. Optionally, a sequence of an oral vowel plus a nasal is re-written as the

corresponding nasalized vowel.

+ voc + voc
− cns  + cns  OPT − cns  in env. ___ − gtl 
  + nas →   − cnt 
− nas    + nas   

Example: (tøRmRkRö) tS_RkRö.

In this case there is no nasalized vowel specified as both –compact and –

diffuse as is the oral ø. The corresponding nasal vowel is the one marked +diffuse
with redundant –compact, i.e., S_.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 22

Sample Derivations
Three sample derivations show how the ordered rules operate on the
morphophonemic input. The form in parentheses gives the basic string of
morphophonemes. Rules that do not apply are marked --. When a rule applies, the
resultant form is written in and the rule is identified briefly. The input for a rule is
the form that precedes it. Following the sample derivations is the list of the 86 forms
on which the present study is based. For each form, the rule numbers are given
which apply to the derivation of that form.

1. (zinR &1 k) “he took me”

-- Rules 1, 2, and 3 do not apply.
zin &1k Rule 4, delete R before k.
zinc Rule 5, palatalization.
-- Rules 6, 7, and 8 do not apply.
zinci Rule 9, vowel insertion.
-- Rules 10 through 17 do not apply.
zinki Rule 18, voicing.
zinzi Rule 19, -cont > +cont.
-- Rules 20 through 24 do not apply.

30. (h[k &2 kR) “I left it for you”

h[hk &2 kR Rule 1, insert h.
h[Rk &2 kR Rule 2, h >R before cR.
h[RkR &2 kR Rule 3, insert R between stops.
-- Rule 4 does not apply.
h[RcRkR Rule 5, palatalization.
-- Rules 6, 7 and 8 do not apply.
h[RcRkRi Rule 9, vowel insertion.
-- Rules 10 through 24 do not apply.

38. (wãmh &2 p) “I plowed for him”

-- Rules 1 through 5 do not apply.
wãmph &2 p Rule 6, m > mp.
wãmph Rule 7, delete p.
 23 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

-- Rule 8 does not apply.

wãmphã Rule 9, vowel insertion
-- Rules 10 through 24 do not apply.

List of Forms on Which the Analysis Is Based

The form in parentheses gives the basic string of morphophonemes. The form
immediately following is the phonemic form of the terminal string. The third form is
that of the stem without suffixes. Following that are the meaning of the form with
suffixes and the numbers of the rules which belong to the derivation of that form.
Prefixes and tone marks have been omitted as they are not essential to the present
study. Stem-initial consonants are cited in phonemic form and not further broken
down into morphophonemes.

1. (zinR &1 k) zinzi, sidyRi, “he took me,” 4,5,9,18,19.

2. (ta &1 k) tankS_, taRa, “he owes me,” 1,9,22,23.

3. (hñãnt &1 k) hñãndgã, hãndã, “he saw me,” 9, 18.

4. (Rwin &2 p) Rwiñbi, Rwiñi, “I fed hers,” 5,9,18.

5. (Rwin &1 kR) RwincRi, Rwiñi, “I fed you,” 5,9.

6. (Ry[nR &1 k) Ry[ñgi, “he guided me,” 5,8,9.

7. (Ry[nR &1 kR) Ry[ñkRi, R[dyRi, “he guided you,” 5,8,9.

8. (ponR &2 kR) ponRkRS, podRS, “I sowed for you,” 9.

9. (penh &2 kR) peñRkRe, pehñe, “I sent to you,” 2,5,9.

10. (tõh &2 p) tõhpS, tõhõ, “I beat him,” 9.

11. (mbö &2 k) mböhkS, pöRö, “he sold to me,” 1,9.

12. (phöt &2 p) phöhtpS, phörS, “I guarded it for him,” 1,9.

13. (hñS_hp &2 k) hñS_hpkS_, hS_hpS_, “he removed it for me,” 9.

14. (XhSht &2 k) XhShtkS, thShtS, “you lighted it for me,” 9.

15. (tek &2 p) tehcpe, teze, “he finished his,” 1,5,9.

16. (p[t &2 p) p[hXpi, p[Yi, “I gathered for him,” 1,5,9.

17. (ndek &2 k) ndehcke, teze, “he finished mine,” 1,5,9.

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 24

18. (mb[t &2 k) mb[hXki, p[Yi, “he gathered for me,” 1,5,9.

19. (hñasR &2 k) hñahskS_, hasRS_ “add to it for me,” 4,9,14.

20. (tøRmR &2 p) tøRpRø, tøbRø, “I nailed it for him,” 6,7,9.

21. (RøtR &2 p) RøRtRpRø, RøtRø, “I made it for him,” 1,2,3,9.

22. (h^tR &2 p) h^RXRpR^, h^XR^, “I spun for him,” 1,2,3,5,9.

23. (wãntR &2 p) wãntRpRã, wãntRã, “I will mix it for him,” 3,9.

24. (w[ntR &2 p) w[nXRpRi, w[ntRi, “I scolded him for him,” 3,5,9.

25. (kSnh &2 p) kSnphS, kShnS, “I grind for him,” 9,10.

26. (kSnh &2 k) kSnkhS, “you are grinding for me,” 9,10.

27. (ndøRmR &2 kR) ndøRpRkRø, tøRbRø, “he sewed for you,” 6,9.

28. (tõh &1 kR) tõRkRS_, tõhõ, “I beat you,” 2,9.

29. (mböt &2 kR) mböRtRkRS, mbörS, “he will exchange with you,” 1,2,3,9.

30. (h[k &2 kR) h[RcRkRi, h[zi, “I left it for you,” 1,2,3,5,9.

31. (h^tR &2 kR) h^RXRkR^, h^XR^, “I spun it for you,” 1,2,3,5,9.

32. (wãmh &2 kR) wãmpRkRã, wãhmã, “he plowed for you,” 2,6,9.

33. (hãnt &1 kR) hãntRkRã, hãndã, “I see you,” 2,3,9.

34. (w[ntR &1 kR) w[nXRkRi, w[nXRi, “he scolded you,” 5,9.

35. (paš &2 kR) paškRS, pašS, “I swept for you,” 9.

36. (wasR &2 kR) wasRkRS, wasRS, “he watered it for you,” 9.

37. (ndöm &2 p) ndömbS, tömS, “he bought it for him,” 9,18.

38. (wãmh &2 p) wãmphã, wãhmã, “I plowed for him,” 6,7,9.

39. (mãmp &1 k) mãmbgã, mãmbã, “he accused me,” 9,18.

40. (Xamh &2 k) XamphkhS_, tahmS_,”sow it for me,” 6,9,11.

41. (ta &2 p) tanpS_, “I owe him,” 1,9,22,23.

42. (honR &2 p) honbS, hodRS, “I will look for him,” 7,9,18.
 25 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

43. (zinR &2 k) zingi, sidyRi, “he took him for me,” 4,5,18.

44. (hãnt &2 p) hãndbã, hãndã, “I saw for him,” 9,18.

45. (kRasR &1 k) kRaškS, kRasRS, “he is disturbing me,” 4,9,14.

46. (paš &2 p) pašpS, pašS, “he sweeps for him,” 9.

47. (w[ntR &2 k) w[nYgi, w[nXRi, “scold him for me,” 4,5,9,18,19.

48. (šenk &2 k) šenzge, šenze, “shell it for me,” 5,9,18,19.

Examples with Emphatic Person Markers”

49. (tShk &3 kö) tShkö, tShkS, “I see,” 17.

50. (t[hp &3 kö) t[hpkö, t[hpi, “I follow a path,” none.

51. (kwaht &3 kR[) kwahtk[, kwahti, “finish it (you),” 16.

52. (šihk &3 kö) šihckö, šihci, “tell me (emphatic),” 5.

53. (p[ht &3 kö) p[hXkö, p[Yi, “I (emphatic) gathered,” 5.

54. (tõh &3 kö) tõkhö, tõhõ, “I (emphatic) won,” 12.

55. (oph &3 kö) ophkhö, ophS, “I wrote,” 12.

56. (bath &3 kö) bathkhö, bRathS, “my pasture,” 12.

57. (kin &3 kö) kiñgö, kiñi, “I darned,” 5,18.

58. (kinh &3 kö) kiñkhö, kihñi, “I think,” 5,12.

59. (chet &3 kö) cheYgö, kheYe, “my skirt,” 5,18,19.

60. (tek &3 kö) tezgö, teze, “I finished,” 5,18,19.

61. (phöt &3 kö) phörgö, phörS, “I guarded,” 18,19.

62. (wasR &3 kö) waskö, wasRS, “I sprinkled,” 13.

63. (paš &3 kö) paškhö, pašS, “I swept,” 14,15.

64. (töm &3 kö) tömgö, tömS, “I bought,” 18.

65. (tamh &3 kö) tamkhö, tahmS_, “I will plant,” 12.

66. (RanR &3 kö) Rangö, RanRS_, “I gave,” 8,18.

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 26

67. (hãnt &3 kö) hãndgö, hãndã, “I looked,” 18.

68. (sinR &1 k &3 kö) sinzgö, sidyRi, “take me with you,” 4,5,18,19.

69. (kSnh &3 kö) kSnkhS, kShnS, “I will grind,” 12.

70. (penR &3 kö) peñkRö, pedyRe, “I will wash clothes,” 5,12.

71. (hi &1 kR &3 kö) hicRkRö, hihXi, “I teach you,” 5,15.

72. (hw^tR &3 kR[) hw^XRkR[, hw^XR^, “you will fan,” 5.

73. (chSsR &3 kR[) chSsRkR[, khSsRS, “you will draw water,” none.

74. (tøRmR &3 kö) tS_RkRö, tøRbRø, “I sewed,” 12,24.

75. (paRtR &3 kö) paRtRkRö, paRtRS, “I heated it,” 15.

76. (šimR &3 kö) šimkRö, šibRi, “I will wash dishes,” 12.

77. (pS_nsR &3 kö) pS_nsRkRö, pS_nsRS_, “I will smell it,” 15.

78. (matR &3 kö) matRkRö, matRS, “I called,” 15.

79. (pønR &3 kö) pønkRö, pødRø, “I threw it away,” 12.

80. (RonR &3 kö) RonkRö, RodRS, “I cut,” 12.

81. (RomR &3 kö) RomkRö, RobRS, “I lie down,” 12.

82. (R[nR &3 kö) R[ñkRö, R[dyRi, “I led,” 5,12.

83. (pSnR &3 kö) pSnkRö, pSnS, “I turned it over,” 12.

84. (hS_mR &3 kö) hS_mkRö, hS_mRS_, “I take,” 12.

85. (tømR &3 kö) tømkRö, tøbRø, “I nailed,” 12.

86. (pSm &3 kö) pSmgö, pSmS, “I turned around,” 18.

The relation of Mazahua phonemes to the morphophonemes is presented by

means of a Hoenigswald-like chart, as indicated earlier in the chapter. Table 5
presents the non-glottal consonants; Table 6 presents the glottal consonants.
Derivation from the morphophoneme with the same symbol is marked by an x in the
intersecting cell. Hyphens indicate a phoneme is derived from a cluster of morpho-
phonemes, e.g., k*w from kw is marked by x- under k and –x under w. Other
sources of phonemes are marked by rule number. If a phoneme is derived by a
sequence of rules, the rules are separated by a hyphen, e.g., r is derived from t by
voicing (18) and becoming continuant (19), marked by 18-19 in the intersecting cell.
 27 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

This study has dealt with the morphophonemics of suffixation. However, the
stem-initial consonantisms have probably shared some of the same rules. Because of
linguistic change it is not as easy to reconstruct the morphophonemics of the stem-
initials. The conditioning environments have disappeared in many cases. It does
seem reasonable, however, to assume that rules such as palatalization and voicing
also operated on stem-initials. In Table 5 a rule has been placed in parentheses to
indicate that there are no examples in the corpus, but the rule is needed to account
for observed relationships in the stem-initials.

The rules referred to in Table 5 are briefly summarized as follows:

5. palatalization
6. m becomes mp or p
7. delete p after preceding p
14. sibilant preceding stop may be either s or š
18. voice stop(s) after vowel or nasal and before vowel
19. a voiced noncontinuant becomes continuant
21. nasal loses nasality before R intervocalically
23. insert n after nasalized vowel before stop
24. oral vowel and following nasal may become nasalized vowel.

TABLE 5
RELATION OF MAZAHUA PHONEMES TO MORPHOPHONEMES
NONGLOTTAL CONSONANTS

Mphms p t k m n s š w y ø
.
P p x 6
h
o t x
n
e k x
m
e kw (x-) (-x)
s
b 18 21
d 18 21
g 18
gw (18-) (-x)
m x
n x 23
ñ 5,x- -x
c 5
L 5
s x
š 14 x
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 28

z 5-18-19
M 5-18-19
w 18-19 x
r 18-19
y 5-21 x
ø 7 18 24 24

TABLE 6
RELATION OF MAZAHUA PHONEMES TO MORPHOPHONEMES
GLOTTAL CONSONANTS

Mphms. 8 h Ø
P
h 8 x 2 3,15
o
n h x 11,15
e
m Ø 4,8 22
e 13,16
s
The rules referred to in Table 6 are briefly summarized as follows:
2. h becomes glottal before cR
3. insert R after p; insert R between stops
4. delete R before k, except if stem begins with R
8. delete R between nasal and stop if stem begins with R or h
11. insert an h after a stop
13. delete R after s
15. insert copy of R or h after stop
16. delete R From –kR[
22. delete h after nasalized vowel and before a stop

North Pame
The phonemics and morphophonemics of North Pame were described by
Lorna Gibson in 1956.24 She lists the following phonemes: (Phonemes preceded by
* are not necessary for specifying the underlying forms.) p, t, k, *q, b, d, *g, c, X,

24
Lorna F. Gibson, “Pame (Otomi) Phonemics and Morphophonemics,” IJAL, XXII (1956),
242-65.
 29 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

*f, s, *š, m, n, U, l, *ly, r, w, y, i, *e, [, a, o; suprasegmental nasalization; high,

falling, and low tone-stress phonemes. The *f is found only in Spanish loan words.

The morphophonemic information given by Gibson can be more

economically stated by (1) assuming different base forms in certain instances, (2)
setting up a set of morphophonemes specified by distinctive features, and (3)
ordering the rules with respect to one another.

The rules stated here take the contrastive forms of the stem alternants as a
threshold, not attempting to state rules for them.

North Pame words consist of a prefix, a stem and certain suffixes. In

addition to the stem alternants inherited from POP there are several
morphophonemic rules which need to be stated for the interaction of prefix and
stem. The bulk of the rules, however, deal with the interaction between stem and
suffixes and that between the suffixes themselves. The stem-formative suffixes of
NP are parallel to those of Mazahua, although fewer in number as a result of sound
change. They consist of a consonant or a consonant cluster containing R. (There is no
h in NP suffixes.) Stem-formative nasals are alveolar if in a cluster with R. They are
velar otherwise. The person markers are cognate with Mazahua: -k first person, -kR
second person, and –p third person.

Whereas the morphemes marking number and exclusive/inclusive were not

included in the morphophonemic rules of Mazahua because of insufficient date, they
figure prominently in the morphophonemic rules of NP. Some of these morphemes
are also cognate with Mazahua: -mR exclusive (Maz –mRe), -i dual (Maz –wi). There
are two plural markers, -n and –t. The –n may occur after –k or –kR. The –t may
occur after –p.

The distinctive features for North Pame morphophonemes are shown in

Table 7.

The set of rules in this study is built on the morphophonemic statements in

Gibson’s article. The examples are taken from there with the exception of the
examples for the first two rules where I have referred to the cognate sets. I have
modified her formulation of the base forms to eliminate the effect of any of the
rules. Gibson’s base forms are phonemic, forms that actually occur. Generative
phonology does not operate with this constraint, however. Rather, base forms are
specified in morphophonemic segments which will be adequate input for the set of
rules, whether or not they occur as such in an actual form.

TABLE 7
DISTINCTIVE FEATURE MATRIX FOR THE
MORPHOPHONEMES OF NORTH PAME
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 30

p t k b d c s w l m n 8 h
Cns + + + + + + + + + + + + +
Voc - - - - - - - + + - - - -
Gtl - - - - - - - - - - - + +
Nas - - - - - - - - - + +
Str - - - - - + +
Cnt - - - - - - + + + - +
Grv + - + + - + - + -
Cmp - - +
Vcd - - - + +

i o a : ? õ ã :A
Cns - - - - - - - -
Voc + + + + + + + +
Grv - + + - - + + -
Cmp - - + + - - + +
Nas - - - - + + + +

The rules have been restated in accordance with the modified base forms and
the concept of ordered rules.

The first two rules are not strictly synchronic because they are not formulated
on the basis of NP morphophonemic alternations but rather on evidence from forms
in cognate languages.25 They are included here, however, because they account for
the distributional peculiarities of nasals in the stem-formatives: only nR and U occur.
They also account for the segment U which is deleted before the dual –i whereas nR
or n (with the R deleted) undergo metathesis with the –i like the other consonants.

1. A stem-final nasal not in a cluster with R is velar. Examples: sãoU “night” (Maz
šõmS_, Mtz šømi); taogU “to buy” (Maz tömS, Mtz tami); togU “flower” (Maz
ndøhnø, Mtz tøni); kheigU “metate” (Maz khShnS, Mtz khSni).

+ cns 
+ nas  → [+ cmp] in env. V ___ #
 

This rule does not apply to morphemes marking number and exclusive/
inclusive, e.g., -n plural and –mR exclusive. These morphemes would be marked in
the underlying forms by a preceding morpheme juncture, &, thus: CV &n # and CV
&mR #. There is, of course, a morpheme boundary before the stem-formative, but it
is unmarked because it does not have these junctural features.

2. The glottal stop is deleted from the stem-formative if the nucleus of the root
contains a glottal stop. The evidence for this rule is inconsistent. It appears that the
R is not deleted from the cluster-cR. It is deleted from –lR in several instances, but

25
But see under rule 7 where there is a vestige of a distinction between *m and *n in the
stem-formatives.
 31 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

not in coRolR “to bite.” It seems to operate on all cases of –nR. The inconsistencies
may reflect dialect differences (of which Gibson cites several instances) or an
optional quality of the rule. The rule is necessary to account for stem-formative –n
(R deleted) which does not participate in rule 1. Compare t[h[dnR “to laugh” and
kkeRedn “to pull.”

+ gtl  + cns 
− cnt  → ∅ in env. V?V − str  ___ #
   

3. Stem-formative U (from rule 1) is deleted before the dual –i. Examples: (talón26-
i) talói “chickens (du.);” (snahhéon-i) snahhéoi “balance scales (du.);” (kywãn-i)
kywãi “men (du.).”

+ voc 
+ cns   
+ nas  → ∅ in env. ___ − cns  #
  − grv 
+ cmp  
− cmp

4. The dual suffix –i is metathesized with the preceding consonant. (Note that this
rule is ordered after the rule which deletes U before –i.) Examples: (skam][lR-i)
skam][ilyR “leeches (du.);” (stakRóahanR-i) stakRóahigUR “our planes (du. incl.);”
snanh[_R[nR-i) snanh[_R[iU “their pet names (du.).”

+ voc 
− cns 
[+ cns]   #
− grv 
 
− cmp
1 2 3 → 2 1 3

5. Nasalization extends to all vowels in the word which follow a nasalized vowel.
This rule accounts for the nasalization of the dual –i after nasalized vowels, e.g.,
(kywãn-i) kywãi “men (du.).” Nasalization of vowels is considered suprasegmental
by Gibson precisely because of this rule. Accordingly, she writes nasalization only
on the first nasalized vowel in the word.

+ voc
+ voc − cns  (X)
− cns  → [+ nas] in env.  
  + nas 

26
I write n as the underlying nasal because the contrast between n and m is neutralized and
the n (rather than m) is more parallel to the nR base form.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 32

6. The affricate c becomes the plain sibilant s before a suffix beginning with a stop
or a nasal, i.e., any consonant which is not strident nor glottal. Examples: (nlhocR-
pt) nlhospt “their sandals;” (sikaicR-k) šikyaisky “my crackers.”

+ cns 
− voc
+ str 
− cnt  → [+ cnt ] in env. ___ − str 
 
 
 
− gtl 

7. Nasals assimilate to the adjacent non-glottal non-nasal consonant whether or not

a glottal consonant intervenes. The nasal may be either a stem-formative or the
exclusive suffix –mR or the plural suffix –n. Examples: (skiwéhecR-n) skiwyéhesnR
“your umbrellas;” (stawéhecR-mR) stawéhesnR or stawéhesRn “our umbrellas;”
(talódn-t) talódnt Xhickens;” (mad`õn-k) mand`õUk “my elbow;” (nkhwín-pt)
Ukhwébmpt “their saliva.”

+ cns 
− nas 
+ cns   
+ nas → ∝ grv in env. ___/ - gtl  ___ / 27
  βcmp 
   
  ∝ grv
βcmp 

The nasal in the exclusive suffix –mR assimilates to the stem-formative nasal.
This assimilation appears to have preceded the operation of rule 1 which neutralizes
the point of articulation of stem-formative nasals. Compare the following examples:
(tóttõin-mR) tóttõemR “we surrendered ourselves (excl.),” where the stem-final was
probably *m; (stattáon-mR) stattábmR “our purchase (excl.),” where the stem-final
was *m (comparative evidence); (tímh[_n-mR) tímhy[_nR or tímhy[_nRn “we played
a game (excl.),” where the stem-final was probably *n; and (wánR]n-mR) wánR]UR
“we are sick (excl.),” where the stem final was probably *n and the U is due to the
palatalization rule which comes later.

The nasal in the plural suffix –n does not assimilate to the stem-formative
nasal. Examples: (tiháin-n) tihyáigUn “we remain (pl. incl.);” (ndanR]n-nn)
ndanR/]Un “we got sick (pl. incl.);” (pinkw/ãn-n) piUgyw/ãUn or piUgyw/ãUU “our
skeletons (pl. incl.);” (skittáon-n) skikkyáodn “your purchases (pl.),” where the
stem-final is *m on comparative evidence.

27
The slash at the end of the dash indicates that there is a choice of either-or, but not both.
 33 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

+ cns 
+ cns  + nas 
+ nas  → ∝ grv  in env.   ___ [+ gtl] #
  βcmp  ∝ grv 
+ grv   
 
βcmp 

8. A t is deleted before –p. A R is deleted before –p if it is preceded by n or l.

Examples: (silhèit-pt) šilyhept “their fans;” (silR`^heRt-pt) šilyR`^heRpt “their
spurs;” (randR/[h[nR-pt) randR`[h[bmpt “their money.”

The statement of this rule in distinctive features is more bulky than the
statement in terms of phonemes. Compare the following:

+ cns  
 
− cnt    ___  + cns 
− nas      − voc 
      
− grv    + cns   − nas 
 → ∅ in env.
−   − grv  ___   
 vcd
    − vcd 
− str   [+ voc]  + grv 
      
+ gtl   [+ nas]  − cmp
− cnt  
 

{t R} > p in env. {qqq {n l} } –p

9. The rules grouped under this number reduce the number of glottals in a cluster to
one and specify the placing of the glottal with respect to the other consonants.

(a) Delete the glottal from the stem-formative if there is a glottal in the
suffix.

+ gtl  + gtl 
− cnt  → ∅ in env. ___ & [+ cns ] − cnt  #
   

Examples: (nímbãiR-kRn) nímbyãikRU “your (pl.) music;” (stáncohoR-mR)

stáncohobmR “our chair (excl.).”

(b) Move the stem-formative R to the end of the word if it is followed by the
plural suffix –n. Examples: (skiwéhecR-n) skiwyéhesnR “your umbrella (pl.);”
(skíncohoR-n) skínXohodnR “your chair (pl.).”
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 34

+ cns 
+ gtl   
− cnt  + nas  #
  
− grv 
1 2 3 → 2 1 3

(c) The consonants in the exclusive suffix –mR may be metathesized

following a stem-formative consonant. If the preceding consonant is p or a
nonpalatalized t (i.e., a t not preceded by i), the transformation is obligatory.
Otherwise the transformation reflects different speech varieties. Examples:
(tin/^Rep-mR) tiUy/^RepRm “we appease him (excl.);” (tokkéRet-mR) tokkwéRetRn “we
defend him (excl.);” (stakéhelR-mR) stakéhelRn or stakéhelnR “our belt (excl.);”
(stahèit-mR) stahèikRU or stahèikUR “our fan (excl.);” (stawéhecR-mR) stawéhesnR or
stawéhesRn “our umbrella (excl.);” (stawáRailR-mR) stawáRailyRn or stawáRailynR
“our curing ceremony.”

+ cns 
− nas 
  + cns 
− cnt  & + nas  + gtl 
    − cnt 
− str  + grv   
− cmp
1 2 3 → 1 3 2

+ cns 
+ cns    + gtl 
− nas  & + nas  − cnt  OPT
  + grv   
1 2 3 → 1 3 2

10. An o which is the first member of a vowel cluster is deleted if the preceding
syllable does not contain an o. Compare (no-s”oilR) nosw”ilyR “I washed it” and
(la-s[oilR) lasR[ilyR “I wash it.” Note that this rule involves interaction between
prefix and stem.

 
+ voc   
− cns   + voc  + voc
  → ∅ in env.  − cns  [+ cns] ___  
+ grv    − cns 
  [+ cmp ]
− cmp  [− grv] 
 

11. The rules grouped under this number deal with the changes in the syllable
nucleus before a bilabial suffix (-p or –mR).
 35 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

(a) The vowel cluster ai becomes [ before a bilabial suffix. Examples:

(Ugobái-p) Ugob/[pt “their messengers;” (nambái-mR) namb/[bmR “our messengers;”
(nímbãiR-p) nímby[_Rp “his song.”28

 + voc + voc  + voc  1

 − cns − cns  − cns  + cns 
  →   in env. ___ + grv 
+ cmp − cmp + cmp  
    
 − cmp 
 + grv − grv  − grv 

(b) Delete the second vowel of other vowel clusters whether or not they are
interrupted by R or h. Examples: (kattào-mR) kattàbmR “our faces (excl.);” (taR/[Ro-
mR) taR/[R-bmR “we see how it is (excl.).”

+ cns 
+ voc + voc  
− cns  → ∅ in env. − cns  ([+ gtl]) ___ + grv 
    + cmp

(c) Insert after a R a duplicate of the vowel which precedes it if a bilabial

suffix follows. Example: (taR/[-bmR) taR/[R[bmR “we see how it is (excl.).”

+ voc  + voc 
− cns  − cns  + cns 
∅ →   in env.   [+ gtl] ___ + grv 
∝ grv  ∝ grv   
    − cmp
βcmp  βcmp 

12. The second in a sequence of identical vowels interrupted by R or h is deleted

before the dual suffix –i.
There is no deletion of the second in a sequence of nonidentical vowels.
Examples: (ndohwáRa-i) ndohwáRi “they brought it (du.);” but (ndowáhoR-i)
ndowáhoiR “they looked (du.).”

+ voc  + voc  + voc 

− cns  − cns   
  → ∅ in env.   [+ gtl] ___ − cns 
∝ grv  ∝ grv  − grv 
     
βcmp  βcmp  − cmp

28
McCawley suggests that part (a) say that the vowel a becomes [ in the environment before i
and a bilabial suffix. The i will then be deleted by part (b). I choose to keep my own version of part
(a) largely because coalescence rules like this are needed at several other places in the dissertation. To
use McCawley’s suggestion here would involve an intermediate stage which never occurs in an actual
form, i.e. [i. This is permissable in generative grammar, but I would like to avoid it at this point.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 36

13. Stops not in a cluster with h are voiced after the noun prefix n-.29 This rule also
involves interaction between prefix and stem. It does not apply to suffixes. It is
restricted to noun prefixes; it does not apply to the interaction between a nasal verb
prefix and the stem. Examples: (n-tón) ndógU “flowers;” (m-R-póho) mbRóho
“seats.”

+ cns 
− voc + cns 
  + nas 
− str  → [+ vcd] in env.   ___  + gtl  
  noun   − cnt  
 
− nas   
− gtl  prefix 

14. Insert a homorganic stop before a nasal when it is preceded by an oral vowel.
Examples: (tolléhiR-mR) tolléhebmR “we remove it (excl.);” (talón) talógU Xhicken;”
(tohhóRo-n) tohhóRodn “you are able (pl.).”

+ cns 
− nas 
  + cns 
+ voc  
∝ grv  − cns  ___ + nas 
∅ →   in env.  
βcmp  ∝ grv 
− nas   
− cnt  βcmp 
 
+ vcd 

15. Insert a y after a consonant which is preceded by the vowel i. Examples: (ski-
t/ãhanR skiky/ãhanR “your (sg.) soap;” (ki-n[ã) kiU`ã “your tongue;” (ni-s[ãs) niš[ãs
“you played (sg.);” (ndóhw^Roik), from (ndóhw^Rok-i) by metathesis of the dual –i,
ndóhw^Roiky “they paid me (du.).” This rule introduces a new segment, y. Further
rules will convert sequences of consonant plus y to the proper phonemic
representation.

+ cns  + voc 
+ voc − cnt  + voc 
∅ →   in env.   [+ cns] ___ − cns  
− grv  − grv   
 # 
     
+ cnt  − cmp

16. Insert a w after a k or a R or h when it is preceded by the vowel o. The situation

which results from this rule is identical with that resulting from rule 10 when the
consonants k, R, or h are involved. The correct underlying form cannot be

29
There are other sources of voiced stops in NP. The segments b and d must be
distinguished for the stem alternants. There is a voiced g in the very common noun prefix Ugo which
may have developed from *no. It is not always possible to determine if a Pame voiced stop goes back
to one of the voiced stops or to an original voiceless one.
 37 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

reconstructed on the basis of information from NP alone. The evidence comes from
cognate forms in the related languages. Examples: NP Ugohw[aogU “earth” (Maz
hömS, Mtz hami); NP hwà “wing” (Maz hwaha, Mtz nho). NP has an inserted w in
the first instance but an inherited o in the second instance.

 + cns 
+ voc   
+ cns  − cns   [+ gtl] 
∅ → + voc in env.   − voc   ___ + voc
+ grv   − cns 
   
+ grv    + grv  
− cmp + cmp 
   

The preceding rules account for most of the phonemic contrasts of North
Pame which are not directly derived from the morphophonemic segments. There are
a few things still to be explained: (1) the contrast between q and k, (2) the contrast
of i and e, and (3) the occurrence of b, d, g, and r in the prefixes.

The contrast between NP q and k is limited to the position before e or [,

according to Gibson. The back q occurs only before those vowels. The contrast
between these segments may be explained within the framework of the foregoing
rules. First, we assume some base forms of the shapes (ki), (k[), (koi), and (ko[).
Rule 10 says that o is deleted unless supported by an o in the preceding syllable if it
is the first member in a vowel cluster. Rule 16 inserts w after l if the preceding
syllable contains an o. The result of the two rules is the loss of contrast between the
(ki), (k[), (koi), and (ko[) with respect to the syllable nuclei. It appears that the
contrast between the morphemes was preserved via a rule which operated before the
o deletion rule. The rule would state that k was backed before the front vowels i and
[. The rule would not affect the k or the (koi and (ko[) morphemes. After the o-
deletion rule takes effect, the q and the k are in contrast.

There is some evidence for such an hypothesis in cognate sets with other
POP languages, but there is also come contradictory evidence. NP nakèigU, (-koi-)
“metate” (Maz khShnS); NP maqèi (-ki-) “fragrant” (Maz k]hmi); but NP khwéR
(-koi-) “beans” (Maz khSRS); NP waqqéRedn (-ki-) “pull” (Maz khSRbRS). I would
have expected Maz khiRbRi in the last case. Probably the conditioning factors are
more complex than our present knowledge permits us to formulate.

The contrast between the phonemes i and e is problematic on the synchronic

level. Gibson calls the phoneme /i/ “unstable, having a tendency to fluctuate from
[i] to [ei] and on to /ei/, whenever there is no /i/ in the preceding syllable of the
word.”30 Also, by one of her rules, i becomes e before a bilabial suffix. It is
impossible at this point to specify the rules responsible for the phonemic contrast of
i and e in NP, but it seems unnecessary to postulate both of them as
morphophonemes.

30
Gibson, loc. cit., p. 254.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 38

The occurrence of b, d, g, and r in the prefixes is difficult to explain, but

since r occurs only in the prefixes and g is unexplained only there, it is likely that
the whole group is derived from other morphophonemes by rules peculiar to the
prefixes.

Table 8 shows the relation of North Pame phonemes to mprphophonemes by

rule number. One further note may be necessary. The phonemic product of ty and
ky (rule 15) is /ky/; that of dy and gy is /gy/; and that of ny and Uy is /Uy/. Cy, sy,
and ly give /X/, /š/, and /ly/, respectively.

TABLE 8
RELATION OF NORTH PAME PHONEMES
TO MORPHOPHONEMES

Mphms. p t k b d m n c s
P p x
h t x
o k 15 x
n q H
e b 13 x 14
m d 13 x 14
e g 13-15 13 15 1- 1-14
14 14-15
s m x 7
n 7 x
T 1,7 1,7
c x
L 15
s 6 x
š 6-15 15

Mphms. w l 8 h Ø i : a o
P w x 16
h y 15
o l x
n lU 15
e 8 x
m h x
e i x
s e F
: 11 x 11
a x
o x

The rules referred to in Table 8 are briefly summarized as follows:

1. *m and *n become n(R) or U in stem-formatives
7. nasals assimilate to nonnasal consonants
6. c becomes s before stops
 39 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

11. ai becomes [ before bilabial suffix

13. stops are voiced after noun prefix n-
14. Transition between oral vowel and nasal
15. palatalization after i
16. labialization of k, R, and h after o
H. hypothesis for the development of q
F. phonetic range of i.

Phonology of the Other Otopamean Languages

The morphophonemic rules for the rest of the languages are negligible for the
purpose of interpreting the forms cited in the cognate sets. A listing of the
phonemes is sufficient. Proto-Otomi phonemes were reconstructed by Newman and
Weitlaner (1950)31 with revision of the consonant reconstructions by Bartholomew
(1960).32 Matlatzinca phonemes are my own analysis, based on a preliminary
phonemic statement by Andrews and Shell.33 No analysis of Ocuilteco phonemes is
available to me, but the transcription has been normalized in line with the analysis of
Matlatzinca. South Pame phonemes are those listed by Manrique.34 Chichimeco
phonemes are those described by Romero (1957-58).35

Table 9 displays the phonemes of the Otopamean languages. Abbreviations

for the languages are: Otomi (Ot), Mazahua (Maz), Matlatzinca (Mtz), Ocuilteco
(Oc), North Pame (NP), South Pame (SP), and Chichimeco (Ch).

TABLE 9
PHONEMES OF THE OTOPAMEAN LANGUAGES

p t k kw q b d g gw c L s š
Ot + + + + + + + + + +
Maz + + + + + + + + + + + +
Mtz + + + + + + + + +
Oc + + + + + + + +

31
Stanley Newman and Robert J. Weitlaner, Central Otomian I: Proto-Otomi
Reconstructions.”
32
Doris Bartholomew, loc. cit.
33
Henrietta Andrews and Olive Shell, “A Tentative Statement and Description of Matlatzinca
Phonemes with Their Distribution,” (Unpublished manuscript, 1945) A recent thesis on Matlatzinca at
the School of Anthropology in Mexico City by Daniel Cazés includes a study of the phonology. This
thesis was not available to me when I was working on the present reconstruction.
34
Leonardo Manrique Castañeda, “A Descriptive Sketch of South Pame (Jiliapan Dialect).”
35
Moisés Romero Castillo, “Los Fonemas del Chichimeco Jonaz,” Anales del Instituto
Nacional de Antropología e Historia, XI (1957-58), 289-99.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 40

NP + + + + + + + + + + +
SP + + + + + + + + + +
Ch + + + + + + + + +
 41 II Feature Survey of Phonologies

m n ñ T r w y l lU z M 8 h
Ot + + + + + + +
Maz + + + + + + + + + + +
Mtz + + + + + +
Oc + + + + + + +
NP + + + + + + + + + +
SP + + + + + + + + +
Ch + + + + + + + + +

i e : ; ø a u o ö V ü
Ot + + + + + + + + +
Maz + + + + + + + + +
Mtz + + + + + + +
Oc + + + + + + +
NP + + + + +
SP + + + + + + +
Ch + + + + + + +

? @ :A ;A ã C õ VA üA
Ot + + + +
Maz + + + + + +
Mtz
Oc
NP + + + + +
SP + + + + + +
Ch + + + + + + +

Table 10 displays the pitch phonemes. In the table they are symbolized by H
for high, L for low, F for falling, and R for rising. When written on words they are
symbolized by marks over the vowels, thus: á high, à low, [a falling, and ]a rising.
(If the vowel already has a diacritic / is used for high tone and ` for low tone.) The
synchronic pitch systems are discussed in more detail in the chapter on the
reconstruction of tone.

TABLE 10
PITCH PHONEMES OF THE OTOPAMEAN LANGUAGES

H L F R
Ot + + +
Maz + + + +
Mtz + +
Oc + +
NP + + +
Ch + +
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 42

Regrettably, forms cited in the cognate sets are not always phonemic. The
diverse sources, including several phonetic word lists and some transcriptions from
the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, make a complete phonemicization of the
forms a major undertaking. The phonemic framework outlined here should,
however, provide a control.

Some Matlatzinca forms are cited from transcriptions by early Catholic

missionaries: Castro (1557),36 Guevara (1638),37 and Basalenque (1640).38 Their
transcriptions were based on Spanish orthography. Some of the most frequent and
most important equivalences between the phonemes and their transcriptions are: /c/
tz, z, c; /š/ x, j; /w/ hu, v, u; /X/ ch; /k/ c(a/o/u), qu(i/e); /g/ g(a/o/u), gu(i/e); /y/ i, y;
/tR/, etc., tt by Castro, unmarked by Guevara; /th/, etc., th by Castro, unmarked by
Guevara; /S/ !u (slanted line under the vowel) or u by Castro, i by Guevara; /ø/ !a
(slanted line under the vowel) or a by Castro, e or oe/ue by Guevara; /h/ h or gh by
Castro, h, inconsistently, by Guevara; /i/ i or y. The transcriptions of Guevara and
Basalenque abound in double letters, most of which can be safely interpreted as
single sounds. Double stops in Castro’s transcription usually mark clusters with R.

36
Andrés de Castro, Vocabulario de la Lengua Matlatzinca. (1557 manuscript handwritten in
the margins of Molina’s Vocabulario de la Lengua Castellaño y Mexicana, México, 1555. Ms. in the
Library of the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundatin, New York.)
37
Miguel Guevara, “Arte Doctrinal y Modo Para Aprender la Lengua Matlatzinca,” Boletín
de la Sociedad Mexicana de Geografía y Estadística, IX (1862), 197-260.
38
Diego Basalenque, Arte y Vocabulario de la Lengua Matlatzinca. (Three known
manuscripts, 1640-46, (1) the library of the Museo Nacional de México, (2) the John Carter Brown
Library, Providence, R.I., and (3) the library of the Colegio del Estado de Puebla, México. The third
manuscript may in fact be the one listed in the catalogue of the private library of Salvador Ugarte in
Monterrey, N.L., México. The location in Puebla is according to García Payón in 1936. The 1954
Ugarte catalogue lists the Basalenque manuscript as number X of their collection.)
 CHAPTER III
THE RECONSTRUCTION OF STEM-INITIAL
CONSONANTS
The reconstruction of Otopamean stem-initial consonants must account for
the systems of consonant alternation of noun and verb stems which are found in
most of the daughter languages. This involves the reconstruction of the
morphological segments of the underlying forms and the specification of the
appropriate sets of morphophonemic rules for POP and for each of the daughter
languages. In addition to the morphophonemic rules which state regular sound
change (both conditioned and unconditioned), it is necessary to specify the
analogical change, syncretism, etc., in order to account for the patterns of consonant
alternation in the present day paradigms. Sometimes it is necessary to resort to
some plausible but otherwise unexplained phenomenon.

In the present day languages the alternations of stem-initial consonants occur

in various places in the noun or verb paradigm. The alternations may be accounted
for by the postulation of certain prefixes in the paradigms of the proto-language.
The morphophonemic interaction of prefix and root-initial consonant produced
modifications of the stem-initial consonant. Later sound change eliminated the
prefixes as sequentially preposed phonetic elements.

The prefixes postulated for POP probably expressed certain grammatical

categories similar to those found in the daughter languages. When the POP prefixes
signaling these categories were obscured by phonetic and morphophonemic change,
new forms of expressing these categories developed (also prefixes in most
instances), but vestiges of the old system remain as redundant markers of the
categories.

Working back from the categories of the present day languages, we can infer
something about the grammatical categories expressed by the old prefixes. Nouns
today are inflected to express possession and person of the possessor. Verbs are
inflected for person and aspect. Nouns and verbs may also be marked for number.
In Chichimeco and North Pame, four stem alternants must be distinguished for
nouns in paradigms making maximum distinctions. The forms correlate with (1)
first person possessor, (2) second person possessor, (3) third person singular
possessor, and (4) third person plural possessor or generalized nonpossessed. There
are at least two formal patterns. The first is labeled ABCD, the letters correlating
with the numbers 1234. The second pattern is labeled EFEF. In the second pattern,
the F form is derived from the ABCD pattern, the F being usually a D or a B form.

6/9/2010 43
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 44

The E form bears a relation to the F form which is very parallel to the relation the A
form bears to the B form. The EFEF pattern is well exemplified in North Pame; it is
less obvious in the Chichimeco material.

It is more difficult to assign specific grammatical functions to the four forms

which must be distinguished for NP and Ch verb stems. A larger number of
categories is involved with a commensurate number of prefixes. Only one pattern of
alternations has to be distinguished, fortunately. We make the assumption that
prefixes having a similar morphophonemic shape in the proto-language had similar
effects on the root-initial consonant. The fact that only four stem alternants need to
be distinguished may reflect a phonemic typology of prefix syllables which had
simple consonant-vowel patterns and a restricted inventory of phonemes. This is
true of the preset day languages where only three vowels and a restricted list of
consonants occur in the prefixes.

The ABCD forms for verbs cannot be neatly matched in NP and Ch with
respect to the grammatical categories expressed by the diagnostic forms. In
Chichimeco, ABCD forms occur in the anterior past aspect as follows: A first
person, B second person, C third person singular, and D third person plural. The
other aspects have different distributions of the ABCD forms with respect to the
persons. In contrast to Chichimeco, the diagnostic forms of North Pame are found
in the third person forms of the various aspects: A in the present progressive aspect,
B in the past or completive aspect, C in the future or incompletive aspect, and D in
the third person plural form of any of the aspects. The regularity with which the Ch
and NP forms match is justification for considering them cognate in spite of the
disparity of the present day grammatical categories expressed.

A horizon somewhat earlier than POP is involved when the stem alternants
are explained as the effect of old prefixes. By POP times the prefixes postulated
here had probably been severely truncated. There are enough correlations between
the present day prefixes to place their origin at the POP level. The advantage of
postulating underlying forms with a prefix is that the stem-initial consonant
alternations may then be accounted for with the most economical inventory of
segments. Morphophonemic rules account for the segments and distinctive features
which must be recognized for POP and for each of the daughter languages.

The segments necessary for specifying root-initial consonants are: p, t, k, m,

n, c, s, R, and h. The A forms had no prefix. The B forms had a prefix specified as
a vowel (V). The C forms had a prefix specified as a nasal consonant and a vowel
(NV). D forms are chronologically later. They may be built on A, B, or C forms.
The prefix for the D form has the allomorphic variants R, h, and t. The allomorph t
occurs with root-initial R or h. The allomorphs R and h occur in paradigms having
root-initial consonants other than R or h. The R occurs in paradigms with word-
initial p or t when the root vowel is oral. It also occurs in the paradigm for root-
initial c. The h occurs in the other paradigms.
 45 III Stem Initial Consonants

POP Developments
The following rules specify the morphophonemic developments common to
Otopamean:
1. Consonants are weakened following the prefix vowel.
2. The prefix vowel i metathesizes with root-initial R or h.
3. The prefix vowel is deleted elsewhere.
4. Clusters of prefix nasal and weakened stop consonant become nasals at
the point of articulation of the stop when they occur before oral vowels.
5. Weakened stop consonants become continuants when they occur before
oral vowels.
6. The s is replaced by c in the cluster *sh.
7. The paradigm for k before oral vowels is replaced by the paradigm for k
before nasalized vowels.

TABLE 11
POP STEM ALTERNANTS

A B C D
pV p w m mR39
tV t l n nR
p,V p tp Ntp tph
t,V t tt Ntt tth
k k tk Ntk tkh
c c tc Ntc tcR
s s ts Nts tch
m m tm Ntm tmh
n n tn Ntn tnh
8 R tR NtRi ttR
h h th Nthi tth

North Pame Developments

The developments in North Pame are specified in the next set of rules. This
set will account for the morphophonemic segments for North Pame. The recent
morphophonemic rules have been specified in Chapter II.
1. The nasal prefix is deleted except before R or h.
2. The D affix h becomes R by dissimilation to an h in the syllable nucleus of
the root.
39
The segmental placement of the glottal element of the D affix varies considerably in the
present day languages. Its ordering as an infix in the above chart reflects a dominant pattern.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 46

3. The t nasalV paradigm is substituted for the POP t oralV paradigm. (The
POP t oralV paradigm is preserved in the word for “mouth.”
4. Weakened t becomes the continuant l in clusters with R or h. D form t
also becomes l.
5. Nonweakened consonants are geminated.
6. Before an oral vowel *mR becomes b and *nR becomes d.

Table 12 shows the results of the NP rules.

TABLE 12
NORTH PAME STEM ALTERNANTS
A B C D
p oral V pp w m b
(t oral V tt l n d)40
p nasal V pp p p ph/pR41
t tt t t lh/lR
k kk k k kh/kR
cc cc c c cR
s ss s s ch
m mm m m mh
n nn n n nh
8 oral V RR R di lR
8 nasal V RR R nRi lR
h hh h nhi lh

Appendix A gives a list of 93 NP verb paradigms which illustrate the

predominant ABCD pattern.

Some of the noun paradigms of North Pame follow the ABCD pattern with
slight modifications. There is a preposed m before initial p in the A form if the root
vowel is oral. Appendix B gives a list of noun paradigms which illustrate the ABCD
pattern.

In addition to the ABCD pattern, another pattern is very frequently in NP

noun paradigms-the EFEF pattern. The F form is the base. It may match any of the
derived forms of the ABCD pattern. The E form is built on the F form. The
relations between the E form and the F form parallel the relations between the A
form and the B form in ABCD noun paradigms. An E form which corresponds to a
p, t, or k in the F form has a preposed nasal. An E form which corresponds to an m,

40
There are no examples in the NP corpus of a D form of a basic t paradigm before an oral
vowel. A d is the expected form.
41
A R is substituted for an h if the root nucleus contains an h.
 47 III Stem Initial Consonants

b, d, or s in the F form is a geminate. An E form which corresponds to an lh, lR, ll

or ww in the F form shows the corresponding nonweakened stop. Appendix C gives
a list of noun paradigms which illustrate the EFEF pattern.

Chichimeco Developments
The following rules specify the morphophonemic segments for the stem
alternants of Chichimeco.
1. A g is inserted before w.
2. The nasal prefix is deleted from C forms unless the root-initial consonant
is R or h.
3. The cluster *mR becomes mb; *nR becomes nd.
4. Weakened t becomes r in clusters with R and h.
5. Stem-initial weakened stops, including c, become voiced continuants.
6. A nasal prefix is inserted before B forms unless the root begins
with m, n, or s.
7. The cluster nR becomes t. (Note that this rule affects only the nR cluster
resulting from rule 6.)
8. The t nasalV paradigm is substituted for the t oralV paradigm. (A partial t
oralV paradigm survives in the word for “mouth” and in the kinship terms “parents-
in-law” and “older brother.” The t in the B form for “mouth” is probably due to
analogy with the A form and, perhaps, with the t in the B form of root-initial R
paradigms. The B form r in the kinship terms is the expected reflex, paralleling the
ngw B form.
9. The cR in the D form for root-initial c paradigms becomes ch by analogy
with the ch of the root-initial s paradigms and the predominant h in other D forms.

Table 13 shows the results of the Ch rules.

TABLE 13
CHICHIMECO STEM ALTERNANTS
A B C D
P oral V p ngw m mb
(t oral V t t/r n nd)42
P nasal V p mb v ph
t t nd r rh

42
There are no examples in the Ch corpus of a D form of a basic t paradigm before an oral
vowel. An nd is the expected form.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 48

k k k/ng43 g kh
c c c/nz43 z ch
s s s s ch
m m m m mh
n n n n nh
8 R t ndi rR
h h nhi44 nhi rh
Appendix D gives a list of verb paradigms which illustrate the ABCD forms.
Appendix E presents a list of nouns which illustrate the ABCD pattern; Appendix F
presents a list of nouns which illustrate the EFEF pattern; and Appendix G presents
a list of nouns which have the same form throughout the paradigm.

Consonant Alternations
in North Pame and Chichimeco Kinship Terms
Special mention should be made of the consonant alternations in the kinship
terminology. The patterns displayed in the paradigms for kinship terms cannot be
identified as ABCD or EFEF although the phonological relations present little that is
new. The different patterns are probably correlated with the fact that kinship terms
are obligatorily possessed and form a natural subclass for prefix allomorphs. The
kinship terms are more conservative in resisting the collapsing of t oralV and t nasal
V paradigms. It is interesting to note how closely the paradigms match in North
Pame and Chichimeco.

The following paragraphs present the cognate sets between North Pame and
Chichimeco for the kinship terms. The North Pame paradigms are from Lorna
Gibson45 and the Chichimeco paradigms are from Moisés Romero.46

The first three sets, cited below, show patterns similar to the POP tV and pV
paradigms but with the A form replaced by the B form; or, perhaps better said that
the A form must have had the same type of prefix as the B form.

“parents-in-law” t Q (Romero-Driver)
NP lugU ly`[gU wanugU
Ch úrí ùrí uní bùrí

43
The ng and nz forms are rare. The more common k and c forms are probably analogic
extensions of A forms.
44
The vowel i is probably an analogic extension from the C form. It does not occur in all the
paradigms.
45
Lorna Gibson, “El Sistema de Parentesco Pame,” Yan, II (1954), 77-84.
46
Romero collaborated with Harold and Wilhelmine Driver in the section on kinship in their
“Ethnography of the Chichimeco-Jonaz of Northeast Mexico,” Indiana University Research Center in
Anthropology, Folklore, and Linguistics, Pub. 26; IJAL, XXIX (1963), No. 2, Part II, pp. x-265.
 49 III Stem Initial Consonants

“older brother, etc.” t G (Romero-Driver)

NP láiR lyài wan[ai
Ch úru ùru unu
“father” t B (Romero-Driver)
NP rawuR wíy[oR wúmm[oR
Ch (tata) ùnkwuR umuR
The next two sets show A and B forms alike, this time looking like the
nonprefixed A forms. The C form looks like the ordinary C form of POP k nasalV
and t nasalV paradigms, but nasalized vowels show up only in the Chichimeco forms
of set F.

“wife’s brother, etc.” t O (Romero-Driver)

NP akkóaR, ekkoáR, wakoáR
ekkoáR akkoáR
Ch úkúR úkùR ugúR bùkúR
“grandmother” t D (Romero-Driver)
NP rattòi attòi watòi
Ch (n[aluR) ùt/ü `[luR èr/ü `[luR bùt/ü `[luRr
“grandmother” tF (Romero-Driver)
Ch nàt/ü_ ùt/ü_ `[r/ü_ b`at/ü_
The next two sets show B and C forms alike. The A form in the first case is
suppletive for both languages. In the second case, the A form is that expected in
ABCD patterns.

“mother” t E (Romero-Driver)
NP (rawí) ácRõ, écRõ wacR`õ
Ch (n/ãn/ã) úcR`a `[cR/a búcR`an
“wife’s sister, etc.” t P (Romero-Driver)
NP kommò kimò kamò
Ch kàm/a kám`a ínó kàm/a ígór kàm/ar
The next three sets show initial R in the A form. B and C forms are alike in
their consonantisms, implying that they shared a common prefix type. Ch has a
suppletive A form in the paradigm for “wife.” In the paradigm for “child,” Ch has
suppletive forms for A, B, and C. The C form listed here is actually a special
reference form.

“wife” t N (Romero-Driver)
NP RíaRa nRíaRa wánRia
Ch (mas/a) ùníRí úníRì bùníRín
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 50

“husband” t M (Romero-Driver)
NP Ryo/ãU nRo/ãU wanRo/ãU
Ch náR/a ùnR/a únR/a bùrR/a

“child” t L (Romero-Driver)
NP naR[i Ugodòi Ugod[oi UgolRwép
Ch út[ü bùrR/ü_
The last two sets show root-initial h. The set for “grandfather” looks like an
ABCD pattern except for the m in the Ch B form. The set for “woman’s sister”
looks like an EFEF pattern in which the E form looks like an old C form with
metathesized *i.

“grandfather, etc.” t C (Romero-Driver)

NP rah/]U wah/]U wanh/]U
Ch náhu_ ùmhu_ `[nhu_ bùmhu_Rr
“woman’s sister, etc.” t J (Romero-Driver)
NP hoèo nh[o nhèo
Ch nàhí únhò `[_nhí búnhò

Otomian Developments
The Otomian subgroup (Otomi, Mazahua, Matlatzinca, and Ocuilteco) had
considerably simplified the old system of stem alternants. The consonant alternation
in noun paradigms was eliminated, most commonly by generalizing the D form. In
verb paradigms, the B forms were replaced by C forms. Mazahua has developed a
palatalized stem alternant for second person forms of the same aspects which show a
C form in the third person. The palatalized alternant also occurs in second person
forms of noun paradigms. The development of the palatalized stem alternant was
early in the development of Mazahua because subsequent sound change has
obscured the conditioning environment. The D form of the t nasalV paradigm has
been replaced by the D form of the t oralV paradigm. Then, the old t oralV
paradigm was replaced by the new t nasalV paradigm. The D form of the original t
oralV paradigm is still preserved in nouns derived from verbs. There it has been
extended to include both oral and nasalized syllable nuclei.

Matlatzinca has eliminated altogether the consonant alternation in paradigms.

There is a remnant of the old system, however, in the derivation of nouns from
verbs. Such nouns have a C or D form from the otherwise eliminated verb
paradigms. Preliminary data from Ocuilteco suggest that the consonant alternations
have been eliminated from verb paradigms. There are some consonant alternations
in noun paradigms, but they do not especially match the POP alternations. There are
parallels in Mazahua, however, where some of the consonant alternations have been
 51 III Stem Initial Consonants

preserved in names for body parts. See Appendix H for the Oc and Maz noun
paradigms.

The following rules appear to be common to Otomian:

1. The D form of noun paradigms is generalized throughout the paradigms

(except, perhaps, for names of body parts and kinship terms).
2. The B forms have been replaced by the C forms.
3. The D forms of t nasalV paradigms have been replaced by the D forms of
the t oralV paradigms.
4. The D form of the old t nasalV paradigm in noun derivatives has been
extended to both oral and nasal root nuclei.
5. The old t oralV paradigm has been replaced by the new t nasalV
paradigm.

Table 14 shows the results of the Otomian rules.

TABLE 14
OTOMIAN STEM ALTERNANTS

A C D N47
P oral V p M mR mR
P nasal V p N-p ph ph
T t N-t nR th
K k N-k kh kh
C c N-c cR cR
S š48 N-š ch ch
M m N-m mh mh
N n N-n nh nh
8 R N-Ri tR tR
H h N-hi th th

Otomi adds one rule to the Otomian rules. It deletes the nasal prefix from the
C forms. Because of this rather simple modification of the Otomian chart, the
Otomi chart has been omitted. Otomi has certain internal morphophonemic rules:
1. Before oral vowels *mR becomes Rb; *nR becomes Rd.
2. Before nasal vowels the C form *i becomes ñ in the Western Otomi
dealects. Elsewhere, *i becomes Otomi y.
3. A form stops are pre-aspirated in the Eastern Otomi dialect and A form
nasals are geminated under certain conditions.

47
N stands for noun derivative.
48
In Otomian *s has become š
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 52

4. C form stops are voiced in the Western dialects.

Mazahua Developments
Mazahua has several rules in addition to the Otomian rules:
1. The nasal prefix is deleted from C forms except before stops and c.
2. The D form of the p nasalV paradigm is replaced by the D form of the p
oralV paradigm.
3. The D form of the old p nasalV paradigm is extended in noun derivatives
to some words with oral syllable nuclei.
4. The oral pV paradigm is replaced by the new p nasalV paradigm.
5. A R is substituted for h in the D form of the k paradigm by analogy with
the D forms of p and t paradigms.
6. A palatalized alternant for second person is developed for verb forms in
aspects where third person is a C form. The palatalization is based on the A form.

Table 15 shows the results of the Mazahua rules.

TABLE 15
MAZAHUA STEM ALTERNANTS
A P49 C D N
p p p mb mR ph/mR
t t X nd nR th/nR
k k c ng kR kh
c s s z sR sR
s š š š sh sh
m m m m mh mh
n n ñ n nh nh
8 R Ry Ry tR tR
h h hy hy th th

The chart assumes the application of certain phonetic and morphophonemic

rules within Mazahua;
POP *c becomes s.
Consonants following N are voiced.
The N is deleted preceding z.
The *i of C forms becomes y.
Palatalized t, k, n, R, and h become c, X, ñ, Ry, and hy, respectively.

49
P stands for the palatalized alternant.
 53 III Stem Initial Consonants

Further context-sensitive rules specify phonemic forms not on the chart:

Before nasal vowels, y becomes ñ.
Before oral vowels mR becomes bR; nR becomes dR; and ñR becomes dyR.
The sequence Ry, which occurs before oral vowels, also becomes Rdy.

Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco Developments

Matlatzinca shows D forms in noun derivatives. The following list of verbs
and their noun derivatives is compiled from entries in Castro’s 1557 Matlatzinca
dictionary manuscript.50 Castro’s orthography is retained. The morpheme breaks
are those inserted by Rudolph Schuller in 1930.51
pachi “lavar” pi-bachi “lugar de lavar”
paxi “barrer” yni-baxi “escoba”
pevi “hurtar” yni-phe-neeta “hurto”
tøvy “cantar” yn-thøvy “canción”
tami “comprar” yni-than-neeta “compra”
cuni “moler” ni-cunchhuni “masa”
ximhii “orinar” in-zhibi “orina”
xooqui “abrir” ni-zhooqui “llave”
nomi “arar” yni-nhoo-pahary “arado”
ury “vender” ttury “mercado”
yoxi “cenar” ini-ttoxi “cena”
yøø “hablar” in-yhøø “habla”
hagtii “hilar” ini-thati-neeta “hilar”
The relations between the consonantisms fit the Otomian pattern for A and N
forms: p:b (from *mR), p:ph, t:th, k:Xh (X from *k), s:ch, n:nh, R:tR, h:th, Ry(from C
form):tR, y(from C form):yh.

Table 16 displays the Otopamean stem-initial consonant correspondences. It

includes the Otomi and Matlatzinca correspondences, which have not been
previously displayed. Ocuilteco correspondences are not included because they are
basically the same as the Matlatzinca correspondences.

TABLE 16
OTOPAMEAN STEM-INITIAL CONSONANT CORRESPONDENCES

50
Andrés de Castro, op. cit.
51
Schuller planned to publish the Castro manuscript. In 1930, shortly before his death, he
prepared a transcription of the manuscript indicating morpheme breaks where he could identify them.
Now plans are again underway to publish this important document. The author has undertaken to
prepare a commentary on Matlatzinca phonology and Castro’s mode of transcription and also a study
of the derivation of nouns and verbs, based on the Castro dictionary.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 54

A Form
*p *t *k *c *s *m *n *8 *h
Ot p t k c š m n R h
Maz p t k s š m n R h
Mtz p t k/X c š m n R h
NP pp tt kk cc ss mm nn RR hh
Ch p t k c s m n R h

B Form
NP w/p l/t k c s m n R h
Ch ngw/nb r/nd k c nz m n t nhi

C Form
Ot m/b d g z š m n Ry hy
Maz mb nd ng z š m n Ry hy
NP m/p n/t k c s m n di nhi
Ch m/v n/r k/g z s m n ndi nhi

D Form
Ot Rm/ph Rn/th kh cR ch hm hn tR th
Maz mR/ph nR/th kR/kh sR sh hm hm tR th
Mtz b/ph (r)/th kh/Xh cR ch mh nh tR th
NP b/ph lh kh cR ch mh nh lR lh
Ch mb/ph rh kh ch ch mh nh rR rh

The following cognate sets illustrate the consonant alternations in Otomi,

Mazahua, North Pame, and Chichimeco. Illustrations of Matlatzinca A and D forms
(i.e., the nouns derived from verbs) were given above. The cognate sets below were
chosen for fullest representation from each of the constituent languages. Sometimes
the alternations in a particular language are not the simplest illustration of the basic
reflex cited in the above chart.
“Contar-count” *peR-t/nR
Ot A pede - Cm D Rm
Maz A peYe - C mb D bR
NP A pp[R[dn Bw Cm Db
Ch A pin B ngw Cm D mb

“Robar-Steal” *p^
Ot A p^ - Cb D ph
Maz A p^ - C mb D mR
NP A pp^ Bp Cp D ph
Ch A ppi B nb Cv D ph

“Decir-say” *mã-m
 55 III Stem Initial Consonants

Ot A mã - Cm D hm
Maz A mãmã - Cm D hm
NP A mmãU Bm Cm D mh
Ch A mã Bm Cm D mh
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 56

“Comprar-buy” *tao-m
Ot A töi - Cd D Rn
Maz A tömS - C nd D dR
NP A ttaogU Bt Ct D lh
Ch A ta B nd Cr D rh

“Sembrar-plant” *tõR-mh
Ot A taha - Cd D Rn
Maz A tahmS_ - C nd D nR
NP A ttõRo Bt Ct D lh
Ch A tu B nd Cr D rh

“mirar-look” *nõR
Ot A na - Cn D hn
Maz A naRa - Cn D hn
NP A nõRo Bn Cn D nh
Ch A nu Bn Cn D nh

“Negar-deny” *koHC-nR
Ot A køni - Cg D kh
Maz A kødRø - C ng D kR
NP A kko Bk Ck D kh
Ch A ko Bk Ck D kh

“Sentir-feel” *cao-R
Ot A cö - Cz D cR
Maz A söRö - Cz D sR
NP A ccaoR Bc Cc D cR

“Morder-bite” *coR-nR
Ot A coni -
Maz A zodRS -
NP A ccoRol Bc Cc D cR
Ch A con B nz Cz D zh (tch)

“decir-say *si-p
Ot A šiphi - Cš D ch
Maz A šiphi - Dš D sh
NP A sep Bs Cs D ch
Ch A se Bs Cs D ch

“Alzar-raise” *hõ-cR
Ot A hacRi - C hy D th
NP A hõsp Bh C nhi D lh
Ch A hu B nhi C nhi D rh
 57 III Stem Initial Consonants

“Dejar-leave” *hai-k/mR
Ot A h[gi - C hy D th
Maz A h[zi - C hy D th
NP A haigU B nhi C nhi D lh
Ch A he B nhi C nhi D rh

“Preguntar-ask a *Raoh-nR
question”
Ot A Röni - C Ry D tR
Maz A RönS - C dyR D tR
NP A RahodnR Bd Cd D lR
Ch A R-an Bt C nd D rR

Summary
The reconstruction of stem-initial consonants for POP assumes a small
inventory of underlying consonants: p, t, k, c, s, m, n, R, and h. The much larger
inventory of consonant phonemes and consonant clusters in the present day
languages is explained as the result of morphophonemic rules, diachronic sound
change, syncretism, etc. Specifically, four basic alternants have been identified for
all of Otopamean. The alternants are labeled A, B. C, and D. The B form shows the
weakening effect of a vocalic prefix with further modifications in some of the
daughter languages. The C form shows the effect of a prefix with both a nasal and a
vowel, again with further developments in the individual languages. The D form
contains a glottal element or a *t, according to the phonological characteristics of the
root-initial consonant. The pattern EFEF in NP and Ch and the N form in Otomian
are derived from the ABCD forms by further rules. In principle, the nine underlying
consonants are sufficient to handle all the forms and correspondences found in the
Otopamean languages. Many details are not yet clear, of course. Further study
should illuminate more of the processes and rules which will more specifically
account for these details.
 CHAPTER IV
THE RECONSTRUCTION
OF SYLLABLE NUCLEI OF ROOTS
The syllable nucleus of a POP root contained a vocalic element consisting of
a vowel or a cluster of two vowels. It might also have a glottal element (R or h)
which belonged to the vocalic element as a whole. If the vocalic element was a
single vowel, the vowel was geminated with the glottal element between the two
vowels. If it was a vowel cluster, the glottal element was inserted after the first
vowel. The POP underlying form is written with the glottal element immediately
following the vocalic element: V(V)(R/h).

The single vowels were *i, *e, *a, and *o and their nasalized counterparts *], *^, *ã,
and *õ. The vowel clusters display certain restrictions. There were no geminates and
no sequences of vowels that were non-grave (i and e) or compact (e and a). Clusters
were homogeneous with respect to nasality. There is no attestation for *õe or *^o as
distinct from *õi and *]o. The clusters which are reconstructed, then, are: *ao, *oa,
*ão, *õa, *ai, *ia, *ãi, *]a, *io, *oi, *]o, *õi, *oe, and *eo.

The metathesized *i in C forms (from the old prefix in R and h paradigms)

must also be considered as part of the syllable nucleus of the root, although it needs
to be distinguished from an original root *i because of its behavior in the reflexes. In
the Pamean languages the metathesized *i does not occur in the C forms of all R and
h paradigms. In the Otomian languages the pattern is much more pervasive. It is not
clear whether Pamean lost the metathesized *i in some instances or whether an
Otomian innovation extended a more restricted POP phenomenon.

Except for North Pame, and to some extent South Pame, the vowel systems
of the present day languages have eliminated the POP vowel clusters. North Pame is
the most conservative language with respect to the POP vowel system, but even
there some POP clusters are reduced by morphophonemic rules and some new
clusters are introduced aby other morphophonemic rules. Otomi has vowel clusters
with i as second member. Such clusters are not reflexes of POP clusters but result
from the loss of *m from the stem formative suffix.

The process of eliminating vowel clusters is an important part of the

development of the POP vowel system. One count of the cognate sets showed
approximately equal numbers of sets reflecting vowel clusters as those reflecting
single vowels, (240 for clusters and 239 for single vowels). Another indication of the
importance of the POP clusters is their influence on the vowel inventories of the

6/9/2010 58
 59 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

daughter languages. They are responsible for most of the additional segments in the
more complex present day inventories. Also, whereas the development of the single
vowels is relatively straightforward, the development of the vowel clusters presents
many intricacies as seen in divergent sets of correspondences and obscure conditions
for sound change.

Hoenigswald’s formalization of patterns of sound change52 focuses almost

exclusively on the development of the phoneme-sized segment. He mentions, of
course, cases of phonologization of former clusters as single phonemes and converse
cases of phoneme clusters developing from former single phonemes. But in
formalizing the change from a cluster to a single segment he considers one segment
to have been replaced by some phoneme of the daughter language and the other
segment to have been replaced by zero. He admits53 that it is often physically
arbitrary to decide which member has been replaced by zero. The importance of the
development of vowel clusters in Otopamean requires certain modifications and
refinements of the formalization of this aspect of sound change, The focus musts be
changed to the cluster. Hoenigswald recognizes the possibility of a focus on a
segment larger than the phoneme but does not develop that possibility.

In the Otopamean languages, the elimination of vowel clusters has taken

various courses. One course has been that under certain conditions an i or o vowel
which was the first member of the cluster has become consonantal y or w, leaving
the second vowel as the nucleus of the syllable. For example, POP *io results in Ot
yo and POP *oa results in Ot wa. A second course for the elimination of vowel
clusters has been that of the simple deletion of one of the members with no effect on
the remaining member as in POP *ao resulting in Ch a. The third course taken has
been the coalescence of the segments in a cluster such that the resulting vowel
shows the influence of both members of the cluster. The result may or may not
coincide with a segment already in the inventory of segments. It may resemble one
of the members of the original cluster but still be distinct from the normal reflex of
that sound which would be expected if simple deletion had taken place. For example,
POP *eo results in Ch e which resembles the first member of the cluster, but the
normal development of *e in ch is i. The resulting segment may not resemble either
member of the original cluster but still not introduce any new segment to the
inventory. This is the case in Mtz where POP *ai has resulted in Mtz e. Finally, of
course, the resulting segment may be distinct from any item already in the inventory
as when POP *oi resulted in Ch ü. In such a case a new segment is added to the
inventory and often a new distinctive feature must be introduced.

The relationships between the original clusters and their reflexes show certain
changes in distinctive features. It would be desirable to formalize the development
of clusters in ordered rules utilizing distinctive features. Such a formalization is not

52
Henry M. Hoenigswald, Language Change and Linguistic Reconstruction, (Chicago:
University of Chicago Press, 1960), viii-168.
53
Ibid., p. 92.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 60

without problems, however. It has been pointed out that the phonemes of the
daughter language cannot be equated with those of the proto-language because
different sets of oppositions are involved. By the same token, the statement of sound
change in terms of distinctive features involves different systems of distinctive
features for the two stages and sometimes different assignments of features to the
same phonetic segment. If the segment resulting from the elimination of a cluster is
stated in the distinctive features of the daughter language, the phoenic relations
between the earlier and later stages are obscured by the structural features. If the
resulting segment is stated in terms of the distinctive features of the earlier stage, the
phonetic features are in focus but the structural status of the resulting segment in the
daughter language is obscured.

Chichimeco affords an example of a shift in distinctive features between the

parent and the daughter language. The distinctive features of the POP vowels are
shown in Figure 2; those of Chichimeco vowels are shown in Figure 3. (All
segments are +vocalic and –consonantal.)
*i *e *a *o
Grv - - + +
Cmp - + + -

Fig. 2. Distinctive Feature Matrix of POP Vowels.

i e ü a o u
Grv - - - + + +
Cmp - + - + + -
Flt - - + - + +

Fig. 3. Distinctive Features Matrix of Chichimeco Vowels.

POP *oe results in Chichimeco u; POP *oi results in Chichimeco ü. This can
be envisaged in three stages.54 In the first stage, the POP o is raised before front
vowels: oe, oi > ue, ui.

+ voc  + voc
− cns  → [+ dff ] in env. ___ − cns 
   
− cmp − grv 

In the second stage, the u becomes fronted before the vowel i; u > ü.

54
The three stages were suggested by McCawley.
 61 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

+ voc + voc
− cns  → [− grv] in env. ___ − cns 
   
+ dff  + dff 

The third stage deletes the second vowel, leaving u and ü.

V → ∅ in env. V ___

The reflexes of the POP vowels and vowel clusters are presented in the
following sections. The conditioning environments for the reflexes will be specified
as fully as possible within the limits of the present data. Phonological enviroments
will be stated where possible. Where conditions are obscure and the data are limited,
the environments will be stated by listing the Spanish glosses of the cognate sets
where they are found. It should be made explicit that the reconstruction of POP and
the statement of the rules accounting for the reflexes in the daughter languages is not
final. The goal has been to reconstruct a reasonable and self-consistent system for
POP and to acount for the reflexes in sets of rules that are also reasonable and self-
consistent. There are still many problems and apparent contradictions which await
further data and more research. The illustrative cognate sets were chosen on the
basis of fullness of attestation from both the Otomian and the Pamean sub-groups.
The statement of environments for the reflexes is based on the larger corpus of
cognate sets and on internal reconstruction of the separate languages.

Following the presentation of the reflexes the development of the vowel

systems of the daughter languages will be siscussed in terms of the feature
modifications of the segments of the parent language and the re-arrangement of the
features to account for the segments in the inventories of the present day languages.

Reflexes of POP Single Vowels

The reflexes of POP single vowels are presented in table 17.

TABLE 17
REFLEXES OF POP SINGLE VOWELS

*i *o *e *a *? *õ *@ *ã
Ot i/S o/ø e a ] a [_ ã
Maz i/S o/ø e a ] a ^ ã
Mtz i/S o/ø e/a a i u e ø
Oc i/S o/ø e/a a i/in u/un e/en ø/øn
NP i/ei o [ a ]/^i õ [_ ã
Ch eí o I a ^ a ] ã
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 62

The pop non-compact vowels, i and o, were centralized in Otomian to S and

ø, repectively, in the environment of a centralizing element which has subsequently
disappeared. The North Pame reflexes of this centralizing element do not show a
vowel cluster. The cognate sets showing the S in the Otomian languages
corresponding to North Pame i and Chichimeco e all have initial k and postposed R
except for one set which has initial p and postposed R. The cognate sets showing S,
in the Otomian languages and o in Pamean havae more varied initials and postposed
elements.

The North Pame reflex of POP *i varies from i to ei or e. The i is usually

found when there is an i in the prefix. After a or o in the prefix the vowel tends to
be lowered although there are different idiolects in this respect.55 Chichimeco
regularly has the reflex e. It has the reflex i, however, for the metathesized *i of C
forms. The reflexes for the nasalized *] are parallel to the oral reflexes in the
Pamean languages.56

The Mtz and Oc reflex e for POP *e is restricted to the environment

following a y from a C form metathesized *i. Elsewhere the reflex a is found,
whichis a specifically South Otomian (i.e., Mtz-Oc) innovation.

The NP reflex of *e is [, still preserving the relative height distinction with

respect to its reflex of *i. the Chichimeco reflex i has reversed the relative height
relationship. Again, the oral and nasal reflexes are parallel in the Pamean languages.

The Otomi reflex [_ for POP *^ is a matter of reshuffling the distinctive

features and the choice of symbols for the particular bundles of distinctive features.
This is also case for the reflexes of POP *õ in the various languages. For languages
which distinguish o and u, the reflex for nasalized *õ is the higher vowel whereas
the reflex for the oral *o is the lower vowel.

The Ocuilteco reflexes of vowel plus nasal consonant for the POP nasalized
vowels occurs when there is a stop immediately following.

The Mtz-Oc reflexes e and ø for *^ and *ã, respectively, are distinguished
from the reflexes of oral *e and *a. The fact that the e reflex of *^ did not become a
indicates that the loss of nasalization was later than the change of oral *e to Mtz-Oc
a (except when preceded by *i).

55
See the discussion of the North Pame vowels in Gibson, “Pame (Otomi) Phonemics and
Morphophonemics,” p. 255.
56
The Pamean subgroup is composed of North Pame, South Pame, and Chichimeco Jonaz.
The south Pame reflexes are not given here because of the limited data.
 63 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

Illustrations for POP *i

(Ot i/;, Maz i/ ;, Mtz i/;, Oc i/;, NP i/ei, Ch e/i)
“ácido” Ot Riši Maz Riši
“*Ri-s Mtz tRiši Oc tRiš
NP Reiš SP cuš Ch Res

“chile” Ot Ri Maz RiRi

*Ri Mtz mi Oc mi
NP Rei SP Ri Ch Re

“saliva” Ot khihni Maz kR]hñ]

*ki-hn Mtz Xini Oc Xi
NP kkigU SP ki Ch kke

“sangre” Ot khi Maz khiRi

*khi Mtz Xi-hyabi Oc ndYi-hya
NP kkhi SP khi Ch khe

“ardilla” Ot minã Maz miñi (K)

*mi-nã Mtz mini Oc mi
NP meigU SP -- Ch --

“decir” Ot šiphi Maz šiphi

*si-p Mtz ši Oc --
NP sep SP -- Ch se

“gordo” Ot -- Maz piRi

*pi Mtz pi Oc nbi
Np mbi SP -- Ch mbe

“jalar” Ot khSRmi Maz khSbRS

*kiRHC-mR57 Mtz -- Oc ngSbi
NP qqRedn SP kuin Ch keRenR

“barbas” Ot khSni Maz kRSdRS

*khiHC-nR Mtz nXSri Oc nYSli
NP khwelR SP -- Ch --

“frijol” Ot khS Maz khSRS

*khiHC-R Mtz XhS Oc XhS
NP nkhweR SP -- Ch kheR

57
The HC symbolizes the centralizing element which has disappeared from the reflexes.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 64

“cintura” Ot ngStRi Maz nzSntRi

*kihHC- Mtz XSti Oc --
-tR/nR NP kRihilR SP gwihin Ch --

“hormiga” Ot (šã-)khS Maz (šãn)khã58

*khiHC Mtz XhSwi Oc --
XhS --
NP SP -- Ch khe

“espuma” Ot ph[ugi Maz phSgS

*phiHC-R Mtz phø
NP ppheR SP phwi Ch pheR

Illustrations for POP *o

(Ot o/ø, Maz o/ø, mtz o/ø, Oc o/ø, NP o, Ch o)
“negro” Ot pothi Maz pothS
*po Mtz bo Oc --
NP mbo SP mpu Ch mbo

“piojo” Ot tRoni Maz tRoRo

*tRo Mtz tRo Oc tRo
NP lRo SP ntRu Ch rRo

“morder” Ot coni Maz zodRS

*coR-nR NP coRol SP ca Ch con

“casa” Ot tRoši Maz tRošS

“cama” “nido”
*tRo-š Mtz tRoši Oc --
“cena”
NP lRos SP ntRus Ch rRos

“piedra” Ot do Maz ndo

*tto59 Mtz nto Oc ndo
NP to SP du Ch ro

“flor” Ot døni Maz ndøhnø

*ttoHC-n Mtz tøni Oc ndø
NP togU SP to Ch ro

58
The Maz vowel has been modified to fit the rules of vowel harmony because it is in the
second syllable of the word.
59
The t marks a weakened consonant at the POP stage.
 65 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

“gallina” Ot Røni Maz Røhnø

*RoHC-n Mtz Røni Oc Rø
NP RogU SP Ru Ch --
guajolote

“ir” Ot Røde Maz Rørø

*RoHC-t Mtz Røti Oc Røti
NP RoR SP Ru Ch Ro

“negar” Ot køni Maz kørø

*koHC-nR NP kko SP -- Ch ko

Illustrations for POP *e

(Ot e, Maz e, Maz e/a, Oc e/a, NP :, Ch i)
“agua” Ot dehe Maz ndehe
*tteh Mtz tawi Oc nda
NP t[ SP -- Ch ri

“contar” Ot pede Maz peYe

*pe-t/n Mtz -- Oc mbati
NP pp[R[dn SP -- Ch pin

“tejer” Ot pe Maz peRe

*pe Mtz pa Oc mba
NP pp[ SP we Ch pi

“araña” Ot meše Maz meše

*me-s Mtz maši Oc maši
NP m[s SP -- Ch --

“reirse” Ot thede Maz theYe

*the-t/n Mtz tati Oc tahti
NP tt[h[dnR SP tehe Ch teheRr “reir”

“boca” Ot ne Maz neRe

*ne Mtz na Oc --
NP n[ SP ne Ch ni

“gente” Ot te Maz teRe

*te Mtz -- Oc ta
NP l[ SP de Ch ri
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 66

“toser; Ot hehe Maz hehe

*hyeh60 Mtz hyewi Oc he61
“catarro”
NP hh[e SP thye Ch --

Illustrations for POP *a

(Ot a, Maz a, Mtz a, Oc a, NP a, Ch a)

“uno” Ot Rna Maz daha

*nRa Mtz dawi Oc la
NP nda SP Rna Ch ntRa

“tierra Ot Rmatha Maz bRathS

plana”
Mtz bati Oc bati
NP (ni-)bia SP -- Ch --

“caballo” Ot phani Maz phadRS

Mtz pari Oc bali
NP wahalR SP mphal Ch --

“calentar” Ot paRtRi Maz paRtRS

MTz pati Oc pati
NP ppalR SP -- Ch pan

“plato” Ot mada Maz ma-

Mtz mati Oc mahti
NP mmahagU SP -- Ch maha

Illustrations for POP *?

(Ot ?, Maz ?, Mtz i, Oc i/in, NP ?/@i, Ch @)
“petate” Ot š]-mph] Maz phi-ngwa
*p]h-R Mtz mphiwi Oc phi
NP pp^hiR SP -- Ch --

“hacer” NP R^i SP -- Ch R^
*R]

60
The y represents the *i of the C form. Only the forms for Mtz and Oc are C forms,
however.
61
Oc appears to have subsequently lost the y.
 67 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

“abrir” NP s]U SP nsi Ch sempf

*s]-n

“puerco” NP koz] SP -- Ch kuz^R

*ko-z]

“borracho” Ot nt] Maz t]Ri

*t/n] Mtz nimi Oc ni

Illustrations for POP *õ

(Ot C, Maz C, Mtz u, Oc uún, NP õ, Ch C)
“correr” Ot kai Maz --
*kõ-mR Mtz kubi Oc komu (R)
NP kkõR SP -- Ch kan

“mirar” Ot na Maz naRu

*nõ Mtz nu Oc --
NP nnõRo SP --

“atar” Ot tatRi Maz tantRi

*tõ-tR/cR Mtz tuncRi Oc tuncRi
“nudo”
NP ttocR62 SP -- Ch tucR
“nudo” “nudo”

“nombre” Ot thahu Maz thahu

*thõ-R Mtz šu, hyo63 Oc -lšu
NP lhõR SP nhnu Ch rhu

“dueño” Ot hma Maz hmaRa

*mhõ Mtz mhu Oc mhu
NP -mhiõR SP -- Ch mha

“morir” Ot ta Maz taRa

*tõ Mtz tuwi Oc tu
NP ttõ SP da Ch ra

“sembrar” Ot taha Maz tahmS_

*tõ-mh Mtz tumi Oc --
NP ttõRo SP -- Ch taRun

62
The vowel in the NP and Ch forms is oral. This is one of the few cases where cognates do
not match with respect to nasality of the vowel.
63
The Mtz and Oc forms are C forms of a root initial h. The other languages havae D forms.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 68

Illustrations for POP *@

(Ot :A, Maz e, Mtz e, Oc e/en, NP :A, Ch ?)
“robar” Ot p[_ Maz p^
*p^ Mtz pewi Oc pe
NP pp[_ SP -- Ch pp]

“tortilla” Ot hm[_ Maz --

*mh^ Mtz mhewi Oc mhe
NP mh[_ SP mh^ Ch -

“tamale” Ot th[_di Maz th^Y^

*th^-t Mtz theti Oc thenti64
NP lh[_R[_ SP nth^R^ Ch rR]h]

“atole” Ot tR[_i Maz tR^hm^

*tR^-m Mtz tRemi Oc tRe
NP lR[_U SP tR^R Ch rR]

Illustrations for POP *ã

(Ot ã, Maz a, Mtz ø, Oc ø/øn, NP ã, Ch ã)
“asar” Ot hãši Maz hãša
*hã-s Mtz høši Oc høši
NP hãs SP hwãš

“grano” Ot chãši Maz šaša “sarna”

*chã-s Mtz -- Oc cøši
NP chast SP ncãs Ch cãs
“comezón” “viruela” “viruela”

“decir” Ot mã Maz mãmã

*mã-m Mtz mømi Oc mø
NP mmãU SP -- Ch mã

“saber” Ot pãdi Maz pãra

*pã- Mtz pøya Oc mbøya
NP ppã SP pã Ch pã
“visitar” “ver”

“bajar” Ot kãi Maz --

*kã-mR Mtz Xãbi Oc --
NP kãRt SP gwahat Ch --
64
This is an instance where Oc has vowel plus nasal before a stop as the reflex of a nasalized
vowel.
 69 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

Reflexes of POP Vowel Clusters

The reflexes of POP vowel clusters involving *a and *c are presented in
Table 18.

The coalescence of POP *ao to ö is a central Otomian innovation. It

introduces a new segment to the inventory of vowel phonemes and involves
additional distinctive features.

TABLE 18
REFLEXES OF POP CLUSTERS INVOLVING *A AND *O

*ao *oa *ão *õa

Ot ö wa/a a wã/ã
Maz ö wa/ö õ wã/õ
Mtz a/o wa/o ø u
Oc a/o wa/o ø u
Np ao/a oa ão/ã õa
Ch a u ã a
The wa reflex of *oa in Ot-Maz is found after root initial *h, *R, *k, and *n.
In other positions the Otomi reflex shows the deletion of the first member of the
cluster.
The Maz reflex ö for *oa shows the same coalescence of the vowels as has
taken place in the reflex of *ao where the vowels are in the other order.
The Ot-Maz reflexes for nasalized *õa parallel the reflexes for the oral
cluster.
The Ot-Maz reflexes for POP *ão are coalescences of the cluster with
subsquent assignment of the resulting segment to a in Otomi and to õ in Mazahua.

The Mtz-Oc reflex o for *ao is found after *c and in the words “parar” and
“pararse” which have initial b (from *mR). The reflex a occurs elsewhere.
The Mtz-Oc reflex wa for *oa is found after *k. The reflex o is found
elsewhere.
The Mtz-Oc reflexes ø and u for *ão and *õa respectively, show loss of the
second member of the cluster and the regular development for *ã and *õ.

The North Pame reflexes of the clusters show retentions in all cases. A NP
morphophonemic rule deletes the second vowel of *ao and *ão before bilabial
suffixes.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 70

The Chichimeco reflexes show simple deletion of the second member of the
cluster for *ao, *ão, and *õa. The reflex u for the oral *oa shows the influence of the
second member in the clster. The normal development of *o is chichimeco o.

Illustrations for POP *ao

(Ot-Maz ö, Mtz a/o, NP ao/a, Ch a)
“comprar” Ot tö Maz tömS
*tao-m Mtz tami Oc ta
NP ttaogU SP ntaw Ch ta

“moco” Ot Rmöši Maz bRöši

*mRao-s Mtz maši Oc maši
“nariz” “nariz”
NP mbaos SP mbaw Ch --

“ojo” Ot dö Maz ndöRö

*ttao Mtz nta Oc ta
NP tao SP ntaw Ch ra

“probar” Ot cö Maz söRö

Mtz copi Oc co
NP ccaoR SP -- Ch ndza

“aguacate” Ot cRöni Maz sRöhnS

*cRao-n Mtz cRoni Oc cRo
NP cRaogU SP ncRawn Ch --

“ombligo” Ot cRöi Maz sRönRS65

*cao-m Mtz cómi65 Oc nzó&&
NP caogU SP -- Ch --

“pararse” Ot Rmöi Maz bRöbRS

*mRao-mR Mtz -- Oc nbohobi

“preguntar” Ot Röni Maz RönS

*Rao-nR Mtz Rari Oc Ratki
NP RahodnR Sp -- Ch R-an

“enterrar” Ot Rögi Maz RögS

*Rao-k Mtz Raki Oc Raki
NP RRaogU Sp -- Ch Ra

65
The iregular correspondences for this word in Mazahua and in Mtz-Oc may be due to an
association between the avocado seed and the baby’s umbilical cord. Babies wear avocado seeds
around their necks as charms. The Maz stem formative nasal is the same for “ombligo” and
aguacate”. The Mtz-Oc vowel ó in “ombligo” looks like a reflex of a nasalized cluster *ão.
 71 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

“tierra” Ot höi Maz hömS

*hao-m Mtz hami Oc ha
NP haogU SP (i-)hyaw Ch ha

Illustrations for POP *oa

(Ot wa/a, Maz wa/ö, Mtz-Oc wa/o, NP oa, Ch u)
“murciélago” Ot cacRi Maz --
*coa-cR Mtz cocRi Oc cocRi
NP XoacR SP nXuac Ch --

“blanco” Ot tRaši Maz tRöšS

*tRoa-s Mtz tRoši Oc --
*nRoa NP doa SP ndoa Ch nuRu

“arado” Ot tRabi Maz tRöbi

*tRoa-p Mtz tRopi Oc tRopi
NP -- SP ntRoa Ch rRu

“ala” Ot hwa Maz hwaRa

*hoa Mtz nhowi Oc (li)nho
NP hwa SP nhnoa Ch --

“pie” Ot gwa Maz ngwaRa

*-koa Mtz kwahtu Oc --
“pierna”
NP koa SP gwa Ch gu

“maguey” Ot Rwada Maz RwarS

*nRoa Mtz -- Oc --
NP ddoa SP (si)ndyoa Ch nRu

Illustrations for POP *ão

(Ot C, Maz õ, Mtz-Oc ø, NP ão/ã, Ch ã)
“amargo” Ot kha Maz khõRo
*khão Mtz Xhø Oc Xhø
NP khão SP -- Ch khã

“cantar” Ot tahu Maz tõho

*tãoh Mtz tøwi Oc tø
NP ndão SP -- Ch --

“mes” Mtz mbø Oc bø

*mRão-R NP mRãoR SP mRmõ Ch mRãR
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 72

“noche” Ot šai Maz šõmS

*são-m Mtz šømi Oc -lšu
NP são SP sãw Ch sã

“sombra” Ot šadi Maz šõrS

*são-t/mR Mtz šubi66 Oc Xhubi66
NP sãot SP -- Ch --

“oreja” Ot ga Maz ngõRo

*-kão Mtz nXø Oc ndYø
NP (Xi)kyão SP (ši)giãw Ch (si)gã

Illustrations for POP *õa

(Ot wã/ã, Maz wã/õ, Mtz-Oc u, NP õa, Ch C)
“maiz” Ot thã Maz thõRo
*thõa Mtz thuwi Oc thu
NP lhõa SP ntha Ch --

“milpa” Ot hwãhi Maz hwãhma

*nhõa-hm Mtz nomi Oc nu
NP nhwã SP nhna Ch nha

“confesar” Ot khwãni Maz khwãRma

*kõah-mV67 Mtz kunya Oc ku/keyungya
NP kkwãho SP -- Ch --

“camote” Ot bøkRwã Maz ngwãRma

*kRõa-mR Mtz -- Oc bønXu
NP -- SP pikhwã Ch --

The reflexes of POP vowel clusters involving *a and *i are presented in

Table 19.

TABLE 19
REFLEXES OF POP CLUSTERS INVOLVING *A AND *I
*ai *ia *ãi *?a
Ot [ ya [_ yã/ã
Maz [ ya [_ yã/]/S_
Mtz e/a -- ø u/ø/S
Oc e/a -- ø i/u/ø/S
Np ai/[/a ia ãi ]a/^
Ch e -- ^ ]/^
66
The Mtz-Oc reflex u parallels their o reflex for the oral cluster *ao. Here the difference in
sffix distinguishes “sombra” from closely related “noche”.
67
The reconstruction of the stem formative syllable is obscure.
 73 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

The Otmi reflex yã for POP *]a occurs after *R, *h, and *n. The reflex ã
occurs elsewhere. The Mazahua reflex yã occurs in the word “tijeras” which has
initial R. The phonetic conditions are obscure for the occurrence of the other
reflexes. The reflex i (or ]) occurs in the words “caro”, “cabeza”, and “dormir”. The
reflex S_ occurs elsewhere.

The Mtz-Oc reflex e for *ai occurs in C forms after y from metathesized *i.
The reflex a occurs elsewere. The distribution of the reflexes of *ai parallels that of
the reflexes of *e. It is possible that the early reflex of *ai was Mtz-Oc e and that it
merged with the early reflex of *e and participated in the subsequent split to e (after
y and w) and a (elsewhere).

The Mtz-Oc reflex ø for *ãi shows deletion of the second member and the
regular development of *ã.

The Matlatzinca reflex of *]a is u in the words “cabeza”, “caro”, “lengua”,

“oler”, and “ixtle”. It is ø in the words “dormir”, hilo”, and “metate”. The
phonological conditions are not clear although there seems to be some connection
between the u reflex and the preceding palatalized consonants.

The Ocuilteco reflex of *]a is i in the word “ lengua”. It is u (as it is in Mtz)

in the words “caro”, and “oler”, and “ixtle”. It is ø in “contestar”. It is S in
“dormir”, “hilo”, “metate”.

North Pame has the reflexes ai and ãi for POP *ai and *ãi. A NP
morphophonemic rule accounts for the coalescence of ai to [ before a bilabial suffix.
The reflex a occurs when the cluster is preceded by a metathesized *i of a C form. It
occurs in some B forms also, although not preceded by i. Presumably this is due to
analogy with C forms.

North Pame shows a conservative reflex for the rare cluster *ia. It has the
conservative reflex ]a for nasalised *]a in “tijeras”. elsewhere the reflex for *]a is ^,
showing a coalescence of the cluster.

Chichimeco has a reflex i for *]a in “tijers” as if it were a C form with

metathesized *i. Elsewhere the Ch reflex is ^. The Chichimeco reflexes e and ^ for
*ai and *ãi show a coalescence of the clusters and a merger with the reflexes of *i
and *], repectively.
 The Reconstruction of Otopamean 74

Illustrations for POP *ai

(Ot-Maz :, Mtz-Oc e/a, NP ai/:/a, Ch e)
“mandar” Ot p[hni Maz pehñe68
*pai-hn Mtz pan-ta Oc --
NP ppai SP -- Ch pe

“dejar” Ot h[gi Maz h[zi

*hai-k/mR Mtz habi Oc habi
NP haigU SP -- Ch he

“dejar” Ot hy[gi Maz hy[zi

(C form) Mtz heXi Oc heXi
*hiai-k NP nhiagU SP -- Ch nhi

“perder” Ot Rm[di Maz bR[zi

*mRai-t Mtz bati Oc bati

“golpear” Ot ph[Rmi Maz --

*paih-R Mtz papi Oc --
NP ppahiR SP -- Ch pe

“tocar Ot p[i Maz ph[bRi

musica”
*pai-mR Mtz papi Oc mbapi
NP -- SP -- Ch pen

Illustrations for POP *ia

(Ot-Maz ya, NP ia)
“amanecer” Ot hyacRi Maz hyãsRS
(C form) Mtz hyabi Oc hya “oriente”
*hia-cR NP nhãs

“higado” Ot ya Maz --
*nia Mtz ya Oc ya
“corazon” “corazon”
NP nia SP nkRia Ch --

“podrido” Ot Rya Maz dyRaRa

*Ria Mtz ya Oc ya
NP yyã69 SP Ch --

68
The Maz e is due to stem formative suffix.
 75 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

“mano” Ot Ry[ Maz dyR[R[

(C form Mtz ye Oc ye
*Riai NP Rai (A) SP -- Ch Ra (A)
nRa (B) nRa (B)
nRia (C) nRi (C)

Illustrations for *ãi

(Ot :A, Maz @, Mtz-Oc ø, NP ãi, Ch @)

“bailar” Ot n[_i Maz n^Rm^

*nãih-mR Mtz nøbi Oc nøhøbi
NP nnãhiR SP nãha Ch n^heR

“duro” Ot m[_ Maz m^Re

“mãi Mtz mø Oc mø
NP -- SP mmã Ch --

“hilar” Ot h[_tRi Maz h^RXR^

*hãi-tR/m Mtz høti Oc høndi
NP hãiU SP hwã Ch rh^

Illustrations for POP *?a

(Ot yã/ã, Maz yã/?/;A, Mtz u/ø/;, Oc iú/ø/;, NP ?a/@, Ch ?/@)
“mecate” Ot nthãhi Maz thS_hmS
70
*th]ai-mh Mtz thSmi Oc thS
NP lhw^ SP nth^ Ch nth^

“dormir” Ot Rãha Maz R]hi

*Rãh-71 Mtz RSwi Oc RS
NP R^hilR SP -- Ch RS_hunR

“casarse” Ot thãhti Maz XhS_htS

*t]ah-72 Mtz tønye Oc --
NP tt^heRt SP t^heR Ch t^her

69
The NP form is divergent in not having a ?/ and in having a nasalized vowel instead of an
oral vowel. It may not be cognate at all.
70
“Mecate” is a D form of “hilar” with respect to the initial consonants. It has a different
stem formative suffix, however, which may be responsible for the difference in the syllable nucleus. It
looks like there has been a metathesis of vowels.
71
The Pamean forms seem to derive from *õi. If the forms are cognate with Otomian,
perhaps a three vowel cluster should be postulated, *õia, with Pamean insertion of o and deletion of a.
72
There is no trace of inserted o here.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 76

“tijeras” Ot Ryãši Maz Rñãša

*R]a-s73 NP lRãs SP -- Ch rR]s

“zorrillo” Ot Rãi Maz RS_hmS

*nR]a Mtz nRøbi Oc mRøli
NP nõaRã SP nuRã Ch rRã

“cabeza” Ot yã Maz ñ]
*n]a Mtz nu Oc nu
NP nãoU SP nyão Ch --

“caro” Ot mãdi Maz miYi

*m]a Mtz mu Oc --
NP -- SP -- Ch m^he

“lengua” Ot khãhne Maz kR]hni

*kh]a-hn Mtz nXuni Oc ndYi

“oler” Ot nšã Maz š]Ri

*s]a Mtz šuti Oc šunti

“ixtle” Ot šãhi Maz š]Rmi

*s]a-hm Mtz šumi Oc šu

The reflexes of POP clusters involving *i, *o, and *e are presented in
Table 20.

The Otomian reflex S for POP *io is a common Otomian innovation.

Otomi and Mazahua share the reflex ø for the cluster *eo in contrast to the
Mtz-Oc reflex e. The Mtz-Oc e is distinct from the normal reflex of *e because it
does not become a. The rule stated earlier that *e is retained after y from C form *i
should be modified to include the environment before and after *o.

Otomi has the reflexes S and ø for *oi and *oe in contrast to the Mazahua
reflexes i and e. Both Otomi and Maxhua have the reflex wi for *oi after *h in
“soplar”.

The Mtz-Oc reflex e for *oe shows the loss of the first member of the cluster
in contrast to the usual loss of the second member. The loss of the first member is
shared with Mazahua where the first member is lost from the reflexes of both *oi
and *oe. This may be an instance of the spread of rules through contact since the
geographical areas overlap.
73
The NP form keeps the y even when there is no i in the prefix, indicating an original
POP *]a.
 77 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

The set of correspondence in which Ot-Maz w[/[ corresponds to Mtz-Oc

we/e has been assigned to *oe. The existing phonological environments overlap to
some extent the environments for the correspondence of Ot ø to Maz and Mtz-Oc e.
The difference in these reflexes is ascribed to the centralizing element (HC) which
was postulated to account for the centralized reflexes of POP *i and *o (S and ø,
respectively). The centralizing element is the conditioning environment for the
reflexex Ot ø, Maz e and Mtz-Oc e for POP *oe. It is absent in the reflexes Ot-Maz
w[/[ and Mtz-Oc we/e. The w is kept after *R, *h, *k, Nd *n. It is deleted elsewhere.

TABLE 20
REFLEXES FOR POP CLUSTERS INVOLVING *I, *O, AND *E
*io *oi *eo *oe *?o *õi
Ot S wi/S ø w[/[/ø ya/a w[_/a
Maz S wií ø w[/[/e ] w[/]/a
Mtz S u e we/e yuú u
Oc S wiú e we/e yuú wiú
Np io oi/ei o o[/[ ^o/^ õi/^i
Ch e u/ü e u/ü ] a/^

The Ocuilteco reflex wi for *oi occurs after *h in “soplar” and after *k in the
prefix of “cinco”. the u reflex occurs elsewhere in Oc and is the general reflex in
Mtz. Theu shows loss of the second voel and raising of the c to u.

The Otomi, Mazahua, and Ocuilteco reflexes w[_, w[, and wi, respectively,
for *oi in “mosca” show retention of the first vowel as the consonant w. Elsewhere,
Otomi has the reflex u, which shows loss of the second vowel. Mazahua has the
reflex u after *m in “calabaza” and the reflex i (or ]) elsewhere. The loss of the
second member in the Maz reflex i parallels the loss of the first member from the
oral clusters *oi Nd *oe. Other than the reflex wi after R in “mosca”, Ocuilteco has
the reflex u for *oi, as does Matlatzinca throughout.

The Otomi reflex a for *]o occurs after *m in “arena”. The reflex ya occurs
in the other cognate sets. Mazahua has the reflex i. Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco have
the reflex yu after *h and the reflex u elsewhere.

The North Pame reflexes ei, [, and ^i for POP *oi, oe, and õi are due to the
rule which deletes *o if there is no o in the preceding syllable. The reflex ^ for POP
*]o is due to the rule which deletes the second member of the cluster before bilabial
suffixes.

The Chichimeco reflex u for POP *oi, *oe, and *õi is a coalescence of the
members of the cluster as is the reflex e for POP *io and *eo. The reflex ^ for POP
*õi in “mosca” matches NP ^i. Otomian reflexes in the set for “mosca” show w
from the first member of the cluster although the first member of the cluster has
been lost in Pamean. The condition for the loss of the o is obscure. The Chichimeco
reflex i for *io is that expected if the *i were from a C form metathesis.
 The Reconstruction of Otopamean 78

Illustrations for POP *io

(Otomian ;, NP io, Ch e)
“chiflar” Ot hSši Maz hSšS
Mtz hSši Oc hSši
NP nheos SP his Ch nes (nhes)

“agujerear” Ot ncShki Maz --

*cio- NP cwelR, celR SP nc] Ch cenR

“dos” Ot yoho Maz yehe

*nioh Mtz nowewi Oc no
NP noi74 SP -- Ch nehenR

“caña” Ot Ryo Maz dyReRe

*nRio Mtz ro Oc lo
NP -- -- Ch rRuhu

“chupar” Ot cStRi Maz sStRS

*cioói75 Mtz -- Oc cuti
NP cciolR SP -- Ch cuRun

“metlapil” Ot RyS Maz dyRiRi

*Rio/oi76 Mtz di Oc li
NP -- SP -- Ch tRu

Illustrations for POP *oi

(Ot-Maz wi/;, Mtz u, Oc wiú, NP oi/ei, Ch ü, u)
“soplar” Ot hwiphi Maz hwiphi
*hoi-p/t Mtz hupi Oc hwipti
NP heiky SP -- Ch hür

“bañar” Ot šShki Maz ši(-ndyR[)

*soi-k/-mR Mtz šuti Oc Xhubi
NP sigU SP šin Ch --

“mamar” Ot cS Maz siRi

*coi Mtz XuRu Oc ci
NP ciR/cwiR SP -- Ch tšüR

74
The dual suffix i is responsible for the deletion of the initial i from the vowel cluster in NP
and Mtz-Oc.
75
The Ot-Maz forms require *io; the others require *oi.
76
Perhaps a three vowel cluster *ioi should be reconstructed with loss of the first i in Ch.
 79 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

“niño” Ot tRS Maz tRiRi

*tRoi Mtz tRu Oc tRu
NP doi/Ri SP -- Ch tRu

“sabroso” Ot kShi Maz kihmi

*koi-hm NP qei SP -- Ch --

“terminar”
*toi NP ttwi SP -- Ch tu

“tabaco” Ot RySi77 Maz --

*nRoi-m Mtz rumi Oc --
NP ndoehigU SP -- Ch ndühu

Illustrations for POP *eo

(Ot-Maz ø, Mtz-Oc e, NP o, Ch e)
“olla” Ot cRøe Maz sRøbRø
78
*cReo NP cceR/cReoR/ cRweR SP cRe Ch cReR

“montar Ot tøge Maz Xøgø

aballo”
*teo-k Mtz -- Oc nde
NP ll[eogU SP -- Ch --

“macho” Ot me Maz --
*meo-R Mtz ma Oc --
NP mm[oR/m[R79 SP -- Ch me

“arder” Ot nzø Maz zørø

*ceo Mtz ceti Oc --

Illustrations for POP *oe

(Ot w:/:/ø, Maz w:/:/e, Mtz-Oc we/e, NP o[e/:, Ch u/ü/i)
“carne” Ot ngø Maz nge
*nkoeHC NP Ugw[R SP gi Ch gu

“cerro” Ot tRøhø Maz tRehe

*tRoehHC NP lRw[ SP tRue

77
The Ot appears to be a C form with *i.
78
There are certain situations in NP where vowel clusters are reversed in the
morphophonemics but the conditions are not clear.
79
The o is deleted in the first person form
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 80

“enaguas” Ot khøde Maz kheze

*khoeHC-R/t NP kkhoiR SP kweR Ch khu

“estrella” Ot cø Maz shehe

*coeHC Mtz nceRe Oc ce

“frio” Ot c[ Maz s[R[

*coe Mtz ce Oc ce
NP c[ SP ce Ch Xi

“rajar leña” Ot c[ni Maz --

*coe-nR Mtz seri Oc celi
NP cc[R[dn SP ceRen Ch Xin

“encender” Ot nd[ Maz nd[R[

*toe NP ndw[ SP nte Ch ndü
“cenizas” “cenizas” “cenizas”

Illustrations for POP *oi

(Ot w:A/C, Maz w:/?/C, Mtz u, Oc wi/u, NP õi/@i, Ch C/@)
“mosca” Ot Rw[_ Maz Rw[
*Rõi Mtz Ru Oc ngwi
NP R^i SP -- Ch ^

“hambre” Ot thahu Maz th]hmi

*thõi Mtz -- Oc thu
NP lhõi SP -- Ch --

“calabaza” Ot ma Maz maRu

*mõih-R Mtz muhu Oc muhli
NP mõhiR SP mahiR Ch mahuR

Illustrations for POP *?o

(Ot yC/C, Maz ?, Mtz-Oc yu/u, NP @/@, Ch ?)
“arena” Ot (Rmo-)ma Maz --
*m]o-m Mtz mumi Oc mu
NP mm^oU SP mai Ch --

“lleno” Ot yadi Maz ñiYi

*n]o-t Mtz nuti Oc nuti
NP n[_80 SP nne Ch --

80
The loss of the second vowel in NP is parallel to that found in the A form of “macho”
above. (The NP paradigm is actually that for “father”.)
 81 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

“tres” Ot hya mz hñiRi

*nh]o81 Mtz hyu Oc hyu
NP nhõR SP hn]uR

Illustrations for POP C forms with metathesized *i

“comer” Ot yani Maz ñõRnS
*nião-nR NP nãoU SP nyã Ch nã

“nombre” Ot hyaRtRi Maz thahu

“nombrar”
*nh]o- Mtz hyu Oc šu
NP nh^oR SP -- Ch nhi

“medicina” Ot Ry[_thi Maz ñ^Xh^

*nR]ai- Mtz yeti Oc yendi
NP lR[82 SP tRe Ch --

“curandero” Ot nRy[_i Maz --

*nR]ai-m Mtz Rimi Oc Ri
NP d[82 SP nde Ch teheR

“andar” Ot Ryo Maz ndyRodRS

*nRioa Mtz tru Oc --
NP doa SP doa Ch ndu

“camino” Ot Rya Maz Rñihi

*nR]o(a) Mtz ru Oc ndluhu

Distinctive Feature Rules

for the Reflexes of POP Vowels and Vowels Clusters
The preceding paragraphs have presented the specific relexes for each POP
vowel and vowel cluster. In this section, the focus will be on the more general rules
which may be formulated for the development of the POP vowel system in each of
the subgroups and languages.

The feature specifications for the POP single vowels and vowel clusters are
presented in Table 21.

81
The initial i which appears in the Otomian forms may be innovatios by analogy with the
initial i of “dos”. Another possibility is that they are C forms of initial *h whereas the Pamean forms
are B forms without the metathesized *i.
82
The Pamean forms show oral vowels-one of the few cases where reflexes do not match for
nasality. The Pamean forms are not C forms.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 82

TABLE 21
FEATURE SPECIFICATIONS FOR POP VOWELS AND CLUSTERS
i e a o ao oa ai ia io oi eo oe
grv - - + + ++ ++ 1- -1 -1 1- -1 1-
cmp - + + - +2 2+ +2 2+ -- -- +2 2+
nas - - - - - - - - - - - -

? @ ã õ ão õa ãi ?a ?o oi
grv - - + + ++ ++ 1- -1 -1 1-
cmp - + + - +2 2+ +2 2+ 3- -3
nas + + + + + + + + + +
The vowels all have the features plus vocalic (+voc) and minus consonantal
(-cns). The features grave and compact specify the points of articulation. the features
of nasality distinguises the nasal from the oral vowels. The redundant features for
the vowel clusters are supported by three rules: (1) A segment which is adjacent to a
minus grave segment is plus grave. (2) A segment which is adjacent to a plus
compact segment is minus compact. (3) In a cluster marked plus nasal, a minus
grave segment need not be specified for compactness.

The Otomian subgroup

The Otomian subgroup shares the centralization of POP *i nd *o in the
environment of the centralizing element HC. The segments *i and *o are specified
by their shared feature, minus compact; the graveness is marked by “i”. the
centralization is indicated by the features plus grave and minus flat. The diffuseness
of the resulting segment is the opposite value to that of the original segment for
graveness. It is marked by –“i”.

+ grv 
− cmp  
∝ grv  → − flt  in env. ___ HC
  − ∝ dff 

Central Otomian.
The smaller subgroup, Central Otomian (Otomi and Mazahua) shares further rules.
The vowel inventories are very similar (identical for oral vowels) and are identified
by the same set of distinctive features. The feature specifications for Otomi and
Mazahua vowels are presented in Table 22.

There are five rules which fill in the redundant features in the distinctive
feature matrix: (1) An Otomi nasalized, plus flat vowel is plus diffuse. (2) A plus
diffuse vowel is minus compact. (3) a plus compact vowel is minus diffuse. (4) a
 83 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

minus grave vowel is minus flat. (5) A plus flat vowel is plus grave. Rule 1 is
ordered before the rest because the diffuseness specified there is input for rule 2.

TABLE 22
FEATURE SPECIFICATIONS FOR
OTOMI AND MAZAHUA VOWELS
i e : ; ø a u o ö
flt 4 4 4 - - - + + +
grv - - - + + + 5 5 5
cmp 2 - + 2 - + 2 - +
dff + - 3 + - 3 + - 3
nas - - - - - - - - -

OTOMI MAZAHUA
? :A ã C ? @ ;A ã C õ
flt 4 4 - + 4 4 - - + +
grv - - + 5 - - + + 5 5
cmp 2 + + 2 2 - 2 - 2 -
dff + 3 3 1 + - + - + -
nas + + + + + + + + + +

Otomi-Mazhua vowels require the specification of the features of flatness and

diffuseness in addition to those features specified for POP vowels. The dvelopment
of Ot-Maz vowels from the POP vowels and vowel clusters is described by rules
which specify flatness and diffuseness and which change, in some cases, the
specification for graveness or compactness. Other rules specify the deletion of some
segments and the desyllabification of *o and *i in certain environments. The
specification minus consonantal and plus vocalic is to be understood with every
segment unless otherwise indicated.

1. The first rule says that the front vowels *i and *e become Ot-Maz S and ø,
respectively, if they precede the vowel *o (and if they follow *o in Otomi) and if
they are in the environment of the centralizing element HC. The segments S and ø
are specified as plus grave, minus flat, i.e., central. Their specification for
diffuseness has the opposite value to the specification for compactness in the
original segment. (Both resulting segments are specified as minus compact.) The *o
which served as environment for the first part of the rule is deleted by the second
part of the rule. The deletion also handles the Mazahua reflexes i and e for *oi and
*oe, respectively, where the *o is deleted without centralizing the *i and *e.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 84

− grv  + grv 
+ grv 
1. (a) ∝ cmp → − flt  in env. ___/ 
  ___/ HC
 − cmp
− nas  − ∝ dff 
+ grv 
− flt  ___/ HC
+ grv    + Ot
(b)   → ∅ in env. ___/ − cmp
− cmp ___/
[− grv]
+ Maz

2. A POP *e after an *o (not in the environment HC) is lowered to Ot-Maz [.

The resulting vowel happens to have the same specifications for graveness and
compactness as the POP vowel, but it must be further specified as minus flat and
minus diffuse. The environmental *o is not deleted until later because it is needed as
input for rule 3.

− grv  − flt  + grv 

+ cmp → − dff  in env. − cmp ___
     

3. A POP *o or *i becomes Ot-Maz w or y, respectively, after a Rm, or h, or

n and before a vowel. The *o and *i are identified as minus consonantal. The
resulting segment is identified as plus consonantal. The resulting segment is
identified as plus consonantal. A POP *o becomes Ot-Maz w after a *k and before a
vowel. (Rule 1 has eliminated instances of *o which do not participate in this rule.)

 [+ gtl]  
  
+ cns   − cns  
+ nas 
___ + voc 
[− cmp] → [+ cns] in env.     

− grv   
 − cnt  + grv  − cns  
    ___  + voc 
 + flt     

4. A POP *i or *o becomes Ot-Maz [ or ö, respectively, following the vowel

*a. In Mazahua, and *o becomes ö before the vowel *a. Part (b) deletes *a in the
environment of Ot-Maz [ or ö.

 + grv  
  ___ 
− cns  + cmp  + cmp 
(a)   → ∝ flt  in env.   ___  
∝ grv   + grv  + grv  
  + cmp 
 
+ Maz  
 85 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

+ grv 
(b)   → ∅ in env. ___/ [+ cmp] ___/
+ cmp

5. POP *] becomes Maz S_ before *ã under obscure conditions. The

centralization of the resulting segment is indicated by plus grave and minus flat. The
segment is further specified as plus diffuse. Part (b) deletes *ã in the environment
following S_.

− grv  + grv  ___  + grv 

   
(a) − cmp → − flt  in env. + Maz  + cmp
+ nas  + dff  + Obscure

+ grv 
− flt 
 + grv   
(b)   → ∅ in env.  + dff  ___
+ cmp  
− cmp
+ nas 

6. POP *o is deleted after *c or *t and preceding a vowel. This rule rmoves the
environmental *o of rule 2 as well as other instances of *o which fit the analysis of the
rule. It also accounts for the Otomi reflex a for POP *a in this environment.

+ grv  − cnt  − cns 

− cmp → ∅ in env. − grv  ___ + voc
     

7. POP *] is deleted in Otomi before *ã or *õ. POP *ã or *õ is deleted in

Mazahua after *], except in the environment specified above in rule 5.

− grv 
 ___ 
(a) − cmp → in env. + Ot  [+ grv]
+ nas   

− grv 
+ grv  − cmp  _____ 
(b)   → ∅ in env.   + Maz 
+ nas + nas   

8. The Ot-Maz reflexes of POP *a and *o have the same specification for
graveness and compactness as in POP but they have a specification for flatness with
the opposite value to that which the segment has for compactness. The rule specifies
flatness, but does not apply to any segment already specified for flatness.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 86

− grv 
∝ cmp → [− ∝ flt ]
 

9. A vowel which is minus grave is further specified as minus flat; a vowel

which is minus compact is further specified as plus diffuse.

[− grv ]  [− flt ] 

  →  
[− cmp] [+ dff ]

10. The Ot-Maz reflexes of POP *e and *o are represented by the letters e
and o, but the Ot-Maz vowels are mid, rather than high or low. The rule says that the
POP vowels which have different values for graveness and compactness (i.e., *e and
*o) become minus compact and minus diffuse.

 ∝ grv  − cmp
− ∝ cmp → − dff 
   

11. A Mazahua nasalized vowel is specified as minus compact.

− cns 
+ voc → [− cmp] in env.  _____ 
  + Maz 
+ nas   

The feature redundancy rules, specified earlier, take care of the other
necessary adjustments for arriving at the feature specifications as given above in
Table 22.

Southern Otomian
The Southern Otomian languages (Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco) share the
Otomian centralization of *i and*o to S and ø in the environment of the centralizing
element HC. In addition, the two languages share most of their rules for the
derivation of vowels from POP root nuclei.

The vowel inventories for the two languages are identical. The slight
differences in the derivation rules do not affect the inventories. Both languages have
eliminated nasalized vowels. The distinctive feature matrix for Mtz-Oc vowels is
given in Table 23.

The three feature redundancy rules for the matrix in Table 23 are: (1) Plus
flat segments are also plus grave. (2) Minus grave segments are also minus flat. (3)
The plus compact segment is also minus diffuse.

Unfortunately, our knowledge at present of Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco is not

nearly as full as it is for the other Otpamean languages. Consequently, the statement
 87 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

of environments for the operation of context sensitive rules is imprecise and must
often be stated in terms of specific cognate sets instead of more general principles.

TABLE 23
FEATURE SPECIFICATIONS FOR MATLATZINCA
AND OCUILTECO VOWELS
i e ; ø a u o
flt 1 1 - - - + +
grv - - + + + 2 2
cmp +
dff + - + - 3 + -

The first rule desyllabifies the initial *i or *o of a POP cluster. This rule
resembles but does not operate in the same environments as the Central Otomian
rules. The C form *i, however, becomes y whenever the C form is preserved. this
feature is shared with Central Otomian, of course, except that C forms are not an
active alternation in Mtz-Oc. They occur in nouns derived from verbs and in a few
verb stems where the C form has been generalized rather than the A form. Other
than in C forms, Mtz-Oc have y corresponding to Ot-Maz y in some words, but they
have i or o corresponding to Ot-Maz y in other words. Similarly, Mtz-Oc have w
corresponding to Ot-Maz w in some words, but they have o or u corresponding to
Ot-Maz w in other words. The conditioning environment is obscure. For example,
contrast the numeral “three” where Mtz-Oc y occurs with the numeral “two” where
Mtz-Oc o occurs. Note that NP does not show initial *i in either cluster.

“tres-three Ot hya Maz hñ]R]

Mtz hyu, šu Oc phyu
NP ranhõR

“dos-two” Ot yoho Maz yehe

Mtz nowi Oc no
NP noi
Contrast “caja” where Mtz-Oc w corresponds to Ot-Maz w with “ala” where
Mtz-Oc correponds to Ot-Maz w.
“caja-box” Ot hwada Maz hwarS
Mtz wati Oc hwati

“ala-wing” Ot hwa Maz hwa

Mtz nhowi Oc nho
NP nhwa
The Mtz word “conejo” has two forms, one with a w and one with o.
“conejo-rabbit” Ot khwa Maz khwaRa
Mtz khwa, Xho
NP khwa
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 88

Although the environment must be stated as obscure, the rule for

desyllabification is farily simple in form:

+ cns  + cns  + voc

− cmp →   in env. ___ Obscure − cns 
     

The rule states that a minus compact vowel preceding another vowel may
lose its syllabicity, becoming plus consonantal.

Although attemps to state the environment for desyllabification have met with
difficulties, there are certain observations which may be made:

(1) There is a restriction with respect to the preceding consonant.

Desyllabification never occurs after bilabial consonants. The y occurs after R and h
(and perhaps after n). The w occurs after R and h. It also occurs from the cluster *oa
after k. A w occurs as a reflex from clusters *oi and *oe after t and c.

(2) There is a restriction with respect to the segment which follows the
cluster: *oa goes to wa if a non-nasal consonant follows.

(3) The desyllabification of *o to w before *i or *] is restricted to Ocuilteco.

The effect of the desyllabification rule is to convert *ia to ya. *io to yo, *]o
to yu, oa to wa, *oe to we, and *oi and *õi to Oc wi.

2. POP *io becomes Mtz-Oc S; POP *oi, *]o, and *õi become Mtz-Oc u. The
first part of the rule says that an oral, minus compact vowel (in the environment of a
following minus compact vowel) becomes plus grave and plus diffuse and is
specified for flatness according to the value of the specification for graveness in the
original segment. This takes care of the change of *io to S and of *oi to S. The
second part of the rule says that a nasalized, minus compact vowel a before an *o a
becomes plus grave, plus diffuse, and plus flat. This takes care of the change from
*]o to u. The development of *õi will be taken care of by a later rule.

∝ grv  + grv
(a) − cmp → + dff  in env. ___ [− cmp]
 
− nas  ∝ flt 

− grv  + grv
(b) − cmp → + dff  in env. ___ [− cmp]
 
+ nas  + flt 
 89 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

3. The third rule deletes the *a from *ao in the environment following Mtz-
Oc segments c or b (true of the present limited corpus). Nasality need not be
specified because the nasal clusters follow the same rules. Resulting nasalized
segments are subject to the later rules for nasalized vowels.

+ grv  c  + grv 
+ cmp → ∅ in env.   ___  
  b  − cmp

4. POP *a is fronted to Mtz-Oc e before *i. The *i is deleted by a later rule.

+ grv  − grv 
+ cmp → [− grv ] in env. ___ − cmp
   

5. POP *e and the e resulting from *ai via rule 4 becomes Mtz-Oc a if the e
is not preceded by a semivowel and if it is not part of a vowel cluster. The
environment is stated by requiring a nonvocalic segment before and a nonvocalic
segment or a word boundary following. The input is specified as minus nasal
because nasalized ^ is not affected by this rule.

+ cmp [− voc]

− nas  → [+ grv] in env. [− voc] ___  # 
   

6. POP *oe and *eo result in Mtz-Oc e. This rule deletes *o in the
environment of a preceding or following e. The rule is ordered after rule 5 because
the e segment resulting here does not participate in rule 5.

+ grv  − grv 
− cmp → ∅ in env. ___/ + cmp ___/
   

7. Before *ã POP *] becomes Mtz-Oc u in certain environments and S in

other environments. The phonological environment is obscure, so the environment is
stated in terms of specific cognate sets. The reflex u occurs in “obey”, “ixtle”, and
“caro”. The reflex S occurs in “dormir”, “hilo”, “mecate” , and “izquierdo”. (The
first group of words shows initial s and m and final t, mh, and #; the second group
of words shows initial R, h, and k and final # and mh. No clear phonological
environment emerges from the present data).
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 90

  " oler"  
   
+ flt    " ixtle" 
   " caro" 
  + dff      
− grv      ____   + grv 
− cmp → + nas    
in env.  " dormir"   + cmp
   
 + grv    " hilo"   + nas 
+ nas 
− flt      
   " mecate"  
+ dff    
" izquierdo" 
 ________  
 

8. POP *] is deleted before or after *ã in the environments not covered by

rule 7. The cognate sets illustrating the rule are “zorrillo”, “contestar”, “tener”, and
“casarse”. They show initial nR, t, and h and final mR or nR, nt, #, and ny. The initial
and final consonants overlap to some extent those of the words illustrating the
development of *] to u and S (rule 7, above) but three of the four words illstrating
rule 8 show consonant clusters following the syllable nucleus. The environment is
still not clear, however, because the cluster mh occurs in each of the two sets of
words illustrating rule 7. The environment is not stated in the formalization of rule 8
because all other instances of *]a have been covered by rule 7.

− grv  + grv 
− cmp → ∅ in env. ___/ + cmp ___/
   
+ nas  + nas 

9. The second vowel of a vowel cluster is deleted. This rule eliminates the
vowels which served as environment for rules 2, 4, and 7, as well as the second
vowel of other clusters.

− cns  − cns 
+ voc → ∅ in env. + voc ___
   

10. POP plus grave nazalized vowels *ã and *õ become Mtz-Oc ø_ and a,
respectively. The resulting segment is minus compact and has the opposite plus-
minus values for diffuseness and flatness to the value for compactness of the original
segment.

+ grv  − cmp 
∝ cmp → − ∝ dff 
   
+ nas  − ∝ flt 
 91 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

11. An n is inserted after a nasalized vowel in Ocuilteco if a stop follows.

+ cns  + voc + cns

∅ → + nas in env. − cns   ___  − cnt 
  + Oc  
− grv  + nas    − gtl 
 

12. Nasalized vowels lose their nasalization in both Mtz and Oc. This is
expressed by saying that any vowel becomes minus nasal. The effect is to remove
nasalization as a distinctive feature of Mtz-Oc vowels.

− cns 
+ voc → [− nas]
 

13. The segments w and y are deleted under certain conditions. The w is
deleted after t, c, and nh and before i and e. The y is deleted in certain instances
after h. The crucial case is where *oi has produced Oc wi and Mtz u by rules 1 and
2. The deletion of w after t and h results in the correspondence Oc i to Mtz u. E.g.,
“cal” Oc thindo (via *thwuindo), Mtz thuto; “apagar” Oc hñinYi (via *hnwin]i), Mtz
huRuXi. Compare the following sets where w is not deleted: “cinco” Oc kwitRa, Mtz
kutRa; “vender” Oc wili, Mtz uri; “soplar” Oc hwipti, Mtz hupi. The nasal preceding
the h seems to be responsible for the deletion of w in “apagar” in contrast to its
retention in “soplar”. Note the Oc word for “norte”, nimhnupi from the same root
underlying “soplar” (i.e. *hoi-), where Oc did not preserve the *oi as wi. Further
examples of the deletion of w are “rajar” Mtz seri, Oc seli; “machucar” Mtz cebi;
“frio” Mtz-Oc ce; “capulin” Mtz ce, Oc che; and “relámpago” Mtz heXi, Oc mheXi.
An example of the deletion of y is “dejar” Oc heXi as opposed to Mtz (Gu)83 yechi
or (Cas)84 ihechi which show y. Another example of the deletion of y is “toser” Oc
he, where a POP *e would have become a, but a C form would have been ye from
*i-e. The w and y deletion rule may be stated as follows.

t, c, nh  
   ____ 
w  h (obscure) 
  → ∅ in env.  
y    − cns 
____ − grv  
  

The above thirteen rules account for the developments in Southern Otomian.

83
Guevara, op. cit. Written in 1638.
84
Castro, op. cit. Written in 1557.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 92

The Pamean Subgroup

North Pame and Chichimeco share the rule that a C form *i becomes the first
member of a vowel cluster, subject to later rules for reducing clusters. For instance,
in NP the C form *i is retained when rule 11 (as given in Chapter II) deletes the
second member of a cluster before a bilabial suffix: C form dd]io from the root Ro
(maRó “dry”) means “dryness”. When the suffix –mR “first person, dual-plural
exclusive” is added, the result is ro-dd]ebmR (with lowering of i to e before the
bilabial) “our dryness”. Chichimeco retains the C form *i where the rule would
delete the second member of the cluster: A form he, “dejar;” B and C forms nhi.
Chichimeco, however, treats a C form *i differently from an original cluster-initial
*i. The original cluster-initial *i is lowered to Ch e, but the C form *i is not lowered.

North Pame
North Pame has been very conservative with respect to the POP vowel
system. If the fluctuation between i and ei or e is considered subhonemic (as was
suggested in Chapter II), the POP vowel inventory is identical with that of POP. A
phonetic rule would rewrite POP *e as NP [ (IPA æ), showing a lowering which is
not surprising, given the extended phonetic range of NP i.

All of the POP clusters are preserved in some environments in NP. Most of
the rules for the modification of the clusters are recoverable from NP morpho-
phonemic alternations. Rule 11 of the NP morophophonemic rules, given in Chapter
II, specifies the cluster reductions before a bilabial suffix. The morphophonemic
rules also take care on the change of ai to [ and the loss of the second member from
the clusters.

NP rule 15 of Chapter II palatalizes consonants following the vowel i, but

this recent palatalization does not become part of the syllable nucleus as the earlier
palatalization did in the case of the metathesized *i of the C forms, discussed in
Chapter III.

Rule 10 of Chapter II deletes cluster initial *o if there is no o in the preceding

syllable. Rule 16 labializes k, R, and h after the vowel o. An original cluster-initial o
is sometimes desyllabified to w in those situations where it has been retained. In that
case it is indistinguishable on synchronic grounds from the w resulting from the
labialization rule if the preceding consonant is k, R, or h. After other consonants,
e.g., t, s, and c, only an original cluster initial *o appears after the vowel o because
the labialization rule does not operate in that environment.

There are instances of other NP modifications of POP vowel clusters, but

there are no clear general rules. E.g., in the paradigm for “father” (“macho-male” in
the cognate sets), NP [ occurs in the first person possessor form, but [o occurs in the
second and third person forms: raw[R “my father”, but wi[oR “your father” (with
metathesis of a prefix i) and wamm[oR “his father”. In the paradigm for “hand”
 93 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

(“mano” in the cognate sets), the third person form shows deletion of the second
member of *ai after the C form *i. The second person form shows the same deletion
although not preceded by i, presumably by analogy with the C form: skaRai “my
hand”, skanRa “your hand”, skanRia “his hand”.

Chichimeco
Chichineco, in contrast to North Pame, has eliminated all POP vowel clusters
and has modified its inventory of vowel segments. The Chichimeco vowels and their
feature specifications are shown in Table 24.

TABLE 24
FEATURE SPECIFICATIONS FOR CHICHIMECO VOWELS
i e a o u ü
flt - - - + + +
grv - - + + + -
cmp - + 1 + - 2
The feature redundancy rules are: (1) A minus flat and plus grave segment is
also plus compact. (2) A plus flat and minus grave segment is also minus compact.

There are seven rules for the development of the POP vowel system in
Chichimeco.

1. Rule 1 deletes the second member from the clusters *ao, *oa, *ia, and io.
The rule applies also to the nasalized clusters. (there happens not to be an example
of oral *ia nor of nasalized *]o). The clusters *ao and *oa can be characterized by
labeling both segments plus grave and giving opposite plus-minus values (i and –i)
to the segments for compactness. The clusters *ia and *io can be characterized by
labeling the first memmber by its proper features (minus grave, minus compact) and
by specifying the second segment as plus grave.

+ grv  + grv 
− ∝ cmp → ∅ in env. ∝ cmp ___
   

− grv 
[+ grv] → ∅ in env.   ___
− cmp

2. The Chichimeco reflex of *i is e: the reflex of *e is i. This rule specifies

the reversal of the features of compactness in the Chichimeco reflexes. I.e., i and e
interchange.The rule also specifies that the Ch reflexes are minus flat. Rule 2 is
ordered after rule 1 because it affects the i which remains after the deletions
specified by rule 1. A C form metathesized *i, however, is not affected by this rule.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 94

− grv  − ∝ cmp − C form + cns 

∝ cmp →  − flt  in env. [+ cns]  _______   #  
       

3. This rule specifies the feature plus flat for the reflex of *o (plus grave,
minus compact) and the feature minus flat for the reflex of *a (plus grave, minus
compact). The plus-minus value of the flatness is opposite to the plus-minus value of
the compactness of the original segment.

+ grv  + cns 

∝ cmp → [− ∝ flt ] in env. [+ cns] ___  #  
   

4. This rule reverses the compactness specification for the Ch reflex of

oral *o.

+ grv 
− cmp → [+ cmp] in env. [+ cns] ___ + cns 
   
− nas   #  

5. This rule accounts for the Ch reflexes e for *ai and ü for *oa. The rule is
in two parts. Part (a) says that *a and *o are fronted before *i (become minus grave
and minus flat). Part (b) deletes the environmental *i. The e resulting from this rule
is not affected by rule 2.

− grv  − grv 
(a) [+ grv] →   in env. ___  
− flt  − cmp

− grv  − cns 
(b)   → ∅ in env. − grv  ___
− cmp  

6. This rule accounts for the Ch reflexes u for *oe and e for *eo. The first
segment of the POP cluster is each case becomes plus compact and is specified for
flatness with the opposite plus-minus value to that for graveness in the original
segment. The second segment of the POP cluster serves as environment for the first
part of the rule and is then deleted by the second part of the rule.

− cmp  − cns 
(a) [∝ grv] →   in env. ___  
− ∝ flt  + voc

− cns  − cns 
(b)   → ∅ in env. + voc ___
+ voc  
 95 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

The Glottal Elements of POP Sylable Nuclei

As indicated in the opening paragraphs of this chapter, the POP syllable
nucleus might contain a glottal element. The element belongs to the nucleus as a
whole and is somewhat arbitrarily assigned a linear placement with respect to the
vowel(s). There are three different glottal elements which may occur in a POP stem:
(1) that of the root initial consonant or that of the D form prefix, both of which form
part of the syllable onset, (2) that of the syllable nucleus, and (3) That of the stem
formative suffix which belongs to the syllable coda for POP. To place the glottal
element of the syllable before the vowel(s) might result in ambiguity with the glottal
element of the syllable onset. To place the glottal element after the vowel(s) might
result in some ambiguity with the glottal element of the stem-formative suffix, but in
this case the writing of the morpheme boundary between root and suffix would
resolve the ambiguity. There is not always a morpheme boundary between the
syllable onset and the syllable nucleus. For this reason, the glottal element of the
nucleus is assigned to the position after the vowel(s) in the underlying form.

The phonetic placement of the glottal element is specified by the

following rules.

1. Rule 1 inserts a copy of the root vowel after the glottal element if the
nucleus contains a single vowel.

+ voc  + voc 
− cns  − cns 
∅ →   in env. [+ cns ]   [+ gtl] ___
∝ grv  ∝ grv 
   
βcmp  βcmp 

2. Rule 2 tranposes the glottal element and the second vowel of a vowel
cluster.

+ voc + voc
− cns  − cns  [+ gtl]
   
1 2 3
→ 1 3 2

POP had a rule for the deletion of the glottal element under certain
conditions. The deletion is evidenced by the NP morphophonemic alteration of
nuclei with and without the glottal element. E.g.,wannõRo “he sees” but lan`õ “he
will see”; wopp/[R[dn “he counts” but wi`[dntR “count” (imperative); RR/^hilyR “he
sleeps” but UgolRw[^i “sleep” (noun); waR/[h[Rt “she sews” but loRw`[dnt “she
pieces cloth”.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 96

A further indication of a deletion of the glottal element in POP under certain

conditions is the correspondence of the reflexes of a glottal element in one of the
daughter languages to the absence of any such reflexes in another daughter language.
In the following examples, Otomi has reflexes of a VhV nucleus but Pame does not.
“Water” Ot dehe, NP kot[; “cough” Ot thehe, NP Ugolhw[; “name” Ot thahu, NP
UgolhõR. In the next group of examples Pame has reflexes of a glottal element but
Otomi does not. “necklace” Ot thebe, NP nlh[R[; “ask for “ Ot Rödi, NP waRahodnR;
“squash” Ot ma, NP mmõhiR.

North Pame and Chichimeco preserve reflexes of both R and h. Jaime de

Angulo’s recording of voiceless vowels for Chichimeco corresponds to syllable
nuclei containing a glottal element . E.g., “take out” Ch ke (underlining
corresponding to Angulo’s raised vowels to denote the voiceless vowel), NP –
kweheR. The NP alternation with nuclei not containing a glottal element appears to
be correlated with a change in the stress-pitch phoneme. The glottal element occurs
most regularly with the high tone-stress.

Otomian has lost the non-continuant glottal element (i.e., R). Mazahua has
developed a new VRV sequence from word-final root vowels. Central Otomian has a
VRV sequence only if no suffix follows.

The Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco materials show VhV sequences before stem-
formative suffixes but not word finally. Sometimes the h is deleted, resulting in a
long vowel.

An Otomi-Mazahua innovation is the deletion of the first vowel of a VhV

sequence resulting in stem-initial aspirated consonants. Apparently the deletion only
takes place if the root initial consonant is a stop. After other consonants the h is
deleted and the vowel cluster is reduced. These rules operate when there is a stem-
formative suffix. They eliminate the VhV sequences as such in that position leaving
the VhV sequences only in a word-final position, as stated in an earlier paragraph.

The deletion of the first vowel and the resulting aspirated stops is peculiar to
Central Otomian because Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco preserve the VhV sequences
before stem-formatives at least in some instances. Also, the correspondence of a
Mtz-Oc unaspirated stop to an Ot-Maz aspirated stop cannot be ascribed to a sound
change which would eliminate aspiration in Mtz-Oc because in the case of aspirated
forms, Mtz-Oc aspirated stops corrspond to Ot-Maz aspiratd stops.

The following sets are examples of central Otomian syncope of the first
vowel with the resulting aspirated consonant.
“casarse-to marry” Ot thãhti Maz XhS_htS
*t]ah- Mtz tøhønye Oc --
Np tt^heRt Ch t^her
 97 IV Syllable Nuclei of Roots

“reir-to laugh” Ot theni Maz theñe

*the- Mtz ta:ri Oc tahti
Np t[h[lR Ch teheRr

“confesar-to confess” Ot khwãni Maz khwãRma

*kõah- Mtz kunya Oc ku
Np kkãhoU Ch

“tocar-to touch” Ot thöni Maz thörS

*taoh- Mtz tari Oc --
Np taho Ch ta

“golpear-to hit” Ot ph[Rmi Maz --

*paih- Mtz papi Oc (phe)R
Np ppahiR Ch ngweRenR

“contestar-to answer” Ot thãdi Maz thS_

*t]ah- Mtz tøhøti Oc tømti
Np Ch
Note the next set wheres the initial consonant is n and is not aspirated.
“bailar-to dance” Ot n[_i Maz neRme
*nãih- Mtz nøhøbi Oc ñøhøbi
Np nnãhiR Ch n^heR
The following set demonstrates the Mtz-Oc aspirated consonants
corresponding to Ot-Maz aspirated consonants in D forms.
“tamales” Ot th[_i Maz theYe
*th[_R- Mtz theti Oc thenti
Np lh[_R[_ Ch rR]hi
 CHAPTER V
THE RECONSTRUCTION OF POP
STEM-FORMATIVE CONSONANTS
The two preceding chapters dealt with the reconstruction of the root syllable.
chapter III reconstructed the root initial consonants and their morphophonemic
changes in the stem alternants. Chapter IV reconstructed the syllable nuclei of the
roots. This chapter will deal with the reconstruction of the stem-formative
consonants. There were at least three types of morphemes which could follow the
root syllable in POP words: (1) the stem-formative suffixes, (2) the person and
number markers and (3) the second element of compounds. The reconstruction of
person and number markers is the subject of Chapter VI. The second element of
compounds will be treated briefly in the present chapter.

The POP noun or verb stem consisted of a root and one or more stem-
formative syllables or it might consist of the root alone. The same root might form
several different stems by combination with different stem-formative suffixes. For
example, Ot. šS-hki “wash (hands),” šS-tRi “wash (dishes).” Compare Mtz šu-Xi
“wash (dishes),” šu-ti “wash (meat),” šu-bi “wash (table);” Maz ši-bi (wash
dishes);” NP si-gU “wash (hands),” si-lyR “wash dishes.”

The precise meaning of the stem-formative suffixes is difficult to determine.

It is possible, however, to note certain concepts, e.g., direction, which were
expressed by these suffixes. The analysis of stem-formative suffixes in Otomi will
serve as an example. The analysis was made by Fray Pedro de Cárceres in the
sixteenth century.85 It is quoted by Lawrence Ecker in his compendium of Otomi
grammar.86 The suffixes –i/e (phonologically conditioned), -ki/e, -gi/e and –hi
signify “desde arriba (hacia) abajo; de adentro afuera, (tlat. de, ex-).” The suffix
tRi/e signifies “desde abajo (hacia) arriba, (tlat. super-, sub-, como en sub-er/e).”
The suffix –ni signifies “hacia, desde lejos; hacia allá, hacia acá, (tlat. a-, ab-, ad-).”
The suffix –ngi (from –nga and –ni) signifies syntactic position followed by a direct
object. The suffix –xi (i.e., -ši) “ya no reconoce sentido específico.” Some suffixes
are analyzed as consisting of combinations of suffixes: -xtRi/e from –tsRi and –tRi;
xte from –tsRi and –te; -xni from –tsRi and –ni. Finally, several rare suffixes are

85
Pedro de Cárceres, “Arte de la Lengua Otomí,” edited by Dr. Nicolas León, Boletín del
Instituto Bibliográfico Mexicano, VI (1907), 43-155.
86
Lawrence Ecker, “Compendio de Gramática Otomí,” Anales del Instituto Nacional de
Antropología e Historia, IV (1952), 121-74. Ecker’s material on the suffixes is taken from pages 106-
13 of Cárceres.

6/9/2010 98
 99 V Stem Formative Consonants

listed: -di/e, -hti,

-pho, and –phi.

Compound suffixes are evident in other of the Otopamean languages also.

E.g., Mtz alternants kSni and kSnXi for “moler.”

Although there are cases of different suffixes occurring with the same root
and forming different stems and instances of layering of suffixes, the bulk of the
vocabulary consists of stems which reflect the tendency for a given root to be
associated primarily with one suffix. It is this fact which allows us to reconstruct
the suffixes with some degree of certainty. The fact that a root could and did occur
with more than one suffix provides an explanation for the words which do not match
with respect to stem-formative suffixes.

The consonants reconstructed for the stem-formative suffixes are basically

the same as those reconstructed for the roots. The consonant clusters occurring in
the stem-formatives are reconstructed as units which have distinctive patterns of
reflexes. The segmentation of the clusters is clear in most cases for POP. Many of
the reflexes are unit phonemes in the daughter languages, however.

The reflexes of the POP stem-formative consonants and consonant clusters

are presented in Table 24. The reflex given in the chart might be termed the basic
reflex. Departures from that reflex are specified by rules for the language in
question.

TABLE 24
REFLEXES OF POP STEM-FORMATIVE CONSONANTS
Ot Maz Mtz Oc NP SP Ch
*s š š š š s š s
*c8 cR sR cR cR cR cR cR
*8 -- -- -- -- R R R
*m -- m m -- U -- --
*m8 -- mR b b -- -- --
*mh h hm m -- -- -- --
*n n hn n -- U -- --
*n8 n nR r l nR n nR
*nh hn hn n -- U -- --
*t8 tR tR t t lR n nR
*t d r t t nR n nR
*VA-t d r t t nR t r
*8t ht ht t t Rt -- r
*k g g k k U -- --87
*p b w p p
*ph ph ph p p p -- --

87
The -- is used to indicate no suffix present in the cognate for that language. A complete
blank means that no cognate example is in the corpus.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 100

Developments in the Otomian Subgroup

The languages of the Otomian subgroup (Otomí, Mazahua, Matlatzinca, and
Ocuilteco) share the insertion of the vowel i after the stem-formative consonant and
before word boundary.

− cns 
+ voc
∅ →   in env. [+ cns] ___ #
− grv 
 
+ dff 

These languages also share the phonetic rule that POP *s is palatalized to š.
POP *R is lost intervocalically. This means that the *R is lost from both the POP
vowel nucleus and the POP stem-formative suffix.

Otomi and Mazahua share a number of suffixes consisting of consonant

clusters which have a glottal element as the first member. These clusters are in
addition to those listed above in Table 25. The glottal element appears to be a suffix
in its own right, marking some concept such as transitivity. Compare the following
pairs of words. Ot-Maz *šo-hki “to open something” and *šo-gi “to be open;” Ot-
Maz *khwa-hti “to finish something” and *khwa-di “to finish (an action);” Ot-Maz
*mRö-RmRi “to stand something up” and **mRö-mRi to stand up;” *khS-RmRi “to
pull something” and *khSmRi “to stretch;” Ot-Maz *pö-hti “to change something”
and *mbö-di “to change.”

The glottal element which distinguishes the suffixes is a transitive marker of

some sort. Compare the following sets.
“laugh at” Ot the-ni Maz the-ñe
Mtz ta-ri
NP tt[h[-lR Ch tehe-Rr

“laugh” Ot the-de Maz the-Ye

Mtz ta-ti Oc ta-hti
NP tt[h[-dnR SP t^h^
The POP reconstruction for the first suffix is *-nR and that for the second
suffix is *-t. The transitive marker is nasality and R in this case. There is not
enough evidence to reconstruct clearly the transitive suffix for POP but reflexes of
that suffix are evident in the above examples and in other cases as well.

In Otomian there is an alternation of the suffixes *-mR and *-k which

suggests that the first may be built on the other by the addition of nasality and R,
similar to the transitive feature in “laugh at.” The additional features are not
 101 V Stem Formative Consonants

identified with transitivity in this case, however. Both suffixes may co-occur with
the same root in the same language, but more often one of the suffixes occurs in the
cognate in one language and the other suffix occurs with the root in the cognate of
the other language. North Pame cognates are found for two of the following sets. It
is not clear whether the absence of a suffix in the NP cognates indicates the absence
of a suffix or whether NP had an earlier *-mR which would have lost the m by
regular rule and has in these instances lost the R also.
“peinarse” Ot Re-hke (*-k) Maz Re-bRe (*-mR)
Mtz ye-bi (*-mR)

“dejar: Ot h[-gi (*-k) Maz h[-zi (*-k)

Mtz ha-bi (*-mR), he-Xi (*-k)

“lavar” Ot šS-hki (*-k) Maz *ši-bRi (*-mR)

Mtz šu-Xi (*-k)< šu-bi (*-mR)

“relámpago” Ot hw[i (*-mR) Maz hw[-bRi (*-mR)

Mtz he-Xi (*-k)
NP nw[_ (*-mR) or (no suffix)

“año” Ot kh[-ya (*-mRia) Maz kh[R[ (no suffix)

Mtz khølø (*-k) Oc khønlø (*-k)
NP Ug^he (*-mR) or (no suffix)
The suffixes shared by Otomí and Mazahua which reflect a POP transitive
morpheme are *RcR, *RtR, *RmR, *hmh, *hp, *ht, and *hk. They are not
reconstructed for POP as such because of lack of evidence in the reflexes of the
other languages.

Otomi and Mazahua also share the weakening of intervocalic stops.

Rules for the Developments in Otomi

Otomi preserves POP stem formative *m only in the reflexes of the Ot-Maz
cluster *RmR. Elsewhere the *m is deleted. Then, the glottal is deleted after a nasal
or intervocalically. The glottal-deletion rule also deletes the glottal from the
sequence *nR.

(a) m > p except in env. R qqq R

(b) R > p in env. V [+cns +nas] qqq V

The Central Otomian weakened stops are voiced in Western Otomi but
remain voiceless in Eastern Otomi where they contrast with the pre-aspirated fortis
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 102

stops in that dialect. The fortis stops are not pre-aspirated in Western Otomi. The
symbols b, d, and g are used for the Proto-Otomi weakened stops.88

An Otomi vowel harmony rule changes the Otomian inserted i to e after e or

ø in the root syllable if no nasal consonant intervenes.

− dff 
+ cns
[− grv] → [− dff ] in env. − cmp  ___ #
 − nas 0
− flt 

Rules for the Developments in Mazahua

Mazahua changes the Otomian weakened stops (symbolized b, d, and g) to
voiced continuants, Maz w, r, and g when they occur intervocalically.

 + cns 
 − cnt  → + cnt  in env. − cns  − cns 
  + vcd + voc ___ + voc
− tense      

The clusters *mR, (*RmR), and *nR are denasalized after oral vowels to bR,
(RbR), and dR, respectively.

+ voc
+ gtl
[+ cns] ___ [− nas] in env. − cns  ___  
− nas  − cnt 

Mazahua palatalizes the consonants t, d, n, r, k, and g after a front vowel to X,

dy, ñ, Y, c, and z respectively.

+ cns
− str 
  + voc
+ flt  → [+ shp] in env. − cns  ___
   
− grv  − grv 
− gtl 

Mazahua inserts a R and a copy of the root vowel after a simple root before
word boundary. The result is that all stems are disyllabic in Mazahua in contrast to
Otomi, which may have monosyllabic stems.

p > RV1 in env. V1 qqq #

88
For more details on Proto-Otomi consonants see Bartholomew, loc. cit.
 103 V Stem Formative Consonants

The RV inserted by this rule parallels the hV which results from the
expansion of a root nuclei containing h. (A root of the shape CV1h becomes CV1V1
by a rule common to Otopamean.)

The vowel harmony rules were specified in Chapter II. Briefly, if the root
vowel is e, ^, or ø, the inserted i assimilates completely to the root vowel. If the
root vowel is i, [, or ], the inserted i remains, with assimilation for nasality. If the
root vowel is S, u, o, ö, or ã, S_, a, õ, the inserted i is centralized to S and S_,
respectively.

Rules for the Developments in

Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco
Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco share several important rules. Matlatzinca has an
additonal rule and the modern Mtz dialect of San Francisco Oxtotilpan has a further
rule. Ocuilteco has two additional rules.

POP *R is retained in Southern Otomian in the reflex of *cR. The influence

of *R is seen in the reflexes b and r for *mR and *nR, respectively. But elsewhere
the glottal elements (R and h) are deleted from the stem-formative suffixes.89 Two
rules account for these changes. The first says that a nasal consonant becomes
nonnasal before a glottal stop. The second rule deletes glottal elements in stem-
formative suffixes, which includes the deletion of the environmental R of the first
rule.

+ cns  + gtl 
(a)   → [− nas] in env. ___  
+ nas  − cnt 

− cns 
(b) [+ gtl] → ∅ except in env. [c] ___   #
+ voc

Another Southern Otomian rule is that after a front vowel POP *k is

palatalized to X.

− cnt  − cns 
+ grv  → − grv + voc ___
  + str  in env.  
+ cmp   − grv 

Matlatzinca inserts a suffix –wi after a root syllable and before word
boundary, i.e., when there is no stem-formative suffix. There are a few cases where
the –wi is not inserted, but the conditions have not yet been determined.

89
Andrews and Shell (op. cit.) record glottal elements at morpheme boundaries for the Mtz of
San Francisco, but they don”t seem to be reflexes of POP glottal elements.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 104

∅ → − wi in env. ROOT ___ #

San Francisco Matlatzinca changes the stem-formative m to n.

+ cns  − cns  − cns 

+ nas  → [− grv ] in env. + voc ___ + voc #
     

Ocuilteco deletes the stem-formative –mi and –ni.

+ cns  − cns  − cns 

+ nas  + voc → ∅ in env. + voc ___ #
    

Ocuilteco has a second rule which changes Mtz-Oc r (from *nR by the rule
given above) to l.

r→ l

Developments in the Pamean Subgroup

The Pamean languages (North Pame, South Pame, and Chichimeco) share
several rules.

POP *m is deleted before R or h. POP *p is deleted except before *h. Then

POP *h is deleted from stem-formatives.

+ cns 
(a) + nas → ∅ in env. ___ [+ gtl] #
+ grv 

− cnt 
+ gtl 
(b) + grv  → ∅ except in env. ___  #
 + cnt 
− cmp

+ gtl 
(c)   → ∅ in env. ___ #
+ cnt 

POP *t becomes Pamean nR except when preceded or followed by a glottal

stop or in Chichimeco when preceded by a nasalized vowel. POP *tR becomes
Chichimeco nR. POP *t becomes Chichimeco r before word boundary and becomes
North Pame l before glottal stop and word boundary.
 105 V Stem Formative Consonants

+ cns  except in env.

− cnt   ___/ [+ gtl] ___/ 
(a)   → [+ nas] [+ gtl] + voc ___ 
− grv   
  + nas  + Ch 
− str   

+ cns 
− cnt 
(b)   → [+ nas ] in env. ___ [+ gtl ] #
− grv 
 
− str 

+ cns   ___ 
− cnt   + Ch # 
(c)   → [− tense ] in env.  ___ 
− grv 
 
 [+ gtl] #
− str  + NP 

POP stem-formative *k becomes a nasal consonant in Pamean. Stem-

formative nasal consonants not in a cluster with glottal stop are velar in North Pame;
they are deleted in South Pame and Chichimeco.
− cnt  − cns 
(a)   → [+ nas ] in env. + voc ___ #
+ cmp   

+ cns  − cns  ___

(b)   → [+ cmp] in env. + voc + NP #
+ nas   

___
+ cns  − cns 
+ nas  → ∅ in env. + voc + SP  #
    + Ch
 
North Pame synchronic rules delete R from a stem-formative after VRV,
palatalize consonants after i, and insert an oral transition before a stem-formative
nasal after an oral vowel.
South Pame has palatalized *s to š in stem-formative suffixes.

Illustrations for POP Stem-formative Consonants

POP *-s
“asar” Ot hãši Maz hãšã
*hã-s Mtz høši Oc høši
NP hãs SP hwãš Ch hüs

“tijeras” Ot Ryãši Maz Rñãša

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 106

*R]a-s NP lRyãs SP -- Ch rR]s

“chiflar” Ot hSši Maz hSši

*hio-s Mtz hSši Oc hSši
NP nheos SP hiš Ch nes
POP *-c8
“murcielago” Ot cacRi Maz --
*coa-cR Mtz cocRi Oc cocRi
NP XoacR SP nXuac Ch --

“atar” Ot tatRi Maz tantRi

*tõ-tR/cR Mtz tuncRi Oc tuncRi
“nudo”
NP ttocR SP -- Ch tucR
“nudo” “nudo”

“zapatos” NP -- SP mphãcR Ch bãcR

*pã-c
POP *-8
“mes” Mtz mbø Oc bø
*mRão-R NP mRãoR SP mRmõ Ch mRãR

“calabaza” Ot ma Maz maRa

*mõih-R Mtz muhu Oc muhli
NP mõhiR SP mahiR Ch mahuR

“beber” NP haoR SP nhu Ch haR

*hao-R
POP *-m
“tierra” Ot höi Maz hömS
*hao-m Mtz hami Oc ha
NP haogU SP hyaw Ch ha

“noche” Ot šai Maz šõmS

*são-m Mtz šømi Oc ~šu
NP sãoU SP sãw Ch sã
POP *-m8
“bailar” Ot n[_i Maz n[Rme
*nãih-mR Mtz nøbi Oc ñøhøbi
NP nnãhiR SP nãha Ch n^h^R

“jalar” Ot khSRmi Maz khSbRS

 107 V Stem Formative Consonants

*kihRHC- Mtz -- Oc ngSbi

-mR/-nR NP kkeRedn SP kuin Ch keRenR

“olla” Ot cRøe Maz sRøbRø

*cReo-mR NP cReoR SP cRe Ch cReR
POP *-mh
“milpa” Ot hwãhi Maz hwãhma
*nhõa-mh Mtz nomi Oc nu
NP nhwã SP nhna Ch nha

“sabroso” Ot kShi Maz kihmi

*koi-mh Mtz qei SP -- Ch --

“sembrar Ot tahu Maz tahmS

*tõ-mh Mtz tumi Oc tu
NP ttõRo SP -- Ch tuRun
POP *-n
“flor” Ot døni Maz ndøhnø
*ttoHC-n Mtz tøni Oc ndø
NP togU SP tu Ch ro

“gallina” Ot Røni Maz Røhnø

*RoHC-n Mtz Røni Oc Rø
NP RogU SP Ru Ch --
POP *-n8
“hacha” Ot c[ni “rajar” Maz --
*coe-nR Mtz seri Oc celi
NP cc[R[dn SP ceRen Ch ziRinR

“preguntar” Ot Röni Maz RönS

*Rao-nR Mtz Rari Oc Rali
NP RahodnR SP -- Ch R-an

“reir” Ot theni Maz theñe

*teh-nR Mtz tari Oc --
NP t[h[dnR SP t^h^ Ch --
“reirse” “reirse”
POP *-nh
“saliva” Ot khihni Maz kRihñi
*ki-nh Mtz Xini Oc Xi
NP kkigU SP ki Ch kke
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 108

“mandar” Ot p[hni Maz pehñe

*pai-nh Mtz pan-ta Oc --
NP ppai SP -- Ch pe

“lengua” Ot kkãhne Maz kR]hñi

*kh]a-nh Mtz nXuni Oc ndYi
POP *-t8
“chupar” Ot cStRi Maz sStRS
*coi-tR Mtz -- Oc cuti
NP cciolR SP -- Ch c]üRün

“calentar” Ot paRtRi Maz paRtRS

*pa-tR Mtz pati Oc pati
NP ppalR SP -- Ch pan

“tragar” Ot tatRi Maz --

*tõ-tR NP ttõlR SP taR Ch tùnR

“cintura” Ot ngStRi Maz nzSntRS

*tkiHCh-tR Mtz XShSti Oc --
NP kehelR SP gwihin Ch --
POP *-8t
“casarse” Ot thãhti Maz XhS_htS_
*t]ah-Rt Mtz tønye
NP tt^heRt SP t^heR Ch t^her

“gritar” Ot maRtRi Maz maRtRS

*maR-Rt NP maRat SP -- Ch maRar
POP *-t
“hilo” Ot h[_tRi Maz h^RXR^
“hilar” “hilar”
*thãi-t Mtz høti
“hilar”
(*nasal V-t) NP lhãiU SP nth^ Ch rh^r

“rico” Ot bãdi “brujo”

*pã-t (*V_-t) NP pãn SP p]et Ch pãr

“contar” Ot pede Maz peYe

*pe-t Mtz -- Oc mbati
NP pp[R[dn SP -- Ch pin

“reirse” Ot thede Maz theYe

 109 V Stem Formative Consonants

*teh-t Mtz tati Oc tahti

NP tt[h[dnR SP tehe Ch teheRr

“tamale” Ot th[_di Maz th^Ye

*th^-t Mtz theti Oc thenti
NP lh[_R[_ SP nth^Re Ch rR]hi
POP *-k
“dejar” Ot hy[gi Maz hy[zi
*hiai-k Mtz heXi Oc heXi
NP nhiagU SP -- Ch nhi

s
“enterrar” Ot Rögi Maz RögS
*Rao-k Mtz Raki Oc Raki
NP RRaogU SP -- Ch Ra
POP *-p
“arado” Ot tRabi Maz tRöphS
*tRoa-p Mtz tRopi Oc tRopi
NP -- SP ntRoa Ch rRu

“cal” Ot cibi “fuego” Maz siwi “fuego”

*ci-p Mtz cipi Oc cipi
NP cRiR SP cRi
POP *-ph
“nido” Ot Rmamphi Mtz --
*ma-ph Mtz mapi Oc mapi
NP mmap SP mbie Ch --

“norte” Ot mahwiphi Maz --

*hoi-ph Mtz hupi Oc --
NP sohop SP -- Ch --

“decir” Ot šiphi Maz šiphi

*si-ph Mtz ši Oc --
NP sep SP -- Ch se

The Second Element of Compounds

Some cognate sets show reflexes of post-root elements which do not fit the
pattern reconstructed for the stem-formative syllables. Otomi reflexes show vowels
other than i or the predictable e. Mazahua and Matlatzinca reflexes show non-
predictable vowels in some of the sets, but some sets show predictable vowels which
presumably replaced the non-predictable vowels by analogic change.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 110

The numerals “veinte--20” and “cuarenta--40” have the second element *te.
NP and Ch have it as a full syllable. NP has a final dn which may come from a POP
final *t or which may be the NP plural suffix –n. Each subgroup of languages has its
own junctural features. Ot-Maz has preposed h; Mtz-Oc has preposed n; and NP-SP
has a weakened t as in the B forms.

The numerals “cinco--5” and “diez--10” have the second element *tRai. The
second vowel is dropped except in NP. The element looks like a derivative from the
word for hand, “mano,” whose A form is Rai and whose D form would be tRai. The
NP word for “diez--ten,” means “both my hands.”

“veinte--20” Ot Rnöhte Maz dyRöhte

--*te Mtz nronta Oc blonda
NP nda ly[dn SP Rnade

“cuarenta--40” Ot yohte Maz yehte

--*te Mtz nenta Oc myenda
NP noi ly[dn SP tide

“cinco--5” Ot kStRa Maz ciXRa

--*tRai Mtz kutRa Oc kwitRa
NP kikRyai

“diez--10” Ot Rn[tRa Maz dyR[XRa

--*tRai Mtz ndatRa Oc mblatRa
NP seskaRai (se- “both,” ska
“my,” Rai “hands”)
Two sets show the element *ne which can probably be identified with mouth,
“boca.” Ot has the normal reflex in the set for “abeja” (“noisy mouth”) whereas
Maz has a vowel conforming to Maz vowel harmony rules. In “mentira” (“wrong
mouthR”) Ot has neutralized the vowel because it is the last syllable in a three
syllable word. The Mtz-Oc vowel is a, which is the normal reflex for *e. The Maz
vowel is e but it also happens to fit the vowel harmony rules.
“abeja” Ot gãne Maz ngS_hnS
--*ne

“mentira” Ot (SC)90 Rb[hthSni Maz bR[Xine

--*ne Mtz Xuna Oc benlumna
Otomi has the form -pho after root o in all three words in the sets next under
consideration. Mazahua and Matlatzinca-Ocuilteco have predictable vowels. In the
set “cosechar” the root vowel was probably *e as shown in the majority of the

90
The dialect of Santa Clara de Juárez, Edo. de México. San Felipe Santiago, Edo. de Méx.
has Rm[thri; Mezquital Otomi has f[dri.
 111 V Stem Formative Consonants

languages, but Otomi has root o, probably by assimilation to the o vowel of the
second element.
“llamar” Ot nzopho Maz zophS
--*pho Mtz copi Oc nzopi

“escribir” Ot Ropho Maz RophS

--*pho

“cosechar” Ot šopho Maz šephe

--*pho Mtz šepi Oc --
NP ss[R[
The sets “papa” and “camote” contain similar elements: *-kRa for “papa”
and *-nkwãRmã for “camote”. The *-kRa is preceded by the root element *nRo but
the *-nkwãRmã is preceded by a prefix with a different stress. It is conceivable that
*-kRa is the reduced form of *-nkwãRmã because it occurs after a stressed root
syllable. Mazahua has non-predictable vowels in these sets. Ocuilteco has the
normal deletion of the second member of a vowel cluster and of the stem-formative
syllable containing a nasal consonant.
“papa” Ot RnokRa Maz dRokRa
--*kRa Mtz intRo Oc --
NP piURo SP --

“camote” Ot bøkRwã Maz bemgwãRmã

--*nkwãRma Mtz -- Oc bønXu
The second element *nã is found in the Otomi form in the sets “luna,”
“ardilla,” and “decir.” Maz has nã or nRã for “luna” but has a predictable vowel in
“decir.” Mtz has predictable vowels. Oc loses syllables with nasal consonants
when they occur in post-root position. NP shows the nasal consonant following the
root in “ardilla” but not in “decir.”
“luna” Ot zãnã Maz zãnã, zãnRã
--*nã

“ardilla” Ot m]nã Maz miñi

--*nã Mtz mini Oc mi
NP meigU SP kumuy Ch --

“decir” Ot R[_nã Maz R^ñ^

--*nã Mtz Rini Oc Rihil (?)
NP R^hiR SP -- Ch --
The elements *ta, *tha, and *ka occur in the next group of cognate sets.
Otomi has the vowel a. Maz and Mtz-Oc have predictable vowels. Pamean has no
trace of the second elements. The Mtz -wi in “laringe” looks like the -wi which is
inserted if no stem-formative occurs. Probably the Mtz word did not contain *ka.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 112

“maguey” Ot Rwada Maz RwarS

--*ta Mtz -- Oc nloti
NP ddoa SP ndyoa Ch nRu

“caja” Ot hwada Maz hwarS

qq*ta Mtz wati Oc hwati
NP Xilhyã SP šth]e Ch --

“zopilote” Ot pada Maz ndo-parS

qq*ta Mtz pati Oc --
NP waRa

“instrumento Ot Rmida Maz bRiYi

musical”
--*ta Mtz biti Oc --
NP bbeRi SP -- Ch --

“molcajete” Ot mada Maz --

--*ta Mtz mati Oc mati

“espalda” Ot šStha Maz šSthS

--*tha

“tierra plana” Ot Rmatha Maz bRathS

--*tha Mtz mpati Oc bati
NP nibia SP -- Ch --

“patos de la Ot tiga Maz tizi

laguna”
--*ka Mtz tiXi Oc --
NP tti SP -- Ch --

“laringe” Ot RySga Maz dyRizi

qq*ka Mtz Ryuwi Oc --
The next group of cognate sets has an element *m]a or *mR]a. Otomi loses
the m and the R by the regular rule, the i becomes y and the a is retained. Mazahua
regularly has hm and a predictable vowel. Mtz has m as would be expected from
*m and b as would be expected from *mR. Oc loses the *m but has li for *m as if it
were *nR, i.e., *m(R)] *n(R)]. The vowels are predictable in Mtz-Oc. NP has final
gU in “enojado” but nothing in “año.” The Mtz-Oc second element in “año” is from
*ka91 instead of *m]a and in this case has the regular reflex of *a, not a predictable
vowel. The second element in “descansar” is ya in all the Otomian languages.

91
Compare the alternation of the stem-formative suffixes *-mR and *-k, discussed earlier in
the chapter.
 113 V Stem Formative Consonants

Perhaps it is an instance of borrowing. The correspondences of the second element

in “confesar” are unique to that set: Ot -ni, Maz -Rmã, Mtz -nya, and Oc -ngya.
Perhaps the word is a late formation, developed independently in each of the
languages.
“culebra” Ot kR[_ya Maz kR]hmi
--*mia Mtz nXRimi Oc XRi

“llenarse” Ot n]ya Maz n]hmi

--*mia Mtz nimi Oc --
NP n[_

“pecho” Ot t]ya Maz th]hmi

--*mia

“carbón” Ot th[_ya Maz thehme

--*mRia Mtz thubi Oc thuli

“enojado” Ot nc[ya Maz --

*--nia NP ncw[gU SP --

“año” Ot kh[ya Maz kh[R[

--*mia Mtz khølø Oc khønlø
NP ng^he

“descansar” Ot cöya Maz saya

--ya Mtz coya Oc nzoya

“confesar” Ot nkhwãni Maz khwãRmã

--*R Mtz kunya Oc keyungya
NP kkwãhoU SP --
 CHAPTER VI
THE RECONSTRUCTION OF PERSON AND
NUMBER MORPHEMES
The purpose of this chapter is to reconstruct the person and number
morphemes of Otopamean and to trace their development in each of the daughter
languages. The person and number markers constitute a subsystem of the
morphology of the language. A change in any member of the subsystem often
affects other members of the system as well. The effect of analogic change is seen
in cognate sets whose phonological correspondences do not match the regular sound
correspondences. This chapter will attempt to identify the motivations for analogic
change in the development of the person and number morphemes in the various
languages.

The system reconstructed for POP is as follows. First and second person
markers had stressed forms as well as unstressed forms. The unstressed forms were
derived from the stressed forms by the deletion of the vowel(s). Third person
occurred only in the unstressed form. Dual and plural markers and the exclusive
markers were stressed and as such contained a vowel. The Pamean languages
subsequently lost the vowel from these forms so that the vowel is not reconstructable
except where cognate forms exist in Otomian.

Person markers
The POP person markers along with reflexes in the daughter languages are
presented in Table 25.

TABLE 25
OTOPAMEAN PERSON MARKERS
first person second person third person
POP *kao *-k *k8e *-k8 *-p
Ot kö -k kRe/Ri -kR -p
Maz kö -k kR[ -kR -p
Mtz kaki -k kacRi -k -p
NP kaok -k heokR -k -p
SP kak -k hukR -kR -p
Ch ikagu -x ihekRu -k -f

6/9/2010 114
 115 VI Person and Number Markers

The Otomian bound forms have inserted vowels of predictable quality (not
shown on chart). The vowel of POP *kRe is a front vowel. Perhaps it cannot be
further specified. The Mazahua vowel is identified as [ in Spotts” article but is
written e in later materials. The Otomi morpheme in dialects not adjacent to
Mazahua is Ri. The palatalized k (X) in Matlatzinca suggests an i.

The reconstructed forms for first and second persons in POP are *kao and
*kRe, respectively. Pamean has reduplication of the first person marker: *kaokao.
It has preposed heo- for the second person morpheme: *heo-kRe. Regular loss of
word final vowels in Pamean gives the forms kaok and heokR. North Pame forms
show no further development.

Chichimeco has preposed i- to the Pamean forms. The second vowel of each
vowel cluster is metathesized with the final consonant. The regular rule is to simply
delete the second member of a vowel cluster. However, in order to explain the
Chichimeco word final vowel it would be necessary to insert it by some special rule
which operates only in this instance. I have chosen to state the rule as a metathesis
because the “inserted” vowel happens to be identical with the vowel which has been
“deleted”. The disadvantage to this solution is that the metathesis rule is unique to
this situation. Intervocalic *k is voiced and *o is phonemically reassigned to
Chichimeco u. The resulting forms are ikagu and ihekRu.

South Pame has lost the second member of the vowel cluster from *kaok by
the regular rule. It lost the first vowel from the cluster in *heokR. The irregularity
may be explained if we assume that SP had preposed i- parallel to the Chichimeco
forms. There is a rule which deletes the first vowel of a cluster if it is identical with
(or shares certain distinctive features with) the vowel in the preceding syllable.
Following the deletion of the e from heokR, a later rule would delete the preposed i-.
The phonemic reassignment of *o to SP u gives the present day forms kak and hukR.

Otomi and Mazahua have the normal reflexes of POP *kao and *kRe, kö and
kRe,92 respectively. Matlatzinca forms have preposed ka-. The vowels have been
neutralized to conform to the pattern of the inserted word final -i. However, the
palatalized k (X) of the second person form kaXRi implies an adjacent front vowel.
Thus, there is a trace of the vowel distinctions of the original morphemes.

The development of the first, second, and third person bound forms presents
no problem. The reconstructed forms are *-k, *-kR, and *-p, respectively. Mtz and
Ch have lost the R from *-kR. Ch has fricative reflexes of *-k and *-p. The
development of *te is regular. Mtz a is the regular reflex of *e.

92
The e vowel varies to [ or i in the different dialects.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 116

Number markers
The dual, plural, and exclusive markers, as shown in table 26, present an
interplay of analogic change and regular sound change. The etyma as reconstructed
are: dual exclusive *mRe, dual *i, dual *sV, plural exclusive *ho, plural *nV, and
plural *te.

TABLE 26
OTOPAMEAN NUMBER MARKERS
du. excl. dual dual pl. excl. pl. pl.
POP *m8e *i *sV *ho *nV *te
Ot Rme wi he hS te
Maz bRe wi hme hi te
Mtz bi we hø ho ta
NP mR i mR n t
SP m (s) m n t
Ch mp/-v- s ha n r

In Pamean final vowels are lost by the regular rule, except for the dual -i
which consists of only a vowel.

North Pame loses final h by regular sound change with consequent loss of the
plural exclusive *ho. The gap in the system is filled by the extension of the dual
exclusive morpheme *mRe to signal the plural exclusive as well. The dual *sV is
lost (no apparent motivation) and is replaced by the dual *i.

South Pame shares with NP the loss of *ho and the extension of the dual
suffix *mRe to serve as the plural exclusive. In addition, the SP rule to delete the
second member of the vowel cluster eliminates the dual *i. There followed an
extension of the dual *sV as the general dual, but dual as a category was later
eliminated. The *sV survives in a few words like mat-tehes “will marry” which are
normally restricted to dual action.

Chichimeco keeps the plural exclusive *ho as ha. The vowel in Chichimeco
needs to be explained in view of the fact that word final vowels are normally
deleted. The vowel may be due to metathesis from the first person morpheme ikagu
which frequently precedes it. But Jaime de Angula brings up a point which may
invalidate this theory. He says that the final vowel of the singular ikagu is often
voiceless whereas the vowel of the plural exclusive ikagha is always voiced and,
furthermore, is nasalized.93 It may be that the retention of the vowel in the plural
exclusive marker is due to occurrence in slightly different environment with respect
to stress. The nasalization of the vowel may be by analogy with the other plural

93
Jaime de Angulo, loc. cit., p 155.
 117 VI Person and Number Markers

markers from *nV. The dual *i is lost via the Ch rule which deletes the second
member of vowel clusters. The dual *sV was extended as the general dual.

In Otomian the dual *sV has been replaced by the extension of the dual *i.
Otomian wi from *i shows the development of w, presumably to avoid hiatus.

The sound change in the development of plural *te is regular, but there has
been a semantic shift. Whereas the -t suffix in Pamean is a general plural, in
Otomian it is used as a generalized personal object, translatable as “people” as in Ot
phöš-te “help people.”

The semantic displacement of *te is accompanied by the loss of the plural

*nV. Otomian has extended the plural exclusive *ho, via analogy, to a general
plural function.

A proportion exists between the exclusive morphemes and the dual and plural
morphemes as follows:

dual exclusive : plural exclusive

: :
dual : plural

The underlying forms of the Otomian plural morphemes are compounds

consisting of *ho as first member and the corresponding dual form as the second
member, thus:

dual exclusive : plural exclusive

mRe *ho-mRe

dual : plural
wi *ho-wi

Otomi-Mazahua deletes the o from the plural forms, giving hmRe and hwi,
respectively. The R is deleted from the cluster hmR. These rules give the Mazahua
form hme for “plural exclusive.”

Otomi deletes the m from hme giving the form he.

The regular rules for the development of POP vowel clusters give Ot hS and
Maz hi for “plural inclusive.”

Matlatzinca converts *ho-mRe into høbi (via the same rule that converts *mRe
into bi and some rule which changes the o into ø). It leaves the *howi unchanged.
 CHAPTER VII
THE RECONSTRUCTION OF POP TONE
The preceding chapters have reconstructed the segmental features of
Otopamean stems. This chapter reconstructs the supra-segmental features of
costrastive pitch.

All of the Otopamean languages have contrastive lexical pitch. The tone
systems of the individual languages differ with respect to number of tonemes, the
role of stress and the positions in the word for which certain tone contrasts are
relevant. Brief sketches of the synchronic tone systems are given in the following
paragraphs.

Synchronic Tone Systems

Chichimeco, Matlatzinca, and Ocuilteco

Chichimeco and Matlatzinca are reported to have noncontrastive stress. Jaime
de Angulo94 says of Chichimeco that there is no noticeable difference of stress or
quality. There are two levels of pitch, high and low, one of which occurs on each
syllable of the word. All possible combinations of tone occur on two syllable words
except that the sequence low, low is very rare. Henrietta Andrews95 admits phonetic
stress in Matlatzinca, but demonstrates that it is non-contrastive because it can be
altered without affecting the meaning whereas altering the pitch often alters the
meaning. She further observes that there seems to be a rhythmic pattern which
places stress on alternate syllables. Andrews records vowel length for Matlatzinca,
but its phonemic status has not been demonstrated. Matlatzinca, like Chichimeco,
has two levels of pitch, high and low. There are certain nonpermitted tone sequences
and certain kinds of tone sandhi which were observed by Andrews in her
preliminary study, but a thorough analysis has yet to be made. Ocuilteco has a
contrastive pitch which looks very similar to that described for Matlatzinca, but no
systematic analysis has yet been made.

94
Jaime de Angulo, loc. cit.
95
Henrietta Andrews, “Observaciones en Fenómenos Tonales de Matlatzinca”, 1945.
(Typewritten)

6/9/2010 118
 119 VIII Tone

North Pame and South Pame

North Pame, as described by Gibson,96 has a tone-stress system where stress
normally falls on the root syllable and there is a contrast of high, low, and falling
pitches. Contrastively, stress may occur on the prefix syllable, and in that case the
pitch is always high. The pitches on non-stressed syllables are predictable. Leonardo
Manrique97 postulates a similar tone system for South Pame.

Otomi and Mazahua

Mazahua has been described by Eunice Pike98 as having tonemic and
intonemic systems which operate in complementary domains. There is no lexically
contrastive pitch on stem-formative syllables and when these syllables occur at the
end of a sentence their pitch is determined by the intonational contrasts. Stem-
formative syllables occurring elsewhere in the sentence have a non-contrastive
carrier pitch. Lexical pitch occurs on root syllables and on prefixes. Root syllables
are stressed and have three contrastive pitches: high, low, and falling. (Donald
Stewart,99 working with a different variety of Mazahua, reports a contrastive upglide
in addition to these three). Prefix syllables are unstressed and have only a high-low
pitch contrast.

The tone system of Otomi is very parallel to that Mazahua. Root syllables
have three contrastive pitches: high, low, and rising. (Eastern Otomi also
distinguishes a falling tone).100 Sinclair and Pike101 noted that final syllables in
Mezquital Otomi were always high tone, but they didn”t correlate this fact with
positional restriction of number of contrasts nor with the role of intonation as was
done in the later analysis of Mazahua which was referred to above. Otomi prefix
syllables have two contrastive pitches as in Mazahua.

96
Lorna F. Gibson, “Pame (Otomi) Phonemics and Morphophonemics”.
97
Leonardo Manrique, “Descriptive sketch of South Pame (Jiliapan Dilect)”.
98
Eunice V. Pike, loc. cit.
99
Personal communication. La Concepción, District of Ixtlahuaca, Edo. de México.
100
Eastern Otomi tone is described by Katherine Voigtlander in an unpublished paper,
“Interference of Lexical Pitch and Stress by contrastive Rhythmic Pattern in Eastern Otomi”, 1963.
(Typewritten)
101
Donald Sinclair and Kenneth L. Pike, “The Tonemes of Mezquital Otomi”, IJAL, XIV
(1948), 91-98. For a different treatment, see Morris Swadesh and Frances Leon, “Two Views of
Otomi Prosody”, IJAL,XV (1949), 100-05. Also, see Frances Leon, “Revisión de la fonología del
Otomí”, Anales del Instituto National de Antropología e Historia, XV (1962), 315-30. Recently
Harvey Russel Bernard, in an unpublished paper, did a generative restatement of Mezquital Otomi
tone in terms of two pitches and geminate vowels. Dictionary entries for Otomi words are marked
only with the first occurrence of high tone, the other tones being specified by three ordered rules.
For the tone analysis of another dialect of Otomi, see Henrietta Andrews, “Phonemes
and Morphophonemes of Temoayan Otomi”, IJAL, XV (1949), 213-22. Temoaya is Southwestern
Otomi.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 120

Reconstruction of POP Tone

Otopamean pitch contrasts have a grammatical as well as a lexical function.
That is, a paradigm may contain tonally differentiated forms, the tone marking
certain grammatical categories. Sometimes the tone alone marks the category and
sometimes it is a redundant marker. The grammatical function of tone contrasts
presents a problem in identifying cognates which match with respect to tone. A
comparison of 32 noun paradigms was used as the nucleus of the tone reconstruction
for Chichimeco and North Pame. This approach provided a certain amount of control
over paradigmatic variants.

In spite of the typological differences in the tone systems of Chichimeco and

North Pame, the languages belong to the same subgroup and have a very similar
grammatical systems. The categories and forms in noun paradigms match almost
perfectly. (Those in verb paradigms are more varied and do not match as well). It
was found that the disyllabic tone patterns of Chichimeco words match the single
tone-stress phonemes of North Pame words. The Pamean prefixes appear to have no
contrastive pitches of their own.

Pamean noun paradigms mark possession. There are four basic forms: (1)
first person possessor, (2) second person possessor, (3) third person possessor and
(4) third person plural possessor. ( Plural of first and second person forms do not
involve stem alternants). Forms 3 and 4 differ in initial consonantism but have the
same tone pattern, usually. The majority of the noun paradigms in this nuclear study
have the same tone pattern for forms 1 and 3 but a contrasting tone pattern for form
2. Stem initial consonants, however, may be of the pattern ABCD where all forms
are different or of the pattern EFEF where 1 and 3 are alike and 2 and 4 are alike.

The citation of tone on words is by means of diacritics written above the

vowel: á or /V for high tone, à or `V for low tone, ]V for rising tone, and [V for
falling tone. Capital letters are used for talking about the tones when abstracted from
the segmental Phonemes: H for high tone, L for low tone, R for rising tone , and F
for falling tone. The NP high tone on the prefix syllable will be written (H).

Nine of the paradigms match with NP L corresponding to Ch LH in forms 1

and 3 and NP F corresponding to Ch HL in form 2. The reconstructed paradigm is
*L--F1.102

“woman’s sister, etc.” = J (Romero-Driver)103

NP hoèo nh[o nhèo

102
*F1 marks a falling tone different from *F2. *F2 is reconstructed for the correspondence of
NP H or (H) to Ch HL
103
The Chichimeco forms for kinship terms are listed as given by Romero and Driver (1963)
because they were carefully checked, especially where they differed from Angulo (1933). The forms
are from Driver, loc. cit., , 159-60.
 121 VIII Tone

Ch nàhí únhò [_nhí Pamean *L-F1

“ojo-”eye/face”
NP nattào Ugot[ao Ugotào
Ch k`tá útá ùrá Pamean *L-F1

“nariz-nose”
NP conn`ã XiUy[õa XiUUy`õa
Ch kànú kánù kànú Pamean *L-F1

“mano-hand”
NP skaRài skanR[a skanRià
*L-F1 kàRá kánRà kànRí Pamean *L-F1

“milpa-field”
NP kann`õa kon[õa kon`õa
Ch kùnú kínù Pamean *L-F1

“oreja-ear”
NP cokkw`ã Xiky[ão Xik`yão
Ch sùk/ã sík`ã sìk`ã Pamean *L-F1

“boca-mouth”
NP katt`[ kol[[ kon`[
Ch kàtí útì ùní Pamean *L-F1

“labio-lip”
NP coll`[ Xill[[ XiUUy`[
Ch sùní sínì sìní Pamean *L-F1

“sangre-blood”
NP kokhwìk kikkh[i kikhì
Ch kùkh/e kíkhè kìkh/e Pamean *L-F1

Four of the paradigms match with NP L corresponding to Ch LH for forms 1

and 3 and NP (H) corresponding to CH HL. The reconstructed paradigm is Pamean
*L-F2.
“mother”tE (Romero-Driver)
NP rawí104 ácRõ wacR`õ
Ch n/ãn/ã&& úcR`a `[cR/a Pamean *L--F2

104
The first person forms for both NP and Ch are suppletive. The NP may be from the
Spanish “virgin”. The Ch náná is the word for “mother” found in many Mexican languages. The
reconstruction assumes that 1 and 3 were alike in tone before the suppletion took place.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 122

“calzones-trousers”
NP nokkòiR nákkoi/ nakòiR “skirt”105
naUkhòiR naUkh[oikR naUkhòRp “trousers”
Ch rùkú rúkù rùgú Pamean *L--F2

“pie--foot”
NP makkwà màkkwa makwà
Ch nàkú ékù ègú Pamean *L--F2

“plato--bowl”
NP nommàhag nimyáhagU nimmyàhagU
U
Ch nùmá nímà nìmá Pamean *L--F2

Three of the paradigms match with NP H corresponding to Ch LH for forms

1 and 3 and NP H corresponding to Ch HL for form 2. The reconstructed paradigm
is Pamean. *R--F2 (rising) is for the correspondence NP H to Ch LH.
“sombrero--hat”
NP namb/éheR UgowéheR UgowéheR
Ch nàmbá úngwà ùmá Pamean *L--F2

“nombre--name”
NP nah/õR Ugoh/õR Ugoh/^oR
Ch nàh/a únh`a ùnhí Pamean *L--F2

“cuchillo--knife”
NP tahéš kihéš nahéš106
Ch tàté kítè tàté Pamean *L--F2

Two paradigms match with NP L corresponding to Ch LH in all three forms.

The reconstructed paradigm is *L--.107
“grandmother” t D (Romero-Driver)
NP rattòi attòi watòi
Ch n[al/[R108 ùtú `[l/[R `[rú `[R Pamean *L--

105
NP “skirt” more closely matches Ch “trousers”. NP “trousers” seems to be a fixed stem
derived from “skirt”. The tone correspodences between NP “trousers” and ch “trousers” would call
for Pamean *L-F1.
106
These forms do not match in consonantism. The D forms are NP ralh/e]s and Ch ràrh/e,
which do match. It looks like one or the other of the paradigms is a back formation from the D form.
107
The notation *L-- means that the tone is the same throught the paradigm. If two tones are
listed, e.g., L--F1, the first is for forms 1 and 3 and the second for form 2.
108
The Ch first person form is the suppletive na (cf. the supppletive nana for “mother”) plus
the suffix l[R which is probably some sort of honorific.
 123 VIII Tone

“father”sister, etc.” t F (Romero-Driver)

NP rattòi attò watòi “grandmother”109
Ch nàt/ü_ ùt/ü_ `[r/ü_ Pamean *L--

There are three paradigms in which NP H or (H) corresponds to Ch HH for

forms 1 and 3 and NP H corresponds to Ch LH for form 2. The reconstructed
paradigm is *H--R.
“grandfather, etc.” t C (Romero-Driver)
NP rahíU wahíU wanhíU
Ch n/ãh/[_ ùmh/[_ /[nh/[_ Pamean *H--R

“wife” t N (Romero-Driver)
NP RíaRa nRíaRa wánRia
110
Ch màs/a ùníRí úníRì Pamean *H--R

“husband” t M (RomeroDriver)
NP Ryo/ãU nRo/ãU wanRo/ãU
Ch náR/a ùnR/a únR/a Pamean *H--R

There are two paradigms in which NP H corresponds to Ch HH in forms 1

and 3 and NP L corresponds to Ch LH in form 2. The reconstructed paradigm is
*H-L.
“parent-in-law” t Q (Romero-Driver)
NP lugU ly`[gU wanugU
Ch úrí ùrí /[ní Pamean *H--L

“excremento--faeces”
NP nappói Ugopòi Ugopói
Ch náp/ü úv/ü uní Pamean *H--L

There is one paradigm where NP H, L, and F for forms 1,2,3, respectively,

correspond to Ch HH, LH, HH. The reconstructed paradigm is *H-L-F1.
“older brother, etc.” t G (Romero-Driver)
NP láiR lyài wan[ai
Ch úru ùru unu Pamean *H-L-F1

The next paradigm shows NP H corresponding to Ch HH for forms 1 and 3

and NP H corresponding to Ch HL in form 2. The reconstructed paradigm is *H--F2.
“wife’s brother, etc.” t O (Romero-Driver)
NP akkoáR ekkoáR wakoáR
Ch úkúR úkùR ugúR111 Pamean +H--

109
The two sets are really the same with respect to the basic morpheme which apparently can
refer to any female relative. Ch has a nonsuppletive first person form in the second set.
110
The first person form is suppletive.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 124

In the next paradigm NP L corresponds to Ch LH in forms 11 and 3 and NP

L corresponds to Ch LH in form 2. In this case the paradigm is reconstructed as
Pamean *L-- and the Ch HL in form 2 is attributed to analogic change influenced by
the predominant pattern of contrastive second person forms.
“wife’s sister, etc.” t P (Romero-Driver)
NP kommò kimò kamò
Ch kàm/a kám`a kàm/a Pamean *L--

In the following paradigm NP F corresponds to Ch HL for forms 1 and 3 and

NP L corresponds to Ch LH for form 2. The reconstructed paradigm is *F1--L.
“estómago--belly”
NP naamb[ao Ugowào Ugom[ao
Ch námbà ùngwá ùmá Pamean *F1--L

The next paradigm sows NP (H) corresponding to ch HL for forms 1 and 3

and NP L corresponding to Ch LH. The reconstructed paradigm is *F2--L.
“agua--water”
NP kónd[ kiky`[ kíUgy[
Ch kúndì kìrí kìndì Pamean *F2--L

In the next paradigm NP H corresponds to Ch HL for forms 1 and 3 and NP

H corresponds to Ch LH for form 2. The Ch LH is considered to be an analogical
replacement of an earlier HH, influenced by the predominant pattern of a contrastive
second person form. The reconstruction, then, is Pamean *F2--.
“animal--animal”
NP nambáRi UgowáRi UgomáRi
Ch námbè ùngwé úmè Pamean *F2--

In the final paradigm NP H corresponds to Ch HH for form 1 and NP H

corresponds to Ch LH for forms 2 and 3. The reconstructed paradigm is *H-R-R.
“olla--crock”
NP naccéR UgocRéokR Ugocw/éR
Ch nátsé ùtsé ùzé Pamean *H-R-R

For further control over paradigmatic tone variants a study was made of the
available noun paradigms for each language on a synchronic basis to see which
patterns were most numerous. The results of that study are presented in Table 27.
The most numerous pattern in the two languages (NP L--F, Ch LH--HL) is also
cognate, reconstructing as *L--F1. The third most numerous pattern (NP H--L, Ch
HH--LH) reconstructs as *H--L. The other tone patterns in the same row are not
cognate.
111
Angulo’s tones for this set are LH-HL-HL.
125 VIII Tone
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 126

TABLE 27
TONE PATTERNS IN NOUN PARADIGMS
IN NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO
NORTH PAME CHICHIMECO
L--F 28 LH--HL 48
H-- 19 HL--LH 27
H--L 10 HH--LH 5
(H)--L 10 HH-HL-HL 4
F--L 5 HL-LH-HH 4
L--H 3 LH-HL-HL 4
L--(H) 3 HH-- 1
F-- 2 HH-LH-LH 1
H--F 2 LH-HL-LL 1
F--H 1 LH-LH-HL 1
(H)--H 1 HL-LL-HL 1
H-L-F 1 HL-LH-LL 1
H--(H) 1 HL-LH-LH 1
L-- 3
Total 89 Total 99

Verb paradigms were also tabulated for each language. In the case of the
verbs it was more difficult to choose diagnostic forms because of the increased
number of the forms themselves. The third person singular of the present tense (or
the progressive aspect) was considered to be the base form and any departure from
the tone pattern there was listed as a variant. In each language there is a large
number of verbs which have no tone variants. This fact is significant because
cognate verbs in the two languages are likely to match with respect to tone. Table 28
presents the tone patterns in verb paradigms.

Encouraged by the lack of extensive tone sandhi in the verbs, I made a

tabulation of the tone patterns on nonparadigmatic material in the cognate sets where
tone had been recorded. The tone correspondences noted in this material were then
compared with the correspondences noted in the reconstruction of the noun
paradigms. The tones reconstructed in the paradigms were: *L (NP L to Ch LH), *F1
(NP F to Ch HL), *F2, (NP H to Ch HL), *H (NP H to Ch HH), and *R (NP H to
Ch LH). These turned out to be the correspondences with the Largest number of
examples in the nonparadigmatic material. Additional correspondences showed up in
the nonparadigmatic material but with much fewer examples. Table 29 presents the
number of examples of each correspondence in the paradigmatic material,
(subdivided for kin terms and nonkin terms), and for nonparadigmatic material,
(subdivided for verbs and nonverbs).
 127 VIII Tone

TABLE 28
TONE PATTERNS IN VERB PARADIGMS
IN NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO
NORTH PAME CHICHIMECO
H 23 HL 71
L 18 LH 34
L--H 11 HH 25
H--(H) 9 HL-LH 20
(H) 7 LH-HL 10
F--(H) 3 LH-HL-HH 7
F--H 1 HH-LH 1
L--F 1 HL-LL-HH 1
L--(H) 1
F-- 1
H--L 1
Total 76 Total 169
There are some distributional peculiarities of Pamean *R. In the paradigmatic
material it always occurs in those paradigms in which NP has high tone throughout
the paradigm. In the verb material *R alternates with *F2 in 4 out of 5 examples.
Probably the correspondence NP H to Ch LH is not a reflex of a Pamean toneme but
is the consequence of some rule which is an innovation in one or the other
languages.

The instances of *F2 in the nonkin paradigmatic material are also connected
with NP paradigms with high tone throughout. The large number of examples in the
nonparadigmatic material, however, establishes the correspondence as a reflex of a
Pamean toneme *F2

TABLE 29
TONE CORRESPONDENCES BETWEEN
NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO
Paradigmatic Material Nonparadigmatic Material
kin nonkin verbs nonverbs Totals
*L 7 14 7 23 51
*F1 1 10 1 10 22
*F2 2 6 17 30 55
*H 7 3 5 17 32
*R 3 5 5 8 21

Other Correspondences
NP F to Ch LF......................4
NP L to Ch HL......................7
NP F to Ch HH......................3
NP L to Ch HH......................3
NP H to Ch LL......................1
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 128

NP H to Ch HL......................1
The additional tone correspondences encountered in the nonparadigmatic
material are discounted at this point because of the proportionately small number of
examples, such that they may represent errors in matching forms for tone.

The Pamean tonemes, then, stand at *L, *F1,*F2, and *H.

The cognate sets for the nonparadigmatic material are listed in Appendix I.

Reconstruction of Otomi-Mazahua Tone

A preliminary reconstruction of Otomi-Mazahua tone was done by Donald
Stewart of the Summer Institute of Linguistics in 1954-1956.112 Stewart compared
four dialects of Otomi with one dialect of Mazahua. Three of the Otomi dialects had
identical tones.113 They are labeled Western Otomi in contrast to the Eastern Otomi
dialect of San Gregorio.114 San Gregorio has different tones but there is a one to one
correspondence with the Western Otomi tones except in the monosyllables where
two of the tones have merged to SG low tone. The tones which Stewart reconstructs
for Proto-Otomi are identical with those of Western Otomi. Table 30 presents the
correspondence between Western and Eastern Otomi tones and the Proto-Otomi
reconstructions. The correspondences are grouped according to two-syllable words
(i.e., those with stem-formative suffixes) and one-syllable words (i.e., those
without). There is no contrastive tone on stem-formative syllables.

TABLE 30
STEWART’S RECONSTRUCTION OF PROTO-OTOMI TONE
Western Eastern Proto-Otomi
Two Syllable H R *H
Words L F *L
R L *R
One syllable R L *R
Words H L *H
L F *L
He compared Proto-Otomi tone with Mazahua as reconstructed four tones for
Proto-Otomi-Mazahua as if Table 31.

112
Stewart’s study is unpublished. In 1956 he presented it orally to a “Mesa Redonda
Linguistica” in Mexico City under the title “Reconstrucción de Tono para Otomí-Mazahua”. I have a
carbon copy of that paper.
113
The three dialects are (1) Santa Clara de Juárez, municipo de San Bartolo Morelos,
Mexico, (2) San Felipe y Santiago, municipio de Jiquipilco, Mexico, and (3) Mezquital Otomi of
Tasquillo, Hidalgo, and of Tlacotlapilco, municipio de Cilcuautla, Hidalgo.
114
San Gregorio, Municipio de Huehuetla, Hidalgo.
 129 VIII Tone

The Mazahua dialect on which Stewart based his 1956 reconstruction is that
of Santa María Citendeje, which has three contrastive tones: high, low, and falling.
Since then, Stewart has been doing field work in La Concepción which is in a
different section of the Mazahua area.115 La Concepión distinguishes four tones:
high, low, falling, and rising. Stewart has not pursued his reconstruction any further
to take in the data from La Concepión, but he very kindly made available to me a list
of the Mazahua equivalents for the Spanish glosses in my corpus of cognate sets.
The Mazahua forms were marked with the tone contrasts of La Concepción.

TABLE 31
STEWART’S RECONSTRUCTION OF OTOMI-MAZAHUA TONE
Proto-Otomi Mazahua Otomi-Mazahua
Two Syllable H Ha/L *H
Words H F *F
L L *L
R Ha/F *R
One Syllable R F *R
Words R F *H
L L *L
a
In the environment followed immediately by R or h and another consonant.

In order to make maximum use of the data from La Concepción, I went

through the Mezquital Otomi dictionary116 for cognates with the Mazahua forms. On
the basis of Stewart’s reconstruction, cited above, the Mezquital forms would be
representative of Proto-Otomi tone. A substantial number of cognates, about 200,
resulted from the comparison. These cognates were grouped into 12 groups
according to the sets of tone correspondences. The phonological characteristics of
the words in each group were noted for determining complementary distribution of
the sets of correspondences. Table 32 summarizes this information. The full list of
Otomi-Mazahua cognates is given in appendix J.

TABLE 32
TONE CORRESPONDENCES BETWEEN OTOMI AND MAZAHUA
Maz H Maz L Maz F Maz R
I II III IV
Ot R 4 sets 23 sets 16 sets 32 sets
11 “one”a 9 “one” 11 “one”
12 “two” 7 “two” 21 “two”

115
It is in the municipio of Ixtlahuaca, México. Santa María Citendeje is in the municipio of
Jocotitlán, Mexico.
116
“Diccionario Castellano-Otomí; Otomí-Castellano,” Cuadernos del Valle del Mezquital, I,
Numero 1, (Itzmiquilpan, Mexico: Ediciones del Patrimonio del Valle del Mezquital y el Instituto
Lingüístico de Verano, 1956), vii-283.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 130

V VI VII VIII
Ot H 13 sets 40 sets 40 sets 28 sets
16 “one” 3 “one” 19 “one”
24 “two” 37 “two” 9 “two”
qqR/hCV not R/hCV

IX X XI XII
Ot L 6 sets 84 sets 9 sets 8 sets
82 “two” cpds.
2 “one”
a
The numbers “one” and “two” refer to one and two syllable words, respectively.

The tones reconstructed for Otomi-Mazahua are *H, *F, *L, and *R, the
same as Stewart reconstructed. The correspondences in the present analysis differ
from Stewart’s where Santa María has eliminated *R by merger with H and F. The
rules specify the changes in Santa María. (1) *R > Ha/F in two syllables words. (2)
*R > H in one-syllable words. Stewart’s reconstruction of *R in two-syllable words
is justified by the dialect of La concepción.

The sets of correspondences for one-syllable words have been assigned to

different proto tonemes. The new correspondence Ot H to Maz R (where
Concepción R replaces Santa Maria Ha/F) is reconstructed as *R. The
correspondence Ot R to Maz F which is the same as in the earlier materials is now
assigned to *F whereas Stewart had reconstructed it as *R. The new materials show
Ot R corresponding to Maz L in monosyllables as reflexes of *L. This contrasts with
Stewart’s correspon-dence of Ot L to Maz L for *L. Table 33 presents the
correspondences and the reconstructions of the two analyses. The Roman numerals
refer to the groups on Table 32 above.

TABLE 33
OTOMI-MAZAHUA TONE RECONSTRUCTION
COMPARISON OF THE TWO RECONSTRUCTIONS
Stewart Present Analysis
Ot Maz Ot-Maz Ot Maz Ot-Maz
a a
Two Syll. H H /L *H H H /L *H (V, VI)
H F *F H F *F(VII)
L L *L L Ha/L *L(IX, X)
R Ha/F *R R Ha/R *R (I, IV)
R F *R R F *F(III)
H H *H H R *R(VIII)
L L *L R L *L (II)
a
In the Environment followed immediately by R or h and another consonant.
 131 VIII Tone

The environments postulated by Stewart for the different sets of correspon-

dences are confirmed by the present more exhaustive study. The correspondences in
Table 33 and the environments specified there match the groups in Table 32 and
account for all the groups except IX (Ot L to Maz H), XI (Ot to Maz F) and XII (Ot
L to Maz R). These groups have very few examples compared with the other groups.
Group XI seems to be composed of compound words. The other groups do not
present any distinctive characteristics. They may be false cognates or there may be
some other factors involved which we can’t see at present.

Matlatzinca-Ocuilteco Tone
Available materials on Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco tone are too scanty to
permit a reconstruction at this time.

Otopamean Tone
The reconstruction of Otomi-Mazahua tone for the Otomian subgroup and the
reconstruction of North Pame-Chichimeco tone for the Pamean subgroup provide a
basis for reconstructing certain features of Otopamean tone. The lack of a Mtz-Oc
tone reconstruction is not crucial because we have a representative from the Otomian
subgroup in the shape of Ot-Maz.

For the reconstruction of Otopamean tone a corpus of 147 cognate sets was
assembled for which there is a tone corresspondence between the two sub-groups.
The corpus is listed in Appendix K.

Table 34 displays the characteristics of the groups of words for the sets of
tone correspondences between the sub-groups. The number of examples of the
correspondence appears in the appropriate cell along with the number of those
examples which end in a POP consonant (--C) and the number which are without a
final consonant (--#) and the number which have a vowel cluster (VV), The vowel
cluster category overlaps the category of final consonant.

TABLE 34
TONE CORRESPONDENCES BETWEEN
OTOMIAN AND PAMEAN
Ot-Maz *R Ot-Maz *L Ot-Maz *F Ot-Maz *H
Pn F1 6 sets 10 sets 3 sets 2 sets
0 --C 8 --C 1 --C 1 --C
6 --# 2 --# 2 --# 1 --#
2 VV 8 VV

Pn *F2 4sets 14 sets 8 sets 7 sets

1 --C 13 --C 3 --C 2--C
3 --# 1 --# 5 --# 5 --#
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 132

2 VV 6 VV 4 VV 3 VV

(cont.) Ot-Maz *R Ot-Maz *L Ot-Maz *F Ot-Maz *H

Pn *L 18 sets 7 sets 18 sets 6 sets
4 --C 5 --C 12 --C 3--C
14 --# 2 --# 6 --# 3 --#
8 VV 4 VV 6 VV 5 VV

Pn *H 8 sets 9 sets 3 sets

7 --C 8 --C 1 --C
1 --# 1--# 2 --#
3 VV 2 VV 1 VV

Pn *R 3 sets 3 sets
3 --C 2 --C
0--# 1 --#
1 VV 2 VV
Note: For each correspondence the total of sets shown at the top equals the sum of the sets
with final consonant and those with final vowel. The numbers given for VV are included (i.e.,
overlap) those given for C andór #.

Those correspondences which are represented by three or less examples are

ignored as probable chance correspondences. This eliminates the correspondences
Ot-Maz *F to Pn *F1, Ot-Maz *H to Pn *F2, Ot-Maz *F to Pn H, Ot-Maz *L to Pn
*R, and Ot-Maz *L to Pn *F. The phonological feature which seems most
consistently connected with the tone correspondences is that of final consonantism.
A final consonant is prominent in the columns with Ot-Maz *L and *F. The absence
of a final consonantism is prominent in the columns with Ot-Maz *R and *H, except
for the case of the correspondence Ot-Maz *R to Pamean *H, where, conversely,
final consonants predominate. In the case of the correspondence Ot-Maz *H to Pn
*L, moreover, the number of sets without final consonants is exactly equal to that of
sets with final consonants. The reconstructed tone units I, II, III, and VI (see Table
35 below) have been chosen so as to unite those correspondences which share the
same Pamean tone and which pair reflexes of Ot-Maz *L in the environment of
final C with those of Ot-Maz *R in the environment of final V (i.e., #), or else which
pair reflexes of Ot-Maz *F in the environment of final C with those of Ot-Maz *H
in the environment of final V (i.e., #). These groupings and complementations then
account for all significantly large sets of corrspondences except for the two above
mentioned with aberrant incidence of tone-consonantism relation (viz., Ot-Maz *R to
Pn *H and OT-Maz *H to Pn *L). These two sets of correspondences which do not
show parallel relations between tone and environment are provisionally grouped
with those remaining sets showing expected tone-consonant relations so as to form
tone units IV and V according to the shared Pamean tone.
 133 VIII Tone

TABLE 35
OTOPAMEAN TONE RECONSTRUCTIONS
Final Consonant No Final Consonant POP Tone
O-M *L to Pn *F1 O-M *R to Pn *F1 I *[FL]
O-M *L to Pn *F2 O-M *R to Pn *F2 II *[HF]
O-M *L to Pn *L O-M *R to Pn *L III *[L]
O-M *L to Pn *H O-M *R to Pn *H IV *[R]
O-M *L to Pn *L O-M *H to Pn *L V *[F]
O-M *L to Pn *F2 O-M *H to Pn *F2 VI *[H]
The phonetic characteristics which we might imagine POP to have had are
hinted at above in Table 35. Three POP tones seem to have had some contour of
falling pitch: I *FL, II *HF, and V *F. Tone II might be thought of as low, tone IV
as rising, and tone VI as high. It is hazardous to try to be more specific about the
falling tones, but if F is thought of as a direct straight-line fall, FL (“fall + low”)
could be pictured as a sharp fall, and HF (“high + fall”) could be pictured as a
slow, or delayed fall.

The Development of POP Tone

Otomian Rules
Otomian lowers POP tones I [FK], II [HF], and IV [R] to L and places a
downglide on VI [H]. Then it raises L to R and takes the downglide from F,
producing H, in words without final consonant.

I, II, IV  L 
(1)   →  
 VI  F 

L  R 
(2)   →   in env. ___#
F  H 

The derivation of Otomian tones via these rules is shown in Figure 4.

I II III IV V VI
[FL] [HF] [L] [R] [F] [H]
Rule 1 L L L F
Rule 2 R# R# R# R# H# H#
Fig. 4. Derivation of Otomian Tones

Otomi moves a gliding tone to its end point in monosyllables (derived from
POP roots without final consonants): *R goes to H; *F goes to L. Then all low tones
(original ones and those resulting from the preceding rule) are raised to R on
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 134

monosyllables. In two-syllable stems (the second syllable from a POP final

consonant), Otomi takes a downglide from *F, producing H. The statement of rules
in this order makes it unnecessary to state the environment for the last rule.

R  H 
1.   →   in env. ___#
F  L 

2. L > R in env. qq#

3. F > H

The derivation of Otomi tone via these three rules is shown in Figure 5.
*L *R *F *H
Rule 1 H# L#
Rule 2 R#
Rule 3 H
Fig. 5. The Derivation of Otomi Tones

Mazahua has one rule for the derivation of its tones from Otomian tones. A
high tone is lowered to L everywhere except before a glottal stop followed by
another consonant.

+ gtl 
H → L except in env. ___   [+ cns]
− cnt 

The derivation of Mazahua tones is shown in Figure 6.

*L *R *F *H

La

Fig. 6. The derivation of Mazahua Tones

a
In all environments except followed by R and another consonant.

Pamean Rules
There are three rules for the development of Pamean tones from POP tones.
The first rule decomposes the simple tones to sequences of pitches: L, H, R, and F
become LL, HF, LH, and HL, respectively. Then the sequences FL and HF (from all
sources) to to Pamean F1 and F2, respectively. The third rule deletes the first
member of the remaining tone sequences.
 135 VIII Tone

[L]  LL 
[H ] HF 
   
(1)   →  
[R ] LH 
[F]  HL 

FL  F1 
(2)   →  
HF F2 

(3) T(tone) > p in env. qqT

The derivation of Pamean tones from POP tones via the three rules is shown
in figure 7.
I II III IV V VI
[FL] [HF] [L] [R] [F] [H]
Rule 1 LL LH HL HF
Rule 2 F1 F2 F2
Rule 3 L H L
Fig. 7. The Derivation of Pamean Tones

Pame has one derivational rule. It changes F2 to H.

F1 F2 L H

Fig. 8. The Derivation of Pame Tones

Chichimeco has two derivational rules. The first rule decomposes the Pamean
tones into sequences of tones, merging the reflexes of F1 and F2. The second rule
distributes the tone sequences over the root syllable and its prefex.

L  LH 
   
(1) F1 , F2  → HL 
H  HH 
   

(2) Pref. Root T1 T2 → Pref. T1 Root T2

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 136

The derivation of Chichimeco tones from Pamean tones is shown in Figure 9.

F1 F2 L H

HL HL LH HH

Fig. 9. The Derivation of Chichimeco Tones

 CHAPTER VIII
THE RECONSTRUCTION OF POP PREFIXES
The purpose of this chapter is to present the problems inherent in the
reconstruction of POP prefixes. Jacques Soustelle affirmed in 1937 that if we had
only the verbal prefixes to compare for the Otomi-Pame group, “toute affirmation de
parenté entre ces divers langages demeurerait très téméraire.”117 He made this
comment after he had demonstrated extensive matchings in vocabulary, pronouns,
and parts of the morphology.

The development of the stem-initial consonant alternations involved the loss

of one group of prefixes and the introduction of new prefixes. One might expect
that the new prefixes, having less time depth than the old consonant alternations,
would present rather close matches right down the line, but this is not the case.
Between the subgroups the number of cognate prefixes is very small. Within the
subgroups there are more correspondences of present day prefixes, but there is not
the regularity of sound correspondence that is seen in the stems. There are several
possible explanations of this lack of correspondence. The formation of the new
prefixes may have been through independent but parallel developments in the
separate languages, making use of elements already in the language and adapting
them for prefix use. These elements may have retained some of the characteristics
of free forms, including that of optional occurrence. Secondly, there is evidence of a
layering or clustering of prefixes with later coalescence into a single syllable by
morphophonemic rules. In addition, analogic change has operated within the
morphological subsystems marked by the prefixes, obscuring the results of phonetic
change.

Some of the best matches with respect to the prefixes are encountered in
Pamean. This is partly due to the greater integration of prefix and stem in the word.
North Pame tone-stress occurs mostly on the root, but it may occur on the prefix.
The Chichimeco tone unit is spread over prefix and root. A good amount of data is
available for the Pamean prefixes because of the paradigmatic material gathered for
studying the consonant alternations. Angulo’s article118 is the source of the
Chichimeco data. For North Pame an unpublished paper by Donald Olson of the

117
Jacques Soustelle, loc. cit., 427.
118
Angulo, loc. cit.

6/9/2010 137
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 138

Summer Institute of Linguistics provides material on verb prefixes119 and an

unpublished paper by Lorna Gibson provides material on the noun prefixes.120

The Noun Prefixes

The noun prefixes mark several different things. Some are derivational
prefixes as the following North Pame analysis by Gibson illustrates. With nouns
derived from the C stem of verbs, ka marks “agentive;” nga, “someone’s attitude or
action;” ki, “place connected with action.” With nouns derived from the D stem, na
marks “nominalized action in general;” ki, “something you do;” ko, “liquid;” ka,
“agentive.” The prefix nda plus the A stem marks “instrumental.” The prefix lo
plus the B stem marks “subject of intransitive action;” nda, “instrumental.” Note
that two of the prefixes occur with more than one form of the verb.

Some prefixes mark number of the noun. Most of these prefixes demonstrate
a morphophonemic relationship between the singular prefix (which is often one and
the same with the derivational prefix) and the corresponding plural prefix. The NP
data here are from Gibson. The analysis of the morphophonemics is mine, however.

The singular prefixes look like C forms morphophonemically, i.e., basic p, t,

or s with a NV prefix. The plural prefixes look like B forms morphophonemically,
i.e., basic p, t, or s with a V prefix. The actual morphophonemic rules here differ
somewhat from those of the ABCD stem forms. Similar to C forms, the result of the
nasal prefix plus a stop is a nasal consonant. In contrast to C stem forms, the result
of a nasal plus the sibilant is an affricate. In addition, the nasal consonants resulting
from the first rule merge to Ug before the vowel o.121 Table 36 shows the results of
the combination of morphophonemes in singular prefixes.

Table 36 shows the results of the combination of morphophonemes in the

corresponding plural prefixes. The result of the vocalic prefix plus a stop is a
vocalic consonant and the sibilant is unchanged, just as in B forms. Note that either
vocalic consonant becomes a nasal consonant (symbolized M) in the environment
where it would occur before the vowel o (except that plural ro corresponds to
singular no). The merger to M in the plural prefixes corresponds to the merger to
Ugo in the singular prefixes.

There is an alternate explanation for the singular prefix set ma, mi, Ugo and
the plural prefix set wa, wi, M--an explanation which goes back to an earlier
horizon. The underlying consonant is postulated as **kw which becomes POP *p
except before the vowel *o (hence NP Ugo). Thus, **NV-kwa, **NV-kwi, **NV-kwo
results in *NV-pa, *NV-pi, *NV-ko and, consequently, ma, mi, Ugo. Likewise,

119
Donald Olson, “Person-aspect Morphemes of Pame Verbs,” 1954. (Typewritten)
120
Lorna F. Gibson, “Patterning in Pame Noun Morphology,” 1964. (Typewritten)
121
A prefix no exists, but it appears to have a different source, perhaps from a coalescence of
something like na plus ko.
 139 VIII Prefixes

**V-kwa,
**V-kwi, **V-K results in *V-pa, *V-pi, *V-ko and wa, wi, *o. The * is then
replaced by the nasal M. The Ugo singular and M plural for (NV, V)-t would be
analogy after **kw went to *p in the underlying form This is worth noting here,
since, unlike the rest of the prefix problems, it affects the reconstruction of
consonant features, and ties in with other, e.g., suffix phenomena. Cf. the frequent
correspondence of a reflex of *k in one language to a reflex of *mR in another
language, and vice versa, Chapter V.

TABLE 36
NORTH PAME SINGULAR NOUN PREFIXES
a i o
NV + p ma mi Ugo
NV + t na ni Ugo, no
NV + s ca Xi co
TABLE 37
NORTH PAME PLURAL NOUN PREFIXES
a i o
V+p wa wi M122
V+t la, ra li, ri M, ro
V+s sa ši so
In addition to those prefixes just discussed, there are other NP prefixes
marking number. The plural prefix for a number of NP words is ri or i although the
corresponding singular prefix is of several different shapes. These may be specific
plural prefixes of a more independent sort because they are matched by the South
Pame plural prefixes y and re reported by Manrique.123 Unfortunately, parallel
Chichimeco forms are not available for the plural prefixes. Angulo indicates that
number suffixes mark the number of Ch nouns as the active process. However,
some remnants of the morphophonemic relation between singular and plural prefixes
are found in the prefixes of nouns which are typically plural as opposed to prefixes
of nouns which are typically singular. E.g., “children” Ch ru, ri, ri, but “child” Ch
nu, ni, ni. Perhaps Ch cu, ci, ci, in “wing” are plural prefixes in contrast to the
singular prefixes su, si, si, as in “lips” (parallel to NP co, ci, ci; so, ši, ši). However
the affricates may be by assimilation to the second syllable of the word, e.g., cúc`^
“my wing” from *súc`^.

The Otomi and Mazahua singular and plural prefixes for nouns have just one
form for singular and one for plural. These are combined with prefixes marking the
category in sight/out of sight, as in Table 38.

122
The M symbolizes a nasal consonant which assimilates to the point of articulation of the
stem-initial consonant.
123
Manrique, “Structural Sketch of South Pame.”
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 140
 141 VIII Prefixes

TABLE 38
OTOMI AND MAZAHUA NOUN PREFIXES
Singular Plural
in sight out of sight in sight out of sight
Ot (SF)a nSr kar yS kS
Ot (MEZ)b ra ya
Maz nu e kRe yo kRo
a b
Dialect of San Felipe Santiago, Edo. de Mexico. Dialect of the Mezquital Valley, Edo. de Hidalgo.

The sound correspondences in these prefixes are not the same as those in
stems, but Otomi ra and Mazahua e appear to be cognate and Otomi yS and
Mazahua yo appear to be cognate.

Besides marking derivation and number, noun prefixes also mark person of
the possessor for possessed nouns. An analysis I made on the basis of Gibson’s
noun paper of North Pame showed a remarkable correlation of ABCD forms with
prefixes containing the vowel a in the first person and the vowel o in second and
third persons. There was a similar correlation of EFEF stem forms with prefixes
containing o in first person and i in second and third persons. There are Chichimeco
correspondences for both types of prefix sets as well as of two other types, one
where the first and second persons have the vowel a and second person as i and
another type where the prefix is unchanged for the three persons. The cognate
prefix sets are as follows.

With ABCD Stem Forms

NP na ngo ngo
Ch na u u
*Pn *na *no124 *no

NP ka ko ko
Ch ka u u
*Pn *ka *ko *ko
With EFEF Stem Forms
NP ko ki ki
Ch ku ki ki
*Pn *ko *ki *ki

NP co Xi ci
Ch tsu tši tsi
*Pn *co *ci *ci (sing.)

124
Perhaps an early crossing with *ko.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 142

NP so ši si
Ch su si si
*Pn *so *si *si (plural)

NP no ni ni
Ch nu ni ni
*Pn *no *ni *ni (sing.)

NP ro ri ri
Ch ru ri ri
*Pn *ro *ri *ri (plural)
Other Patterns
NP ta ki na
Ch ta ki ta125
*Pn *ta *ki *na

NP ska ska ska

Ch ka ka ka
*Pn *(s)ka *(s)ka *(s)ka
Words which are cognate with respect to their stems don’t necessarily match
for prefix set. Evidently words have been re-assigned to other prefix sets in those
cases. Then too, as would be expected, there are prefix sets in each language which
do not match a cognate set in the other language. The cognate prefix sets mentioned
above are, however, evidence of a common development of noun prefixes in Pamean
at least.

The North Pame and Chichimeco kinship terms would merit special study
because their prefixes are irregular, different from those found with nonkinship
nouns, suggesting retentions from an older system. The kinship prefixes do not,
however match in any easy fashion between North Pame and Chichimeco although
there is a remarkable correlation of stem forms. The scope of the present work
prohibits more than a simple listing of the forms. Table 39 presents the
corresponding prefixes for cognate kinship terms in North Pame and Chichimeco.
The sets of prefixes are identified by the capital letters used by Romero and Driver
in their material on Chichimeco kinship.126 Only the prefixes are given. Full forms
are given in the chapter on tone.

There are no cognate noun prefixes between Pame and Otomian.

Furthermore, there is a lack of agreement within the Otomian subgroup for prefixes
marking possessor. The Otomian languages, with the exception of Ocuilteco, have
only one set of possessor prefixes, whereas the Pamean languages and Ocuilteco
point to multiple prefix sets for POP. The lack of agreement between the prefix sets

125
Ch ta is probably analogical.
126
Driver and Driver, loc. cit.
 143 VIII Prefixes

in the Otomian languages can be attributed to the generalization of a different prefix

set or to the formation of an entirely new prefix set modeled, perhaps, on one of the
POP sets.

TABLE 39
PREFIXES FOR NORTH PAME AND
CHICHIMECO KINSHIP TERMS
North Pame Chichimeco
1 2 3 1 2 3
127
J # n n-i- na u e
G # y n- na u e
O a e wa u u e
P ka ki ka ka ka ka
L na ngo ngo --128 -- u
M na ngo ngo na u u
N i n wan (ma)129 u u
Q # -i- wa u u e
D ra a wa na u e
E ra a wa na u e
F ra a wa na u e
B ra -i- wo (ta)129 u e
C ra wa wa na u e

The noun prefixes marking possession in each of the Otomian languages are
shown in Table 40. Otomi and Mazahua have one set each. Matlatzinca has one set
for nouns referring to humans and another set for other nouns. Ocuilteco has a more
complex system which has been only partially investigated. The prefix sets
encountered so far are listed in the table.

TABLE 40
OTOMIAN POSSESSOR PREFIXES

1 2 3
Otomi mà nì rá
Mazahua ín ìn ó
Matlatzinca we tu tu (human)
the ri ri (other)

127
The e corresponds to Romero and Driver’s [, which appears to belong to the e phoneme.
128
There are no Ch cognates of these forms.
129
The Ch first person form is suppletive.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 144

1 2 3
Ocuilteco m130 lì ~131
nì ní ní-m
pì pí pì
wà wè wè-m
nà né né-n
nà ná nì

The Verb Prefixes

The verb prefixes show some matches but there are many irregularities of
sound correspondence and many instances of suppletion and general reshaping of
prefix sets.

North Pame and Chichimeco have similar prefixes for transitive and
intransitive verbs in progressive, unreal progressive, perfective, and unreal perfective
aspects. The names just cited are those given to the aspects in North Pame. The
Chichimeco equivalents are the major prefix sets 39 and 64 for transitive and sets 59
and 65 for intransitive.132 Ch anterior past matches the perfective; potential matches
the unreal perfective; future matches the progressive; and potential and contempo-
raneous match the unreal progressive. Table 41 presents the corresponding NP and
Ch prefix sets for these categories. First and third persons are grouped next to one
another because they frequently have the same form. Second person forms are
different and usually have the vowel i.

Some of the prefixes in the chart are obviously complex, inviting

segmentation and the formulation of morphophonemic rules. For instance, the
unreal forms appear to contain an additional nasal element. The transitive perfective
forms in NP also contain an additional nasal element, but it is different from that of
the unreal forms in its morphophonemic behavior.

TABLE 41
NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO VERB PREFIX CORRESPONDENCES

1 3 2
NP Transitive Perfective no ndo ni
Ch Set 39, Anterior Past tu u ki

NP Intransitive Perfective ta ko ki
Ch Set 59, Anterior Past ta u ki
130
Syllabic nasal.
131
Voiceless syllabic l.
132
The numbers of the major prefix sets and the names of aspects are from Angulo, op. cit.
 145 VIII Prefixes

1 3 2
NP Tr. Unreal Perfective nto mdo mni
Ch Set 39, Potential nu mu mi

NP Intr. Unreal Perfective nta mba ngi

Ch Set 59, Potential ma ma mi

NP Transitive Progressive la wa ki
Ch Set 39, Future ga ga ki

NP Intransitive Future ta la ko
Ch Set 59, Future ta ga ki

NP Tr. Unreal Progressive ndo/nda nda ngi

Ch Set 64, Potential and Contemporaneous mu mu mu

NP Intr. Unreal Progressive nta nda nko

Ch Set 65, Potential and Contemporaneous na na za

The reconstruction of these prefixes (and others not shown in the above
chart) will constitute an interesting study in sorting out the effects of regular sound
change, morphophonemic rules affecting the coalescences of compound prefixes,
and analogic reshaping. Such a study would be too extensive to incorporate in the
present reconstruction.

The verb prefixes in the present day languages generally mark person and
aspect. Matlatzinca verb prefixes also mark number. Soustelle drew special
attention to this feature of Matlatzinca and thought it was peculiar to Matlatzinca
except for a few verb prefixes marking number in Chichimeco.133 It is true that
Otomi and Mazahua verb prefixes do not mark number, but North Pame as well as
Chichimeco marks the number of a first person subject in at least some aspects and
prefix sets (Ch set 59, for example). There are no apparent cognates between the
NP-Ch number prefixes and those of Matlatzinca, however. Some of the NP and Ch
number prefixes do seem to be cognate.

Table 42 presents the Matlatzinca verb prefixes for the timeless aspect. The
dual forms appear to have the base kwen. The second person Xen shows a
palatalized X from an earlier *k or *kw, probably due to a compounding with second
person singular Ri. The plural forms show an additional aspiration in the first and
second persons. The third person plural prefix is a suppletive morpheme, reflecting
again the Otopamean feature of especially distinguishing the third person plural.

133
Soustelle, loc. cit., p. 426.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 146

TABLE 42
MATLATZINCA VERB PREFIXES MARKING NUMBER

Singular Dual Plural

First Person tu/ta kwen kwhen
Second Person Ri Xen Xhen/Xo134
Third Person # kwen ron
Table 43 presents some of the corresponding North Pame and Chichimeco
prefixes marking the number of a first person subject. Note that the vowel a
predominates in singular forms, i in dual forms, and u is frequent in plural forms.
The dual i resembles the dual suffix in NP. The plural u resembles the Ch plural ha.

TABLE 43
NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO VERB PREFIXES
MARKING NUMBER

Singular Dual Plural

NP la ta wa
Ch na na nu
ta ti gu
ma ma mu

NP ta ti i
nta nti mbi
Ch ta ti gu
ta ti ti
ka ki ki
Last in this survey of Otopamean prefixes is a display of Otomi, Mazahua,
and Matlatzinca verb prefixes for what we will label as the present, past, and future
tenses, Table 44. There are several similarities, some of which certainly reflect
some cognate prefixes, e.g., Ot-Maz first person past, Mtz-Maz second person
future, and Ot-Maz third person future.

134
The alternant Xo is a different reflex of the labio-velar *kw (*ko).
 147 VIII Prefixes

TABLE 44
SOME VERB PREFIXES IN OTOMI,
MAZAHUA, AND MATLATZINCA

1 2 3
Ot Present dí gí Rì
Maz rì ìm #
Mtz tu ki/Ri #

Ot Past dú gú bì
Maz ró ím ó
Mtz ta ki/Ro tu/ka

Ot Future gù gì dà
Maz rá rí rà
Mtz ru ri karitatu

The prefix syllables of Otopamean present a more complex problem in

reconstruction than do the stems. At present we are doing little more than lining up
some of the material which may contribute to a more extensive treatment later on.
 CHAPTER IX
OTOPAMEAN AND OTOMANGUEAN
Otomanean is a branch of Otomanguean along with Mixtecan, Popolocan,
Amuzgo, Zapotecan, Chinantecan, and Chiapanec-Mangue. Similarities between
Otomi and Zapotec and other of the so-called Otomanguean languages were pointed
out many years ago by men like Belmar and Pimentel.135 In 1939, Lawrence Ecker
published a comparison of Mixtec (San Miguel el Grande) and Otomi (Mezquital),136
suggesting some tentative phonological correspondences as well as some twelve
general characteristics common to Otomi and Mixtec. (He counts Mix s t Ot š; Mix
š t ts; and Mix k t Ot p or k as fairly sure correspondences.) He hoped to
demonstrate that “the two groups are not separated by such a long period of
independent development as some other circumstances may seem to indicate.”137

The Otomanguean grouping was made by a “largely intuitive application of

comparative and reconstructive method,” as McQuown puts it.138 McQuown
considers Ecker’s proposed Mixtec-Otomi grouping to be less than convincing and
short of a full reconstruction. Ecker probably did as much as anyone could to
demonstrate a relationship between two languages as far removed from each other as
Otomi and Mixtec. Ecker also had to work with limited data from those languages
with little or no control of the sources of the present day forms in the respective
languages.

Now, however, we are in a much better position to specify the relationship of

Otopamean with the rest of Otomanguean because of the detailed reconstruction of
Mixtecan by Longacre139 and Popolocan by Gudschinsky.140 Gudschinsky also laid
the foundation for the reconstruction of Popolocan-Mixtecan. Longacre
subsequently amplified Gudschinsky’s reconstruction and further clarified the

135
Francisco Belmar, Lenguas Indígenas de M/exico. La Familia Mixteco-Zapoteca y sus
Relaciones con el Otomi, (M/exico: n.p., 1905), 374 pp. Francisco Pimentel, op. cit
136
Lawrence Ecker, “Relationship of Mixtec to the Otomian Languages,” El México
Antiguo, IV (1939), 209-240.
137
Ibid., p. 216.
138
Norman A. McQuown, “The Indigenous Languages of Latin America,” American
Anthropologist, LVII (1955), 501-570. Quote from page 577.
139
Robert E. Longacre, “Proto-Mixtecan,” Indiana University Research Center in
Anthropology, Folklore, and Linguistics, Publication 5, 1957, pp. vii-195.
140
Sarah C. Gudschinsky, “Proto-Popotecan,” Indiana University Publications in
Anthropology and Linguistics, Memoir 15, 1959, pp. vii-118.

6/9/2010 148
 149 Appendix A North Pame Verb Paradigms

structure of Popolocan-Mixtecan grammar.141 He added a number of cognate sets to

those proposed by Gudschinsky. The combined number of cognate sets amounts to
finding Proto-Popolocan-Mixtecan etyma for fifty per cent of Gudschinsky’s
Popolocan reconstructions.142 Many of the Popolocan-Mixtecan cognates are rather
divergent in form and semantics, but they are justified by the regular patterns of
consonant alternations evident in Mixtecan paradigms and by similar patterns of
consonant alternations between semantically related words in both Mixtecan and
Popolocan. These and other phonological modifications are explained as influenced
by preposed and postposed elements. Longacre highlights five points of Proto-
Popolocan-Mixtecan grammar (morphophonemic features) which he feels
strengthens the case for the reconstruction.

(1) Noun paradigms were marked by one of two patterns of consonantal

alternation, either (a) *t, *ty, y, *n or (b) *€, *€, y, *n. (2) Verb paradigms
were marked by *kw, *k, y/*x/*w, and *t/*€. (3) Any of the above could
occur with a preposed nasal, either (a) *m before y, *w, and *n, or (b) *n
before other consonants. This preposed nasal was sometimes final on a
preposed CV syllable, sometimes simply a preposed consonant. (4)
Postposed elements included: (a) an element here symbolized as *-m but
which could conceivably have been *-mV; (b) *-R (or *-RVR) plus or minus
*m, and (c) *-xV plus or minus *-m. Element (a) sometimes resulted in a
dissimulation of labials giving such alternations as *xwV/*xVm and
*kwV/*kVm. (5) *RC and *C alternated in some roots.143

Soustelle saw a number of lexical similarities between Otomi and languages

of the Popolocan family, especially Chocho and Popoloca.144 Swadesh, in his article
on the Otomanguean hypothesis,145 based his lexico-statistic counts on Mazahua
from Otopamean and Ixcatec from Popolocan. He found twenty-two apparent
cognates out of ninety-seven pairs. Although there is room for disagreement
respecting the identification of specific cognates, more lexical similarities are
apparent between Otopamean and Popolocan than between Otopamean and Mixtecan
or any of the other branches of Otomanguean. But even between Otopamean and
Popolocan there is not a very impressive array of cognates demonstrating regular
phonological correspondences.

141
Robert E. Longacre, “Amplification of Gudschinsky’s Proto-Popolocan-Mixtecan,” IJAL,
XXVIII (1962), 227-42.
142
I.e., for 179 out of 356 Proto-Popolocan sets.
143
Longacre, “Amplification of Gudschinsky’s Proto-Popolocan-Mixtecan,” loc. cit., pp. 237.
144
See Soustelle’s section on the relationship of Otomi-Pame and Mixtec-Zapotec, loc. cit.,
pp. 435-39.
145
Swadesh, loc. cit. Swadesh makes further observations on the incorporation of Otopamean
into Otomanguean (working chiefly with Otomi and Mazahua) in “Algunos Problemas de la
Lingüística Otomangue,” Anales de Antropología, I (1964), 91-123.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 150

Proto-Otopamean and Proto-Popolocan-Mixtecan

If we had only the lexical similarities, the case would not be very good for
incorporating Otopamean into the reconstruction of Otomanguean. However, in
several cases where there appear to be cognates between Otopamean and Popolocan-
Mixtecan, there is an alternation of consonants in Otopamean which parallels fairly
closely the alternations in Popolocan-Mixtecan. The Otopamean consonant
alternation spoken of here is an earlier phenomenon than the consonant alternation
of the ABCD forms described in Chapter III. The earlier alternation is deduced
from groups of words with related meanings which share certain phonological
features.

The alternation of tR, th, and mh is deduced from the POP words *tR^-m
“atole,” *th^-t “tamale,” and *mh^ “tortilla.” Note how similar this alternation is to
Longacre’s PPnMx reconstruction *Rni, *xVm-Rni for “maize ear.” (PPn 239 *Rnih]
“maize ear,” 199 *hme “maize;” PMx 37 *RniR “maize.”) The basic root-initial
consonant is *Rn. The m replacive is due to the preposed *xVm-. The t in POP
alternates with n in the old tV paradigm.

The alternation of n, nh, th, and tR is deduced from the POP words *nõa-mh
“to plow,” *nhõa-mh “cornfield,” *thõa “maize,” and *tRoa-p “a plow.” Compare
Longacre’s PPnMx reconstruction *nam, *tam, *ntam “cornfield.” (PPn 251 *nu
“cornfield;” PMx *tam, *ndam “cornfield.”) The nh in POP “milpa” is a D form
of the n in “to plow.” The t in “maize” and “a plow” indicate an alternation
between t and n such as is found in the POP tV paradigm.

The alternation of R, tR, nR, y, and cR is deduced from the POP words *tR]a-s,
*nR]a-s “scissors,” *Ria-s “to cut with scissors,” *nia-s “carpenter,” and *cR]a-s
“sharp.” Compare Longacre’s PPnMx reconstruction *kwe(m), ye(m), *nDe(m)146
“sharp. (PPn 344 yahu “sharpen,” 72 *ka(š-) “sharp;” Pmx ya(m) “sharp,” 55 *nde
“knife.”) This set is important because the y alternant appears to be preserved in
Otopamean in spite of the general elimination of semi-vowels. The cR in POP
“sharp” could correspond to PPMx *nDe(m) because in several sets POP *c
corresponds to PPnMx *€.

These three instances of similar consonant alternation in probably cognate

sets are strong evidence for genetic relationship. A thorough incorporation of
Otopamean into Otomanguean is beyond the scope of the present dissertation. Such
a work is being undertaken by Calvin Rensch for his Ph.D. dissertation at the
University of Pennsylvania. Rensch is taking into account all seven branches of
Otomanguean (Otopamean, Popolocan, Mixtecan, Amuzgo, Chinantecan, Zapotecan,
and Chiapanec-Mangue). This chapter presents forty-six apparent cognate sets
between Otopamean and Popolocan-Mixtecan, along with preliminary observations
about sound correspondences and possible explanations of the differences between

146
PPnMx D stands for a reconstruction which could be either *t or *€.
 151 Appendix A North Pame Verb Paradigms

the phoneme inventories of POP and PPnMx. The reconstructed phonemes of

PPnMx and POP are displayed in Figure 10.

Popolocan-Mixtecan Otopamean

t ty k kw R i ï u p t k R i o

€ €y x xw e a o c e a

n ny m s

y w m n

Fig. 10. Phoneme inventories of Popolocan-Mixtecan and Otopamean

Popolocan-Mixtecan consonants include palatalized and labialized stops and

fricatives and the semivowels *w and *y. The PPnMx system is in contrast to the
much simpler consonant inventory in Otopamean which does not have palatalized or
labialized consonants, nor does it have semi-vowels. On the other hand, POP has a
bilabial stop which is absent in PPnMx.

The consonant correspondences in the cognate sets are as follows:147

POP *t : PPnMx *t (4, 41, 62, 63, 64, 82)
POP *n : PPnMx *n (206G, 238G, 62)
POP *t : PPnMx *n (247G, 205G, 59)
POP *n : PPnMx *t/ty (85, 42G)
POP *k : PPnMx *k (16, 68G, 47G, 248G, 287G)
POP *k : PPnMx *kw (13, 52G, 85G)
POP *p : PPnMx *w (313G, 324G, 328G)
POP *m : PPnMx *w (58, 75)
POP *m : PPnMx *m (58, 59, 75, 76)
POP *o : PPnMx *w (71, 72, 73)
POP *ni : PPnMx y (6, 8, 66, 70, 78, 82, 238G, 252G)
POP *c/s : PPnMx *€/ € (18, 19, 29, 31, 105G, 20, 24)
POP *h : PPnMx *x/xw (188G, 51)
POP *R : PPnMx *R (58, 72, 73, 78)

The correspondences of POP *t to PPnMx *n and POP *n to PPnMx *t

probably reflect the alternation of *t and *n in the proto language.

The correspondence of POP *p to PPnMx *w indicates a source for POP *p.

The correspondence of POP *m with PPnMx *w indicates a source for POP initial
*m. The PPnMx *m was very limited in distribution, occurring chiefly in

147
A simple number marks sets from Longacre’s amplification (numbered consecutively in
his list, which he did not number). A G following the number marks sets from Gudschinsky.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 152

postvocalic position. It looks like a proto *w split to POP *m, *o and *p (*m after
preposed *m, *o after certain other consonants, and *p elsewhere).

The correspondence of POP *ni to PPnMx y indicates the prefixing of *n and

the general elimination of y as a consonant in POP.

The labialized and palatalized consonants may be considered as clusters with

*w and y, respectively, as far as the POP reflexes are concerned.

There are two points where Otopamean and Popolocan are closer phonetically
in contrast to Mixtecan. POP and PPn have sibilant and affricate reflexes of *€ (PPn
*c, *X, *š; POP *c, *s) and they have the simple *h reflex of *x.

There are six Popolocan-Mixtecan vowels. The reflexes of those vowels in

Popolocan-Mixtecan languages are affected by preceding consonants and by the
postposed nasal *m. The postposed nasal (whose presence was optional in some
instances) accounts for nasalized reflexes of vowels as well as certain differences in
vowel quality. No vowel clusters are reconstructed for PPnMx. Otopamean, on the
other hand, is reconstructed as having four vowels and a system of vowel clusters.
The POP vowel clusters sometimes correlate with *w, y, or the palatalized or
labialized consonants in PPnMx. Sometimes they correlate with the postposed nasal.
The centralizing element HC, postulated for POP, correlates with the postposed nasal
in two instances.
The stem-formative consonants in POP appear to be largely, if not entirely, a
new accretion.
The vowel correspondences in the cognate sets are as follows:
POP *a/ã : PPnMx *a (63, 75, 58, 206, 73, 188G)
POP *e : PPnMx *a (64, 313G, 324)
POP *e : PPnMx *e (328G)
POP *e : PPnMx *u (250G)
POP *o/õ : PPnMx *o (20)
POP *e/^ : PPnMx *i (4, 59)
POP *oa : PPnMx *o (68G)
POP *oe : PPnMx *e (18, 19)
POP *oe : PPnMx *ï (24, 29)
POP *iHC : PPnMx *(kw)e(m) (13)
POP *iHC : PPnMx *a(m) (16)
POP *ao : PPnMx *a(m) (41, 227G, 62)
POP *oa : PPnMx *a(m) (62)
POP *ai : PPnMx *(y)a(m) (85, 8, 31)
POP *iã : PPnMx *(y)e (82)
POP *io : PPnMx *(y)a(m) (70, 68, 252G, 6)
POP *iõa : PPnMx *(ty)u (426G)
POP *io : PPnMx *(y)i (78, 238G, 105G)
POP *]a : PPnMx *(y)i (76)
 153 Appendix A North Pame Verb Paradigms

POP *oa : PPnMx *(w)a (73, 52G)

POP *ao : PPnMx *(xw)e (51)
POP *oe : PPnMx *(w)i (71)
POP *oe : PPnMx *(w)e (72)

Otopamean -Popolocan - Mixtecan Cognate Sets

42G PPnMx *tyu (PPn 42 *tyha; prep: *ntyi, *tyi “nose;” PMx 267 *tum,
*tu; prep: *ku, *€u “nose, to sniff, smell”) POP 534 *si-n]o/si-nõa “nose.”

47G PPn *Rki “dye, paint;” POP 614 (Ot-Maz) *koi-h “dye.”

49G PPnMx *kam (PPn 49 *ka “ear;” PMx *kö, prep: yV- “ear of grain”)
POP 560 *tkão “ear.”

52G PPnMx *kwaR (PPn 52 *ka, prep: *ši “leaf of tree;” PMx 128 *kwaR
“bush, plant,” 236 *ko, prep: *ndö, yö, *xö “broom, firewood, leaf”) POP 66 (Pn)
*kõa-n “tree.”

68G PPnMx *ko, prep: €a (PPn 68 *ku, prep: *nca “foot, leg;” PMx *€ako
<T da[3ko[21 “foot” POP 608 *tkoa “foot.”

85G PPn 85 *kwheR, prep: š “green, unripe;” POP 787 (Pn) *koih-tR “green.”

105G PPnMx *€ (PPn 105 *ch] “milk;” PMx 7 *€i, yi, prep: *ka, *xa, *€a,
*kwa “nurse, drop, breast, small quantity of”) POP 243 *cioHC-tR “suck,” 482
*cioHC-tR/-R “nurse.”

188G PPn 188 *ha, hã, prep: š “roast, oven;” POP 77 *hã-s “roast.”

206G PPnMx *nam (PPn 206 *hnu “squirrel;” PMx 225 *nö “squirrel”) POP
70 *mi-nã “squirrel.”

238G PPnMx *RniR, *€i (PPn238 *nih^, *shã “three;” PMx *RniR prep: *wa
“three”) POP 860 *nh]o-R/-nR “three.”

247G PPn 247 *na “buy;” POP 196 *tao-m “buy.”

250G PPn 250 *nu; prep: h “laugh;” POP 677 *ten-nR/-tR “laugh at,” 677
*teh-t/-nR “laugh.”

252G PPnMx *Rnam(R) (PPn 252 *Rnu, prep: hi “tobacco;” PMx 233 *nöR,
prep: yu, *xa “cigarette, tobacco”) POP 730 *nRioi-mR “tobacco.”

284G PPnMx *Rka, prep: *x (PPn 284G *nka, *kha “chase, run;” PMx 123
*Rka, prep: *ka, *xi, *ki, *nda “walk, path”) POP 214 *kõ-mR/-R “chase, run.”
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 154

287G PPn 287 *nku; prep: *ñu, yu, *ña, ya, *nu, *Rni “church;” POP 165
(Ot-Maz) *nkõ “house.”

313G PPn 313 *wa; prep: *Xu “measure;” POP 200 *pe-t/-nR “count.”

324G PPnMx *waRa, *waR (PPn 324 *waRa, *waha “weave;” PMx 131
*kwaR, *waR, *kaR, *ndaR “spin;” 180 *Rwa, prep: yu, *€ “thread”) POP 733 *pe
“weave.”

328G PPnMx *(R)we (PPn 328 *Rwa, prep: *šu “lace;” PMx 68 *weR, prep:
yu, *€ “straw mat”) POP 743 *pe “weave,” perhaps POP 384 *hãi-n/-tR/-m “spin.”

4 PPnMx *ti-xV, *timR (PPn 27 *the “cough;” PMx *ti(m)R “sneeze”) POP
763 *he(-h), *the(-h) “cough, a cough.”

6 PPnMx yam, *tya(m) (PPn 35 *tya, *tye “windpipe, breath, voice:” PMx
yam “throat, neck”) POP 429 *Ri-ioHC-ka “throat.”

8 PPnMx *tya(m)-xV, *(n)tya-RV (PPn 40 *tyha “hand, arm, shoulder;” Pmx

195 *tam “span, measure,” 149 *t/ndaRa “hand”) POP 484 *Rai, *nRiai “hand,” 179
*koi-tRai “five.”

13 PPnMx *kwe(m)(R), *nkwe(m)(R) PPn 65 *ka, *nka “extend;” PMx 147

*kw/k/x/nd/ta “pull, guide, stretch,” 154 *ngw/k/ndaR “junp, arrow, dart”) POP 180
*kiHCh-t/-nR “belt,” 413 *kiHC-nR/-mR/-tR “pull.”

16 PPnMx *ka(m)(-xVm) (PPn 79 *kahã “ant;” PMx 200 *kam “louse, fly,
ant”) POP 393 *khiHC “ant.”

18 PPnMx *(n)€e (PPn 95 *ce “star;” PMx *€aR “sky”) POP 327 *coeHC
“star.”

19 PPnMx *n€e (PPn 97 *ce “light a fire,” 147 *s^ “dawn, light, candle;”
PMx 172 *(R)yam(R), *(n)€e(m) “fire, burn, sun, light”) POP 69 *tcoeHC-t “burn,”
290 *(n)ttoe “burn.”

20 PPnMx *(n)€o (PPn 103 *cu “nipple, teat;” PMx *€o[43 “milk”) POP
473 (Pn) *c(R)õ “mother,” 320 *sõ/*co “wife.”

24 PPnMx *R€yim (PPn 126 *Xã “frost, cold;” PMx 97 y:im, *€:im “hail”)
POP 343 *coe “cold.”

29 PPnMx *€:i(m)(R) (PPN 156 *sã “acid,” 170 *šã “liquor;” PMx 81 *€:i
“rum, pulque”) Otomi *ch^-m “pulque.”

31 PPnMx *Rya, *€a, *n€a (PPn 168 *ša “maguey fiber,” 346 *Rya “net
bag;” PMx 148 *RyaR, *nda “maguey fiber”) POP 412 (Otn) *s]a-mh “maguey
fiber.”
 155 Appendix A North Pame Verb Paradigms

41 PPnMx *xVn-Rta (PPn 208 *hnta “we incl. sing;” PMx 105 xRta[2 “sing”)
POP 152 *tão-h “sing,” 149 *thão-h “song.”

51 PPnMx *xwe, *xem (PPn223 *hwa “clear, fit to drink;” PMx 15 *xwe
“clearly, quickly,” 52 *xe “wet”) POP 759 (Pn) *hao-R “drink.”

58 PPnMx *wa, *CVm-Rwa(R) (PPn 235 *Rma “clay pitcher,” 310 *wa
“plate, jar;” PMx 159 *RmamR “land, soil”) POP 617 *mah-ta/-n “bowl, dish,”
Otomi Rmada < *mRa-ta “clay pitcher,” 750 *mRa-tha “plain, plateau.”

59 PPnMx *Rni, *xVm-Rni (PPn 239 *Rnih] “maize ear,” 199 *hme “maize;”
PMx 37 *RniR “maize”) POP 82 *tR^-m “atole,” 731 *th^-t “tamale,” 761 *mh^
“tortilla.”

62 PPnMx *nam, *tam, *ntam (PPn 251 *nu “cornfield;” PMx *tam, *ndam
“cornfield”) POP 60 *tRoa-p “a plow,” 63 *nõa-mh “to plow,” 477 *thõa “corn,”
514 *nhõa-mh “field.”

63 PPnMx *nt:i/*nta (PPn 258 *nta “cactus, nopal cactus;” Pmx *nd:i/*nda
“nopal cactus”) POP 476 *Roa-ta “century plant,” Otomi šãtRã “nopal.”

64 PPn (259) *nta(R) (PPn 259 *ntaR “water;” PMx 144 *nda “water,
dissolve, sprinkle, melt,” 108 *taR “river, canyon”) POP 21 *tteh “water.”

66 PPnMx ya(m), ya(m)R, *ntyaR (PPn 270 *ntya(R) “fox, wolf, badger,” 337
ya “dog;” PMx 176 *(R) yamR, yaR “to bark, mountain lion, coyote”) POP 219 *nRio
“coyote,” 600 *nRio “dog.”

70 PPnMx *CVm-(R)yam (PPn 299 *Rñu “twins,” 352 yuhu “two;” PMx 161
*t/y/naRam, *naRma “comrade, together with, a pair, twins”) POP 276 *nioh “two.”

71 PPnMx *Rwi(m), *wi(m) (PPn 303 *Rwi “fire, sun,” 196 *hmi “sky,” 225
*Rmi “to be named;” PMx 21 *Rmi (m)(R) “burn,” 47 *wi “roast, toast”) POP 669
*nhoe, **nhõe “lightning,” Otomi kw[ “anger.”

72 PPnMx *€V(m)-we, *Rwe (PPn 307 *Rwe “wasp;” PMx *€Vmi “wasp”)
POP 528 *Rõe/*Roe/*R] “fly.”

73 PPnMx *(R) wa (PPn 312 *wa “white;” PMx 179 yuRwa “ice, frost”) POP
105 *nRoa, *tRoa-s “white.”

75 PPnMx *Rwa(m), *CVm-Rwa(m) (PPn 326 *Rwa “mouth;” PMx 226

*RwaRm “mouth, mouthful,” 160 *Rmam “talk, say”) POP 252 *mã-m “say.”

76 PPnMx yi, *CVm-yi (PPn 330 ye “black,” 237 *ni “charcoal;” PMx yi
“charcoal, darkness”) POP 157 (Otn) *th]-m]a/-mR/-nR”charcoal.”
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 156

77 PPnMx *Ryi, *Rni (PPn 332 *Rye “hear;” PMx 28 *Rni “hear, see, know”)
POP 554 *RoHC-t/-R, C form *Ri-oHC-t/-R”hear.”

82 PPnMx *kwe(m), ye(m), *nDe(m) PPn 344 yahu “sharpen,” 72 *ka-š

“sharp;” PMx ya(m) “sharp,” 55 *nde “knife, scissors”) POP 24 *cR]a-s “sharp,”
163 *nia-s “carpenter,” 282 *Rã-R-cR “to plane,” 751 *tR]a-s “scissors.” 762 *R]a-s
“cut with scissors.”

85 PPnMx *tam, yam (PPn 355 *laRa “dancer, singer, thief, ancient people,”
12 *te “dance;” PMx 151 *taRam, *ndaRamR “dance”) POP 91 *nãih-mR “dance.”
 Appendix A
NORTH PAME VERB PARADIGMS
The following list of North Pame verb paradigms illustrates the predominant
ABCD pattern. Although there are a number of palaces where the alternations do
not fit the main pattern, such as the causative verbs which have the pattern AAAD,
all the present paradigmatic material is included as a source for further study.

A B C D
-pp[R[dn w m b “count”
-pp[ w m b “weave”
-ppeReX w m b “urinate”
-pp[R[ w m b “wait”
-ppaRat w m b “call”
-ppai w m b “command”
-ppahiR w m b “hit”
-ppehelR w m b “cover”
-ppahoR w m b “look”
-ppRe w m b “smell of it”
-ppo w m b “give”
-ppalR pp pp pp “heat it”
-phiRil ph “bubble up”
-ppoR pp pp p “descend”
-pp[_ p p ph “steal”
-ppã p p ph “visit”
-mmaRi mm148 mm mh “erect it”
-mmaRi mm mm mm “stand”
-mme mm mm mh “lose”
-mmaRa mb mm mm “shout”
-mmõcR m m mh “pile up”
-mmãU m m mh “say”
-ma m m m “go”
-mmeho w w --149 “be there”

148
The lack of weakening in the B and C forms may be correlated with the oral vowel.
149
Hyphens indicate that there has been suppletion. A blank means that data are lacking.
3 The kky is the result of the palatalization rule.

6/9/2010 157
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 158

A B C D
-maodnR mm mm pp “change”
-mmaigUR mm mm pp “finsh”
-tt[h[dnR t t lR “laugh at”
ttaho t t lR “touch”
-ttahiXR tt lR “receive”
-tt[R t t lh “lick”
-ttogU t t lh “watch”
-ttolR t t lh “break”
-ttaRogU t t lh “snap it in two”
-ttaRogU kky150 tt “snap in two”
-ttaogU t t lh “buy”
-tt^nR t t lh “step on”
-ttõ tt tt tt “die”
-tãolR t t lh “rub eye”
-ttãR tt tt tt “fire pottery”
-ttõRõ t t lh “plant corn”
-ttõlR t t lh “swallow”
-kk^heRt kky tt kR “marry”
-ttãRo tt tt th151 “search”
-tt^onR tt tt lh “fear”
-tt^h^R t t lR “earn, win”
-ndão nd nd nth 152 “sing”
-ddeoR d dd d153 “grow”
-nnãoU n n nh “eat”
-nnãholR n n nR “chew”
-nnehigU nn nn nh “go out”
-nnõRo n n nh “see”
-ciR cw cw cw “nurse”
-cciolR c c cR “suck sugar cane”
-cciR c c cR “carry”
-ccaoR c cc cR “feel”
-cRo cR cR cR “spoil it”
-XRo 154 X cR XR “spoil”
-cRRodn cRR cRR cRR “hate”
-cwilR cw cw “prick”
-cc[gU 155 cw cw ncw “be angry”
150
The kky is the result of the palatalization rule.
151
When the D affix h is added to a nonweakened t, the t does not become l. The word for
“fear” seems to contradict this generalization, however.
152
The form with initial nth is used when referring to singing for a dead person. Otherwise
the D form is nd.
153
This looks like an EEEF pattern
154
The w was deleted because of no o in the prefix.
 159 Appendix A North Pame Verb Paradigms

A B C D
-coR cc c -- “fall”
-ccocR cc c cc “make vomit”
-XocR X c XR “vomit”
-ccoRol c c cR “bite”
-cco c c cR “scold”
-chao ch ch ch “do”
-ssihigU sw sw sw “eat a meal”
-šaoR š s Xh “study
-saoR s s ch “measure”
-sep s s ch “tell”
-s]U s s “open”
-šoaRat š s “tear”
-socR s s ch “tie”
-kyehi ky156 k kR “meet”
-Ugã Ugw157 Ug Ugw “shiver”
-kkiRi kw k khw “gather”
-kkãRa (2)&&
kw k khw “gather clothes”
-kkõR (2)&&
k 158
k kh “chase”
-kkeiXR kw k khw “grind”
-kwãhoU (2)&&
kkw kk kRw “confess”
-kko (2)&&
k k kh “belittle”
-RR^hilyR (3)&&
Rw Rw Rw “sleep”
-RõRop R nRe 159 lR “show”
-R]as R nR 160 lR “cut with scissors”
-R]a nR nR nR “come”
-R^heR Rw (5)&&
nR lRw “talk”
-wR^i Rw (5)&&
Rw tR “do thus”
-RoR R de161 lR “hear”
-RRaogU Rw d lR “bury”
-RahodnR Rw d lR “ask for”
-R[o R R “hurt”

155
The X is from c by the palatalization rule; š is from s.
156
The ky is from k by the palatalization rule.
157
The w is a labialization from the preceding o.
158
No labialization from the preceding o because the root vowel is o.
159
The w is a labialization from the preceding o.
160
The C form vowel *I is cancelled out by the root *1.
161
The full form is ladeoR. The e is a reflex of the C form vowel *i.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 160

A B C D
-R[h[Rt Rw d lRw “sew”
-Rw[dnt Rw R tR “piece of cloth”
-Rweo Rw R tR “hate”
-ReogU Rw d lR “give”
-nhiagU nhi nhi lh “leave”
-hõsp h hi lh “put price up”
-hw[ hw hh hw “cause to cough”
-hiR h nhw nh “enter”
-haoR hw nh lh “drink”
-haigU hi h lh “to be left”
 Appendix B
NORTH PAME NOUN PARADIGMS-ABCD
PATTERN
Some of the noun paradigms of NP follow the ABCD pattern with slight
modifications. There is a preposed m before initial p in the A form if the root vowel
is oral. The word for “manure” is an apparent exception because it shows oral
vowels in the root. The other features of the paradigm for “manure” are those of a
nasalized root vowel, however, such that it may be assumed that the nasalization has
been more recently lost. The B forms of paradigms with root-initial R have been
replaced by C forms.
A B C D
-pp^hiR p p pR “mattress”
-ppoi p p ph “manure”
-mb[ w m b “braid”
-mbao w m b “belly”
-mba w m b “handkerch
-mbeheR w m b ief”
“hat”
-ttao t t t “eye”
-tt[ l n t “mouth” 162
-ttão t t lh “song”
-ttaR t t “arrow”
-cciR c c cR “tooth”
-cceR cR 163 cw cRw “clay pot
-cceR c cw cRw “tail”
-nnõa n n nh “field”
-RRaho d d “barbecue”
-Ri dw dw lR “child”
-oRo d d lR “louse”
-R[_U nR nR lR “atole”
-RõU nR nR “seed”
-hõR h h lh “name”

162
This is one of the few words which preserve the POP tV paradigm.
163
The full form of the word is UgocReokR which is rebuilt on the D form ngocRweR with the
addition of the second person suffix –kR. The suffix is responsible for the changes in vowels.

6/9/2010 161
 Appendix C
NORTH PAME NOUN PARADIGMS-EFEF
PATTERN

A B C D
-mbai p mb p “tomato”
-mbãiR p mb p “fright”
-bbogU b bb “cactus”
-bbeRi b bb b “musical instr.”
-mRãoR mR mR “month”
-mmõhiR m mm mm “squash”
-mmahagU m mm mm “dish”
-mh[_ mh mh mh “tortilla”
-ndogU ky ngy t “flower”
-nd[gU ky ngy t “capulín”
-thwiRi lyh khy lh “basket”
-th[R[ lyh khy lh “a cold”
-th[_R[_ lyh khy lh “tamale”
-thõa lyh khy lh “corn”
-thõe lyh khy lh “rope”
-thõi lyh khy “hunger”
-ndo ky gy “egg”
-nd[ ky gy t “water”
-ll[ ly UUy ll “lips”
-ddoa gy ggy “place one walks”
-ddio gg gg “dryness”
-ddoa gy ggy “maguey”
-tRw^i lyR kRy “sleep”
-tthãi lyh kkhy “thread”
-tRãU lyR kRy “mesquite tree”
-tRw[ lyR kRy “hill”
-nnõa Uy UUy “nose”
-nnõ Uy UUy Uy “knee”
-khweR khy khy kh “beans”
-Ugw[ khy g “flesh”

6/9/2010 162
 163 Appendix D Chichimeco Verb Paradigms

A B C D
-Ugwas ky gy kk “meat”164
-kRwiš kR kR “paper”
-cRaogU XR XR cR “avocado”
-chiR Xh Xh ch “worm, snake”
-chãst Xh Xh ch “itch”
-ssãoU š šš s “shade”
-ssa š šš s “corn on cob”
-hwagogU hy hy h “soil:
-hw[ hy hy h “a cough”
-thõs lyh khy lh “salt”
-Rw[_h[R URy URy “road”
-Rwei R R R “chile”
-nh]o hy hy “breath”
-khwik khi kh “blood”
-kkwão ky ky “outer ear”

164
From Spanish vaca “cow” (or perhaps a borrowing from Yuto-Aztecan where “meat” is
wakas in Yaqui and Tepehuano). The first syllable was interpreted as a prefix and the second syllable
was reshaped by analogy with the word for “flesh” (above).
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 164

Appendix D
CHICHIMECO VERB PARADIGMS165

A B C D
-Ra t nd rR “bury”
-Ran t nd rR “ask”
-Re R R R “be angy”
-R^ R R R “do thus”
-Re t nd r “put”
-Rer tir ndir rRer166 “throw”
-Rets tits ndits rits166 “push”
-Ri R R R “come”
-Ri R R R “care”
-Ri R R R “hang”
-Ri t nd rR “want”
-Ror R R R “appear”
-Ro ti ndi rRo166 “hear”
-Run R R R “arrive”
-Rü R R n “pass”
-Rü t nd rR “kill”
-Rü nR nR rR “suck”
-Rün R R R “sleep”
-Rür t nd rR “sell”
-Ryuts R R R “jump”
-hã h h h “assend”
-ha h h h “lag”
-ha nh nh rh “drink”
-he h h th “be left”
-he nhi nhi rhe “leave”

165
The list is from Jaime de Angulo, loc. Cit., pp. 177-79. Normally I cite only the initial
consonants of the C, C, and D forms. Angulo’s whispered vowels, written with small raised letters, I
write on the line and underlined.
166
Full forms are given in these cases because the vowels differ. The i vowel reflects the
metathesized *i of the C form.
 165 Appendix D Chichimeco Verb Paradigms

-her nh nh rh “have”
A B C D
-hi nh nh rh “not want”
-ho nhi nhi rho “lose”
-hu nhi nhi rhu “put”
-hin nhin nhin rhun “throw”
-hunts h h -- “sit”
-hü nh nh rh “burn”
-ka k g kh “hit”
-kã k g kh “take out”
-ke nk g kh “take out”
-ker ng g kh “lean on”
-kev k g kh “drive”
-kets k g kh “pick up”
-khar kh kh kh “possess”
-kkü kk kk kk “re-do”
-ko k k k “deny”
-ku k k k “be together”
-kuR k k k “race”
-kun k k k “accompany”
-kün ng g kh “peer”
-mã m m mh “speak”
-mã m m mh “think”
-maf m m p “show”
-mRan mR mR mh “be finished”
-mben mb mb mb “stone”
-pen mb v ph “weigh”
-me m m m “stand up”
-me m m m “stand”
-m^ m m mh “defend”
-m^ m m mh “be late”
-men m m mb “love”
-mer m m m “roll”
-mir m m m “wish”
-mur m m m “get lost”
-mur m m mh “forgive”
-nã n n nh “eat”
-nar n n n “burn”
-nda nd nd nd “lie”
-nd^ nd nd nd “grow up”
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 166

-ndun nd nd ndh “buzz”

A B C D
-ndü nd nd nd “go”
-ndza tX z tsh “try”
-ndze ndz ndz ndz “arrive”
-ndzo tX z tsh “scold”
-nef n n nh “run”
-ngwa ngw m mb “go”
-ngwaas ngw p ph “pay”
-nggwe ngw m mb “strike”
-ngwe ngw m mb “cry”
-ngwe ngw m -- “be”
-ngweRn ngw ngw p “be loaded”
-ngwiRi ngw p ph “charge”
-ngwin ngw m mb “stick”
-ngwo ngw ngw v “meet”
-ngwo ngw ngw ngw “be ashamed”
-nkün nk nk k “be tired”
-no n n nh “arrive”
-nov n n nh “last”
-nu n n nh “see”
-pa ngw m mb “cover”
-paa ngw m mb “look”
-pã nb v mb “see”
-pan p nb ph “heat”
-pãr p p p “be rich”
-pe ngw m mb “order”
-pe ngw m mb “smell”
-pe ngw m mb “hit”
-pen ngw m mb “fell”
-pen ngw m mb “play music”
-pen ngw m mb “kill”
-peRn ngw m mb “leave”
-pi ngw m mb “wait”
-pii ngw m mb “spy”
-pii ngw m mb “bring”
-pin ngw m mb “count”
-po p p p “return”
-po ngw m mb “dominate”
-po ngw m mb “give”
 167 Appendix D Chichimeco Verb Paradigms

A B C D
-pof p p ph “dwindle”
-pon ngw m mb “prick”
-poo p p -- “enter;
-por p p ph “change”
-por p p p “remove”
-ppar ngw m mb “call”
-ppi nb v ph “steal”
-ppo pp pp pp “be together”
-pü p p b “defecate”
-r^ r nd r “breed”
-rho rh th nth “be finished”
-ra r r r “die”
-sa s s s “gamble”
-sa s s s “distribute”
-sa s s tsh “measure”
-sa s dz tsh “read”
-sa s s tsh “win”
-se s s tsh “tell”
-sempf s s ts open”
-sen s s s “agree”
-seni s s s “remember”
-ser s s s “have diarrhea”
-su s dz tsh “sing”
-sus s s ts “split”
-sü s s sh “peel”
-sü s s s “be sick”
-ta nd r rh “undress”
-ta nd r rh “touch”
-ta nd r rh “buy”
-tã t t th “search”
-tan nd r rh “bathe”
-tan nd r rh “work”
-tats nd r rh “clothe”
-tav nd r rh “cut”
-tcon nz z zh “bite”
-te t t t “go”
-te, ne t,n t,n t,n “go out”
-te t t t “be equal”
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 168

-t^ nd r rh “look”
A B C D
-t^ nd r rh “wear”
-ten nd r rh “fear”
-ter t t t “marry”
-ter t t t “laugh”
-tets t t th “lift”
-tets t r rh “bet”
-tets nd r rh “receive”
-ti nd r rh “lick”
-ti nd r rh “sell”
-to nd r rh “watch”
-tsa tc z tsh “try”
-tsa tc z tsh “do”
-ts^ ts z ts “pay”
-tsen tc ts tsh “pierce”
-tso ts ts ts “fall”
-tso tc z tsh “scold”
-tsoh tc ts tsh “spend”
-tsü ts z tsh “be angry”
-tsün ts ts ts “urinate”
-tu, nu t,n t,n t,n “walk about”
-tu nd r rh “plant”
-tü t t th “finish”
-tü t t t “speak to oneself”
-tü t t t “go home”
-tun t t t “go in the lead”
-tuts nd r rh “tie”
-tun nd r rh “break”
-üts # # #167 “be always”
-Re k g kh “heard”

167
The # indicates that there is no initial consonant. This is the only word in Angulo’s list
which has no initial consonant. It probably is an error.
 Appendix E
168
CHICHIMECO NOUN PARADIGMS-ABCD PATTERN
A B C D
-pãts p v ph “shoe”
-pü p v “faeces”
-mba ngw m pR “hat”
-mba ngw m “belly”
-mbi ngw m p “thing”
-mben ngw m “antler”
-mbe ngw n p “song”
-tan t r rh “work”
-te t r “leg”
-ta t r “face”
-te t t rh “knife”

-mãs m m mh “bed”
-nu n n nh “field”
-ni n n nh “word”
-kã k g “snot”
-kã k g “ear”
-ku k g kh “road”
-kke kk g “saliva”
-tsü ts dz “back”
-tse ts z tsR169 “crock”
-tsa ts z tsR169 “food”
-sots s s tsh “belt”
-ha nhu nhi rhu “name”
-Ra nRa nRi “hand”
-Ros tos tRis rRos “house”
-Ru t t rh “hoe”
-ti t n “mouth”170
-nda n n “penis”
-poho p p v “chair”
-ngwa ngwe ngwa -- “plant”

168
From Angulo, loc. Cit., pp. 160-61.
169
Note that here the POP pattern for the D form of root-initial *c is preserved.
170
This word shows a retention of the POP tV paradigm.

6/9/2010 169
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 170

-tcin tc tc z “axe”
-hür h h rh “arrow”
 Appendix F
CHICHIMECO NOUN PARADIGMS-EFEF
PATTERN
The examples of the EFEF pattern are so few that no attempt has been made
to specify the system. All but the last two examples parallel rather closely the North
Pame examples. They show a preposed nasal in the F form and in the second E
form. The two E forms share the same vowel in contrast to the vowel of the f form.

E F E F
-mbo v mb v “land”
-mba v mb “feast”
-mbu v mb v “thirst”
-ndi r nd r “water”
-nden r nd r “money”
-nthu r nth rR r “clothes”
-hi nha nhi “body”
-hi nho nhi “friend”

6/9/2010 171
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 172

Appendix G
CHICHIMECO NOUN PARADIGMS-NO CHANGE

The examples for this category are presented in paragraph style since only
one form has to be cited: -nu “nose,”-zã “head,” –ni “heart,” –ttun “neck,” –kü
“trousers,” –mor “hip,” –nha “testis,” –phã “shoulder,” –kã “temple,” –ner
“tendon,” –men “knee,” –rhe “bow,” –khe “blood,” –ma “bowl,” –ti “podex,” –se
“skin,” –mir “urine,” –s^ “arm,” –mRa pain,” –ts^ “wing,” –tsa~ -tca “shame,” –
ndu “step,” –mo “bottle,” –mhu “chief,” –khü “child”
 Appendix H
OCUILTECO AND MAZAHUA NOUN
PARADIGMS
Ocuilteco noun paradigms show several different patterns in the limited data I
was able to secure on a brief field trip in 1964.171 A more complete study of the
noun paradigms should prove very rewarding. The paradigms recorded on that field
trip are listed below. Following the list of Ocuilteco paradigms are some Mazahua
paradigms for names of body parts. The Mazahua paradigms demonstrate a pattern
similar to one of the patterns in the Ocuilteco material.

Ocuilteco Paradigms

“my” “your” “his”

mdá líndá ~`ndá “agua”
mcRó lìcRó ~cRó “aguacate”
neplinhó nelinho lìnhó “ala”
mkáhcRi lìkàcRí ~kàcRí “alimentos”
mtRópi litRopi ~tRopi “arado”
mXhopi liXhopi ~Xhopi “banco”
mhñupi lìhñúpí ~hñúpí “boca”
pšitu lišitu ~šítú “cabellos”
mz/ønzí lìnz/ønzí ~z/ønzí “cadera”
wèlpXhú wélìXhú wèlXhú “esposa”
kambáhli limbáhli ~mbáhli “caballo”
nìpí nípí nímbí “barriga”
nìlwí nílwí níñù “cabeza”
nìh/] nìh/] níhmí “cara”
pìt/ø pít`ø pìnd/ø “frente”

171
September 3, 1964, to San Juan Atzingo, Edo. de México, accompanied by Lucille
Schneider of the Summer Institute of Linguistics, who transcribed some of the material. Tone was not
always recorded- hence its absence in some of the forms.

6/9/2010 173
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 174

“my” “your” “his”

wàñ/ø wèñ/ø wèmñ/ø “mamá”
wàtá wètá wèmdá “papá”
nàtsí nètsí nènzí “dientes”
nàtó nátó nìtó “casa”
níthò “casa” (general)

The list through “caballo” shows underlying m-, li-, and ~- prefixes, with the
noun stems remaining constant. The m- becomes a p- before s (;cabellos”) and
before ch if preceded by l (“esposa”). The vooicless ~ is voiced if preceded by
another sylable (“ala” and “caballo”). The assumption is that it was preceded by
another syllable in “ala” and that that syllable was deleted after the application of
the rule. Perhaps the underlying form for ~ is a full syllable li- with contrastive
suprasegmental features to the second person prefix li-. The present evidence is
inconclusive.
The words “barriga” through “dientes” show different sets of prefixes but
share the pattern of an added nasal consonant in the third person form. This pattern
appears in the Mazahua paradigm for “mouth,” which reflects the POP alternation of
t and n.
The Ocuilteco word for “house” has a general form which looks like a D
form.

Mazahua Paradigms

“my” R/] “your” R`] “his” R/o

-tegö -tege -n^R^ “boca”
-hm]Ri -hm]Ri -hm]Ri “cara”
-XöRö -XöRö -ndöRö “ojo”
-ncö_Rö -ncö_Rö -ngö_Rö “oreja”
-X]hmi -X]hmi -t]hmi “pecho”
-nkwaRa -nkwaRa -ngwaRa “pie”
-cR]hni -cR]hni -kR]hni “saliva”
-chiRi -chiRi -khiRi “sangre”

Mazahua has palatalized forms for the first and second persons in “ojo,”
“oreja,” “pecho,” “saliva,” and “sangre.” The words “cara” and “pie” would not
show the effects of palatalization.
 Appendix I
NORTH PAME AND CHICHIMECO COGNATE
SETS FOR TONE RECONSTRUCTION
NP H to Ch HH
“andar” NP dóa Ch étRú
“atole” NP kolRu_U Ch úrR/]
“calabazo” NP komóR Ch nímó
“cuervo” NP UgokwáR Ch úkáR
“comprar” NP wattáogU Ch rátár
“flor” NP niUgyógU Ch úró
“grueso” NP nimRígU Ch dzímRér
“macho” NP nikyw/ãU Ch ír/a
“mamar” NP ccíR Ch éts/üR
“rápido” NP manéi Ch máné
“seco” NP maRó Ch móRó
“tierra” NP kopóR Ch kímbó
“tijeras” NP nalRy/ãs Ch tár/]s
“tomar” NP waháoR Ch ráhá
“tripas” NP mbép Ch kúmb/ü
“vacío” NP maRó Ch móRó
“enterrar” NP waRRáogU Ch (/)Rá
“mandar” NP woppái Ch (/)pé
“decir” NP -mmãU Ch (/)m/ã
“ser dejado” NP -háigU Ch (/)hé

NP L to Ch LH
“ácido” NP maRèiš Ch mèRés
“amargo” NP makh\ão Ch màkh/ã
“araña” NP kam`[s Ch kùm/ür
“arco” NP UgolhàR Ch tùrhéR
“cadera” NP Ugomò Ch rùmór
“casarse” NP -tt`^h^Rt Ch ìtéhér
“aguja” NP nalR`[ Ch tàrR/ü
“chile” NP waRèi Ch bèRé
“dueño” NP wimhiòR Ch nìmhú
“cenizas” NP sandw`[ Ch nùnd/ü
“espuma” NP šipphèR Ch sùphéR
“frijol” NP rikhèR Ch kànkhé
“humo” NP skiR Ch kìRés

6/9/2010 175
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 176

“luna” NP UgomR`ãoR Ch umR/ãR

“llorar” NP wài Ch tàpén
“mecate” NP Ugolhw`^ Ch kùnthé
“metate” NP nakhèigU Ch tàkh/üR
“morir” NP tt`õ Ch gàr/a
“orina” NP kom`[_Rt Ch sùmír
“petate” NP Ximhy`ã Ch sìm/ãs
“ratón” NP niUgyy`ão Ch nìng/ã
“ser rico” NP p`ãn Ch p/ãr
“sal” NP Ugolh`õs Ch ùrh/õs
“estar” NP kokw`ãt Ch (`)kán
“preguntar” NP waRàhodnR Ch (`)Rán
“regañar” NP -cò Ch (`)tsó
“maduro” NP mat`ãR Ch màt/ãR
“abajo” NP kimbyòRp Ch nìmbó
“soplador” NP silyhèiky Ch tàrh/ür
“sop;ar” NP wahèigU Ch èx/ür

NP H or (H) to Ch LH
“árbol” NP Ugokw/ãU Ch tàngwá
“abrir” NP was/]U Ch gàs/^
“adivino” NP káppãt Ch kàmb/ãr
“arriba” NP kocRíU Ch pàcRín
“cuchillo” NP nalhéš Ch ràrhé
“hilo” NP Ugolh/ãiU Ch ùrh/^r
“morder” NP -cóRol Ch gàzónR
“olla” NP UgocwéR Ch ùzé
“estar” NP -mmého Ch (`)ngwé / me
“probar” NP -ccáoR Ch (`)ndzá
“subir” NP tah/ão Ch (`)h/ã
“yo” NP káok Ch `ìkágu
“nosotros” NP káokU Ch ìkágùnR
“contar” NP -pp/[R[dn Ch (`)iín

NP F to Ch HL
“agua” NP kot[[ Ch kúrì
“caer” NP c[oR Ch tácò
“curandero” NP kad[[ Ch kátèhè
“grande” NP Ugot[oeR Ch nándè
“noche” NP Ugos[ãoU Ch úsà
“otro” NP kad[at Ch kéntà
“persona” NP l[[ Ch úrì
“piedra” NP kot[o Ch kúrò
“piojo” NP UgolR[o Ch rúrRò
“tierra” NP Ugohw[aog Ch úxà
U
 177 Appendix I Pamean Cognates

“caliente” NP map[a Ch mápà

NP H to Ch HL
“apretar” NP wáttes Ch étès
“atar” NP ittúcR Ch ítùcR
“bailar” NP nn/ãhiR Ch énèhèR
“blanco” NP káddoa Ch kúnúRù
“calabacita” NP m/õhiR Ch úm`üh`üR
“corto” NP mamáhaR Ch sámàhàR
“chupar” NP wácciolR Ch étz/üR`ün
“dar” NP wáRReogU Ch RéRè
“dinero” NP rand/[h[dnR Ch úrèhènR
“fiesta” NP Ugobáho Ch kímbà
“granizo” NP kíUgyo Ch kíndò
“gritar” NP -ppáRat Ch émáRàr
“hacha” NP stácc[R[dn Ch názìRìn
“huevo” NP nándo Ch múndò
“jalar” NP waqqéRedn Ch ékèRènR
“maguey” NP Ugoddóa Ch kúnRù
“oír” NP (/)RoR Ch éRòR
“oler” NP -ppéRe Ch épéRè
“parar” NP máRi Ch éméRè
“rajar” NP wasóaRac Ch ésúRùs
“reír” NP -t/[h[lR Ch ítèhèRr
“sembrar” NP wattóRo Ch étúRùnR
“silla” NP UgopRóho Ch nábòhò
“tú” NP héokR Ch ìhyékRù
“sudar” NP wóppap Ch ríppà
“cigarro” NP ndóehigU Ch útR`üh`ü
“tamales” NP ilh[_R[ Ch úrR`]h`]
“tejer” NP wópp[ Ch pì
“tragar” NP (/)ttõlR Ch ét`anR
NP (BC)-t[õlR Ch
“vender” NP wáRReiR Ch ráR`üRr
vergüenza” NP Ugochá Ch nítcà
“malo” NP XíXRo Ch núcRòhò
“dormir” NP Rw/^hilyR Ch (/)R`ün
“echar” NP wáRailyR Ch (/)Rèr
“enojado” NP -ncw/[gU Ch (/)ts`ü
“espejo” NP nakR/õhily Ch nág/üh`ün
“esperar” NP kippy/[ Ch (/)pì ~ LH
“estudiar” NP liššáoR Ch (/)sà
“mirar” NP wáppahoR Ch (/)pàa
“robar” NP -pp[_ Ch (/)ppì
“tocar” NP ndotáho Ch (/)tà
“acabado” NP (/)hogU Ch (/)thò
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 178

“buscar” NP (/)ttãRo Ch (/)t`ã

“calentar” NP (/)ppalR Ch (/)pàn
“comer” NP n/ãoU Ch (/)n`ã
“correr” NP wakk/õR Ch (/)kùn
“crecer” NP waddéoR Ch (/)nd`^
“dar” NP wóppo Ch (/)pò
“tres” NP ránhoR Ch tínhùn
“cansado” NP ndakR/^mp Ch kúnkR`ünR
“dejar” NP nhiágU Ch (/)nhì

NP F to Ch LH
“arder” NP n[aolR Ch èndónR
“casa” NP komR[os Ch ùrRós
“gordo” NP pimb[i Ch pìmbé
“decir” NP s[ep Ch (`)sé ~ HL

NP L to Ch HL
“coser” NP laR`[dnt Ch éR`üh`ür
“grande” NP mand`ãi Ch már`^
“mirar NP ndon`õ Ch énùRù
“perder” NP -mmè Ch úngwéRè
“salir” NP nannèhigU Ch (/)nè ~ LH
NP naalh[et Ch
“vestirse” NP -t`^hi Ch (/)t`^
“vomitar” NP locccòcR Ch ítšòRò
“quebrar” NP ndotòlR Ch (/)tùn
“rana” NP kokRwà Ch kúngwàR
“visitar” NP -pp`ã Ch (/)p/ã
“voz” NP niUh`ã Ch rìnhí

NP F to Ch HH
“arder” NP n[olR Ch (/)nár, éndónR
“despertar” NP nn[õ Ch énú
“telar” NP nab[[ Ch úpRí

Miscellaneous Correspondences
“lamer” NP L t`[R Ch HH (/)tí
“medir” NP H sáoR Ch HH (/)sá
“miedo” NP L watt`^onR Ch HH (/)tén
“frotar” NP H tt/ãolR Ch LL it`ãhànR
 Appendix J
OTOMI AND MAZAHUA COGNATE SETS
FOR TONE RECONSTRUCTION
Group I (Ot R to Maz H)
“frotar” Ot t]ãhmi Maz th/õRtRS
“levantar” Ot p]aRci Maz páhsRS
“padre” Ot d]ada Maz táhta
“tener” Ot p][Rci Maz p/[hsRi

Group II (Ot R to Maz L)172

“hongos” Ot x]o Maz khòho
“largo” Ot m]a Maz maha
“leña” Ot z]a Maz zaRa
“morder” Ot c]a, cá Maz saRa
“mosca” Ot g]Rwe Maz ng]Rw[
“pestaña” Ot š]ida Maz šìYö
“saber” Ot p]ãdi Maz pãra
“sentir” Ot c]a, cá Maz söRö
“venir” Ot R]^he, R/^he Maz R^he
“uno” Ot Rn]a, Rrà Maz Rnàha
“arar” Ot w]ãhi, w/ãhi Maz w`ãhma
“asar” Ot h]ãši Maz hãša
“calabacita” Ot m]u Maz m`aRu
“nariz” Ot š]iña Maz šìhhñu, šìñu
“cambiar” Ot p]ati Maz p`öhtS
“cantar” Ot t]uhu, túhu Maz t`õhõ
“casa” Ot ng]u Maz ng`amS_
“cuervo” Ot k]a Maz kàRa
“decir” Ot R]enã Maz R^ñ^
“defender” Ot ñ]ãni Maz ñãnRnã
“entrar” Ot k]St/Ri, k/StRi Maz kicRi
estrella” Ot c]ø Maz sèhe
“mitad” Ot (ma)d]e Maz ndèRe

172
Mazahua words without tone written on them in Stewart’s list are assumed to be low tone.

6/9/2010 179
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 180

Group III (Ot R to Maz F)

“frijol” Ot x]S Maz kh[SRS
“hondo” Ot h]^, hn]^ Maz h[^R^
“labio” Ot š]ine Maz š[ine
“maduro” Ot d]ã Maz ya nd[ãRã
“mirar” Ot n]u Maz n[aRa
“moco” Ot Rb]aši Maz bRöši
“nombre” Ot th]uhu Maz th[aRa
“árbol” Ot z]a Maz z[aRa
“ayer” Ot mánd]e Maz Rànd[øRø, Rnd[øhø
“blanco” Ot t?]aši, tRáši Maz nátR[öšS
“camino” Ot Rñ]a Maz Rñ[]hi
“cenar” Ot c]i Maz s]i-š[[dyRi
“correr” Ot Rr]ihi Maz R[ RódR[ihi
“dar” Ot R]uni, Rúni Maz R[aRnS_
“dientes” Ot cR]i Maz sR[ibRi
“espejo” Ot hñ^ Maz hñ[^h^

Group IV (Ot R to Maz R)

“ácido” Ot R]iši Maz R]iši
“amanecer” Ot h]acRi Maz hy]ãsRS
“arder” Ot z]ø Maz z]ørø
“armadilo” Ot nkR]inxwa Maz kR],]inkhwa
“blando” Ot t]udi, túdi Maz t]õrS
“cal” Ot nãni Maz ñ]õnRnS
“caña” Ot Ry]o(mfø) Maz dyR]eRe
“cara” Ot hm]i, hmí Maz hm]]Ri
“coyote” Ot m]iRño Maz m]iñRño, m]indyRo
“criar” Ot t]ede Maz X]eze
“chile” Ot Rñ]i, Rñí Maz R]iRi
“dejar” Ot c]ogi, cógi Maz s]ogS
“dolor” Ot Rñ]S, Rñ/S Maz R]SRS
“dormir” Ot R]ãhã, R/ãhã Maz R]]hi
“duro” Ot m]^ Maz m]^R^
“escalera” Ot Rr]ede Maz dR]eYe
“grano” Ot nd]a Maz nd]öRö
“grueso” Ot p]idi, pìdi Maz p]iYi
“hambre” Ot th]ahu Maz th]]hmi
“hoja” Ot š]i Maz š]iRi
“jugar” Ot R]eni, Réni Maz R]^ñe
“llegar” Ot c]øhø Maz s]øhø
“madre” Ot n]ãna Maz n]ana
“mamar” Ot c]S Maz s]iRi
“mecate” Ot nth]ãhi Maz th]ShmS
“metate” Ot x]Sni Maz kh]ShnS
 181 Appendix J Otomi and Mazahua Cognates

“raíz” Ot Ry]S Maz dyR]SRS

“sabroso” Ot k]Shi Maz n/ãk]]hmi
“salir” Ot p]øni Maz p]edyRe
“saludar” Ot z][ngwa Maz z][ngwa
“tomar” Ot c]i Maz s]iRi
“tos ferina” Ot kR]Sthe Maz kR]Sthe
“vender” Ot p]a Maz p]öRö

Group V (Ot H to Maz H

“apagar” Ot hw/^Rti Maz hwéRXRe
“besar” Ot c/SRci Maz s/SRtpRS ?on]eRe
“calzones” Ot hwítRwa Maz hwíRXkwRa
“cinco” Ot k/StRa Maz cíRXRa
“crecer” Ot té Maz téRe
“desgranar” Ot t/ãki Maz t/õRmRS
“doblar” Ot tóRti Maz XóRtRS
“escarbar” Ot š/^Rmi Maz š/^Rme
“esperar” Ot tøRmi Maz téRbRe
“lana” Ot šíRyo Maz šíRdyRo
“lavar” Ot péRte Maz péRXRe
“machucar” Ot kR/[Rti Maz kR/[RXRi
“máscara” Ot hmíte Maz hm/]hXa

GroupVI (Ot H to Maz L)173

“abrir” Ot šóki Maz šòhkS
“acabado” Ot thége Maz thèze
“aguacate” Ot cRáni Maz sR`önRnS
“ala” Ot hwá Maz hwàha
“arar” Ot w/ãhi, w]ãhi Maz w`ãhma
“arrear” Ot R`[tRi, R/[tRi Maz R[dyRi
“bañar” Ot šáti Maz šàhti
“barrer” Ot pàši, páši Maz paši
“borracho” Ot tí Maz t]R]
“cantar” Ot t/ahu, t]ahu Maz tõho
“doler” Ot R/S Maz RSRS
“encontrar” Ot nth/[Rbe Maz Xh`[-
“entrar” Ot k/StRi, k]StRi Maz kiXRi
“enjado” Ot kw/[ Maz kw`[
“ganar” Ot t]ãha Maz tõho
“gritar” Ot màfi, máfi Maz màphi
“gritar a” Ot màRti Maz màRtRi
“hijo” Ot tR/S Maz tRiRi
“hilar” Ot h`^tRi, h/^tRi Maz h`^XRe
“hormiga” Ot š/ãkhS Maz šãnkhã

173
Mazahua words without tone written on them in Stewart’s list are assumed to be low tone.
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 182

“jugo” Ot ngí Maz ngi

“ladrón” Ot b/^ Maz mb^Re
“llorar” Ot w/[ Maz w`[R[
“mazorca” Ot th/ã Maz th`õRo
“miedo” Ot cú Maz s`aRu
“mojado” Ot nkRá Maz kRàgS
“morir” Ot tú Maz t`aRu
“mujer” Ot Rb/[hñã Maz bR`[hhña
“podrida” Ot Ryá Maz ya dyRaRa
“reir” Ot théde Maz theYe
“sentir” Ot cá, c]a Maz söRö
“sombra” Ot šúdi Maz š`õrS
“sudar” Ot h/ø-nthe Maz høbRø(ndehe)
“tejer” Ot pé Maz peRe
“terminator” Ot hwádi, hwáti Maz khwarS, khwahti
“toser” Ot héhe Maz hèhe
“traer” Ot h/ã Maz hS_RS_
“veinte” Ot Rnáte Maz dyRöhte
“venir” Ot R/^he, R]ehe Maz R^he
“vestir” Ot héte Maz hehce
“yo” Ot núga Maz n`acko

Group VII (Ot H to Maz F)

“agua” Ot déhe Maz nd[ehe
“alimentos” Ot hñúni Maz hñ[õnRnS
“araña” Ot méše Maz m[eše
“barbas” Ot x/Sni Maz kR[SdRS
“blanco” Ot tRáši, tR]aši Maz tR[öšS
“borrego” Ot duti Maz nd[[nXSrS
“caer” Ot tági Maz t[ögS
“papas” Ot RrókRa Maz dR[okRa
“caballo” Ot pháni Maz ph[adRS
“cancion” Ot th/ahu Maz th[õhõ
“cántaro” Ot š/øni Maz š[øhnø
“carbón” Ot th/^hña Maz th[^hme
“carne” Ot ng/ø Maz ng[eRe
“cerrar” Ot kótRi Maz k[otRi
“ciego” Ot góda Maz ng[orö
“comer” Ot ñúni Maz ñ[õnRnS
“chupar” Ot c/StRi Maz s[StRS
“dar” Ot Rúni, R]uni Maz R[anRnS
“diez” Ot Re/[tRa Maz dyR[[XRa
“dos” Ot yóho Maz y[ehe
“elote” Ot m/ãnša Maz m`aša
“enaguas” Ot ng/øde Maz kh[eYe
“espumar” Ot f/Ski Maz ph[Sgi
 183 Appendix J Otomi and Mazahua Cognates

“fumar” Ot c/StRy`Si Maz s[StRS th/ahsRS

“hilo” Ot th/ãhi Maz th[S_hmS
“huaraches” Ot thíza Maz th`]za
“jícara” Ot šímo Maz š[imo
“lágrimas” Ot gída Maz ng[iYö
“llave” Ot nsóki Maz sh[ogi
“mañana” Ot šúdi Maz š[õrS
“medicina” Ot Rñ/^thi Maz Rñ^Xhe
“milpa” Ot hw/ãhi Maz hw[ãhmã
“mano” Ot Ry/[ Maz dyR[[R[
“perro” Ot Ryò, Ryó Maz dyR[oRo
“molcajete” Ot máda Maz m[ãzà
“preguntar” Ot Ráni Maz R[önS
“pulque” Ot tRáfi Maz tR[aphS
“seis” Ot Rráto Maz Rñ[anto
“sol” Ot hyádi Maz hy[arS
“tomate” Ot d/[Rmši Maz nd[[m`ösi

Group VIII (Ot H to Maz R)

“afuera” Ot thí Maz R]athiRi
“amargo” Ot nxú Maz nákh]õRo
“andar” Ot Ryò, Ryó Maz nzhodRS
“blando” Ot túdi, t]udi Maz t]õrS
“boca” Ot né Maz n]^R^
“cabeza” Ot ñ/ã Maz ñ]]R]
“caliente” Ot pá Maz p]aRa
“cara” Ot hmí, hm]i Maz hm]iRi
“conejo” Ot xwá Maz khw]aRa
“confesar” Ot nxw/ãni Maz khw]ãmRmã
“chiflar” Ot h/Sši Maz h]SšS
“chile” Ot Rñí, Rñ]i Maz R]iRi
“dedo del pie” Ot ñ/ãmo Maz ñ]]mo
“dormir” Ot R/ãhã, R]ãhã Maz R]]h]
“feo” Ot cRó Maz sR]oRo
“frente” Ot d/^ Maz nd]^Re
“frío” Ot c/[ Maz nas][R[
“hablar” Ot ñ/ã Maz ñ]ãRa
“jugar” Ot Réni, R]^ni Maz R]^ñe
“levantar” Ot nángi Maz n]ãngã
“malo” Ot cRó Maz sR]oRo
“ojo” Ot dá Maz nd]öRö
“oreja” Ot gú Maz ng]õRõ
“peine” Ot ntRéñã Maz tR]etRo
“perder” Ot Rb/[di Maz bR][Yi
“pieedra” Ot dó Maz nd]oho
“pie” Ot wá Maz ngw]aRa
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 184

“piojo” Ot tRó Maz tR]oRo

Group IX (Ot L to Maz H)

“amarrar” Ot th`ãtRi Maz th/S_RtRS
“casarse” Ot th`ãti Maz Xh/S_htS
“corto” Ot ncRìki Maz cRíhk[
“para” Ot Rbài Maz bR/öRbRS
“rodilla” Ot ñàhmu Maz ñ/]hhmo
“sesos” Ot b`øRyo Maz mbéhhñãkhS

Group X (Ot L to Maz L)174

“alzar” Ot x`S Maz hSsRS
“arado” Ot tRàbi Maz tR`öphS
“arrear” Ot R`[tRi, R/[tRi Maz R[dyRi
“atole” Ot tRèi Maz tR`^hme
“bailar” Ot n`^i Maz n`^mRme
“bautizar” Ot hìti Maz hìhXi
“barrer” Ot pàši, páši Maz pašS
“buscar” Ot hòni Maz hodRS
“calentar” Ot pàRti Maz paRtRS
“camarón” Ot mài Maz möRbRS
“carrizo” Ot šìthi Maz šìthi
“catarro” Ot thèhe Maz thè
“cenizas” Ot Rbòspi Maz bRòzìvi
“cerro” Ot tR`øhø Maz tRèhe
“comal” Ot dòRyo Maz ndèRye
“comprar” Ot tài Maz t`ömS
“contar” Ot pède Maz peYe
“contestar” Ot th`ãdi Maz th`S_rS
“cuarenta” Ot ñòte Maz ye dyRöhte
“cuatro” Ot gòho Maz nzìyo
“culebra” Ot kR`^ña Maz kRìhmi
“encontrar” Ot nth`[-gi Maz Xh`[-vi
“enterrar” Ot Ràgi Maz RögS
“escoba” Ot Rbàši Maz bRàšS
“escribir” Ot Ròfo Maz RophS
“escupir” Ot cògi Maz sògS
“estar” Ot Rb`Si Maz bR`SbRS
“estudiar” Ot šàdi Maz š`öhtpS, šörS
“flor” Ot d`øni Maz nd`øhnø
“fuego” Ot cìbi Maz sìvi
“gritaar” Ot màfi Maz màphS

174
Mazahua words without tones written on them in Stewart’s list are assuumed to be
low tone.
 185 Appendix J Otomi and Mazahua Cognates

Ot màRti Maz màRtRS

“hacer” Ot R`øtRe Maz RøtRø
“hilar” Ot hètRi, hétRi Maz h`^XRe
“huérfano” Ot hyòya Maz hyòya
“instrumento Ot Rbìda Maz bRìYi
musical”
“negar” Ot k`øni Maz kødRø
“jalar” Ot x`SRmi Maz kh`SbRS, kh/SRbRS
Ot g`StRi Maz kh`StRS
“juntar” Ot mùncRi Maz hm`ahtS
“laguna” Ot zàbi Maz zàphS
“laringe” Ot Ry`Sga Maz dyRìzi
“lavar” Ot š`Ski Maz šibRi
“lavar ropa” Ot pèni Maz pedyRe
“lengua” Ot x`ãhné, x`ãne Maz kR`]hni
“liendres” Ot b`øtRo Maz mbèXRó
“lodo” Ot b`øhài Maz mbèh`ömS
“luna” Ot z`ãnã Maz z`ãnRnã
“maguey” Ot Rwàda Maz RwàrS
“medir” Ot R`[ni Maz R[dyRi
“mentira” Ot f`[dri Maz bR`[Xhine
“mirar” Ot hàndi Maz h`ãnda
“moler” Ot k`Sni, k/Sni Maz kShnS
“negar” Ot k`øni Maz kødRø
“noche” Ot š`ai Maz š`õmS
“nube” Ot g`ai Maz ng`õmRmS
“oír” Ot R`øde Maz Rørø
“pagar” Ot xùtRi Maz khõtRi
“pararse” Ot Rmài Maz bR`öbRS
“pecho” Ot t`]ñã Maz t`]hm]
“pedir” Ot Ràdi Maz R`örS
“probar” Ot càpi Maz söRö
“quebrar” Ot wàki Maz RwahkS
“querer” Ot nè Maz neRe
“reír” Ot thèni Maz theñe
“relámpago” Ot hw`[i Maz hw[sRi
“rezar” Ot šàdi Maz šörS
“río” Ot d`ãthe Maz ndàre
“saliva” Ot xìhní, xìni Maz kR`]hni
“seco” Ot RyòtRi Maz nadyRòdRS
“siete” Ot yòto Maz yènXo
“soplar” Ot hwìfi Maz hwiphi
“tamales” Ot th`^di Maz th`^Ye
“teñir” Ot k`ãtRi Maz k`ãtRa
“tierra” Ot hài Maz h`ömS
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 186

“tirar” Ot fàni Maz ph`ögS

“tocar” Ot thàni Maz th`örS
“trabajar” Ot p`[fi Maz p`[phi
“trabajador” Ot m`[fi Maz mb`[phi
“trabajo” Ot Rb`[fi Maz bR`[phi
“vacío” Ot Ry`øni Maz dyR`ødRø
“uno” Ot Rn]a, rà Maz Rnàha
“zopilote” Ot pàda Maz ndóhpàre

Group XI (Ot L to Maz F)

“año” Ot x`[ya Maz kh[[R[
“camote” Ot b`øRkwã Maz bR[engw`ãmRmS
“capulín” Ot nd`[s[ Maz nd[[ns[
“cuero” Ot šìfni, šìfri Maz š[iphàdRS
“maíz” Ot d[thã Maz nd[[Xhõ
“olla” Ot cR`øe Maz sR[øbRø
“pan” Ot thùhm^ Maz th[õm`[XRi
“piel” Ot šìfri Maz š[iphàdRS
“venado” Ot fànthø Maz ph[antRe

Group XII (Ot L to Maz R)

“andar” Ot Ryò, Ryó Maz nY]odRS
“canasto” Ot Rb`øcRe Maz bR]osRi
“cosechar” Ot šòfo Maz š]^phe
“estornudar” Ot hècRe Maz h]^nsRe
“grueso” Ot pìdi, p]idi Maz p]izi
“salado” Ot Rñùsi Maz R]õši
“tripa” Ot šèfo Maz š]^pho
“zorrillo” Ot Rñ`ãi Maz R]S_hmS_
 Appendix K
COGNATE SETS FOR OTOPAMEAN TONE
Otomian L to Pamean F
POP TONE I *[FL]
“arado” Ot tRàbi Maz tR`öphS
NP -- CH úrRù

“cerro” Ot tR`øhø Maz tRèhe

NP UgolRw[[ Ch --

“cuatro” Ot gòho Maz nzìyo

NP kiUy[oi Ch --

“estudiar” Ot š`ödi Maz š]örS

NP -sáoR CH (/)sà

“hilar” Ot h`^tRi Maz h`^XRe

h/^tRi h/^Rme
NP wahãiU Ch urh^

“huéerfano” Ot hyòya Maz hyòya

NP lonh[eodnR Ch --

“lavar” Ot š`Ski Maz šìbRi

NP s[igU CH --

“Noche Ot š`ai Maz š`õmS

NP Ugos[ãoU Ch ús`ã

“tierra” Ot h`öi Maz h`ömS

NP Ugohw[aogU Ch úxà

“tragar” Ot t`atRi Maz --

NP (/)ttõlR Ch étùnR
-t[õlR

6/9/2010 187
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 188

Otomian R to Pamean F1
POP TONE I *[FL]
“caliente” Ot pá Maz p]aRa
NP map[a CH mápà

“caña” Ot Ry]o Maz dyR]eRe

NP -- Ch urRuhu

“comer” Ot c]i Maz s]iRi

NP -- Ch átsé

“mosca” Ot g]iRw^ Maz ng]Rw[

NP skaR[^i CH k/^R`^

“piedra” Ot dó Maz nd]oho

NP kot[o Ch kúrò

piojo” Ot tRóni Maz tR]o

NP UgolR[o Ch rúrRò

Otomian L to Pamean F2
POP TONE II *[HF]
“arado” Ot tRàbi Maz tR`öphS
NP -- CH úrRù

“bailar” Ot n`^i Maz n`^mRme

NP nn/ãhiR Ch én`^h`^R

“calabacita” Ot mm]a Maz m`aRu

NP m/õhiR Ch úm`ühüR

“calentar” Ot pàRtRi Maz pàRtRS

NP láppalR CH /qpàn

“correr” Ot k`ai Maz --

NP wakk/õR Ch /kùn
-k`õR

“gritar” Ot màaRtRi Maz màRtRS

NP -ppáRat Ch (/)ppàr
 189 Appendix K Cognate Sets for POP Tone

“jalar” Ot kh`SRmi Maz kh`SbRS

NP waqqéRedn CH ékèR`^nR

“maguey” Ot Rwàda Maz RwàrS

NP Ugoddóa Ch kúnRù

“oir” Ot R`øde Maz R`ørø

NP (/)RoR Ch éRòR
qqR[oR Ro HL~LH

“sembrar” Ot t`ahu Maz t`ahmS

NP watt/õ Ch étùRúnR

“tabaco” Ot Ry`Si Maz --

NP ndóehigU CH útR`üh:`ü

“tamales” Ot th`^di Maz th`^Ye

NP Ugolh/[R[_ Ch úrR`]h`]

“tocar” Ot th`öni Maz th`örS

NP -táho Ch (/)tà

“tragar” Ot t`atRi Maz --

NP (/)ttõlR Ch étùnR
qqt[õlR

Otomian L to Pamean L
POP TONES III * [L]
“estar” Ot k]ã Maz k`ãra
NP k`ãt Ch (/)kán

“grande” Ot nd]ã Maz nd`ãRa

NP mand`ãi Ch --

“nariz” Ot š]iñu Maz šìñu

NP XiUy`õa Ch kàn/a

“negar” Ot k`øni Maz k`ødRø

NP wakkò Ch (/)kó

“pedir” Ot R`ödi Maz R`örS

NP waRàhodn CH --

“soplar” Ot hwìphi Maz hwìphi

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 190

NP wahèigU Ch èx/ür

“visitar” Ot p]ãdi Maz p`ãra (“saber”)

NP -pp`ã Ch (/)p/ã

Otomian R to Pamean L
POP TONE III * [L]
“acido” Ot R]isi Maz R]isi
NP maRèiš Ch mèRés

“amargo” Ot kh/a Maz kh]õRo

NP makh`ão Ch màkh/ã

“boca” Ot né Maz n]eRe

NP kon`[ Ch ùní

“cabeza” Ot ñ/ã Maz ñ]]Ri

NP kan`ãoU Ch --

“conejo” Ot khwá Maz khw]aRa

NP Ugokhwà CH --

“chile” Ot Rñí, Rñ]i Maz R]iRi

NP waRèi Ch bèRé

“frío” Ot c/[ Maz s][R[

NP mac`[ Ch màXí

“ir” Ot má Maz m]a

NP m`ã~H Ch (/)ngwáa ~ HL

“mecate” Ot Rth]ãhi Maz th]S_hmS

NP Ungolhw`^ Ch kùnth/^

“metate” Ot kh]S Maz kh]ShnS

NP nakhèigU CH tàkh/üR

“mirar” Ot n]a Maz n[aRu

NP -nn/õRo Ch énùRù
-n`õ ~ LH

“ojo” Ot d/ö Maz nd]öRö

NP Ugot`ào Ch ùrá

“oreja” Ot g/a Maz ng]õRo

 191 Appendix K Cognate Sets for POP Tone

NP Xiky`ão Ch sìg/ã

“pesado” Ot hy/S ~ R Maz hy]SRS

NP mahèo Ch maxá

“pié” Ot wá Maz ngw]aRa

NP makoà Ch ègú

“ratón” Ot ng]a Maz ng]õRo

NP niUgy`ão Ch nìng/ã

“sambroso” Ot k]Shi Maz k]ihm]

NP maqèi Ch --

“sangre” Ot khí Maz k]iRi

NP kokhwì CH ùkhé

Otomian L to Pamean H
POP TONE IV * [R]
“atole” Ot tR`^i Maz tR`^hme
NP kolR/[_U Ch ùrR/]

“comprar” Ot t`öi Maz t`ömS

NP -ttáogU CH ràtár

“cuervo”“ Ot k]a Maz kàRa

NP UgokwáR Ch úkáR

“enterrar” Ot R`ögi Maz R`ögS

NP wáRRaog”n ~F Ch (/)Rá ~ LH

“flor” Ot d`øni Maz nd`øhnø

NP UgotógU Ch úró

“decir” Ot m/ã ~ R Maz m`ãma

NP -mm/ãU CH (/)m/ã

“saliva” Ot khìhni Maz kRìhñi

NP UkhwígU Ch síkhé

“seco” Ot RyòtRi Maz dyRòdRS

NP maRó Ch móRó

“vacío” Ot Ry`øni Maz dyR`ødRø

NP maRó Ch móRó
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 192

Otomian R to Pamean H
POP TONE IV * [R]
“grueso” Ot pìdi ~ R Maz p]iYi
NP nimRígU CH dzímRér

“mamar” Ot c]S Maz s]iRi

NP wácceRe Ch étš/üR

“tripa” Ot š]^mpho Maz š]^pho

NP mbép Ch kúmb/ü

“zorrillo” Ot Ry`ãi Maz R]S_hmS

NP konóãRa Ch kárR/ã

“agudo”175 Ot ncR]ã Maz sR]S_RS

NP ninXR/^s Ch --

“asar” Ot h]ãši Maz h`ãša

NP wah/ãs Ch (exüs)

chiflar” Ot h/Sši Maz h]SšS

NP nhéos Ch --

“hambre” Ot th]ahu Maz th]]hmi

NP Ugolh/õi Ch --

Otomian F to Pamean L
POP TONE V * [F]
“araña” Ot méše Maz m[še
NP kam`[s Ch kùmür

“barbas” Ot kh/Sni Maz kR[SdRS

NP khwèlR CH --

“caballo” Ot pháni Maz ph[adRS

NP -wàhalR Ch --

“carne” Ot ngø Maz ng[e

175
The last four sets are ambiguous for Pamean tone because Ch tone is lacking. They could
be either *H or *F2. They are assigned to *H here, because it places the sets in the only tone class
where Otomian R is found in association with final consonant.
 193 Appendix K Cognate Sets for POP Tone

NP riUgy`[R Ch --

“casa” Ot tRóši Maz tR[ošS

NP UgolRòs Ch ùrRós

“dientes” Ot cR]i Maz sR[ibRi

NP UgocìR Ch --

“elote” Ot mánša Maz m[aša

NP masà CH --

“enaguas” Ot nkh[ode Maz kh[eYe

NP nakhòiR Ch rùkhú

“espuma” Ot ph/Sgi Maz ph[SgS

NP šipph`èR Ch sùphéR

“frijol” Ot kh]S Maz kh[SRS

NP UkhwèR Ch kàUkhéR

“labio” Ot š]ine Maz š[ine

NP XiUU`[t Ch šìní

“maduro” Ot d]ã Maz nd[ãRa

NP mat`ãR CH màt/ãR

“mano” Ot Ry/[ Maz dyR[[R[

NP skanRià Ch kànRí

“milpa” Ot hw/ãhi Maz hw[ãhma

NP konhw`ã Ch kìnhú

“moco” Ot Rm]öši Maz bR[öši

NP mbàos Ch --

“perro” Ot Ryò, Ryó Maz dyR[oRo

NP nadò Ch --

“plato” Ot máda Maz m[aza

NP nimmyàhagU Ch nìmá

“preguntar” Ot R/öni Maz R[önS

NP waRàhodnR Ch (/)Rán

Otomian H to Pamean L
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 194

POP TONE V * [F]

“aguacate” Ot cR/öni Maz sR`önRnS
NP cRàogU Ch --

“ala” Ot hwá Maz hwàha

NP hwà Ch --

“cinco” Ot k/StRa Maz cíRXRa

NP kikRyài Ch --

“llorar” Ot w/[ Maz w`[R[

NP wài Ch (/)ngwé ~ HL

“morir” Ot t/a Maz t`aRu

NP tt`õ, (/)ttõ Ch (/)r/a

“terminar” Ot tége Maz tèze

NP lottwì Ch (/)t/ü

Otomian F to Pamean F2
POP TONE VI * [H]
“blanco” Ot tRáši Maz tR[öšS
NP káddoa Ch kúnúRù

“corto” Ot -- Maz dyR[a m[aha

NP mamáhaR Ch sámàhàR

“jícara” Ot šímo Maz š[imo

NP XímmyóR Ch nimò zìtás

“llevar” Ot c]i Maz s[ihi

NP waccíR Ch --

“tres” Ot hy]a Maz hñ[]Ri

NP ránhõR Ch tínhùn

“chupar” Ot c/StRi Maz s[StRS

NP wácciolR Ch étš/üR`ün

“canción” Ot th/ahu Maz th[õho

NP Ugolh/ão Ch --

“gallina” Ot Røni Maz R[øhnø

NP koRógU Ch --
 195 Appendix K Cognate Sets for POP Tone

Otomian H to Pamean F2
POP TONE VI * [H]
“arar” Ot w/ãhi Maz w]ãhma
NP nn/õaRa Ch --

“crecer” Ot té Maz téRe

NP waddéoR Ch (/)nd`^

“maíz” Ot thá Maz th`õRo

NP Ugolhõ/ã Ch --

“reírse” Ot théde Maz thèYe

NP -tt/[h[dnR Ch

“robar” Ot p/^ Maz p^Re

NP -pp/[_ Ch (/)ppì

“tejer” Ot pé Maz pèRe

NP wópp[ Ch (/)pì

“toser” Ot héhe Maz hèhe

NP lóhw[ Ch --

Miscellaneous Correspondences
“decir” Ot šíphi Maz šìphi
H:F1 np -s[ep ch (/)sè ~ LH

“podrida” Ot Ryá Maz dyRaRa

H:F1 NP miyy[ã Ch --

“agua” Ot déhe Maz nd[ehe

F:F1 NP kot[[ Ch kurì

“comer” Ot ñ/ani Maz ñ[õnRnS

F:F1 NP -n/ãoU Ch (/)n`ã ~ LH

“dos” Ot yóho Maz y[ehe

F:F1 NP n[oi Ch --

“excremento” Ot ph]o Maz ph[oRo

F:H NP mphói Ch úph/ü

“rápido” Ot níhi Maz n[]hi

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 196

F:H NP manéi Ch máné

“tijeras” Ot Rñ]ãši Maz Rñ[ãša

F:H NP nalRy/ãs Ch tárR/]s

“hilo” Ot th/ãhi Maz th[S_hmS

F:R NP Ugolh/ãiU Ch ùrh/^r

“nombre” Ot th]ahu Maz th[ahu

F:R NP UgolhóR Ch ùnh/]R

“olla” Ot cR`øe Maz sR[øbRø

F:R NP UgocwéR Ch ùcRéR

“contar” Ot pède Maz pèYe

L:R NP -pp/[R[dn Ch (/)pín

“estar” Ot Rm`Si Maz bR`SbRS

L:R NP mmého Ch (/)mè ~ LH

“probar” Ot c`öhpi Maz s`öRö

L:R NP -ccáoR Ch (/)ndzá ~ HL ~ HH

Compounds
“año” Ot kh`[ya Maz kh[[R[
NP níUg^he Ch --

“catarro” Ot thèhe Maz thè

NP Ugol/[R[ Ch --

“cosechar” Ot šòpho Maz š]ephe

NP wass/[R[ Ch --

“instrumento Ot Rmìda Maz bRìYi

musical” NP nibbíRi Ch --

“ombligo” Ot cR`öi Maz sR`önRnS

NP UgocáogU Ch --

“patos” Ot tìga Maz tìzi

NP kátti Ch --

pestañas” Ot š]idö Maz šìYö

 197 Appendix K Cognate Sets for POP Tone

NP šiUgyáRp Ch --

“teñir” Ot k`ãtRi Maz k`ãtRa

NP wákkãR Ch --
 APPENDIX L
LIST OF ALL COGNATE SETS
The cognate sets are arranged according to their Spanish gloss. One reason
for not arranging them according to their reconstructed form is that the stem-initial
consonant alternations make an alphabetical listing by initial consonants rather
difficult. When a reconstruction is based on only a few languages and those are
from the same subgroup, the reconstruction is more limited than when it is based on
evidence from nearly all the languages or from representatives of the major
subgroups.

Following the Spanish gloss and its English equivalent, a reconstructed form
is listed. Whenever possible the A form of the stem is reconstructed. However,
nouns often must be reconstructed in a B, C, or D form. A weakened consonant of a
B or C form is marked by a preceding equals sign. The syllable nucleus follows
immediately after the stem-initial consonant(s) with the glottal element written after
the vowel(s). The stem-formative consonant(s)are separated from the root by a
hyphen. The glottal element in a stem-formative is written after the other
consonant(s), if any.

The basic cognate elements of the constituent languages are presented in

tabular form, utilizing a uniform orthography in so far as possible. (Vowel symbols
peculiar to the Otopamean languages are: the central vowels S [ ], ø [†]; the low
front vowel [[ae]; the low back vowel ö; and the front rounded vowel ü.) Where
necessary or deemed useful a paragraph of supplementary information follows.
Such information includes the older transcriptions of Matlatzinca, different
semantics in the various languages, different attestations of forms, paradigmatic
ABCD forms, cross reference to other sets, etc.

A number of abbreviations are used. The languages are abbreviated as

follows without parentheses: Otomi, Ot; Mazahua, Maz; Matlatzinca, Mtz;
Ocuilteco, Oc; North Pame, NP; South Pame, SP; and Chichimeco, Ch. Dialects of
a language are abbreviated according to the town or region where spoken: San
Felipe (SF), San Gregorio (SG), Santa Clara (SC), Mezquital (Mez), Pacula (P),
Jiliapan (J), etc. Different attestations are abbreviated according to the investigator:
Guevara (Gu), Basalenque (Bas), Castro (Cas), Moisés Romero (R), Andrews (A),
Lorna Gibson (LG), Donald Stewart (Stw), etc. The paradigmatic forms are
identified by A,B,C,D,E, or F, without parentheses.

6/9/2010 198
 199 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

Otomi and Mazahua forms are cited without prefixes. Pame and Chichimeco
forms are usually cited with prefixes because the tone patterns are spread over prefix
and root. Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco forms are usually cited without prefixes.
1. “Abajo--below” *(m)poR
Mtz mapRo Oc --
NP kimbyòRp Ch kumpuR (R) nìmbó
SP (J) kumpu·R, (P) p[u·

2. “Abandonar--abandon” *pai-k
Ot p[gi Maz mp[zi

3. “Abeja--bee” *tk]a-ne
Ot gãne Maz ng[S_hnS

4. “Abrir--open” *so-h-k
Ot šohki Maz šohkS
Mtz šoRki (Gu) xohoqui Oc šoki
Note: In Otomi and Mazahua, an h before the stem-formative distinguishes
the transitive from the intransitive. This may not belong to an earlier horizon,
however. Cf. “llave” for the noun derived from this verb.

5. “Abrir-open” *s]-n
NP was/]U Ch gàs/^
SP mansì

6. “Absorber-absorb” *si-n
Ot cini Maz siñi

7. “Acabado-finished” *ho-n
NP -hogU Ch A, B rho
NP C -hogU; D –tthogU Ch C tho; D ntho

8. “Acabado-used up” *the-k

Ot thege Maz theze
Ot tege “to use up” Maz teze

9. “Acercarse-get close” *thã-cR

Ot thãci (SF) Maz thãsRã

10. “ácido--sour” *Ri-s

Ot Riš Maz Riš
Mtz tRiši Maz tRiš
NP maRèiš Ch meRu
SP (J) cuš, (P) cuRwìs
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 200

11. “Acordarse--remember” *mp^-nR

Ot mb^ni Maz mbéñRe

12. “Acostarse--lie down” *mRai-nR/#

Ot Rmuni Maz bembatRS_
NP ndab[at (pl) Ch ébéRè
SP n`SbaRa

13. “Acostarse--lie down *nRaR

NP -daRa (sg.) Ch nda
SP mantand/ãRa

14. “Acostarse-- to bed” *Ro-mR

Ot Roi Maz R[obRS

15. “Adherir--stick to” *koa-h-t

Ot kwahti Maz kwahtS

16. “Adivino--soothsayer” *tpã-t

Ot bãdi Maz ---
NP káppãt Ch kàmb/ãr
SP kumpã
Note: The NP form looks like an A form. The others could be B or C forms.
The reconstruction is a B form.

17. “Adobe--mud brick” Compound with *hao-m

Ot ñãhöi (SF) Maz ñíhömS
Mtz (naR)kahani Oc (nilco) kha
NP -- Ch úhà ( écàn
Note: Ot and Maz have preposed yã “head.” Mtz and Oc have preposed ka.

18. “Adormecido--asleep (arm or leg)” *mtpã-mh

Ot mbãhi Maz mbãhmã

19. “Afuera--outside” *thi

Ot thí Maz th]iRi
Mtz heRti Oc thi

20. “Agarrar--grab” *pai-ntR

Ot p[ntRi Maz p[nXRi
 201 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

21. “Agua--water” *tteh

Ot déhe Maz nd[ehe
Maz intawi Oc ndà
NP kot][ Ch kúrì
NP A kónd[ B kiky`[ C kíUgy[
Ch A kúndì B kìrí C kíndì

22. “Aguacate--avocado” *cRöni

Ot cRöni Maz sR`öhnS
Mtz cRoni Oc cRo
NP cRaogU Ch --
SP ncRawn

23. “Aguantar--endure” *cai-h-t / *coe-h-t

Ot c[hti Maz s[hXi

24. “agudo--sharp” *(n)cR]a

Ot ncRã Maz sRS_RS_
NP ninXR/^s Ch --
Note: NP has a suffix -s.

25. “Aguja--needle” *tRoe

NP nalR[ Ch tàrR/ü
SP (P) nétRè, (J) ntRw`^

26. “Ahogar--suffocate” *kh]a-tR

Ot (SF) khãti Maz chS_ntRS

27. “Agujerear--pierce” *pioHC-k

Mtz mSXi Oc mSki
NP -pphèogU Ch --
Mtz (Bas) -muixchi, -puixchi
Mtz (Gu) –muchii “agujero hay”

28. “Agujerear--pierce” *ciHC-h-k/-tR

Ot ncShki Maz --
Np célR “a hole” Ch úcènR
SP cìRn
Note: Cf. Ot (SF) nchSni “injection.” NP -cwelR “pricking.” Perhaps the HC
of the reconstruction should be a vowel cluster with an o either before or after
the i.

29. “Aire--wind” *nttã-mh

Ot ndãhi Maz ndãhmã
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 202

30. “Ala-wing” *(n)hoa

Ot hwá Maz hwàha
Mtz inhowi Oc linhó
NP manhwà SP nhnoa

31. “Alacrán” *con-ti-nR

NP cond[eilyR Ch súndènR

32. “Alegre--happy” *h^o-n

NP lah/^oU Ch márh`^

33. “Alimentar--feed someone” *Roi-n

Ot Rwini Maz Rwiñi

34. “Alimentos--food” *hyão-nR

Ot (SF) hñani Maz hñ[önRS

35. “Aliviar--to make better (of sickness)” *Rø-ya-te

Ot Røhte Maz RøtRø
Mtz RøRya Oc Røbiá
Mtz (Cas) quitobeayaata “curar enfermedad” (a t ø)

36. “Aliviarse--get better” *th]-cR

Ot (SF) th]ci Maz thisRi

37. “Alto--high” *h^-cR

Ot *h[_cRi Maz h^sR^

38. “Alumbrar--give light” yo-tR/-cR/-k

Ot yotRi Maz yoRo “vela”
Mtz yoki Oc yócRi
Mtz (Bas) yohotzi, -yotze: (Gu) niyoo “candelero”
Oc (Weitlaner, 1934) tiyothik “alúmbrame.”

39. “Alzar--raise” *hõ-sR

Ot A hacR, C hyacRi, D thacRi
NP A –hosp, B -h`õsp, C –nhìõsp, D - lh`õsp
Ch A hu, B nhi, C nhi, D rhu

40. “Alzar--raise something” *ta-h-cR

Mtz tahcRi Oc tahcRi

41. “Amanecer--get light” *noe-t (?)

Mtz neti Oc (tàl)néti
 203 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

42. “Amanecer--get light, dawn” *ha-cR/-p, *hã-cR

Ot hy]acRi Maz hy]asRS
Mtz hyabi Oc --
NP -nhãs “to arise” Ch --

43. “Amar--love” *thi-ya

Mtz thiya Oc thiya

44. “Amargo--bitter” *khão

Ot (n)kha Maz kh[öRö_
Mtz Xhø Oc Xhø
NP makh`ão Ch màkh/ã

45. “Amarillo--yellow” *kRa-s-tR

Ot (n)kRaštRi Maz kRaštRS

46. “Amarrar--tie” *Roe-R-tR

Ot RweRtRti Maz RwëXRi
Mtz weti Oc wéhtí

47. “Amarrar--tie” *th]a-R-tR

Ot th`ã Maz th/aRtRS_

48. “Amarrar--tie” *tõ-R-tR

Ot (Mez) t/aRti Maz tõRtR “S

49. “Ancho--wide” *si/*s]

Ot š]di Mtz šintiru “camino ancho”
NP niššeRe SP nišíRi

50. “Ancho--wide” *mhi

Mtz mi Oc mhi

51. “Andar--walk” *nRioa

Ot Ryo Maz nYodRS
Mtz tru Oc --
NP dóa Ch étRú
SP -ndóak

52. “Animal--animal” *m-paiR

NP A nambáRi, B UgowáRi, C UgomáRi, D mbuR[pt
Ch A nãmbè, B ùngwé, C úmè, D úvèR

53. “Anteayer--day before yesterday” *nRante

Mtz ranta Oc phlamda
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 204

54. “Año--year” *khai-/*kãih-

Ot kh[ya Maz kh[[R[
Mtz inkhø”ø Oc khønYø
NP niUg^h^ Ch --
Ot (Relación de Querétaro) Quenza. There are several different postposed
elements in the different languages.

55. “Apagar (la lumbre)--extinguish” *hõe-tR/-k

Ot hw[_tRi Maz hw^XR^
Mtz huRuXi Oc (lí)hñinYi

56. “Apetito, tener--to have an appetite" *mo-s

Ot moši Maz mošS

57. “Aprender--learn" *phai-h-t

Ot ph[hti “imitate” Maz ph[hXi

58. “Apretar--squeeze” *ti-s

NP wáttes Ch étès

59. “Aquí--here” *koa

Ot gwa Maz a Rñekhwa
NP ikyúwa Ch kíkú
SP kùà, kwà

60. “Arado—a plow” *tRoa-p

Ot tRàbi Maz tRoa-p
Mtz intRopi Oc tRopi
SP ntRoá Ch úrRù
Cf. “Arar.”

61. “Araña--spider” *me-s

Ot meše Maz m[eš^
Mtz inmaši Oc màši
NP kam`[s Ch --

62. “Araña--spider” *me-n

SP (P) emén Ch kùm/ür
 205 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

63. “Arar--plow” *nõa-mh

Ot wãhi Maz wãhmã
Mtz nomi Oc --
NP nn/õRa Ch --

64. “Arar--plow” *pi-cR

SP maphan puic Ch ú‹/ö épècR

65. “Árbol--tree” *tca

Ot z]a Maz z[aRa
Mtz insa Oc dza

66. “Árbol--tree” *tkoã-n

NP UgokwáU Ch tàngwá
SP (P) nuUgw/ã Ch (R) kà‹/ã

67. “Arco--bow” *thai (?)

NP UgolhàR Ch tùrhéR

68. “Arder--burn” *nõa-n or *nõ-nR

Ot nãni “cal” Maz ñö_RnS_ “cal”
NP -n[aolR “arder” Ch nar “arder”
SP (P) kiñãw “arder” Ch (R) min/ã “cal”

69. “Arder--burn” *tcoett

Ot (n)zø Maz zørø
Mtz ceti

70. “Ardilla--squirrel” *mi-nã

Ot m]nã Maz mini
Gu mini (yntemini) Oc mi (ndemi)
NP koméigU

71. “Arena--sand” *m]o-m

Ot *Rmoma (Ot has preposed Rmo-) Maz ---
Mtz mumi (nXiRmumi) Oc mu (ñùmú)
NP -mm/^oU SP -mai

72. “Armadillo” *tho

Mtz -- Oc tho
NP -lhóR SP nthúR

73. “Armadillo” *nkRi-nkhoa

Ot nkR]inkhwa Maz kR]nkhwà
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 206

74. “Arrear--herd” *kõaoh-n

NP -kwãhoU Ch kun
Ch A dun, B kun, C gun, D khun.

75. “Arrear--herd” *Rai-tR/nR

Ot R`[tRi, RutRi Maz R[dyRi

76. “Arriba-up” *cR]-nR

Mtz makucRi Oc --
NP kocR/](UR) Ch pacRín

77. “Asar-roast” *hã-s

Mtz hãši Oc --
NP -h/ãs Ch ehüs (?)
SP -hwãš

78. “Asustar--frighten, startle” *pi-t

Ot pidi Maz pìYi

79. “Asustarse--fear” *cõ

Ot ca Maz saRa

80. “Atar--tie” *tõ-(n) cR

Ot tacRi Maz tancRS_
Mtz tucRi Maz tuncRi
NP ttócR “sandals” Ch tuc
NP A tuts, B nduts, C ruts, D rhuts.

81. “Atar-tie up” *th]a-tR

Ot thãtRi Maz thS_tRtS_

82. “Atole--thick drink made from corn” *tR^-m

Ot tR[_i Maz tR^hm^
Mtz tRemi Oc tRe
SP ketR^R Ch úrR/]
NP A kaRu_, B konRu_U, C konu_U, D kolRu_U

83. Atravesar--cross” *Rna-cR/-h-k

Ot *RnacRi Oc lácRì
Ot *Rnahki “brincar” Maz dahkS “brincar”

84. “Aventar trigo--winnow grain” *pi-h-k

Ot pihki Maz pihci

85. “Axila--armpit” *hoa

 207 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

NP sanhwàp (-p “his”) Ch nính/aR nìmb/ö

SP šnhùa

86. “Ayer--yesterday” *m-te

Ot mánd]e Maz Rànd[øRø
Mtz nta Oc mdá

87. “Tarde--late afternoon” *n-te

Ot nd]e Maz --
Mtz rinta Oc milindá, tàhndá
NP wand`[p (Ugo báho) “It’s eve, the fiesta”

88. “Ayudar--help” *phao-cR

Ot phöcRi Maz phösRS

89. “Azadón--hoe” *tRoa

Ot (SG) tRapi Ch (R) úrRù sadó
Cf. “arado.”

90. “Azul--blue” *kRa-n-k

Ot kRangi Maz kRãngã

91. “Bailar--dance” *nãih-mR

Ot n[_i Maz n^mR^
Mtz nøhøbi Oc ñøøbi
NP nn/ãhiR Ch énèhèR
SP n/ãha

92. “Bajar--come down” *kã-mR/-t

Ot kãi Maz --
Mtz Xabi Oc --
NP k[ãRt SP -gwáhat

93. “Banco--bench, stool” *Xhopi

Mtz Xhopi Oc nXhopi
NP šinXRohoR (?)

94. “Bañar--bathe” *si-h-k/-tR

Ot šShki Maz --
Mtz šuti Oc šuti
NP sigU SP šin
Cf. “Lavar.”

95. “Bañar (a alguien)--bathe someone” *sa-h-t

Ot šáhti Maz šàhtS
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 208

96. “Bañarse--bathe” *sah

Ot (n)šaha Maz šàh

97. “Barbas--chin, beard” *khi-nR (Should have HC?)

Ot kh/Sni Maz kR[SdRS
Mtz nXSri Oc nd[zSli
Np UkhwèlR SP igy]n
NP A ikkìlR, B Ugw[elR, C UgwìlR, D Ukwèlp.

98. “Barranca--gulley” *hy^

Ot *hy[_ Maz --
Mtz ipyhewi Oc ndóhñè

99. “Barranca--gulley” *nhã

NP nanh/ã Ch sính`ãR “río”
SP nhnáw

100. “Barrer--sweep” *pa-s

Ot páši Maz pašS
Mtz paši Oc mbášXi

101. “Escoba--broom” *mRa-s

Ot *Rmaši Maz bašS
Mtz baši Oc šiašXi
SP stpã Ch táp`^R (R)

102. “Barriga--belly” *m-pao

NP A namb]ao, B Ugowào, C Ugom]ao, D Ugob]ap
Ch A námbà, B ùngwá, C úmà
SP (P) námpáw, (J) (m)m]u.

103. “Bautizar--baptize” *hi-h-t

Ot hìhti Maz hìhXi

104. “Besar--kiss” *cioHC-t/-p/-tR

Ot cShti /Sr ne (SF) Maz s/SRtpRS o n]eRe
Mtz cupi Oc cupi
NP cciolR “chupar” Ch --
Cf. “chupar,” “mamar.”

105. “Blanco--white” *tRoa-s/*n?oa/*noa

Ot tRáši Maz tR]öšS
Mtz tRoši Oc --
NP káddoa Ch kúnúRù
SP škándóà
 209 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

106. “Blando--soft” *tão-t

Ot tadi Maz t]ö_rS, Xö_rS
SP ty^t Oc tøti “carne blanda”

107. “Blusa--blouse” *pa-h-n

Ot pahni Maz pahna

108. “Boca--mouth” *te/*ne

Ot né Maz n]eRe, teRe
Mtz na Oc --
NP konu Ch ùní
SP khne
NP A katt`[, B kol][, C kon`[, D n`[t, kon`[t
Ch A kàtí, B útì, C ùní

109. “Bordar--embroider” *Roe-t

Ot Rw[hti Maz w[hXi

110. “Borracho--drunk” *t]/*ni-m

Ot nt] Maz t`]R]
Mtz nimi Oc ni

111. “Borrego--sheep” *tão-t

Ot d[hti (d[+tadi) Maz nd[[nXSrS
Mtz inšitøti Oc nimtønti “algodón”

112. “Brazo--arm” *s]-R

SP n`øs`]R Ch sìs/^

113. “Brotar--to sprout” *poeHC-cR

Ot pøcRe Maz pesRe

114. “Brujo-- *ho

sorcerer”
NP kahó Ch káhó
SP kuhú

115. “Buscar--look for” *ho-n

Ot hòni Maz hodRS
Mtz hori Oc holi

116. “Buscar--search” *taoR

NP B,C -ttãRo, D -thãRo
Ch A,B,C tã, D thã

117. “Caballo--horse” *pah-nR

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 210

Ot phani Maz ph]adRS

Mtz pari, impahari Oc báhli
NP -wàhalR SP mpàhàl

118. “Cabellos--hair” *si-*nõa/*tõa

Ot šta Maz ñ]ste
Mtz šiRnú Oc šitu

119. “Cabellos--hair” *ka-nh]/*th]

SP skinhn]i Ch kánthè
NP skanh]]

120. “Cabeza--head” *niõ

Ot šiya “nariz” Maz šihña “nariz”
Mtz nu Oc ñu
NP XiUU`õa “nariz” Ch kàn/a “nariz”

121. “Cabeza--head” *n]a/*não-n

Ot yã Maz ñ]R]
NP kan`ãoU SP kinyãu

122. “Cadera--hip” *mo

Ot yãmo “dedo del pié” Maz ñ]mo “dedo del pié”
NP Ugomò Ch rùmór
SP škumúR

123. “Caer--fall” *co-R

Ot co Maz soRo
NP -ccoR Ch co

124. “Caer--fall” *hø-mR

Ot høi Maz høbRø
The Ot-Maz ø comes from either *oHC or *eoHC.

125. “Caer de arriba--fall from above” *tao-k

*Ot tögi Maz tögS

126. “Caerse--fall over" *nioHC-k

Maz nSgS Mtz nuki

127. “Caja--box” *hoa-ta

Ot hwada Maz hwarS
Mtz wati Oc hwati
 211 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

128. “Cal--lime” *thi-to

Mtz thuto Oc thindó

129. “Cal--lime” *ci-p

Ot cibi “fuego” Maz sivi “fuego”
Ntz ininsipi “cenizas” Oc nimcipi “cenizas”
NP lacRiR “cal” SP sì‹ìcRí “cal”

130. “Calabacita--little squash” *mõ

Ot ma Maz maRa
Mtz mu Oc gáncRìmúhli
NP mõhiR SP mah`a

131. “Calabazo--gourd” *mo

Ot (SG) t/ãšmbo (tã+šimo”) Oc ndšíhmó
NP komóR Ch nímóR
SP nc]R, mí`w (low tone w)

132. “Calavera--skull” *si-mo-R

Ot šimo Mtz šimo
NP XimmyóR (sg) , šimmyóR (pl)

133. “Calcetín--sock” *-kwa, *tRi-Rt

NP makwà kotRwéRt Ch égù rReRr
Note: The reconstruction of the stem-formative is uncertain.

134. “Caldo--broth” *n-kitteh

Ot githe Maz ngSre

135. “Calentar--heat it” *pa-(R)-tR/-nR

Ot pàRtRi Maz pàRtRS
Mtz pari (al fuego), pati (al sol) Oc pátí
NP ppalR Ch pan
NP ABCD ppalR
Ch A,B pan, C nban, D phan

136. “Caliente--hot” *pa

Ot (m) pa Maz pa
Mtz pawi Oc pa
NP map]a Ch mápà
SP múpã

137. “Calzones--trousers” *khoi-R

Ot z[škho Mtz inXho
NP naUkhòiR Ch rùkhü
SP šnkhu Cf. “Enaguas.”
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 212

138. “Calzones--trousers” *hwi-tR-kwa

Ot hwitRwa Maz hwiXkwa

139. “Camarón--shrimp” *mao-mR

Ot möi Maz möRbRS

140. “Calzar--put on shoes” *t]-tR

Ot t]tRi Maz t]XRi

141. “Cama--bed” *mRi-R

NP Ugob[[ Ch nimbiR
SP /mbíe (high tone m)

142. “Cambiar--change” *pao-t/-nR

Ot pöti (tr.), mbödi (intr.) Maz pöhti
Mtz pacRi Oc --
NP mmàodnR Ch por
NP A,B,C mmaodnR, D -ppàodnR
Ch A,B,C por, D phor

143. “Camino--path, road” *nR]o

Ot Rya Maz Rñ]h]
Maz ru Oc ndluhu

144 “Camino--road, path” *nRõeh-R

NP nRo`[_ Ch nánkR`ah`a (?)
SP n/ah`^R
NP A nonRò[_h[R, B niUyRu_h[R, C niUyR`[_h[R, D nanRu_h[R
Note: The Ch form would fit except for the k.

145. “Camote--sweet potato *tpoeHC-(n)-k(h)õa-mR

Ot bøkRwã Maz bR[emgwãRmã
Mtz -- Oc bønYu
SP (P) pikhw`ã, (J) pikiw Ch pik/a

146. “Papas--potatoes” (under “camote”) *nRo/*tRo

Ot RnokRa Maz dRokRa
Mtz intRo Oc --
NP piURo Ch --
Note: The second syllable in the Ot and Maz words may have something to
do with the morpheme in “camote,” above. Although both “camote” and
“papa” appear to be compounds, the first element in “camote” is more like a
prefix whereas the first element in “papa” is a root morpheme. This could
account for the different reflexes of the second element.
 213 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

147. “canasta--basket” *th(o)i

Ot Rmithi Maz bReXhe
Mtz insønthiwi Oc --
Note: Ot and Maz have preposed *mRi; Mtz has preposed cøn.
NP -llhwiRi:
NP A nothwíRi , B nilyhíRi, C nikyhíRi

148. “Canasto--large basket” *mRø-cRi-R

Ot RmøcRe Maz bRosRi
Mtz -- Oc bøcRi
SP šmtikicR]i Ch kúcRèR
Note: The ø in Otomian probably is from POP *oHC, although the reason
that Maz has the reflex o is obscure.

149. “Canción--song” *thão-h

Ot thaha Maz th[ohõ
Mtz inthøwi Oc --
NP Ugolh/ão A nattão, B Ugot`ão, C Ugot[ão

150. “Cansado--tired” *kRõi-nR

NP ndakR/^mp Ch kúnkR`ünR
SP m`øtíkìw

151. “Cansarse--get tired” *cao-ya

Ot cöya Maz söya
Mtz coya Oc nzoya
Note: The -ya suffix is still to be explained because at present no y is
reconstructed for POP.

152. “Cantar--sing” *tão-h

Ot taha Maz tõhõ
Mtz tøwi Oc tø
NP -ndão, D -nthão

153. “Cántaro--water jug” *sø-nh

Ot šøni Maz šøhnø
Note: The Ot-Maz ø comes from either *oHC or *eoHC

154 “caña--sugar cane” *nRio

Ot Ryo Maz dyReRe
Mtz ro Oc lo
NP -- Ch úrRùhù
Mtz (Cas) yndo (de maíz verde); ynziiro (seco)
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 214

155. “Capulín--wild cherry” *choe

Ot d[ch[ Maz nd[[ns[
Mtz insewi Oc che

156 “Cara--face” *hmi

Ot hmi Maz hmiRi
Mtz mhi Oc mhi

157. “Carbón--charcoal” *th]-mia/-mR/-nR

Ot th[_yã Maz th^hm^
Mtz thubi Oc thuli

158. “Cárcel--jail” *phao-t

Ot phödi Maz phörS
Cf. “Cuidar.”

159. “Cárcel--jail” *khãR-n

NP kiUkhyãRaU Ch ùkh/ã (màger)
SP khi/^ kagwa

160 “Carne humana--human *n-koeHC

flesh”
Ot ngø Maz Ug[eRe
NP -Ugw`[R SP mug`a
A roUgw`[R, B riky[[R, C riUgy`[R, D riUgy`[Rt

161. “Carne--meat” *nRi-m

Mtz indimi Oc ndli

162. “caro--dear, expensive *m]a-t

Ot mãdi Maz miYi
Ch m^h^

163. “Carpintero--carpenter” *nia-s

Ot yaši Maz yašS

164. “Carrizo--reed” *thi

Ot šithi Maz šithi
Mtz inthiwi Oc --
NP -lhi SP nthí

165. “casa--house” *ntkõ

Ot nga Maz ngamS
Note: The Mazahua second syllable may be from a contraction of
 215 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

-hömS “soil” as the second element of a compound. The houses in

the area are of adobe brick.

166. “Casa--house” *tRo-s

Ot tRoši “cena, cama” Maz tRošS “nido”
Mtz tRoši “cena” Oc --
NP -lRòs “casa” Ch ùrRós “casa”
SP ntRus “casa”

167 “Cenar--eat supper” *Ro-s

Ot Roši “pasar la noche” Maz RošS “pasar la noche”
Mtz yoši “cenar” Oc --

168. “Casarse--get married” *t]ah-Rt

Ot (n) thãhtiwi Maz Xh/S_htS_
Mtz tøhønye Oc --
NP -tt`^heRt Ch ìtéhér
SP -t^h^R
NP A, C -tt`^heRt, B -kky`^heRt, D -kyR`^heRt

169 “Catarro--a cold” *theR

OT thehe Maz the
Mtz katuhyewi Oc --
NP A nothuR[, B nilyhuR[, C nikhyuR[, D rikhyuR[t

170. “Cebolla--onion” *-toe-n-si

Ot d[nši Maz nd[nšS
Note: The Ot-Maz [ could come from either POP *ai or *oe after an
alveolar consonant.

171. “Cenizas--ashes” *mRo-ci-p

Ot Rmo(h)cibi Maz bRozivi
Mtz nimbo, inincipi Oc nimcipi

172 “Cerca--fence” *kRõah-nR

NP UgokRwãholR Ch kRòhò
SP ntRuškahu

173. “Cerca--near” *no

SP šnú Ch manó

174 “Cerrar--close” *ko-tR

Ot kotRi Maz kotRS
Mtz koRti Oc --
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 216

175. “Cerrar--close” *ceo-R/-nR

NP waccuo// Ch gàcen

176 Cerro--mountain, hill” *soeHC-cR

Ot šøcRe “encima” Maz a šesRe “encima”
Mtz inšøcRi Oc --

177. “Cerro--mountain” *hãi-cR

Ot h[_cRi “alto, cielo” Maz h^sRe “cielo”
Mtz høcRi “cerro” Oc høcRi “cerro”
NP h`[_cR “alzar”

178 “Cerro--mountain” *tRoeHCh

Ot tRøhø Maz tRèhe
NP -lRw[[ SP ntRúè

179. “Cinco--five” *koiHC-tRai

Ot kStRa Maz ciXRa
Mtz kutRa Oc kwìtRá
NP kikRyai Ch --

180. “Cintura--belt” *kiHCh-tR/-nR

Ot ngSti Maz nzSntRS
Mtz XShSti
NP -kéhelR SP kugwíhin

181. “Ciudad--town” *nh]-nR

Ot hnini Maz ndahniRñi

182. “Clavar--nail” *tø-tR

Ot tøtRe Maz tøtRø
Note: The Ot-Maz ø comes from either POP *oHC or POP *eoHC.

183. Cobija--blanket” *tRoe-R

NP -lRw`[R Ch ùrR/ü
SP ntRwe

184. “Cocer en la olla--cook” *hoHC-cR *heoHC-cR

Ot høcRe Maz høsRø

185. “Codiciar--covet” *ne-h-p

Ot (SF) nehpi Maz nehpe

186. “Codo--elbow” yS-nR

Ot ySni Maz ySdRS
Note: There is as yet no satisfactory explanation for Ot-Maz yS.
 217 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

187. “Cola--tail” *cRioHC-R/*cRoiHC-R

Ot cRS Maz --
Mtz cRinci Oc cindzi
NP ncR[oeR Ch --
NP A nácceR, B UgocèokR, C Ugoc[oeR, D ncR[oep

188. “collar--necklace” *the-p

Ot thebe Maz theve
Mtz -- Oc thàpí
NP nlhuR[
NP A attuR[, B Ugot[[, C nduR[

189. “Compañero--companion” *(n)Rio-i (dual)

Ot nRyowi Maz dyRofi
Note: The *-i is the dual morpheme--the only vowel suffix.

190. “Comal--clay griddle” *nRio

Ot doRyo Maz ndèdyRe
Mtz nowi Oc no
Note: Ot and Maz have preposed *tto.

191. “Comal--clay griddle” *cRi-R

NP šiXRéR Ch -cRéR

192. “Comer--eat” *n]ao-nR/-n

Ot yani Maz ñö_nRS_
NP n/ãoU Ch nã
SP (Mi) ninyã (prob. Ji)
NP A, B, C -n/ãoU, D ndonh/ãoU
Ch A, B, C –nã, D -nhã

193. “Comer--eat” *ci

Ot ci Maz siRi
Mtz cici Oc cinci
NP -- Ch nácè

194. “Comezón--itch” *(n)sã-mh

Ot nšãhi Maz šãhmã

195. “Componer--fix” *ho-h-k

Ot hohki Maz hohkS
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 218

196. “Comprar--buy” *tao-m

Ot töi Maz tömS
Mtz tami Oc ta
NP -ttáogU Ch ta
SP -ntáw
Ot A töi, C döi, D nRöi
Maz A tömS, C ndömS, D dRöi
NP A -ttaogU, B -taogU, C -taogU, D -lhaogU
Ch A –ta, B –nda, C –ra, D -rha

197. “Conejo--rabbit” *khoa

Ot khwá Maz khw]aRa
Mtz khwa, Xho Oc --
NP -khwà Ch --

198. Confesar--confess” *kõah-n/-mR/-nia

Ot (n)khw/ãni Maz khwãmRã
Mtz kunya Oc keyungyá
NP kkwãhoU Ch --
NP A --kkw`ãhoU, B --kkw`ãhoU, C --kk`ãhoU, D --kRw`ãhoU

199. “Consolar--comfort” *ho-R-tR

Ot hoRtRi Maz hoRtRpRS

200. “Contar--count” *pe-t/-nR

Ot pede Maz pèYe
Mtz -- Oc mbáti
NP -ppuR[dn Ch pin
NP A -pp?[R[dn, B -wuR[dn, C -muR[dn, D -b[R[dn
Ch A -pin, B -ngwin, C –min, D -mbin

201. “Contestar--answer” *t]ah-t/*tãih-t

Ot thãdi Maz th`S_rS_
Mtz tønti, tøhønti Oc tømti

202. “Copal, incienso--incense” *n-ki-tho-n/pã

Ot githoni Maz ngiXhS_hnS_
Mtz inXiRpø Oc nYípø

203. “copiar--copy” *sø-h-k

Ot šøhke Maz šøhkø
Note: Ot-Maz ø comes from either *oHC or *eoHC.
 219 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

204. “Corazón--heart” *mS-mR

Ot mSi Maz mSbRS
Note: Ot-Maz S comes from either *iHC or *ioHC.

205. “Correcto--correct” *RiR-t

SP nìdíRi Ch írìRr

206. “Cortar--cut” *taRa

SP -taRa Ch tútáRà‹oR, (A) étàv

207. “Cortar flores--pick flowers” *tS-h-k

Ot tShki Maz tShkS
Note: Ot-Maz S comes from either *iHC or *ioHC.

208. “Cortar quelites--pick wild greens” *pai-mh

Ot p[hi Maz pehme

209. “Corteza--bark” *hS-s

Ot hSši Maz --
Mtz šihSši Oc šihSši
Note: Otomian S comes from either *iHC or *ioHC.

210 “Corteza--bark” *mo-R

SP nímmiú Ch rímóR

211. “Corto--short” *mah-R

NP mamáhaR Ch sámàhàR
SP smáhàR

212. “Correr--run” *nãih

SP (P) -n/ãh`] Ch nef, D nhef
SP (J) -n/ãhã
Note: The Ch suffix --f may be the third person object *-p.

213. “Correr--run” *ti-h/*nRi-h

Ot tihi Maz dRihi

214. “Correr--run” *kõ-mR/-R

Ot kai Maz --
Mtz kubi Oc --
NP -kk/õR Ch kun “to race”
NP A -kk/õR, B -k`õR, C -k`õR, D -kh`õR
Ch A -kun, B -kun, C -gun, D -khun
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 220

215. “Cosechar--harvest” *se-ph/#

Ot šopho Maz šephe
Mtz šepi Oc --
NP -ssuR[ SP (P) mán-ni-Xì (?)

216. “Cosechar (frijoles)--harvest” *sa

Ot ša NP -sá

217. “Coser--sew” *oe-Rt/-nR

Ot Rw[di, D tR[di Maz --
Mtz weri Oc gweli
NP -Rw[dnt “piece cloth”
NP -R[h[Rt “sew” Ch éR`üh`ür
SP Rùhèt

218. “Aguja--needle” (Cf. “Coser”) *tRoe

NP nalR`[ Ch tàrR/ü
SP ntRw^

219. “Coyote” *nRio

Ot m]nRyo Maz mindyRo
Mtz nšuRyowi Oc šuyo
NP manRò Ch --

220. “Crecer--grow” *te/*nReR

Ot té Maz téRe
NP -ddéoR Ch nd^

221. “Creer--believe” *^-h-mh

Ot R[_m[_ Maz R^hm^

222. “Cuarenta--forty” *nio-te

Ot yòhte Maz ye dyR`öhte
Mtz nenta, nehenta Oc myèndá
NP n[oi ly[[dn SP tide

223. “Cuatro--four *-ki-nioh

Ot goho Maz nzìyo, nzioho
Mtz kunhowi Oc ngunhó
NP kiUh[oi Ch --

224. “Cuchillo--knife” *khoa-mR

Ot khwai Maz
NP UgokhwáRa “flint knife” SP (P) pikhwáR, (J) bìkhìõR
 221 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

225. “Cuchillo--knife” *thai-nR*thi-s

Ot (SG) th[ni Maz th[dyRi
Mtz hari “cortar” Oc --
NP nalhéš Ch ràrhé

226. “Cuerpo--body” *nhia

NP Ugonhìa Ch ùnh/]

227. “Cuervo--crow” *ka-R

Ot ka Maz kàRa
Mtz inXaRa Oc kRa
NP UgokwáR Ch ùkáR
SP nèkáR
Note: There is a very strong probability that this resemblance is due
to onomatopoeia.

228. “Cuidar--watch” *to-n

NP A -ttògU, B -tògU, C -tògU, D -lhògU
Ch A -to, B -ndo, C -ro, D -rho

229. “Cuidar--take care of” *phao-t

Ot phödi Maz phörS

230. “Culebra--snake” *kR]-mia

Ot kR[_yã Maz kR`]hm]
Mtz nXRimi Oc XRi

231. “Culebra--snake” *chi-R/*chi-R

NP kochíR Ch kúcRèRr

232. “Culpa--fault” *cRo-h-k

Ot cRohki Maz sRohkS

233. “Curandero--medicine man” *nRiai-m

Ot nRy[_i Maz --
Mtz Rimi “curar” Oc Ri “curar”
NP d[ Ch tehe
SP ðe
Cf. “medicina.”

234. “Chapulín--grasshopper” *tR]a-s

Ot tRãši Maz tRS_šS_
SP skantRès Ch ríté
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 222

235. “Chiflar--whistle” *hioHC-s

Ot hSši Maz hSšS
Mtz hSši Oc hSši
NP nhéos Ch énés (nhes ?)
SP núRúš

236. ”Chilacayote--squash” *mõih-R

Ot d[ma Maz nd[miRi
Mtz šimuRu Oc šikmúhli
NP mm/õh]R Ch --

237. “Chicle--chewing gum” *cRa-h-po

Ot c/áhpo Maz cRahpo
Ch cRápRóR
Note: Perhaps the Ch form is a borrowing from Otomi.

238. “Chile--chile pepper” *(m)Ri

Ot (n)Ri Maz RiRi
Mtz mi Oc mi
NP waRèi Ch ‹èRé
SP ‹SRí

239. “Chile seco--dried chiled” *nRio-mRi

Ot RyomRi Maz dyR[oRi
Mtz niyomi Oc yokRami

240. “Chile verde--green chile” *sa-mRi

Ot š[mRi Maz --
Mtz šaRmi Oc šami
Note: The Ot form shows assimilation of the first vowel to the vowel
in the second syllable.

241. “Chispa--spark” *ci-p

Ot d[(h)cibi Maz nd[sivi
Mtz nšicipi Oc šínz`øcípi

242. “Chivo--goat” *ki-tR

NP XikílR Ch tàkér

243 “Chupar--suck” *cioHC-tR *coiHC-nR

Ot cStRi Maz sStRS
Mtz -- Oc cúti
NP -cciolR Ch étš/üR`ün
NP A -cciolR, B,C –ci[olR, D -cRi[olR
 223 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

244. “Dañar--spoil something” *cRonR/#

Ot cRoni Maz sRodRS “lastimar”
NP cRo Ch --

245. “Dar--give (not as a gift)” *po-k/#

Mtz poXi (ki) Oc póki
NP A -ppo, B -wo, C -mo, D -b[o
Ch A -po, B -ngwo, C -mo, D -mbo

246. “Dar--give” *õ-nR

Ot Rani Maz R[anRS_

247. “Dar--give” *Reo-n

NP A -Rw[eogU, B -Rw[eogU, C -d[eogU, D -lR[eogU
Ch A -Re, B –te, C –nde, D -rRe

248. “Dar--give *pa-nR

Mtz pari, pahri Oc mbali

249. “Deber--owe” *tõ

Ot ta Maz taRa

250. “Decir--say” *si-p

Ot šíphi Maz šìphi
Mtz ši- Oc --
NP sep, D chep Ch se, D che

251. “Decir--say” *R]-na

Ot R[_nã Maz R^ñ^
NP R^hiR (?) Ch --

252. “Decir--say” *mã-m/-t

Ot mã D mhã Maz mãmã
Mtz møti Oc mø
NP A -mmãU, B,C -mãU, D -mhãU
Ch A -mã, B,C -mã, D -mhã

253. “Dedo--finger” *n]a-nRiai

Ot -- Maz ñidyR[
Mtz nuRye Oc nuye
Note: The word is a compound of “head” and “hand.”

254. “Dedo--finger” *saoh

Ot šöhö Maz šöhö
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 224

255. “Dedo del pié--toe” (*n]a)-*mo

Ot yãmo Maz ñimo
Mtz nuRmo Oc ñumo
NP skamo “claw” Ch --
Note: The word is a compound of “head” and “foot” in Otomian (cf.
“finger”). The NP word contains the “foot” morpheme.

256. “Defender--defend” *mã-t

Ot mãdi “love, protect” Maz m`ãrã

257. “Dejar--leave, abandon” *co-k

Ot cogi Maz sógS

258. “Dejar--leave” *hai-k/-mR

Ot h[gi, C hy[gi, D th[gi Maz h[zi, C hy[zi, D th[zi
Mtz habi, (i)heXi Oc habi, heXi
NP A -haigU, B,C -nhíagU, D -lháigU
Ch A -he, B,C -nhi, D -rhe

259. “Delgado--thin” *tpia-s

NP nip[i[s Ch dzíbès
SP níbìš

260. “Desgranar maíz--shell corn” *tõa-h-k/-mR Cf. “frotar.”

Ot tãhki Maz tö_mRS
Mtz tobi Oc tubi

261. “Derramar--pour out” *phao-nR

Ot phöni Maz phödRS

262. “Desabrido--without flavor” *Roe (OnomatopoeiaR)

Ot (SF) Rw[ Maz Rw[R[

263. “Despertar--awaken (tr.)” *nõ(h)

Ot (SG) naha Maz --
Mtz -nuwi Oc ñu
NP nn[o Ch énú
SP -n[u

264. “Dientes--teeth” *cRi-mR/#

Ot cRi Maz sRibi
Mtz cibi Oc ci
NP ncRiR SP nciR
NP A -ccìR, B -c[iR, C -ccìR, D ncRèpt
 225 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

265. “Diez--ten” *nRai-tRai

Ot Rn[tRa Maz dyR[XRa
Mtz ndatRa Oc mblátRa
NP seskRai The second element is a D form of “hand,” cf. “hand.”

266. “Difícil--difficult” *h]e-m[#

Ot hy[_i NP mahu_R[t

267 “Dilatar--delay” *m^-t/-nR

Ot m[_di Maz meYe
NP -mm[_nR Ch m^, D mh^

268. “Dinero--money” *n-taih-nR

NP nduh[dnR Ch (R) úrèhènR
SP -dãhãn
Ch A túndèn, B kùrén, C nírèn, D úrèn

269 “Dios--god” *k]ah-m/*kiah-p

Ot okhã Maz (miYo) khimi
mökhã “priest” mb/ökhìmi “priest”
nikhã “church” ñichiRmi “church”
Ch ntRàgéhé “Monday”
The Ch word for Monday is a compound of “one” and an unidentified mor-
pheme which may be cognate with the Ot-Maz word for “god.” The Ch
-gehe could come from *kiah-p differing from the Ot-Maz only in nasality.
270. “Doblar--fold” *to-R-mR
Ot toRmi Maz --
Mtz tobi Oc tobi

271. “Doler--hurt” *Rio

Ot RS Maz RSRS
NP maR[[o Ch --

272. “Dolor--pain” *Rio

Ot RS Maz RSRS
Mtz Ri Oc --

273. “Dolor--pain” *Rãi

SP (P) b/ãRãi, (J) báRa Ch nímR`ã
Ch A númR`ã, B nìmR/ã, C nímR`ã

274. “Dormir--sleep” *R]ah-nR/#

Ot Rãhã Maz R]h]
Mtz RSwi Oc RS
NP RR^hilR Ch énR`üh`ünR
Note: The Ch vowel points to a cluster *õi. NP has such a cluster after an o
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 226

in the preceding syllable. Perhaps the NP-Ch underlying form should be

*Rõi(a)h-nR.

275. “Sueño--sleep” (D form of “sleep) *tR]ah

Ot tRãhã Maz tR]h]

276. “Dos--two” *nioh

Ot yoho Maz yehe
Mtz nowi, tenowewi Oc no, mno
NP noi SP (P) tíyùi

277. “Dueño--owner, chief” *mhõ-R

Ot hma Maz hmaRa
Mtz mhu Oc mhu
NP wimh]òR (-mhõ) Ch mhu

278. “Duro--hard” *mãi

Ot m[_ Maz m^R^
Mtz mø Oc mø
SP mmã Ch --

279. “Eclipse” (“moon and “die”) *mRão *tõ

NP tt`õ UgomRãoR Ch ùmR/ãR ír/a gúndù
SP mpãR guta

280. “Echar--throw” *Rai-tR/-nR

Ot R[tRi, R[ni Maz --
NP -RailyR Ch Rer
SP -nu-Rwá
Ot A R[ni, C Ry[ni, D tR[ni
Ch A Rer, B tir, C ndir, D rRer

281. “Elote--ear of corn” *-sa

Ot m/ãnša Maz m[aša
Mtz muša Oc muša
NP A nossà, B niš[a, C niššà, D masà, pl. wasà
Note: The preposed element does not fit the established
correspondences. Perhaps it is a remnant of an older prefix system.
The NP form looks like the adjective prefix plus the root “cut,” cf.
“cosechar” (216).

282. “Emparejar--plane” *Rã-R-cR

Ot RãRcRi “shave wood” Maz RãsRã
Note: Cf. “tijeras” and “cortar con tijeras.”
 227 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

283. “Empezar--begin *phiHC-t/*piHCh-t

Ot phSdi Maz phSrS
Note: Ot-Maz S comes from either *iHC or *ioHC. The aspirated
stop may be a D form or it may be the result of the syncope of the
first vowel of a VhV sequence (*Vh).

284. “Empujar--push” *Ra-nR/*Roa-nR

NP (G) walRwadnR Ch úRán
SP man-nu-Rwán
Note: The first reconstruction requires no explanation for the Ch
form, but does not explain the w in the Pame forms. The second
reconstruction explains the Pame forms, but would give Ch *-RonR or
*-RunR.

285. “Enaguas--skirt” *khoiHC-t/*khoi-R

Ot (SF) nkhøde Maz kheYe
NP nakhòiR Ch rùkhú (prob. rùkh/ü)
SP (P) nøkwèR SP (J) nkhù
NP A nakkòiR, B nákkoiR, C nakòiR, D rakhòRp
Note: Ot-Maz reflexes require *kkoeHC. NP-Ch reflexes require
*khoi. The NP-Ch i may be the dual suffix.

286. “Encargar--entrust” *tai-h-t/ *t(o)e-h-t

Ot t[hti Maz XehXe

287. “Encender--kindle a fire” *thiHC-tR/-h-t/ *thioHC-

Ot thStRi Maz th`ShtS

288. “Encender--kindle a fire” yo-k

Mtz yoki Oc yoki

289. “Encender--kindle a fire” *caoR/*cRaoh-t

NP caRo Ch úcRàhàr

290. “Encender--burn, kindle” *(n)ttoe

Ot nd[ Maz nd[R[
NP niUgy`[ “fire” Ch nùn/ü “ashes”
sandw`[ “ashes” SP (P) s‹èntè “ashes”

291. “Encino--Oak” *siR

Ot (SG) zašiza Maz --
Mtz insica Oc --
NP kaséRe SP škøsíRi
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 228

292. “Encontrar--find” *pã-t

Ot pãdi “know” Maz pãrã “know”
Mtz pøti Oc pøndi
NP -pã “visit” Ch --

293. “Encontrar--find (an.)” *thai-i/*thoe-i

Ot nth[wi Maz Xh[vi
Note: The -i is the dual suffix.

294. “Endurecer--harden” *mãi-k

Ot m[_gi Maz meze
Note: Cf. “duro” (278).

295. “Enfermo--sick” *R]-n/#

Mtz Ri Oc Ri
NP nR]U SP nsRi

296. “Enjuagar--rinse” *noa-R-tR/-n-tR

Ot waRtRi Maz wantRS

297. “Enojado--angry” *coe-mia

Ot nc[ya Maz --
NP -ncw[gU Ch cü, C zü, D chü

298. “Enseñar--teach” *hi-h-t

Maz híhXi Mtz hiti

299. “Ensuciar--dirty (tr.)” *po-s-k

Ot poški Maz poškS

300. “Entero--entire, all” *nsoeHC-k/*nsoHC-k

Ot nšøge, nXhøge Maz XhiYi
Note: The Maz root vowel has been replaced by i, probably because
of the preceding palatalized consonant. The conditions are not clear.

301. “Enterrar--bury” *Rao-k

Ot Rögi Maz RögS
Mtz Raki Oc Raki
NP -RRaogU Ch Ra
Ot A Rögi, C Ryögi, D tRögi
NP A -RRaogU, B -Rw[aogU, C -daogU, D lRaogU
Ch A -Ra, B –ta, C –nda, D -rRa
 229 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

302. Entrar--enter” *nhoiHC-t

Ot -- Oc hS
NP nhíR Ch nhür
SP tìhít

303. “Entrar--enter” *poHCh

Ot pøhø “come out” Maz --
Mtz phøwi Oc phø “door”
Ch poo

304. “Escalera--ladder” *nRe-cR, nRe-t

Ot tecRe “climb” Maz dReYe “ladder”
Rnede “ladder”
SP ndècR Ch --

305. “Escarbar--dig” *sa-R-mR

Ot šaRmi “scratch” Maz šaRbRS

306. “Escarbar--dig” *saoh-t

SP nsáhaut Ch ésòr

307. “Escoger--choose” *hoa-nh

Ot hwahni Maz hwahnS

308. “Escoger--choose” *soiR-t/*soeR-t

SP -súRut Ch gàsüRr

309. “Escopeta--gun” *ntca-ph

Ot nzaphi Maz záphS

310. “Escopeta--gun” *thoi-t

NP -lhèiky Ch tarh/ür
SP (P) níthín, (J) nthùt

311. “Escribir--write” *sa-t/*sao-t

SP nsãt Ch ìsár[
Note: Cf. “rezar”and “estudiar.”

312. “Escribir--write *Ro-ph

Ot Ropho Maz RophS

313. “Escribir--write” *Roe-cR/#

Mtz we Oc we
NP waRécR kílyRya Ch --
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 230

314. “Escupir--spit” *co-k

Ot cogi Maz s[ogS
Mtz co Oc congi

315. Espalda--back” *siHC-tha/*sioHC-tha

Ot šStha Maz š[SthS

316. “Espejo--mirror” *khõih-t/-nR

Mtz inkhuti Oc --
NP nakR/õhilyR Ch nág/üh`ün
SP nkhwéhen

317. “Esperar--wait” *pe

NP A –ppyu, B -w`[, C -m`[, D -b`[
Ch A –pi, B –ngwi, C –mi, D -mbi

318. “Esperar--wait” *toeHC-R-mR

Ot tøRmi Maz teRbe
Mtz tebi Oc tebi

319. “Espinas--thorns” *mRi-nR

Ot Rmini Maz bRidyRi

320. “Esposa--wife” *sõ/*co

Ot (SG) šicu, šisu Maz súRu
Mtz šumhi Oc Xhú
NP -- Ch màsú “my wife”

321. “Espumar--bubble up, froth *phiHC-k/-tR/-R

Ot ph/Sgi Maz ph[SgS
Mtz phø Oc phø
NP phiRil; mmigUR “boil”; Ch sùphéR “espuma”
šipphèR “espuma” SP šphwi “espuma”

322. “Estar--be, live” *mRioHCh-mR

Ot Rm`Si Maz bR`SbRS
NP B -wého, C -mmého Ch A,B ngwe, C me

323. “Estar--be (pl.)” *kã-t/#

Ot k]ã Maz kàrã
NP k`ãt Ch kan

324. Estar adentro--be inside” *Ro

Ot Ro Maz RoRo
 231 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

325. “Estar (líquido)--liquid to be in sthg.” *po

Ot po Maz poRo

326. “Éste--this” *nh]/*n]

NP nh] SP kènì
Ch kínní

327. “Estrella--star” *coeHC

Ot cø Maz shehe
Mtz nceRe Oc mce

328. “Estornudar--sneeze” *h(i)e-cR/-k

Ot hecRe Maz h^sR^
Mtz hyeXi Oc hecRi, heši

329. “Estudiar--study *sao-t/-R

Ot (n)š`ödi Maz š`örS
NP A -šáoR, B -šaóR, C -sáoR, D -XháoR
Ch A –sa, B –sa, C –dza, D cha

330. “Excremento--manure” *phoi-R/#

Ot pho Oc pø
NP mphói Ch úph/üR
SP (P) phí, (J) ‹íRì
NP A –ppói, B –pòi, C –pói, D-mphép
Ch A –pü, B –pü, C -vü

331. “Exprimir--squeeze” *toe-R-mR/*tai-R-mR

Ot t[Rmi Maz t[bRi

332. “Faja--belt” *tp]a-tR

Ot bãtRi Maz mbS_tRS_

333. “Falda--skirt” *thõ-nR/#

Mtz thu Oc --
NP šilyh/õlR “camisa SP nth/an

334. “Feo--ugly, bad” *cRo

Ot ncRo Maz sRo, sRoRo
NP XiXRo Ch --

335. “Fermentado--fermented” *Ri-s-k

Ot Riški Maz Riški

336. “Fiesta--feast” *mRaoh Cf. “luna”

NP -báho Ch -mba
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 232

Ch A kúmb`ã, B kìv/ã, C kímb`ã

337. “Flauta--flute” *p(h)iR-p/-R/#

Mtz phipi Oc --
NP -pphíRi Ch -pèR

338. “Flor-flower” *ttoHC-n

Ot døni Maz ndøhnø
Mtz intøni Oc ndø
NP UgotógU Ch úró
NP A nondógU, B nikyògU, C niUgyógU

339. “Fluir--flow” *nih-t

SP (bøsa) tøñít Ch (kúrì) énèhèr

340. “Frente--forehead” *-tãi

Ot d[_ Maz nd^R^
Mtz tø Oc tø

341. “Frente--forehead” *ttao

NP pikyào Ch ùr[a pRá
SP kàddà mRú

342. “Frijol--bean” *khiHC-R

Ot khS Maz kh[SRS
Mtz XhS Oc XhS
NP UkhwèR Ch kànkéR
NP A rokhwèR, B rikhyèR, C rikhyèR, D rikhyeRt

343. “Frío--cold” *coe

Ot c[ Maz s[R[
Mtz ce Oc ce
NP mac`[ Ch màXí
SP b/Scè

344. “Frotar--rub” *tõa-h-mh/-R-tR/-nR

Ot tãhmi C dãhmi Maz th/ö_RtRS_ D Rnãhmi
NP A -tt/ãolR, B,C -t[ãolR, D -lh[ãolR

345. “Fuente--fountain, spring” *poHC-the

Ot pøthe Maz mb[erèhe
Mtz pøntawi Oc pønda

346. “Fuerte--strong” *tcai-t/*tcoe-t

Ot z[di Maz z[Yi
 233 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

347. “Fumar--smoke” *ciHC-tR/-m

Ot cStRi Maz s[StRS
Mtz cRSbi Oc cuti “cigarro”

348. “Gallina--hen” *RoHC-n

Ot Røni Maz Røhnø “guajolote”
Mtz Røni Oc Rø
NP koRógU “guajolote”
talógU “gallina” SP kúRù “guajolote”

349. “Ganar--earn, win” *tõah

Ot tãhã Maz t/õhõ
Ot A tãhã, C dãhã, D Rnãhã, N thãhã

350. “Gavilán--hawk” *pai-n-cRio (Cf. “cola”)

Ot p[ncRS Maz p[nsRS

351. “Gemelos--twins *tko-i

Ot go Maz --
NP Ugokói SP nkui

352. “Golpear--hit” *paih-R-mR/-tR/-nR-R

Ot ph[Rmi, ph[tRi Maz --
Mtz -- Oc phé “pegar”
NP -ppáhiR, -ppaigUky Ch -UgwéRenR
Ch A pe, ngwe, B ngwe, C me, D mbe

353. “Gordo--fat” *tpi

Ot -- Maz piRi
Mtz pi Oc nbi
NP pimb[i Ch pìmbé

354. “Grande--big” *nttãi

Ot ndã Maz ndãRã
Mtz -- Oc ndø
NP mand`ãi Ch már`^
SP (P) mád/], (J) mãdã

355. “Grande--big” *noh

Ot noho Maz noho

356. “Grande--big” *te-R

Ot te “alto” Maz teRe “crecer”
NP Ugot[oeR Ch nándèR, (R) érèRr
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 234

357. “Granizo--hail” *ntto

Ot ndo Maz ngSndo
Mtz ninto Oc nimdo
NP kíngyo Ch kíndò
SP kudu

358. “Grano--eruption, *sã-s/*chã-s

sore”
Ot chãši Maz šãšã “sarna”
Mtz canwaši “viruela” Oc chøši
NP chãst “sarna” Ch ùc/ãs “viruela”
SP nX`ãš “viruela”

359. “Gritar--call, shout” *paR-t/*ma-R-t

Ot maRtRi Maz maRtRS
NP A -ppáRat, B -wáRat, C -máRat, D -báRat (tr.)
A -mmáRa, B -mbaRa, C -mmáRa, D -mmáRadnt (intr.)
Ch A -ppar, B -ngwar, C -maar, D -mbar

360. “Grueso--thick” *pi-t/*mRi-t/-n

Ot (m)pidi Maz piYi
NP mRígU Ch dzímRér
SP mbít

361. “Guardar--keep” *pai-cR

Ot p[cRi Maz p[sRi

362. “Gusano--worm” *Ryo-s

Ot -- Maz dyRošS
Mtz yoši Oc nyoši

363. “Hablar--speak” *n]a

Ot yã Maz ñãRã

364. “Hablar--speak to” *n-co-ph

Ot nzopho Maz z[ophS
Mtz copi “rezar” Oc nzópì “llamar”

365. “Hacer--do” RoHC-tR/ *ReoHC-tR

Ot RøtRe Maz RøtRø

366. “Hacer--do” *hø

Mtz høwi Oc hø
 235 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

367. “Hacer--do” *chao

NP chào Ch cha
Ch A -ca, B -Xa, C -ca, D -cha

368. “Hacer--do” *R]

NP -R^i, D -tR^i Ch R^

369. “Hacer--do” *ha

Ot kha Maz khaRa

370. “Hacer con--do *kha-h-p

with”
Ot khahpi Maz khahpS

371. “Hacha--axe” *coe-nR

Ot c[ni “cortar, rajar” Maz --
Mtz ceri “rajar leña” Oc céli
NP stácc[R[dn Ch názíRìnR
SP (P) nìcéRen, (J) mcRéR
Ch A tátcìn, B kìtcín, C tátcìn, D názìr

372. “Hallar--find” *tao-tR

Ot tötRi Maz XötRS

373. “Hambre--hunger” *th]o-mh/thõi

Ot thaha Maz th]hm]
Mtz thumi Oc thu
NP Ugolh/õi Ch --

374. “Hembra--female” *thoi

NP niUkhy[oi Ch nìnth/ü
SP (P) enthwí, (J) nthi

375. “Hembra--female” *sõ

Ot ca, ša Maz šatRi “hija”
Mtz šu Oc Xhu

376. “Hermana de mujer--woman’s sister” *khõ-hoe

Ot khahw[ Maz khahw[

377. “Hermano del hombre--man’s brother” *khõa-tã-m

Ot khwãdã Maz khwãrmã

378. “hermano de mujer--woman’s brother” *Ri-tã-m

Ot R]dã Maz ninYömS
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 236

379. “Hervir--boil” *kRoa-c

Ot (SG) kRwàRcRi Mtz kRwacRi

380. “Hígado--liver” *nia

Ot ya Maz --
Mtz ya “estómago” Oc --
NP niá SP nkRiá
Note: The South Pame form is aberrant because of the kR, but it parallels the
kR in the Ch form in the set “camino.”

381. “Hígado--liver” *pø-t

Mtz impøti Oc mbøti
Note: Mtz-Oc ø comes from a variety of sources, one of which is *ã. It
could be that this word for liver has something to do with divination and,
thus, with *pã-t “saber.”

382. “Hija--daughter” *tRi *sõ

Ot tRiša Maz šutRi
Note: Ot and Maz have different orders for the elements in this compund
word.

383. “Hija--daughter” *mhõ-te

Ot (SG) hmahte Maz --
Mtz nihmuta Oc wehmunda

384. “Hilar--spin” *hãi-tR/-m

Ot h[_tRi Maz heRXRe
Mtz høti Oc høndi
NP h[ãiU Ch úrhé
SP hw[a

385. “Hilo--thread” *thãi-mh/-t *th]a-mh

Ot thãhi Maz thS_hmS_
Mtz thSmi Oc thS
NP lh/]U Ch ùrhér
SP nthát
Note: Cf. “malacate,” “mecate,” and “raíz.”

386. “Hincharse--swell” *pi-nR

Mtz pini Oc --
NP péRigU Ch péRènR
SP mpw]R

387. “Hoja--leaf” *mhi

Mtz mhi Oc mhi
 237 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

388. “Hoja--leaf” *si

Ot ši Maz šiRi
Mtz ši Oc --
NP nišši Ch rìsé

389. “Hombre--man” *ttõa-U

NP kyw/ãU Ch ír/a
SP iðía

390. “Honda--sling shot” *tRai-ntto

Ot tR[ndo Maz tR[nYo

391. “Hondo--deep” *hãi

Ot h[_ Maz h^R^
Mtz thøRø Oc --
NP hu_R[_ “difícil” SP --
kohwãi “hondo”

392. “Hongos--mushrooms” *kho

Ot kho Maz khòho
Mtz inXhowi Oc Xho

393. “Hormiga--ant” *khiHC

Ot šãkhS Maz šãmkhã
Mtz inXhSwi Oc neXhS
NP -- Ch úkhè

394. “Hoyo--hole” *ci-tR

NP cílR SP zin
Ch ézénR

395. “Hoz--sickle” *cha

Ot cha-(tR[i) Maz shà-(tR[bRi)
Mtz sa-(ši) Oc cha-(thú)
NP sá (UkhweR) “cosechar
(frijoles)”

396. Mistake in numbering Blank

397. “Huaraches--sandals” *th]
Ot z[šthi, th]za Maz th]za
Mtz thi‹aki, inthi

398. “Huaraches--sandals” *phã-cR

SP mphãcR Ch úph`ãcR
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 238

399. “huérfano--orphan” *hio-hia

Ot hyoya Maz hyoya
Mtz cRehyawi Oc cRehya
Mtz (Gu) ynyoya “descuidado”
NP lonh[eodnR

400. “Hueso--bone? *ntto-Rio/-nRio

Ot ndoRyo Maz nodRye
Mtz (nkRaR)ró Oc --

401. “Hueso--bone” *pi-ntkõa-n/-R

NP piUgyw/ãU SP binXáR
Ch pínXáR
Note: The palatalization of the *k in SP and Ch is not explained by
the present analysis.

402. “Huevo--egg” *tto

Ot do-Røni Maz --
Mtz inhoto Oc --
NP nándo SP -ntìw
Ch múndòR
Note: The common element is “piedra--stone”

403. Humear--smoke” *phS-nR

Ot mphSni Maz phSdS
Note: Ot-Maz S comes from either *iHC or *ioHC.

404. “Húmedo--damp” *sa

Ot ša Maz --
Mtz ša Oc šáhá

405. “Humo--smoke” *mRi-ph

Ot Rmiphi Maz bRiphi
Mtz inbipi Oc mbíphí

406. “Humo--smoke” *ki-Ri

NP skiRì SP šíRì
Ch kìRés

407. “Instrumento musical--musical instrument” *mRiR-ta

Ot Rmida Maz bRiYi
Mtz biti, (Cas) bithhi Oc --
NP A nobbéRi, B nibíRi, C nibbíRi, D nibbíRiky
 239 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

408. “Invertir--turn over” *piHC-n-cR

Ot pSncRi Maz ph]SnS “voltear”
Mtz pSncRi Oc mbSncRi

409. “Ir--go” *pa/*ma/*wa

Ot ma, pa Maz m]a
Mtz pa Oc --
NP wa, mã Ch ma
Ch A ngwa, B ngwa, C ma, D mba

410. “Ixtlahuaca--name of town” *hia-ph

Ot hyaphi Maz hyaphS

411. “Ixtle--maguey *s]a-mh

fiber”
Ot šãhi Maz (khS)šiRmi
Mtz šumi Oc díšu

412. “Ixtle--maguey fiber” *thãi

NP nlhw^ (šiggyoa) SP thi (šXi)
Ch kunthé

413. “Jalar--pull” *kiHCR-nR/-mR/-tR

Ot khSRmi, khStRi Maz khSbRu, khStRS
Mtz -- Oc ngSbi
NP qqéRedn Ch ékèRènR
SP kuin

414. “Jarro--jug” *c(R)i-R

NP macì, macèi Ch úcRéR
SP cRink[i
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 240

415. “Jícara-- *si-mo

gourd”
Ot šimo Maz šihmo
Mtz šimo Oc šimo
NP XimmyóR Ch nímò (zìtás)
SP (maha) nimíwR

416. “Jorobado--hunchback” *mp(h)o-nR

SP nipwì šump[u Ch zímphon

417. “Jugar--play” *R^-n

Ot R[_ni Maz Reñe
tR[_ni “juguete” tReñe “juguete”
Mtz Reni Oc Re

418. “Jugo--juice” *(n)-ki

Ot gi Maz ngi
Mtz nXiRtawi Oc --
NP Ugi Ch --

419. “Juntar--pile up” *mõ-cR/-t

Ot macRi, D hmacRi Maz hmarS_, hm`ahtS_
NP A -mm/õcR, B,C -m`õcR, D -mh`õcR
SP (P) kúm/acR, (J) kúm`ac “laguna”

420. “Juntar--gather (clothes)” *kãR/h

Ot kãhã, C gãhã Maz kãhã
D khãhã
NP A wakk/ãRã, B ndokw/ãRã, C lak/ãRã, D ndokhw/ãRã

421. “Labio--lip” *si-ne

Ot šine Maz šine
Mtz šiRna Oc šina
NP XiUU`[t Ch sìní
NP A collu, B Xily[[, C XiUUu, D šiUU`[t
Ch A sùní, B sín1i, C sìní
Note: The first element probably is a plural prefix as reconstructed.
Compare the NP C form (sg.) with its D form (pl.).

422. “Ladera--side” *(n)koa-t/-nR

Ot (SF) Rnangwadi “a un lado”
Mtz inkwari Oc kwahli

423. “Lagartija--lizzard” *(ti)-ka

Ot (SF) chandiga Maz korga
 241 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

NP -- SP šunkwà

424. “lago--lake” *tca-p/-ph

Ot zabi Maz zaphS
Note: The POP suffix *-p is rare, whereas *-ph is fairly common. The Maz
ph may be a later replacement of *-p by the more common form.

425. “Lágrimas--tears” *(n)tkittao

Ot gidö Maz ngiYö
Mtz nXiRtawi Oc nYindá
NP (Mz) kinXiRkyau SP (Mi) gidyau

426. “Lamer--lick” *te-cR/-R

Ot tecRe Maz --
Mtz (Cas) tazi Oc --
NP A -tt`[R, B -t`[R, C -t`[R, D -lh`[R
Ch A –ti, B –ndi, C –ri, D -rhi

427. “lana--wool” *si-(n)Rio

Ot šiRyo Maz šiRyo
NP (so) dò SP šinRíw

428. “Largo--long” *ma/*mRaoR-nR

Ot ma Maz maha
Mtz tRumba Oc tùbálì
NP mabáRo Ch mámbáRà
SP mb/SRo

429. “Laringe--throat” *Ri-ioHC-ka

Ot RySga Maz Ryizi
Mtz niRyuwi Oc --

430. “Garganta--throat” *to-nR

SP cádúdú Ch (A) kùttún (R) nátsà érúnR

431. Lavar--wash” *soiHC-k/-tR/-mR

Ot šSki, šStRi Maz šibRi
Mtz šuXi, šuti, šubi Oc Xhubi
NP -s[igU, -s[ilyR SP tíšín
ndochw[ilyR “lo lavaron”

432. “Lavar la cara--wash one’s face” *soiHCttao

Ot šSdö Maz šinYö

433. “Lavar ropa--wash clothes” *pe-nR/-k

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 242

Ot peni Maz pèdyRe

Mtz paRaXi Oc mbálì

434. “Lavar ropa--wash clothes” *tãh-Rt/-nR

NP -ttãhaRt Ch it`ãhãnR
SP (P) t/ãhat, (J)-táhaR

435. “Lavar el pelo--wash hair” *hi

Ot hi Maz hiRi

436. “lavar (legumbres)--wash (vegetables) *pe-R-tR

Ot peRtRe Maz péRXRe

437. “Leche--milk” *mRa

Ot Rma Maz bRa

438. “Leer--read” *hi-h-t

Ot -- Maz híhXi
Mtz hiti Oc hítì “rezar”

439. “Lejos--far” *hãi

Ot -- Maz h/^R^
NP (G) kohu/^i Ch m`ãh/ã
SP (P) bãhãi, (J) b`ãhã

440. “Lengua--tongue: *kk]a-h-ne

Ot khãhne Maz kRihñi
Mtz ninlumi Oc nli

441. “leña--firewood” *(n)tca

Ot (tR[n)za Maz zaRa
Mtz inca Oc nzá

442. “Leña--firewood” *tRão-t

Ot tRadi za “burning wood” Maz tRö_rS_
Mtz nitRø “ocote” Oc nitRø “ocote”

443. “leña--firewood” *tkõa-n

NP Ugw/ãU ncwì Ch ríg/a
SP (P) iðywá, (J) g`]wX`]

444. “León (puma)--mountain lion? *ca-h-te

Ot (SG) ph[anzàhte Maz --
Mtz incate Oc --
 243 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

445. “Levantar--lift” *(t)h^-cR

Ot h[_cRi “high” Maz --
NP ndohw`[_cR D ndoth`[_cR Ch tets D thets

446. “levantar--lift up” *kiHCh-c//

Ot khScRi Maz --
NP ndokwéhecR Ch kec
Ch A kec, B kec, C gec, D khec

447. “Levantar--raise up” *so-cR

Ot šocRi Maz šosRS

448. “Levantarse--get up” *na-n-k

Ot nangi Maz nãmgã

449. “Liendres--lice eggs” *tpoeHC-tRo

Ot bøtRó Maz mbèXRo
Mtz impøtRo Oc mbøhtRo

450. “Liendres--lice eggs” *ntto-tRo

NP níUgo UgolRo Ch rúrRò múndò

451. “Limpiar--clean, wipe” *th]o-h-k

Ot thahki Maz th]hci

452. “Limpiar pencas de maguey--scrape maguey leaves: *tai/*toe

Ot t[ Maz t[h[

453. “Limpio--clean” *ci-nR

NP niXXìgUR Ch dzìséRn
SP Yin

454. “Liso--smooth” *ko-n

Ot koni Maz kohnS

455. “Lodo--mud” *tpoe-hao-m

Ot bøhöi Maz mbehömS
Mtz impøhami Oc --

456. “luna--moon” *mRão-R

Mtz imbø Oc --
NP mR`ãoR Ch ùmR/ãR nínth`ü
SP (P) mRãã, (J) mRmõ

457. “Luna--moon” *tcã-nã

Ot zãnã Maz zãnã, zãRnã
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 244

458. “Llamar--call” *(n)tco-pho/-nh

Ot nzopho, nzohni Maz zohnS
Mtz soRpi, copi Oc nzópì

459. “Llave--key” *cho-k

Ot chogi Maz shogS
Mtz choki Oc choki
Note: This is the D form of *so-k “abrir.”

460. “Llegar--arrive” *ceoHC-h

Ot cøhø Maz søhø
NP -- Ch ndze

461. “Llegar--arrive” *(n)hoaR

Mtz hoRowi Oc hoRo
NP -nhwáRa Ch no, D nho

462. “Llegar allí--arrive there” *ceoHC-tR

Ot cøtRe Maz søtRø

463. “Llenar--fill” *si-tR

Ot šitRi Mtz ši

464. “Lleno--full” *n]o-t

Ot nyadi Maz niYi
Mtz nuti Oc nuti
NP n`[_ SP (P) k/anné

465. “Llenarse--eat to the full” *ni-m]a

Ot n]yã Maz nihmi

466. “Llevar en las manos--carry in the hands” *thai-(R)-cR

Ot th[RcRi Maz th[sRi

467. “Llevar--carry” *tõ-cR/-nR/-k/-mR

Ot ta, tacRi Maz taRnS_, tasRS_
Mtz tuki Oc tumba, tuni

468. “Llevar (una persona)--take (a person)” *ci-cR/-nR/-tR

Ot c]i, cicRi Maz sidyRi, s[ihi
Mtz citi Oc --
NP A waccíR, B ndocèiR, C lacèiR, D ndocRìR

469. “Llorar--cry *-koe/*-koai

Ot Rw[ Maz w`[R[
 245 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

Mtz kwReRe Oc kwRe

NP wài Ch ngwe

470. “Lluvia--rain” *Ri-e-mR

Ot Rye Maz dyRebRe

471. “Macho--male” *meo-R/*peo-R/*weo-R

Ot -me Maz --
Mtz mha Oc --
NP A rawuR, B wí[oR, C wámm[oR “father”
Ch A --, B úngwè, C émè, D búpè “father”

472. “Machucar--bruise *coe-R-mR

Ot c[Rmi Maz s[RbRi
Mtz cebi Oc --

473. “Madre--mother” *c(R)õ

NP cR`õ Ch ca

474. “Madrugar--stay up til dawn” *ha-R-cRi

Ot haRcRi Mtz haRXRi

475. “Maduro--ripe” *(n)ttã-R

Ot ndã Maz ndãRã “cocido”
Mtz tø Oc ndø
NP mat`ãR Ch màt/ãR
SP møta

476. “Maguey--century plant” *(n)Roa-ta

Ot Rwada Maz RwàrS
Mtz -- Oc nlóti
NP Ugoddóa Ch kúnRù
SP (P) pindywà, (J) šíndyoà
NP A nóddoa, B nidyòa, C níggyoa, D Ugod[oa

477. “Maíz--corn” *thõa

Ot thã Maz thö_Rö_
Mtz inthuwi Oc thu
NP Ugolhõá SP thiu
NP A nothõá, B nilhyõa, C nikhyõa

478. “Maíz desgranado--grains of corn” *ttoe-thõa

Ot d[thã Maz nd[Xhö_
Mtz -- Oc dathu
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 246

479. “Malacate--spindle” *thãi-tR/#

Ot th[_tRi Maz th^XR^
Mtz inthøti Oc thøndi
NP (mz) lhainXR Ch ùrh/^
SP (P) náthãi, (J) nth`ã

480. “Maldecir--curse” *ca-nR

Ot cani Maz sadRS

481. “malo--bad” *(n)cRo

Ot ncRo Maz sRoRo
NP XíXRo Ch núcRòhò
SP šXíw

482. “Mamar--nurse” *coiHC-tR/-R

Ot c]S, cStRi, cShti Maz s]iRi, sStRS
Mtz XuRu Oc ci
NP cciR Ch étš/üR
SP (P) šiR, (J) zùiR
NP A cíR, B kocwíR, C cwíR, D kocwíRky

483. “Mandar--command” *pai-nh/-n-te

Ot p[hni “send” Maz pehñe “send”
Mtz panta Oc --
NP A woppái, B ndowái, C lamái, D bbái
Ch A –pe, B –ngwe, C –me, D mbe

484. “Mano--hand” *Rai/*nRi-ai

Ot Ryu Maz dyR[[R[
Mtz niRye Oc nè”é
NP A skaRài, B skanR[a, C skanRià, D skandR`[p
Ch A kànRí, B kàRá, C kanRà, D kànRí

485. “Mano izquierda--left hand” *(n)tk]ah

Ot gãhã Maz ng]h], nz]h]

486. “Mano derecha--right hand” *ho-k-nRiai

Ot hogi Ry[ Maz hodyR[

487. “Mano de molcajete--pestle” *t(h)ãoh-tR

Ot nth/ãntRi Maz --
NP nalR/ãholR Ch táràhà (mútRü)
SP nt/ãhant
 247 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

488. “Manzana--apple” *Ri-s

Ot Riši Maz Riši

489. “Mañana--tomorrow” *são-t/-m

Ot šadi Maz šö_rS_
Mtz šømi (mušømi) Oc šu (mùšú)

490. “Marido--husband” *nRõa-n

NP wanRw/ãU Ch náR`a
SP ùRw/ã

491. “Marihuana— *nR(o)ih-n

hemp?”
NP ndóehigU Ch tárRì úró
Note: Cf. “tabaco.”

492. “Masa de maíz--corn dough” *tõih-tR

NP nikky`õhilyR Ch mokori tühün
SP (P) nítyúhin, (J) ntìhìn

493. “Masa de maíz--corn dough” *khiHC-n

Ot khSni Maz khShnS
Mtz inXhSni Oc XhS

494. “Máscara--mask” *mh]-te/-ta

Ot hmihte Maz hm/]hXa
Mtz hmiRta Oc hmìndá

495. “Matar--kill” *tõ

Mtz tuwi Oc tú
NP -ttõ SP -ta

496. “Matar--kill” *pao-R-tR

Ot (SF) pöRtRi Maz pöRtRS

497. “Mazorca--ear of corn” *thõa

Ot thã Maz thö_Rö_
Mtz inthuwi Oc thú
NP lhõá SP nthu-mX[a

498. “Mecate--rope” *th]a-mh/*th(o)ãi

Ot nthãhi Maz thS_hmS_
Mtz inthSmi Oc ñímthS
NP -lhw`^ Ch kùnth/^
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 248

SP (P) nth^, (J) nth]

NP A nothõè, B nilhy[e, C nikhy`^, D Ugolhw`^

499. “Medicina--medicine” *nRi-ãi-th/tRe

Ot Ry[_thi Maz Rñ[eXh^
Mtz teyeti Oc teyendi
NP šilyR[[ Ch tárRì
SP tétRè
NP A stad[e, B skigy[e, C snad[e, D šilyR[[p

500. “Curar--treat sickness” *nRiãi-m/*Ri-m/*nRai

Ot nRy[_i “curandero” Maz --
Mtz Rimi Oc Ri
NP kad[e “curandero” Ch kátèheR “curandero”
SP k/ndè “curandero”

501. “Medio--middle” *(n)tte

Ot made Maz ndeRe
Mtz pira, pirinta Oc pìmdá

502. “Medir--to measure” *Rai-nR

Ot R[ni Maz R[dyRi
ntR[ni “medida” tR[dyRi “medida”

503. “Medir--measure” *sao-R

NP sáoR, D cháoR Ch sa

504. “Mensajero--messenger” *mRai-nh/-p

Ot (Mez) Rm[hni Maz --
Mtz Cas) vee-bapy Oc --
NP Ugobái, nambái “my messenger”

505. “Mentira--lie” *mRai-thine

Ot (SF) Rb[hthSni, Rm[tri Maz bR[Xine
Mtz beXunanta Oc benlumná

506. “Mes--month” *mRão-R

Mtz imbø Oc mbø
NP mR`ãoR Ch ùmR/ãR
SP mRmõ

507. “Metal--metal” *tRai-k

Ot tR[gi Maz tR[zi

508. “Metate--grinding stone” *khoiHC-nR/-R

 249 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

Ot khSni Maz kh]ShnS

Mtz inkhSni Oc niXh/S
NP nakhèigU Ch tàkh/üR
NP A takèigU, B kik[iigU, C nakèigU, D rakhebmpt

509. “Metlapil--rolling pin” *nRioiHC/*tRoiHC

Ot RyS Maz dyRiRi
Mtz riwi Oc lí
NP -- Ch mútR/üR

510. “México--Mexico City” *mRo-nttao

Ot Rmundö Maz bRondö

511. “Mezquite--mezquite tree” *kR/^-R

SP erkRw/^R Ch úkR/]R

512. “Miedo--fear” *t]o-nR/-k

Mtz tiki Oc tíli
NP -tt`^onR Ch ten
NP A -ttèoU, B -tt`^oU, C -tt`^oU, D -lh`^oU
Ch A –ten, B –nden, C –ren, D -rhen

513. “Miel--honey” *Rão (*ski-m]R)

SP (P) škìmíRì ‹/ãRaw Ch b/aR`ã

514. “Milpa--cornfield” *nhõa-mh

Ot hw/ãhi Maz hw[ãhmã
Mta nomi Oc nu
NP konhw`ã Ch (R) kìnth/a
SP nhnù
NP A kann`õa, B kon[õa, C kon`õa, D konhw`ãp(t)
Ch A kùnú, B kínù, C kìnú, D kìnhú

515. “Mirar--look” *nõR

Ot na Maz n[uRu
Mtz nu Oc --
NP nn/õRo Ch énúRù
NP A -nn/õRo, B, C -n`õ, D -nh`õ
Ch A –nu, B, C –nu, D -nhu

516. “Mirar--look” *paoh-R

NP A -ppáhoR, B -wáhoR, C -máhoR, D -báhoR
Ch A –paa, B –ngwaa, C –maa, D -mbaa

517. “Moco--mucus” *mRao-s

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 250

Ot Rmöši Maz bRöšS

Mtz maši “nariz” Oc máši “nariz”
NP mbaos SP skámbáw

518. “Moco--mucus” *tkã-R

SP igiaR Ch ùg/ã, (R) ùkh/ãR

519. “Mojado--wet” *(n)kRa-tR

Ot nkRa Maz kRaRa
NP (G) nkRalR Ch zíUgáRànR
SP nkRiáR

520. “Molcajete--bowl for grinding *mah-ta

chile”
Ot mada Maz maza
Mtz mati Oc mati
NP -- Ch kàmáhá (kúrò)

521. “Moler--grind” *kiHC-n-k/-cR

Ot kSni Maz kShnS
Mtz kSnXi Oc kS
NP -kkèiXR, B ndokwèiXR, C lakèiXR, D ndokhwèiXR

522. “Moler--grind” *tõih-nR

SP (P) –ntáhù, (J) -ntahant Ch ùtühün

523. “Montar caballo--ride horseback” *teoHC-k

Ot tøge Maz Xøge
Mtz -- Oc ndyembáli
NP -ll[gU Ch --

524. “Monte--mountain with woods” *pi-ntca

Mtz impinca Oc púnza

525. “Morder--bite” *ca

Ot ca Maz saRa
Mtz ca Oc ca

526. “Morder--bite” *coR-nR/-tR

Ot coni Maz zodRS
NP ccóRol Ch gàzónR
NP A -ccóRol, B -cóRol, C -cóRol, D -cRóRol
Ch A -Xon, B –nzon, C –zon, D -zhon
 251 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

527 “Morir--die” *tõ

Ot ta, C da Maz taRa
Mtz tuwi Oc tu
NP -ttõ Ch gàr/a
SP -da

528 “Mosca--fly” *Rõe / *Roe/*R]

Ot Rw^ Maz ngiRw[
Mtz niRu Oc níUgwí
NP skaR[ei, UgoRw[ei Ch k/^Re “gusano”
SP skúR`a

529 “Mostrar--show” *Rõ-h-t/-p

.
Ot Rahti Maz --
Mtz (Cas) uuntyta Oc Rumtinda
NP A,B -R/õRop, C lanR/^Rep, D ndolR/õRop

530 “Mudo--dumb” *ne (“boca”)

Ot gone Maz ngo nè
Mtz niRna Oc nìná

531 “Muelas-- *cRa-ph

. molars”
Ot cRaphi Maz sRaphS

532 “Mujer--woman” *(n)sõ

.
Ot -- Maz ndìšu
Mtz bešuwi Oc wèXhú

533 “Murciélago--bat” *coa-cR

.
Ot cacRi Maz --
Mtz (Cas) yntzotzi Oc cRólno
NP niXòacR SP nXúac

534. “Nariz--nose” *si-nio/-noa

Ot šiya Maz šihña, šìñ/a
NP A conn`õa, B XiUy`õa, C XiUUy`õ a, D šiUyhõa
Ch A kànú, B kánù, C kànú
SP šiñù
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 252

535. “Negar--deny” *koHC-nR/#

Ot køni, C gøni, D khøni Maz k`ødRø
NP A wakkò, B ndokò, C lakò, D ndokhò
Ch A -ko, B -ko, C -ko, D ko

536. “Negro-black” *(m)po-th/#

Ot pothi Maz pothS
Mtz bo Oc --
NP mamb]o, mboi Ch úmbó
SP kúmpù

537. “Nene--infant” *Roe-ne/*Roai-ne/*kRoe-ne

Ot Rw[ne Maz Rw[ne

538. “Nido--nest” *m(R)a-ph

Ot Rmaphi Maz --
Mtz (Cas) mapy Oc mápì
NP commàp SP nìmbíe

539. “Nido--nest” *tRo-s

Ot tRoši Maz tRošS

540. “Nieto--grandchild” *mRai-(h)-to

Ot Rm[hto Maz bR[hXe
Mtz weRrutowi Oc wèplít]o

541. “Nieve--snow” *si-kha

Ot šikha Maz šichi
Mtz (Cas) in-xychi Oc --

542. “Niño--child” *tRoiHC

Ot tRS Maz tRiRi
NP UgolRwép Ch bùrR/ü
NP A naRi, B Ugodwì, C Ugod]oi, D UgolRwép

543. “Nixtamal--boiled corn” *chão-nR

Ot chani Maz shõnS, shõnRS

544. “Nixtamal--boiled corn” *k]o-n

NP rikk/]oU Ch ríké
SP m`ãk[e

545. “No hay--there is none” *m^/*m]/*phe

Ot -- Maz dyRa phé
Mtz memo Oc tàmé
NP mep Ch pám`^
 253 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

546. “Noche--night” *são-m

Ot šai Maz šõmS_
Mtz šømi Oc ~šu
NP Ugos[ãoU Ch ús`ã
SP mw]nsãw

547. “Nombre-- *thiõ-h/-R

name”
Ot thaha Maz th[aha
Mtz niRšu, (Cas) inihoo Oc ~šú
NP Ugolh/õR Ch únh/]R, úrh/a
SP nhn/a
NP A nah/õR, B Ugoh/õR, C Ugonh^oR, D Ugolh/õRpt
Ch A nah/õ, B únh`a, C ùnhí, D úrh/a

548. “Nopal--cactus” *ha-t

Mtz inhati Oc mihati

549. “Nube--cloud” *(n)-kão-m

Ot gai Maz ngõmS_
Mtz ninkø Oc núngøhø

550. “Nudo--knot” *t(h)a-ncR/-RcR

Ot thaRcRi Maz --
Mtz tuncRi Oc túmtsi
NP -- Ch it`acR

551. “Nuevo--new” *nRa-nRio

Ot RnaRyo Maz dRadyRo

552. “Ocote--pine” *toiHC-t

Ot tSdi Maz tiYi

553. “Odiar--hate” *cRo-nR

Ot cRo, cRoni Maz sRodRS
NP -ccRódn Ch --

554. “Oír--hear” *RoHC-t/-R

Ot Røde, C Ryøde, D tRøde Maz Rørø
Mtz Røti Oc Rø~
NP -RoR Ch éRòR
SP man-úRù
NP A -RoR, B -R[oR, C -dèoR, D -lR[oR
Ch A -Ro, B -ti, C -ndi, D -rRi
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 254

555. “Ojo--eye” *-tao

Ot d/ö Maz nd]öRö
Mtz ninta Oc ta
NP Ugotào Ch ùrá “cara”
SP ntaw
NP A nattào, B Ugotào, C Ugotào, D ndàot
Ch A kàtá, B útà, C ùrá

556. "Oler--smell” *s]a-t

Ot nšã Maz šiRi
Mtz šuRti Oc šúnti

557. “Oler--smell” *p]a-cR

Ot pãRcRi Maz pS_sRS
NP A -ppéRe, B -wéRe, C -meRe, D -béRe
Ch A -pe, B -ngwe, C -me, D -mbe

558. “Olla--clay pot” *cReoHC-mR/-R

Ot cRøe Maz sRøbRø
NP A naccéR, B UgocRéokR, C UgocwéR, D UgocRwéRp
Ch A natsé, B ùtsé, C ùzé, D ùtsé

559. “Ombligo--navel” *cRao-mR/cRão-mR

Ot cRöi Maz sR`önRS
Mtz incRømi Oc ndzø
NP UgocáogU, ncRabmpt

560. “Oreja--ear” *(n)tkão

Ot ga Maz ngõRõ
Mtz ninXø Oc nenlø
NP Xik`ão Ch sìg/ã
Sp šigiãw
NP A cokkw`ão, B Xiky`ão, C Xiky`ão, D šiUkh`ãpt
Ch A sùk/ã, B sík`ã, C sìg/ã

561. “Oriente--east” *h(i-)a-t/-cR

Ot (SG) nipøšãhyati Maz ní mb]ešRe Rehy[arS
hacRi “amanecer”
Mtz -- Oc pìRàcRìšá
NP mànháRa konhõR Ch --

562. “Orina--urine” *mRi-tR/-Rt

Ot (Mez) RbitRi Maz --
 255 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

Mtz -- Oc mišnda
NP kot[[ Ch sùmír, (R) sìmhíRr
SP kìmíRi

563. “Orinar--urinate” *pi-tR/-cR

Ot pitRi, C mitRi Maz --
NP A -ppeReXR, B -weReXR, C -meReXR, D -bbeReXR

564. “Oscuro--dark” *mRai-são-m

Ot Rm[šai Maz bR[šõmS_

565. “Otro--another” *nRa

Ot (Mez) maRna Maz šedRaha
Mtz murahni “otra vez” Oc mulá
NP kad[at “otros” Ch kéntà

566. “Oveja--sheep” *ttoe-tão-t

Ot d[hti, Rbod[tadi Maz nd[nXhSrS
Note: Compound with *tão-t “blando” as second member.

567 “Pagar--pay” *cãi

SP (P) -cãiU, (J) -nca Ch ece

568. “Pagar-- *po(i)-k

pay”
Mtz poXi(ki) Oc póki

569. “Pagar-- *khão-tR

pay”
Ot khatRi Maz kh`õtRS_

570. “Pájaro--bird” *thia-n

Mtz inruthani Oc nlíthá
NP nilyháigU SP nthiá

571. “Pájaro--bird” *cRioHC/*cRiHC

Ot cRincRS, cRScRS Maz sRSRS

572. “Palabra-- *tpoe-mã-m

word”
Ot mã “say” Maz mãmã “say”
Mtz bemømi Oc mbémø
NP mãU “say”

573. “Palabra--word” *nh]a

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 256

Ot hyã Maz hñaRa

Mtz (Cas) inyhaa (a t ø) Oc niyø “voz”
NP niUhã Ch rinhí

574. “Pan--bread” *thao-mhe

Ot thahm[_ Maz th]õm[XRi
Mtz (incRoR) mhewi Oc --

575. “Papel--paper” *cV-kõa-mR

Ot cSkwã, cahkwã Maz skwãRmã, šiskoRma

576. “Papel--paper” *kRoi-s

NP UgokRwéš SP škRíš
nakRwéš “amate--fig tree”

577. “Papel--paper” *hai-mR

Ot h[Rmi Maz h[bRi

578. “Parar--stand something up” *mRao-R-mR

Ot RmöRmi Maz bR/öRbRS

579. “Parar--stand something up” *maiR

NP -mmáRi Ch me, (R) éméRè

580. “Pararse--stand up” *mRao-mR

Ot Rmöi Maz bR/öbRS
Mtz -- Oc -nbóho‹i

581. “Pararse--stand up” *maiR

NP mmaRi Ch m-e, D mh-e

582. “Pared--wall” *khã

Ot (Mez) khãdo Maz --
Mtz -- Oc nukhø, ñùkø
NP Ugokhw/ã Ch --

583. “Palmo--palm tree” *mRa-mhe

Ot mRahe Maz Rm]ãhmã
NP -- Ch súbáRà

584. “Palmo--palm tree” *hoa-t

Mtz hwati Oc --
NP šihwaRa SP škuhúa

585. “Pariente--relative” *m^-nR

 257 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

Ot m[ni Maz m^ñR^

586. “Parir--give birth” *mi/*me-nR

Ot mi Maz miRmi
Mtz -meriwi Oc mel(gwa)
SP man-du-mwi Ch ím`^

587. “Pasar lista--call the roll” *noHC-nR/*noeHC-nR

Ot nøni Maz nødRø

588. “Patos de la laguna--wild ducks” *ti-ka

Ot tiga Maz tizi
Mtz tiXi Oc --
NP kátti Ch --

589. “Pato--duck” *so-mo-R

Ot (SG) šòmbo SP šúmùR

590. “Pecho--chest” *ti-m]a

Ot t]yã Maz t`]hm]
NP -- Ch A sútì, B sìtí, C sítì

591. “Pedir--ask for” *Rao-t

Ot Rödi, C Ryödi, D tRödi Maz RörS
Mtz Rati Oc Rati
NP A -RàhodnR, B -RwàhodnR, C -dàhodnR, D -lRàhodn?

592. “Pegajoso--sticky, *(m) pe

slimy
Ot (m)pe Maz péRe

593. “Pegar--hit” *paih-R

NP -mahiR Ch A -pe, B -ngwe, C -me, D -mbe

594. “Peine--comb” *(t)Re-h-k/-mR *R(i)e-k/mR

Ot Rehke “peinarse”; ntRéhke Maz RebRe “peinarse” tRehtRo
Mtz yebi “peinarse,” yeXi Oc --

595. “Peine-- *chV-mRa

comb”
Mtz chøbawi Oc chuba
Note: The correspondence of Mtz ø to Oc u is puzzling.

596 “Pensamiento--thought” *(m) ph^-nR

Ot mph[_ni Maz pheñe
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 258

597. “Peña--cliff” *nhie/*nRie

Ot maRye; nhye “deep place” Maz ñinYe “barranca”
Mtz inyewi Oc nle, ndóhñè

598. “Perder--lose” *mRai-t/#

Ot Rm[di Maz bR[Yi
Mtz bati Oc bati
NP -mmè, D -mhè Ch úngwéRè

599. “Persona-- *tte

person”
Ot -te “gente” Maz nteRe “gente”
Mtz -ta
NP l][ Ch úrì
SP šm`^d`^

600. “Perro-- *nRio

dog”
Ot Ryo Maz dyRoRo
NP nadò SP enR]u

601. “Perro-- *(n)chini

dog”
Mtz inchini Oc nchí

602. “Pesado--heavy *hi-ioHC *thioHC

Ot hyS Maz hySRS, hySnRS
Mtz thi Oc mèthí
NP mahèo Ch maxá
SP bìhì

603. “Pescar--fish” *k(h)ãR

SP -k/õR`ã Ch úkh/ãR`ã

604. “Pescar--fish” *pa

Ot pa Maz páRa

605. “Pestañas--eyelashes” *sittao

Ot šidö Maz --
Mtz šita Oc šíndá
NP šiUgyáoR

606. “Petate--straw sleeping mat” *(si)ph]h

Ot ši(m)ph] Maz phingwa
Mtz imphiwi Oc -mphi
 259 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

NP A -pp^hiR, B, C -p^hiR, D mbR/^heRp

607. “Petate--straw sleeping mat” *si-mhãs

NP Ximhy`ã Ch sì-mh/ãs
SP ši(m)hmie
Ch A sùm/ãs, B sím`ãs, C sìm/ãs, D sìmh/ãs

608. “Pie-- *tkoa

foot”
Ot gwa Maz ngwaRa
NP makòa Ch ègú
SP nøgwà
NP A makkwà, B mákkwa, C makwà, D waUkhwàpt
Ch A nàkú, B ékù, C ègú, D èkhú

609. “Piedra--stone” *tto

Ot dó Maz nd]oho
Mtz imto Oc níndó
NP kot]o Ch kúrò
Ch kúdù

610. “Piel humana--human skin” *si-pah-nR/-n

Ot šiphani Maz šiphadRS
Mtz nišipari Oc šìmbáli
NP níbbyahagU Ch rìsé (cognate?)

611. “Pierna--leg” *tkoa

Ot gwa Maz ngwaRa
Mtz niRkwahtu Oc --
NP Xikyòa SP šíkíwà

612. “Pino (Ocote)--pine tree” *tkõa-n

NP nákwãU Ch éngú
SP neg[u

613. “Pinole--ground dry corn” *khoiHC-n(-tRe-mh)

Ot khSnthi Maz khSntRehme
NP UkhwìgU Ch éngú

614. “Pintura--dye” *koiHC-h

Ot kShS Maz c]ihi

615. “Piojo--louse” *tRo

Ot tRoni Maz tRoRo
Mtz intRo Oc ñìtRo
NP UgolR[o Ch rúrRò
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 260

SP /ntRù
NP A naR]o, B Ugodò, C Ugod[o, D UgolR]o

616. “Plato--plate, bowl” *motmh

Ot móhi Maz m]ohmS
NP mammò Ch nímó
Ch A númó, B nìmó, C nímó, D nìmhó

617. “Plato--bowl, dish” *mah-ta/-n

Ot máda “molcajete” Maz m]aza “molcajete”
Mtz mmati Oc máhti
NP A nommàhagU, B nimyàhagU, C nimmyàhagU, D rimmyàhadnt
Ch A numá, B nímà, C nìmá, D nìmhá

618. “Pleito--quarrel” *ci-mR

Mtz cibi Oc cibi

619. “Pobre--poor” *cai-nR

SP cán Ch cén

620. “Podrida--rotten” *ia/*iã

Ot Rya Maz dyRaRa
Mtz ya, XiRya “pus” Oc ya, Yiya “pus”
NP miyy[ã Ch --

621. “Poner adentro--put inside” *RiHC-tR/*RioHC-tR

Ot RStRi Maz RStRS

622. “Poner adentro--put inside” *koa-tR

Ot kötRi Maz kötRS

624. “Poner encima--put on *hõ-cR

top”
Ot hacRi Maz hasRS_

625. “Poner encima--put on *RiHC-cR/*ioHC-cR

top”
Ot RScRi Maz RSsRS

626. “Poner encima--put on *poHCicR/*peoHC-cR

top”
Ot pøcRe Maz pøsRø

627. “Posesiones--possessions” *mai-h-t

Ot m[hti Maz m[hXi “dinero”
Mtz (Gu) -machi “hacienda” Oc maXi
 261 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

628. “Preguntar--ask a *Rao-nR

question”
Ot Röni Maz RönS
Mtz Rari Oc Rat-li
Np A RàhodnR, B -RwahodnR, C -dàhodnR, D -lRàhodnR
Ch A -R-a, B -tan, C -ndan, D -rR-an

629. “Prestar--lend” *mhi-h/*mih-nR

Ot hm]hi Maz --
Mtz mhindi Oc démilpi~nda

630. “Probar--try” *cao(-h-p)

Ot cöhpi, C zö, D cRö Maz s/öRö
Mtz copi “gustar” Oc co
NP A -ccáo, B -cáoR, C -ccáoR, D -cRáoR
Ch A -ndza, B -tša, C -za, D -tsha

631. “Pulga--flea” *Rao

Ot Rö Maz R]ö
Mtz inRa Oc niRá

632. “Pueblo--town” *nhi-nR

Ot hnini Maz hñiRñi

633. “Puerco--pig” *cRioHC-t/na *tc]

Ot cRSdi Maz --
Mtz cRina Oc (p[) cRú
SP køz/] Ch kùz/^
Note: The Pamean forms might be from Sp. “cochino.”

634. “Puerta--door” *tko-s-thi

Ot gošthi Maz ngošti

635. “Pulque--fermented drink from the century plant” *tRa-ph

Ot tRaphi Maz tRaphS
Mtz tRaRpi Oc tRápi

636. “Púrpura-purple” *hoiHC-po-mR

Ot nkhShpöi Maz khipobRS

638. “Pus” *phão

NP kiphy[ão Ch síph/ã

639. “Quebrar--break” *poHC-t/*peoHC-t

Ot pøde Maz p`ørø
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 262

Mtz pøti Oc --

640. “Quebrar--break” *to-tR

NP A -ttolR, B -tòlR, C -tòlR, D -lhòlR
Ch A -tun, B -ndun, C -run, D -rhun

641. “Quebrar--break” *koa-mR/-k

Mtz kwaRabi “romper” Oc ngwáXi

642. “Quebrar--break (something hard)” *kRai-(R)-tR

Ot (Mez) kR[Rti Maz kR[XRi

643. “Quedar--stay, remain” *kio-mh

Ot kohi Maz ngehme, kehme

644. “Quemar leña--burn firewood” *Rão-t

Ot Radi Maz RõrS_

645. “Quemar algo--burn something” *cã-tR

Ot cãtRi Maz sãtRã

646. “Querer--want” *neR

Ot ne Maz neRe
Mtz na, nawi Oc na
NP -nnu_R[

647. “¿Quien?-- *khoR

who”
Ot khoRo Maz kho

648. “Quince días--fifteen days” *(n)NRaitRai-koiHC-tRai

Ot nRn[tRamakStRa Maz dR[XikRiXRa

649. “Quitar de encima--take *kã-h-k

down”
Ot kãhki Maz kãhkã

650. “Quitar la punta de granos--shell corn from the cob” *tõa-h-k

Ot tãhki Maz tõhkS_

651. “Quitar (sombrero)--take off (hat)” *h]a-h-k/-R-mR

Ot hãhki; hãRmi “sacar” Maz hS_hkS_; hS_RmS_
Mtz -- Oc hSbi

652. “Raíz--root” *th]

NP nikhy`^ “its rope” Ch nìthé
 263 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

SP Ukunthi

653. “Raíz--root” *Ri-iHC/*Ri-ioHC

Ot RyS Maz dyRSRS
Mtz di Oc bli

654. “Rajar--split *soa-cR/nRcR

wood”
Mtz -- Oc -šólXi
NP -sóaRacR Ch ésúRùs
SP sóa

655. “Rajar--split *coe-nR

wood”
Ot c[ni Maz --
Mtz seri Oc celi

656. “Rama--branch” *nRiaitca

Ot Ry[za Maz dyR[za

657. “Rana--frog” *tk(R)oa/*tkoe

Ot Rw[ Maz Rw[R[
Mtz inXoRkwa Oc nlúnkwRá
NP kókRwa Ch kúngwãR
SP kúkRwá

658. “Rápido--fast” *tih/*ni(h)

Ot nihi, tihi Maz n]h], dRihi
NP manéi Ch máné
SP mer]i

659. “Rasguñar-- *sa-R-mR

scratch”
Ot šaRmi Maz šabRS

660. “Raspar--suck maguey juice” *Ra-ph

Ot Raphi Maz RaphS

661. “Ratón--mouse” *ntkão

Ot nga Maz ngõRõ
NP ningy`ão Ch nìng/ã
SP nkyãw nci

662. “Recibir--receive” *taih-cR

NP -ttàhiXR D -lRàhiXR Ch -tec, B –ndec, C rec, D -rhec
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 264

663. “Red--net” *tRao-cR

Ot tRöcRi Maz tRösRS

664. “Redondo-- *tao-s

round”
SP ntìàuš Ch dzìtás

665. “Regañar--scold” *co

NP A cco, B -cò, C -cò, D -cRò
Ch A -ndzo, B -tšo, C -zo, D -tsho

666. “Regar--irrigate” *R]o-nR(tteh)

Ot Ranthe Maz Riñi

667. “Reír--laugh at” *teh-nR/tR

Ot theni Maz theñe
Mtz tari Oc táhti
NP -tuh[lR Ch ítèhèRr

668. “Reírse--laugh at” *teh-t/-nR

Ot théde Maz thèYe
Mtz tati Oc táhtì
NP -tt[h[dnR SP t/^h^
NP A -tt`[h[dnR, B, C -tuh[dnR, D -lRuh[dnR

669. “Relámpago--lightning” *n(h)oe/*n(h)õ-cR/-mR

Ot hw[cRi “flash”; hw[i Maz hw[ši “flash”; hw[bRi
Mtz maniheXi Oc rùmhéXi
NP Ugonw/^ “thunder” Ch enütsR
SP (P) tìñwin, (J) tìñìn

670. “Remendar--mend” *poHC-tR/*peoHC-tR

Ot pøRtRe Maz p/øtRø
Mtz pøRti Oc pøti

671. “Reñir--quarrel” *RioHC-(-i “dual”)

Ot RSwi Maz --
NP A loRwèo, B ndoRwèo, C laRèo, D ndotRèo

672. “Repetir--repeat” *nio-h-p

Ot yohpi Maz yehpe

673. “Respirar--breathe” *ci-n(h)]a

Ot cihyã Maz --
Mtz kusinu Oc --
 265 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

674. “Rezar--pray” *sao-t/#

Ot šödi Maz šörS
SP -cá Ch úpRèhe e sáRà

675. “Rico--rich” *pã-nR/-t

NP -p`ãn Ch pã, (R) ip/ãr
SP dipi^t

676. “Río--river” *tteh (“water”)

Ot dãthe Maz ndàre
Mtz betawi Oc mbinda
NP Ugot]oeR kot][
Note: All the words for “river” mean “big water,” but the words for “big”
differ.

677. “Robar--rob, steal” *p^

Ot p[_, C b[_, D ph[_ Maz p^R^
Mtz pewi Oc pe
NP A -pp[_, B -p[_, C -p[_, D -ph[_
Ch A -ppi, B -nbi, C -vi, D –phi

678. “Ladrón--thief” *tp^

Ot b[_ Maz mb^R^
Mtz pewi Oc pe
NP p^ Ch kámb]r

679. “Rodilla--knee” *n]a-h-mõ-n

Ot yãhma Maz ñihmo
Mtz nuRmuni Oc numú

680. “Rojo--red” *(n)thai-n

Ot th[ni Maz nth[ni

681. “Saber--know” *pã-t

Ot pãdi, C bãdi., D phãdi Maz pãrã
Mtz pøti, pøya Oc mbøya
NP káppãt “adivino” Ch èp/ã
SP -pã

682. “Sabroso--delicious” *kiHC-mh

Ot nkShi Maz kihmi
NP makèi “fragrant” Ch --

683. “Sabroso--delicious *tRø

Mtz kuXitRø Oc mètR/ø
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 266

Note: Mtz-Oc has a number of sources: *ã, *oHC, *eoHC, etc.

684. “Sacar--take out” *khiHC-cR/#

Ot khScRi Maz khSsRS
NP A -kkiRi, B -kwiRi, C -kiRi, D -khwíRi
Ch A -ke, B -nke, C -ge, D -khe

685 “Sacerdote--priest” *we-nR *wai-nR

.
NP kawudnR Ch rangwíR
SP (P) kuwáin SP (J) kùwàn

686 “Sal--salt” *thõ-s

Mtz inthuši Oc nthuši
NP Ugolh`õs Ch urh/õs
SP thìuš

687 “Salado--salty” *Rão-s

Ot R`aši Maz R]õšS_
R/a “sal” R]õRõ

NP RRãos

688 “Salir--go out” *poeHC-nR

Ot pøni Maz pedyRe
Mtz -- Oc pøli

689 “Salir--go out” *nih-n

NP -nnèhigU Ch te, ne

690 “saliva--spit” *khi-nh

Ot khìhni Maz kR`]hñ]
Mtz Xini Oc nli
NP Ukhwígn Ch síkhé
SP šømøkí
NP A ikkígU, B UgwìgU, C UgwígU, D nkhwíbmpt
Ch A súkké, B síkké, C sígé

691 “Saludar--greet” *ntkoa/*ntkao-R

Ot z[ngwa Maz z][ngwa
NP -ngwàoR, D ndoUkhwàoR
Ch A -gá, B -gá, C -ngá, D -ngá

692 “Sangre--blood” *khi

Ot khí Maz kh]iRi
Mtz Xihabi, (Gu) chiyabi Oc nlíhyá
 267 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

NP kokhwì Ch ùkhé
SP khì
NP A kokhwìk, B kikh[i, C kikhì, D kikkhìk
Ch A kòkhé, B kíkhè, C kíkhè, D kìkhé

693 “Secar--dry out” *R-o-tR

Ot RyotRi Maz dyRotRS

694 “Seco--dry” *R-o-nR/#

Ot nRyoni Maz RodRS
Mtz yo Oc yo
NP dío, maRó Ch móRó, (A) nindò
SP múRú

695 “Sed, tener--be thirsty” *tõtteh

Ot tathe Maz tùre

696 “Seis--six” *nRa-h-to, *ti-ti-nRa

Ot Rnahto Maz ñanto
Mtz indatowi Oc mblàhndòhó
NP teliRgyá SP tikient (R)

697 “Semana--week” *nimpãi-R

NP nímbyãiR Ch nímb`ãR
SP mpiã

698 “Sembrar--plant (corn)” *tõR-mh/#

Ot taha, C taha, D Rnaha Maz t`ahmS_
Mtz tumi Oc tu
NP -ttõRo Ch étúRùnR
NP A -tt/õRo, B -t/õRo, C -t/õRo, D -lh/õRo
Ch A -tu, B –ndu, C -ru, D -rhu

699 “Semilla-seed” *nttao

Ot ndö Maz ndöRö
Mtz daR Oc ndátu

700 “Sentarse--sit down” *(i) kho-nR

Mtz Xhori Oc Xholi

701 “Sentarse--sit down” *coh

NP ccóho SP cuhu

702 “Sentarse--sit down” *mi/*m]oh

.
Ot mi, mihöi Maz mimi, mimRmi
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 268

NP (AL) m]ha

703 “Sentarse--sit” *hõcR/-t

Ot hacRi, hadi Maz harS_
NP koh[acR “on top of” Ch hunts

704 “Sentir--feel” *cao-R

Ot A cö, C zö, D cRö Maz s/ö
Mtz -- Oc có
NP A –ccáoR, B –áoR, C –cáoR D –cRáoR

705 “Servir--work for” *pai-h-p

Ot p[hpite Maz p[hpi

706 “Servir comida--serve food” *si-cR

Ot šicRi Maz šisRi

707 “Sesos--brains” *tkã-R

NP Ugokw`ãRp Ch ùg/ãR
SP (P) ]yw`ãR, (J) nky`ãR?

708 “Sibling--hermano” *nRi-o-i (dual)

Ot nRyowi Maz dyRohwi

709 “Siete--seven” *nio-to *ti-ti-nioh-nR

Ot yohto Maz yènXo
Mtz netowi Oc myèhndoho
NP tely-UyòhigU SP tiktí (R)

710 “Silla--chair” *p(R)oh

NP UgopRóho Ch nábòhò
Ch A tapoho, B kipoho, C tapoho, D navoho

711 “Sol--sun” *hia-t/-mR

Ot hyadi Maz hy[arS
Mtz inhyabi Oc --

712 “Sólo--only” *nRa

Ot (SF) Rdach[ Maz --
Mtz ra Oc la
NP dahap

713 “Sombra--shade, shadow” *são-t *sõ-p/-mR

Ot šamSi, šati Maz š`õrS_
Mtz šubi Oc Xhúbi
NP kos[ãot
 269 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

714 “Sombrero--hat” *piHC-mR

Ot phSi Maz --
NP A -mbéheR, B -wéheR, C -méheR, D -béheR

715 “Soplar--blow” *hoi-p/-nR/-t

Ot hwìphi Maz hwìphi
Mtz nXihupi “soplador” Oc nìlhw/ípì “soplador”
NP -hèigUR

716 “Norte--north” *hoi-p

Ot (Mez) mahwifi Maz --
Mtz nXihupi “soplador” Oc nimhnupi
NP sohòp (Ugop[ãiR)

717 “Soplador--fan” *hoi-tR/-k/-t

Ot hwìtRi Maz hwìRXRi “aventar”
Mtz ruthuhXi “soplar” Oc muhwiptí “soplar”
NP šilyhèiky SP štuthwéRe

718 “Sordo--deaf” *tkotkão

Ot goga Maz ngogo

719 “Sordo--deaf” *mo-t

SP neka mud[u Ch nàng/ã í múr

720 “Sospechar--suspect” *hoHC-cR/*heoHC-cR

Ot høcRe “acusar” Maz h[øsRø

721 “Subir--raise (price) *hõ-cR

Ot hacRi, C hyacRi, D thacR?i Maz hasRS_
NP A -h/õsp, B –hi`õsp, C -hiõsp, D -h`õsp

722 “Subir--go up” *poHC-cR/*peoHC-cR

Ot pøcRe Maz pøsRø “poner en la lumbre”
Mtz pøcRi Oc --

723 “Subir--ascend” *hãoR

NP A tah/ão, B kohww/ão, C -nh/ãRo
SP ma-ta-hãwk Ch gàh/ã

724 “Subir--ascend” *te-cR

Ot tecRe Maz tesRe
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 270

725 “Sucio--dirty” *mpo-s

Ot mpoši Maz pošS

726 “Sudar--sweat” *pa

Mtz -- Oc ndepáki
NP lilyh[et wóppap Ch rípà énèhèr
SP rpià ten/]hi

727 “Suegra de mujer--woman’s mother -in-law *kao

Ot kö Maz kö?ö

728 “Suegra de hombre--man’s mother-in-law *to

Ot to Maz XoRo

729 “Tabaco--tobacco” *nRioHC-m

Ot Ry[ui Maz --
Mtz rumi Oc --
NP ndóehigU Ch (R) útRühü
Ch (A) A núnd/üh`ü, B n`r/üh`ü, C nínd`üh`ü, D út`üh`ü

730 “Tamales” *th^-t

Ot th[_di Maz th^Y^
Mtz intheti Oc thenti
NP -lhu_R[_ Ch úrR`]hì
SP nth/^R^
NP A nothu_R, B nilhyu_R[, C nikhyu_R[

731 “Tapar--cover” *ko-R-mR

Ot koRmi Maz kobRS

732 “Tejer--weave” *pe

Ot pe, C me, D Re Maz pèRe
Mtz pa Oc mbá
NP -pp[ Ch pì
SP -we
NP A -pp[, B –wu, C –m[, D -bb[

733 “tejocote--kind of fruit” *pai-nR

Ot p[ni Maz p[dyRi
Mtz pari Oc mbali

734 “Telar--loom” *mRe

Ot Rme Maz bRèRe
NP nab[[ Ch úpRí
SP mRaé
 271 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

735 “Temblar--shake” *tpi

Ot bi Maz mbiRi

736 “Temblar--shake” *hõa/*tkã-R

Ot hwã Maz hwãUkhã “sacudir”
NP -ngãR Ch íg`ãnR “temblor de tierra”

737 “!!Ten!--here!” *nã

Ot nã Maz nãRã

738 “Tenamaxtle--”hearth stones” *nh]o-m/-t”

Ot hyai Maz hñamS
Mtz -- Oc nyut

739 “Tener (milpas--have (fields)” *thai

Ot th[ Maz th[R[

740 “Tener--have” *mi

Mtz miwi “agarrar” Oc mi “agarrar”
NP -mm]

741 “Tener-have” *h]a-t

Ot hã Maz h/S_RS_
Mtz yø Oc --
SP hyún Ch her
Ch A -her, B –nher, C -nher, D -rher

742 “Teñir--dye” *kã-t/-R

Ot kãti (kShS) Maz k`ãtRã
Mtz nikhøti “pintura” Oc mukøndi, nikhøndi “pintura”
NP -kkãR SP -kw/ãn

743 “Tercera persona--third person” *-p

Ot -pi Maz -pi
Mtz -pi Oc -pi
NP -p Ch -

744 “Tercio--a third (bundle of *khao-t

wheat)”
Ot khödi Maz khörS

745 “Terminar--finsh something” *te-k/*toi

Ot tége Maz tèze
thege “used up” theze “used up”
Mtz taXi Oc taXi
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 272

NP -ttwì Ch tü, D tü

746 Terminar--finish” *khwa-t

Ot khwadi Maz khwarS

747 “Tiempo de aguas--rainy season” *hie-teh

Ot nhyethe Maz --
Mtz inhyeti Oc héti

748 “Tierra--land, soil” *hao-m

Ot h`öi Maz h`ömS
Mtz hami Oc ha
NP -hw[aogU Ch úhà
SP ihyáw
NP A nóhwaogU, B nihyàogU, C níhyaogU

749 “Tierra--land, ground” *po-R

Mtz mapoRo “abajo” Oc --
NP kopóR Ch kímbó
Ch kúmbò, B kìvó, C kímbó, D úvó

750 “Tierra plana--plain, plateau” *mRa-tha

Ot Rmatha Maz bathS
Mtz inbati Oc bati
NP nibià Ch --

751 “Tijeras--scissors” *nR]a-s/*tR]a-s

Ot (SF) Rñãši, (Mez) tRãste Maz Rñãšã
NP nalRyãs Ch tárR]s
NP A tiRy/ãs, B kiRy/ãs, C niRy/ãs, D nalRy/ãs

752 “Cortar con tijeras--cut out with scissors” *R]a-s

Ot Rãši, C Ryãši, D tRãši Maz Rãšã
NP A,B -Ri/ãs, C -nRi/ãs, D -lRi/ãs

753 “Tirar--throw” *h(i) o-t/-nR

NP wah[[olR Ch hun, B, C nhin, D rhun

754 “Tocar--touch” *taoh-nR/#

Ot thöni, C döni, D Rnöni Maz thörS
Mtz tari Oc --
NP A -ttaho, B -táho, C -táho, D -lRaho
Ch A -ta, B -nda, C -ra, D -rha

755 “Tocar mmúsica--play music” *pai-mR/p *pai-nR

 273 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

Ot p[i Maz ph[bRi

Mtz papi Oc mbápi
NP -- Ch pen
Ch A -pen, B -ngwen, C men, D -mben

756 “Todo--all” *t^-s/-cho

Ot -- Maz t^š^
Mtz teRso Oc ndechó

757 “Toluca--capitol of state of Mexico” *ntciHC-mh

Ot nzShmi Maz zSmi
758 “Tomar--drink” *ci
Ot ci Maz siRi
Mtz ci Oc ci

759 “Tomar--drink” *hao-R

NP -háoR Ch ráháR
SP manh[u
NP A waháoR, B, C -hwáoR, D -lháoR
Ch A -ha, B, C -nha, D -rha

760 “Torcer-twist” *k]-s

SP -kwíš Ch gak/^s

761 “Tortilla--corn cake” *mh^

Ot hm[ Maz --
Mtz imhewi Oc mhme
NP -mh[_ SP mh^

762 “Tortuga--turtle” *ko-mo-R

NP kommóR Ch kúmmóR

763 “Toser--cough” *he(h)/*the(h)

Ot hehe; thehe “tos” Maz hehe; thehe “tos”
Mtz - Oc he
NP -hw[ SP bøditkhy[e

764 “Tos--a cough” *kRiHC-cR

Ot kRSRcRi Mtz -kRøcRi

765 “Trabajar--work” *pai-ph

Ot p[phi, mp[phi Maz p[phi

766 “Trabajador-- *mai-ph

worker”
Ot m[phi Maz mb[phi
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 274

767 “Trabajo--work” *tRa-m

Mtz tRami Oc tRa

768 “Traer--bring” *pi-k/#

Mtz piki Oc --
NP -- Ch pii
Ch A pii, B ngwii, C mii, D mbii

769 “Tragar--swallow” *tõ-tR/-nR

Ot tatRi, C datRi Maz --
SP -taR Ch étùnR
NP A -ttõlR, B, C -tõlR, D -lh[olR
770 ”Tres--three” *nh]o-R/-nR
.
Ot hya; hyãhto “ocho” Maz hñ]R]; hñinXo “ocho”
Mtz šu, hyu Oc phyu
NP -nhõR Ch tínhùn (R) tínRùhùnR
SP hn`]uR

771 “Tripas--intestines” *phoi

.
Ot š^mpho, cRãmpho Maz šepho
Mtz nXRimphowi Oc --
NP šimphioRk, -mbép Ch kúmb/ü

772 “Triste--sad” *te-Ro-c-tRa-m

.
Mtz teRostRami Oc teRustRa

773 “Triste--sad” *maR-p

.
SP maRabi Ch mRaha

774 “Tronco--trunk of a tree” *tpo-kõa-n

.
NP nimbyo niUgw/ãU Ch ríg/a rábó
SP nka rbu

775 “Trueno--thunder” *mphoHC-nh/*mpheoHC-nh

.
Ot mphøhni Maz phøhnø

776 “Tú--thou” *kRe/*kR

.
Ot kRe, -kR Maz kRe
 275 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

Maz kaXRi Oc kaXRi

NP heokR, -kR Ch ihékRù
SP hùkR

777 “Tuna--cactus fruit” *ha-t

.
Mtz hati Oc hati

778 “Vacío--empty” *nRi-oHC-nR/# *RoHC

.
Ot Ryøni Maz dyRødRø
Mtz -- Oc nulRéli (?)
NP maRó Ch móRó

779 “Valer--be worth” *mo-i(dual)

.
Ot muwi Maz muwi
Mtz mu Oc --

780 “Vecino--neighbor” *m^-ntkõ-m

.
Ot m[_nga Maz menzumS

781 “Vela--candle” *nio

.
Ot yo Maz yoRo

782 “Veinte--twenty” *nRa(o)-te

.
Ot nRnöhte Maz dyRöhte
Mtz nronta Oc blóhndá
NP ndalyR[[dn SP Rnáde

783 “Venado--deer” *pah-nR

.
Ot phašthø, phanthø Maz phanthe, phantRehe
Mtz inhapaari (Gu) ynte tzacapaari Oc ncRambali
NP -- SP ph/ãmp`ai

784 “Vender--sell” *Roi-nR/-R/-t

.
Mtz Ruri Oc wili
NP -RReiR, B -Rw[eiR, C -dèiR Ch Rür
Ch A -Rür, B –tür, C -nd:ru, D -rRür SP -Rù
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 276

785 “Vender--sell” *pao

.
Ot pö Maz pöRö

786 “Venir--come” *R^h/*R]a

.
Ot R[_h[_ Maz R^h^
Mtz Ri Oc pRi
NP A -Rw`[_, B, C -nR`]a, D konR`]at
Ch A -Ri, B, C -Ri, D -Ri

787 “Verde--green” *koih-tR

.
NP niUgéhilyR Ch kuk`ü
SP nkíhìl

788 “Verde oscuro--dark green” *tpoe-th

.
Ot bøthe Maz mbeYe

789 “Vereda--path” *tp^-nR]o

.
Ot b[_Rya Maz mb^Rñihi

790 Vergüenza--shame” *chaR

.
Ot cö (?) Maz --
NP chá Ch chàRa

791 “Vestir a alguien--dress *he-t

. someone”
Ot hehte Maz hehXe
Mtz hati Oc hati

792 “Vestirse--wear clothes” *t]h

.
NP -t`^hi Ch t`^
Ch A –t^, B –nd^, C –r^, D -rh^

793 “Vestirse--wear clothes” *he

.
Ot he Maz heRe

794 “Viejo--old” *nRoiR

.
NP madóRi SP mr ndíRì
 277 Appendix L All POP Cognate Sets

795 “Viejo--old” *tRõ-ma

.
Mtz intoma, -tuma Oc -tRuma

796 “Visitar--visit” *pã-t/#

.
Ot pãdi “saber” Maz pãrã “saber”
NP A -pp`ã, B – pã, C –pã, D -ph`ã
Ch A – pã, B –nbã, C –vã, D -mbã

797 “Vomitar--vomit” *co-k/-cR/-mia

.
Ot cogi, C zogi, D cRogi Maz nYohkS
Mtz -- Oc cRoya
NP -ccòcR Ch ítšòRò
NP A -ccòcR, B -XòcR, C -cócR, D -XRòcR

798 “Ultimo--last” *mRai-pha

.
Ot Rb[pha Maz bR[pha

799 “Untar--anoint” *ko-cR

.
Ot kocRi Maz kosRS

800 “Uno--one” *nRa/*tRa

.
Ot Rna, nRna Maz dRaha, nRàha
Mtz indawi Oc bla, la
NP nda Ch nantRa
SP Rná

801 “y--and” *nR^h

.
Ot Rn[_h[_ Maz ñé, ñéhe

802 “Yerba--grass” *tRe/*nR^

.
Ot tR[i Maz tR[bRi
SP détRe Ch únR`^

803 “Yo--I” *kao *-k

.
Ot gö, kö -gi, -ki Maz gö, kö -gV, -kV
Mtz kaki Oc kaki
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 278

NP káok -k Ch ìkágù
SP kàki

804 “Nosotros--we pl, incl.” *kao-hoi/-n (*hoiHC)

.
Ot göhS Maz göhi
Mtz kakhowi Oc kàkhó
NP kaokU Ch ikágùnR
SP kàkh

805 “Zacate--fodder” *tca-pah-nR *cRa-pah-nR

.
Ot zaphani Maz sRaphadRS

806 “Zancudo--mosquito” *mottao

.
Ot modö Maz mödö

807 “Zapatos--shoes” *phã-cR

.
SP mphãcR Ch úph`ãts
Ch A náp`ãts, B úp/ãts, C úv`ãts, D úph`ãts

808 “Zapote blanco--white zapote fruit” *cRo-n

.
Mtz intsRoni Oc -tsRo

809 “Zopilote--buzzard” *pa-ta/*waR

.
Ot pada Maz ndohparS
Mtz impati Oc --
NP nawáRa Ch --

810 “Zorra-fox” *ha

.
Ot (Mez) haho Maz --
Mtz -- Oc yohá

811 “Zorrillo--skunk” *nR]a-m/-mR/#

.
Ot Ryãi, (SG) nR`ãi Maz RS_hmS
Mtz RSbi Oc nimRøøli (?)
NP kon/õaRa Ch kárR/ã
SP kraRa
 APPENDIX M
LANGUAGES REPRESENTED
IN THE COGNATE SETS

Otomian and Pamean

347 sets

1, 10, 12, 16, 17, 21, 22, 24, 27, 28, 30, 31, 32, 39, 42, 44, 49, 51, 54, 55, 59,
60, 61, 67, 68, 70, 71, 72, 76, 77, 80, 82, 87, 89, 91, 92, 93, 94, 97, 100, 101, 102,
104, 105, 106, 108, 117, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123, 129, 130, 131, 132, 135, 136,
137, 142, 145, 146, 147, 148, 149, 152, 154, 160, 166, 168, 169, 177, 178, 179, 180,
187, 192, 193, 196, 197, 198, 200, 214, 215, 217, 219, 220, 222, 223, 225, 227, 233,
234, 235, 236, 237, 238, 243, 244, 245, 250, 251, 252, 255, 258, 263, 264, 264, 267,
268, 269, 271, 274, 276, 277, 278, 280, 281, 285, 290, 291, 292, 301, 302, 303, 304,
313, 316, 320, 321, 322, 323, 329, 330, 333, 334, 337, 338, 342, 343, 344, 348, 351,
352, 353, 354, 356, 357, 358, 359, 360, 371, 373, 380, 384, 385, 386, 388, 391, 393,
395, 399, 402, 407, 409, 413, 415, 418, 419, 420, 421, 423, 425, 426, 427, 428, 431,
439, 445, 446, 456, 460, 461, 464, 468, 469, 471, 475, 476, 477, 479, 481, 482, 483,
484, 487, 489, 497, 498, 499, 500, 504, 541, 515, 517, 519, 520, 521, 523, 526, 527,
528, 529, 530, 533, 534, 535, 536, 538, 542, 545, 546, 547, 550, 553, 554, 555, 557,
558, 559, 560, 561, 562, 563, 565, 570, 572, 573, 582, 583, 584, 586, 588, 589, 590,
591, 598, 599, 600, 602, 605, 606, 608, 609, 610, 611, 613, 615, 616, 617, 620, 628,
630, 633, 646, 654, 657, 658, 661, 667, 668, 669, 671, 674, 676, 677, 678, 681, 682,
684, 686, 687, 690, 691, 692, 694, 696, 698, 702, 703, 704, 709, 712, 713, 714, 715,
716, 717, 721, 726, 729, 730, 732, 734, 736, 740, 741, 742, 743, 745, 748, 749, 750,
751, 752, 754, 755, 759, 761, 763, 768, 769, 770, 771, 776, 778, 782, 783, 784, 786,
790, 796, 797, 800, 802, 803, 804, 809, 811.

Otomian
106 Sets

4, 19, 35, 38, 43, 46, 65, 69, 83, 86, 98, 110, 111, 115, 118, 126, 127, 143,
151, 155, 156, 157, 161, 171, 174, 176, 181, 190, 201, 202, 209, 230, 239, 240, 241,
260, 272, 314, 318, 327, 328, 340, 345, 347, 362, 364, 375, 383, 392, 397, 400, 404,
405, 408, 411, 417, 422, 429, 433, 438, 440, 441, 442, 444, 449, 455, 458, 459, 467,

6/9/2010 279
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 280

472, 478, 493, 494, 495, 444, 501, 505, 525, 532, 539, 541, 549, 556, 574, 580, 594,
629, 631, 635, 651, 653, 655, 670, 673, 679, 688, 699, 711, 722, 733, 738, 747, 756,
758, 779, 791, 810.

Otomi and Mazahua

215 Sets

2, 3, 6, 8, 9, 11, 14, 15, 18, 20, 23, 26, 29, 33, 34, 36, 37, 45, 47, 48, 56, 57,
73, 75, 78, 79, 81, 84, 88, 90, 95, 96, 103, 107, 109, 113, 124, 125, 134, 138, 139,
140, 153, 158, 163, 165, 170, 181, 182, 184, 185, 186, 189, 194, 195, 199, 203, 204,
207, 208, 213, 216, 221, 224, 229, 232, 246, 249, 254, 256, 257, 261, 262, 266, 275,
282, 283, 286, 287, 293, 294, 296, 298, 299, 300, 305, 307, 309, 312, 315, 324, 325,
331, 332, 335, 346, 349, 350, 355, 361, 363, 365, 366, 369, 370, 372, 376, 377, 378,
379, 382, 390, 403, 410, 424, 432, 435, 436, 437, 447, 448, 451, 452, 454, 457, 462,
463, 465, 466, 470, 474, 480, 485, 486, 488, 496, 502, 507, 510, 531, 537, 543, 551,
552, 564, 566, 569, 571, 575, 577, 578, 585, 587, 592, 596, 604, 614, 621, 622, 623,
624, 625, 626, 627, 632, 634, 636, 644, 645, 647, 648, 649, 650, 656, 659, 660, 663,
666, 672, 680, 693, 695, 705, 706, 708, 717, 720, 724, 725, 727, 728, 731, 735, 737,
739, 744, 746, 757, 764, 765, 766, 775, 780, 781, 785, 788, 789, 793, 798, 799, 801,
805, 806.

Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco

28 Sets

40, 41, 50, 53, 128, 161, 248, 253, 288, 366, 381, 387, 524, 548, 568, 595,
597, 601, 618, 638, 639, 683, 700, 767, 772, 777, 795, 808.

Pamean (Pame and Chichimeco)

109 Sets
5, 7, 13, 25, 52, 58, 62, 64, 67, 74, 85, 99, 112, 114, 116, 133, 141, 144, 150, 159,
172, 173, 175, 183, 191, 205, 206, 210, 211, 212, 218, 226, 228, 231, 242, 247, 259,
273, 279, 284, 289, 306, 308, 310, 311, 317, 326, 336, 339, 341, 367, 368, 374, 389,
394, 398, 401, 406, 412, 414, 416, 430, 434, 443, 450, 453, 473, 490, 491, 492, 503,
511, 513, 516, 518, 522, 544, 567, 576, 579, 581, 593, 603, 607, 612, 619, 637, 638,
652, 662, 664, 665, 675, 685, 689, 697, 701, 707, 710, 719, 723, 753, 760, 762, 773,
774, 787, 792, 794, 807.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

General
Bartholomew, Doris. “Some Revisions in Proto-Otomi Consonants, “International
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Belmar, Francisco. Glotología Indígena Méxicana. México: n.p., 1921.

[Pages xliv-xlivii have bibliography of materials in Otomi, Matlatzinca, and
Pame.]

qqqqqqq. Lenguas Indígenas de México: La Familia mixteco-zapoteca y sus

relaciones con el otomí. México: n.p., 1905.

qqqqqqq. “Sistema silábico en las lenguas de la familia mixteca-zapoteca-otomí,”

Anales del Museo Nacional, 3a época, II (1910), 261-71.

Brinton, Daniel G. “On the Affinities of the Otomi Language with the Athabascan
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Catálogo de obras escritas en lenguas indígenas de México o que tratan de ellas de la

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VIII Censo general de población, 1960. Resumen general. México, D.F.: Estados
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Charencey, Comte Hyacinthe de. “Recherches sur la famille de lángues

Américaines, Pirinda-Othomí,” Annales de Philosophie Chrétienne, n.v.
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qqqqq. “Sur les idiomes de la Famille Chichimèque,” Proceedings of the XIV

International Congress of Americanists, 1906, pp.159-91.

Chávez, Alberto N. “Bibliografía antropológica otomí,” Ethnos, I (1920), 68-73.

Ecker, Lawrence. “Relationship of Mixtec to the Otomian Languages,” El México

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6/9/2010 281
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 282

Hasler, Juan. “Reconstrucciones Matlatzinca-ocuiltecos,” Anales del Instituto

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Manrique Castañeda, Leonardo. “Sobre la Clasificación del Otomi-Pame,”

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Marino Flores, Anselmo. Bibliografía lingüística de la República Mexicana.

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qqqqq. Distribución municipal de los hablantes de lenguas indígenas en la Republica

Méxicana. México: Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia,
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Pimentel, Francisco. Obras Completas. Vol. II. México: Tipografía Económica,

1903.
[Of interest here are chapters LI “El Othomí ó Hia-Hiu,” pp. 358-74; LII
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Newman, Stanley, and Weitlaner, Robert J. “Central Otomian I: Proto-Otomi

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qqqqq. “Central Otomian II: Primitive Central Otomian Reconstructions,” XVI

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Soustelle, Jacques. “La Famille Otomi-Pame du Mexique Central,” Travaux et

Memoires de l’Institut d”Ethnologie de l’Université de Paris, No. 26. Paris:
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Swadesh, Morris. “The Oto-Manguean Hypothesis and Macro Mixtecan,”

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qqqqqqqqqqqqq. “Algunos problemas de la lingüística Otomangue,” Anales de

Antropología, I (1964), 91-123.
[This article attempts to incorporate Otomi and Mazahua into the larger
Otomanguean reconstruction.]
 283 Bibliography

Thomas, Cyrus, and Swanton, John R. “Indian Languages of Central America and
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Weitlaner, Roberto J. “Proto-Otomi-Matlatzinca: Reconstrucciones del Proto-

Otomi III,” Memorias del Congreso Científico Mexicano, IV Centenario de
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qqqqqqqqqqq. “Un idioma desconocido del Norte de México,” Proceedings of the

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of the Sioux-Hokan group and languages of the Yuto-Aztecan group.
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Otomi
Agreda, Antonio de. Arte de la Lengua Otomí. (Manuscript in la Biblioteca
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[The manuscript of 139 pages bears the date 1771. The Arte, which is
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Andrews, Henrietta. “Phonemes and Morphophonemes of Temoayan Otomi,”

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qqqqqqqqqqq. “Otomi Place-Names in the State of Mexico, “Revista Mexicana de

Estudios Antropológicos, XIV (1954-55), 161-64.

qqqqqqqqqq. “Aspect Prefixes in Southwestern Otomi,” (Typewritten).

Arroyo, Víctor Manuel. Elementos de Gramática Otomí. Ixmiquillpan, Hgo.:

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Bartholomew, Doris. “Palabras prestadas del español en el dialecto otomí,” Revista

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24.

Buelna, Lic. Eustaquio. Luces del Otomí. México: Imprenta del Gobierno Federal,
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[The subtitle is “Gramática del idioma que hablan los indios otomíes en la
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 284

República Mexicana. Compuesto por un padre de la compañía de Jesús.”

Buelna, who edited the manuscript, dates it shortly after 1767. It consists of
six parts and includes several vocabularies as well as grammatical
information.]

Cárceres, Pedro de. “Arte de la Lengua Otomí,” Edited by Nicolás León, Boletín
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Caso, Alfonso. “Un códice en otomí,” Proceedings of the XXIII International

Congress of Americanists, 1930, 130-35.

Carrasco Pizana, Pedro. Los Otomies: Cultura e historia pre-hispánicas de los

pueblos mesoamericanas de habla otomiana. México: Instituto de Historia,
1950.

Colección Polidiómica Mexicana. México: n.p., 1888.

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edition more complte than the 1860 edition.]

Castaño, Bartholomé. Lo que precisamente debe saber el Christiano. (Photograph

manuscript in the W. E. Gates collection of the Newberry Library, Chicago.
15 pp. 13.7 cm.)

Catessismo Nathonate. (Manuscript of 1750, 8 pp., 21.5 cm. Newberry Library,

Chicago.)

Cathecismo y breve explicación de la doctrina Christiana en idioma othomí.

(Photograph manuscript in the W. E. Gates Collection of the Newberry
Library, Chicago. 33 pp. 13.7 cm.)

Codex de Huichapan. (Otomi manuscript, approx. 1632, in the Museo Nacional de

Arqueología, Historia, y Etnografía, México, D.F.)

Cornejo Cabrera, Ezekiel. “Los Otomies: Historia del grupo y de la cultura y su

situación actual,” Revista Mexicana de Sociología, XXIII (1961), 55-90.

Dávila Garibi, J. Ignacio. “Los últimos representantes de la raza Othomí en

Jalisco,” Boletín de la Sociedad Mexicana de Geografía y Estadística, XLIV
(1932), 39-68.

Diccionario Castellano-Otomí; Otomí-Castellano. México: Patrimonio Indígena del

Valle del Mezquital y del Instituto Lingüístico de Verano, 1956.

Diccionario Otomí. (Manuscript dictionary in the margins of Gilberti, Maturino.

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 285 Bibliography

Diccionario Otomí. (Manuscript dictionary in the margins of Molina’s Spanish-

Nahuatl Dictionary of 1571. In the American Museum of Natural History,
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Diccionario Otomí. (Manuscript in la Biblioteca Nacional, México, D.F. 800 pp.)

Dos Sermones en lengua otomí. (Manuscript of the 17th entury. 7 pp. 21.6 cm.
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Ecker, Lawrence, “Los dos “Metoros”,” Investigaciones Lingüísticas, IV (1937),

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[An Otomi text from Xuchitlán, Santiago de Ayala, Hidalgo, by Ricardo
Mayorga, edited by Ecker.]

qqqqqqqqqq. “A Criticism of the Second Part, Entitled “La Langue Otomí,” of the
work of Jacques Soustelle, La Famille Otomi-Pame du Mexique Central,”
Boletín Bibliográfico de Antropología Americana, II (1938), 17-30.

qqqqqqqqqq. “Retraction of Remarks on Soustelle’s La Famille Otomi-Pame du

Mexique Central, Boletín Bibliográfico de Antropología Americana, III
(1939), 29-30.

qqqqqqqqqq. “Testimonio Otomí sobre la etimología de México y Coyoacán,” El

México Antiguo, V (1941), 198-201.

qqqqqqqqqq. “La Incorporación del objeto al verbo en otomí y mexicano,”

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Antropología e Historia, IV (1952), 121-74.

Escandón, Luis A. “Arte del idioma otomí,” Ensayo Histórico Estadístico

Geográfico del Distrito de Ixmiquilpan, n.v. (1891), n.p.

Exámen crítico de la Gramática Otomí de Neve y Molina; Discurso crítico de la

Doctrina Otomí. (Manuscript, 143 pp. 21.3 cm. Newberry Library,
Chicago.)

Gaona, Juan de. Colloqvios de la paz y tranquilidad Christiana. Interlocutores: un

Religioso, y un Collegal. México: n.p., 1582.

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Nacional de Arqueología, Historia, y Etnografía, 5a época, I (1934), pp.
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qqqqqqqqqqq.“El Enigma Otomí,” Ábside, II (1938), 3-12.

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 286

Haedo, Francisco. Grámatica de la lengua otomí y método para confesar a los indios
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Jenkins, Joyce. “Morphological Phoneme Sequences in Eastern Otomi,” Phonetica,

II (1958), 1-11.

Jiménez Moreno, Wigberto. “Orígen y Significación del Nombre Otomí,” Revista

Mexicana de Estudios Antropológicos, III (1939), 62-68.

Leon, Frances, and Swadesh, Morris. “Two Views of Otomi Prosody,”

International Journal of American Linguistics, XV (1949), 100-105.

Leon, Frances. “Revisión de la Fonología del Otomí,” Anales del Instituto

Nacional de Antropología e Historia, XV (1963), 315-22.

León, Nicolás. “Uso de la Escritura Jeroglífica por los Hiá-Hiú, en tiempos muy
posteriores a la Conquista,” Proceedings of the XI International Congress of
Americanists, 1897, 288-90.

López Yepes, R.P. Fr. Joaquín. Catecismo y Declaración de la Doctrina Cristiana en

Lengua Otomí, con un vocabulario del mismo idioma. Mexico: Impreso
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Mena, Ramón. “Lingüística y glotología nacionales,” Boletín de la Sociedad

Mexicana de Geografía y Estadística, 5a época, VII (1919), 207-208.

Mendoza, Gumesindo. “Disertación sobre el Otomí,” Boletín de la Sociedad

Mexicana de Geografía y Estadística, 2a época, IV (1872), 41-52.
[Tésis: “El olomí es un modelo del orígen de las palabras en las lenguas
madres, y un ejemplo de cómo procedieron las razas primitivas para formar
un idioma.”]

qqqqqqqqqq. “Respuesta a las observaciones del Sr. Pimentel sobre la Disertación

que leí ante esta Sociedad acerca del Otomí,” Boletín de la Sociedad
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Méthodo breve para confesar á un Yndio en idioma Otomí. (Photograph manuscript,

33pp. 13.7 cm. W. E. Gates collection. Newberry Library, Chicago.)

Miranda, P. Francisco de. Catecismo Breve en Lengua Otomí. México: Imprenta

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Neve y Molina, D. Luis de. Reglas de ortografía, diccionario, y arte del idioma
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into German, French, and Italian.]

Olaguíbel, Manuel de. Onomatología del Estado de México. Toluca: Tipografía del
Gobierno en la Escuela de Artes y Oficios, 1894.

Peñafiel, Antonio. Ciudades coloniales y capitales de la República Mexicana.

Querétaro: n.p., 1911.
[Includes Otomi place names and plant names.]

qqqqqqqqqq. Lenguas Mexicanas. n.p., nd.

[Includes an Otomi vocabulary.]

qqqqqqqqqq. Composición de los nombres de lugar en lengua otomí y mixteco-

zapoteca. México: n.p., 1897.

Pérez, Presb. D. Francisco. Catecismo de la Doctrina Cristiana en lengua otomí.

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el idioma otomí, leída en la Sociedad Mexicana de Geografía y Estadística
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qqqqqqqqqq. “Réplica de Francisco Pimentel al Sr. Gumesindo Mendoza, acerca de

su disertación sobre el idioma otomí,” Boletín de la Sociedad Mexicana de
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qqqqqqqqqq. “Cap. LI “El Otomí ó Hiá-Hiú,” Obras Completas. México:

Tipografía Económica, (1903) II, pp. 358-74.

Ramírez, Fr. Antonio de Guadalupe. Catecismo breve othomí. México: Imprenta

Nueva Madrileña de los Herederos del Lic. D. Joseph de Jauregui, 1785.

Robelo, Cecilio A. Nombres geográficos indígenas del Estado de México.

Cuernavaca: Luis G. Miranda, 1900.

Sánchez de la Baquera, Juan. Modo Breve de aprender a ler, escrevir, pronunciar, y

ablar el idioma othomí. (Manuscript, 1747. 110 pp. 15 cm. Newberry
Library, Chicago.)
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 288

Sancturale Hiemale: Recueil de sermons pour les f[etes de différents Saints.

(Photograph manuscript of 17th century from original in Bibliotèque
Nationale, Paris. 152 pp. 14.2 cm. W. E. Gates collection. Newberry
Library, Chicago.)

Sermonario en Lengua Otomí. (Manuscript of the 16th century. 405 pp.

Incomplete. Number VII of the manuscript collection of la Biblioteca
Particular de Salvador Ugarte, Monterrey.)

Sinclair, Donald S., and Pike, Kenneth L. “The tonemes of Mezquital Otomi,”
International Journal of American Linguistics, XIV (1948), 91-98.

Soustelle, Jacques. “Deux contes otomis,” Journal de la Société des Américanistes,

XXVII (1935), 1-19.

qqqqqqqqqq. “Les Noms de Lieux en Otomi et dan les Langues,” Proceedings of

the XXVII International Congress of Americanists, 1947, 296-305.

Urbano, Alonso. Arte breve de la lengua otomí. (Photograph manuscript. 90 pp.

18.1 cm. W. E. Gates collection. Newberry Library, Chicago.)

Uribe, Oscar. “Toponímicos Otomíes,” Revista Mexicana de Estudios

Antropológicos, XIV (1954-55), 207-12.

Vargas, Melchior de. Doctrina Christiana, muy útil, y necesaria en Castellano,

Mexicano, y Otomí. (Photograph manuscript of 1576. 73 pp. 13.7 cm. W.
E. Gates collection. Newberry Library, Chicago.)

Velázquez, Gustavo G. “Vocabulario otomí del pueblo de Santa María Mazatla,

Méx.,” Investigaciones Lingüísticas, II (1934), 54-58.

Vivó, Jorge A. “Sobre Leyes Fonéticas del Otomí,” Proceedings of the XXVII
International Congress of Americanists, 1947, 366-73.

Vocabulario Otomí. (Manuscript, 1750. 571 pp. 31 cm. Newberry Library,

Chicago.)

Wallis, Ethel E. “Toponomía Otomí del Valle del Mezquital,” Revista Mexicana de
Estudios Antropológicos, XIV (1954-55), 153-60.

qqqqq. “Simulfixation in Aspect Markers of Mezquital Otomi,” Language, XXXII

(1956), 453-59.

qqqqq. “Mezquital Otomi Verb Fusion,” Language, XL (1964), 75-82.

Weitlaner, Robert J. “El Dialecto Otomí de Ixtenco,” Anales del Museo Nacional
de Arqueología, Historia, y Etnografía, 4a época, VIII (1933), 667-92.
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qqqqq. “El Otomí de Ixtenco, Tlaxcala,” Anales del Instituto Nacional de

Antropología e Historia, VI (1955), 11-14. Also in Estudios Antropológicos
Publicados en Homenaje al Dr. Manuel Gamio. Mexico: Dirección General
de Publicaciones, 1956, pp. 693-96.
[This second article on Ixtenco Otomi compares it with Newman and
Weitlaner’s reconstruction of Proto-Otomi.]

Weitlaner, Roberto, et Soustelle, Jacques. “Canciones Otomíes,” Journal de la

Société des Américanistes, XXVII (1935), 304-24.

Mazahua
León, Nicolás. “Mazahua Catechism in Testera-Amerind Hieroglyphics,”
American Anthropologist, II (1900), 722-84.

Nájera Yanguas, Diego de. Doctrina y Enseñanza en la Lengua Mazahva de cosas

mvy vtiles, y prouechosas para los Ministros de Doctrina, y para los
naturales que hablan la lengua Mazahva. México: Iuan Ruyz, 1637.
Reprinted in Biblioteca Mexicana de Obras Raras y Curiosas, Vol I.
México: Offset Vilar, 1953.

qqqqq. “Arte de la lengua Mazahua,” Actes de la Société Philologique du Paris,

XXVII (1898), 239-94; XXVIII (1899), 171-304.

Pike, Eunice V. “Tonemic-Intonemic Correlation in Mazahua (Otomi),”

International Journal of American Linguistics, XVII (1951), 37-41.

Pimentel, Francisco. Cap. LIII “El Mazahua ó Mazahui,” Obras Completas, Vol.
II, México: Tipografía Económica, 1903, pp. 394-400.

Rojas Gonzales, Francisco. “Los Mazahuas,” Revista Mexicana de Sociología, I

(1939), 99-122.

Spotts, Hazel. “Vowel Harmony and Consonant Sequences inMazahua (Otomi),”

International Journal of American Linguistics, XIX (1953), 253-58.

qqqqq. “Mazahua Place Names,” Revista Mexicana de Estudios Antropológicos,

XIV (1954-55), 165-67.

qqqqq. “Some Post-Conquest Changes in Mazahua,” International Journal of

American Linguistics, XXII (1956), 208-11.
[A comparison of Diego de Nájera Yanguas, Doctrina y Enseñanza en la
lengua Mazahua (1637) and modern Mazahua. There have been changes in
vowel harmony, involving more back vowels in stem-formative syllables.
The earlier c (tz) has become s. A phoneme l has developed. There have
been several changes in prefixes. Other changes in phonology or lexicon are
trivial.]
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 290

Stewart, Donald and Stewart, Shirley. Vocabulario Mazahua. México: Instituto

Lingüístico de Verano, 1954.

Stewart, Donald. “Progress Report on Tone Reconstruction of Proto-Otomi-

Mazahua.” (Unpublished Manuscript, 1954)

Matlatzinca and Ocuilteco

Acosta, Francisco. Arte de la Lengua Pirinda. (Manuscript, before 1605. La
Biblioteca del Convento de Charo, Michoacán.)
[Used by Basalenque in composing his grammar.]

qqqqq. Sermones en Lengua Pirinda. (Manuscript, before 1605. Location

undetermined.)

Andrews, Henriette G. “Observaciones en fenómenas tonales de matlatzinca.”

(Manuscript, 1945, 14 pp. Files of el Instituto Lingüístico de Verano,
México, D.F.)

qqqqq. “Matlatzinca Kinship System.” (Manuscript, 1945. 2 pp. Chart. Files of el

Instituto Lingüístico de Verano, México, D.F.)

qqqqq. “Language Notebook of Matlatzinca.” (Manuscript, 1945. 100pp. In my

possession.)
[Evidently basis for paper on the tone system, but contains other things as
well.]

Andrews, Henrietta, and Shell, Olive. “A Preliminary Report on Matlatzinca

Grammar,” (Manuscript, 1945. 7 pp. Files of el Instituto Lingüístico de
Verano, México, D.F.)

qqqqq. “A Tentative Statement and Description of Matlatzinca Phonemes with their

Distribution.” (Manuscript, 1945. 21 pp. Chart. Files of el Instituto
Lingüístico de Verano, México, D.F.)

Basalenque, Diego. Arte de la lengua Matlaltzinga. Vocabulario de la lengua

Castellano buelto en la Matlaltzinga. Vocabulario de la lengua Matlaltzinga
buelto en la Castellana. (Manuscripts, 1640-1646. Three copies known to
exist: one in el Museo Nacional de Arqueología, Historia, y Etnografía,
México, D.F.; one in la Biblioteca Particular de Salvador Ugarte, Monterrey,
N.L.; and the third in the John Carter Brown Library, Providence, R.I.)

Caso, Alfonso. “El Calendario Matlatzinca,” Revista Mexicana de Estudios

Antropológicos, VIII (1946), 95-109.
 291 Bibliography

Castro, Andrés de. Arte y Diccionario de la Lengua Matlatzinga. (Manuscript,

before 1577. Said to be in la Biblioteca de Santiago Tlaltelulco, México,
D.F.)

qqqqq. Sermones en Lengua Matlatzinca. (Manuscript, before 1577. 187 pp.

Location undetermined.)

qqqqq. Vocabulario de la Lengua Matlatzinga. (Manuscript, 1557. In the margins

of Molina’s Vocabulario de la lengua Castellano y Mexicana, México, 1555.
Library of the American Indian, New York.)

Cazés, Daniel. “Tésis Profesional sobre el Matlatzinca.” Unpublished Master’s

thesis, Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México, 1964.

García Payón, José. La zona arqueológica de Tecaxic-Calix-tlahuaca, y los

matlatzincas. México: Talleres Gráficos de la Nación, 1936.
[Contains historical notes regarding early priests and their writings in and
about Matlatzinca. Pages 223-36 give a bibliography of Matlatzinca
materials.]

qqqqq. “Interpretación de la vida de los pueblos matlatzincas,” El México Antiguo,

VI (1942-47), 73-90; 93-119.

qqqqq. “Manera de disponer de los muertos entre los matlatazincas del Valle de
Toluca,” Revista Mexicana de Estudios Antropológicos, V (1951), 64-78.

qqqqq. Matlatzincas ó Pirindas. México: El Nacional, 1942.

Génin, M. Auguste. “Notes d’Archéologie mexicaine, Le pays des Matlaltzinques,”

Journal de la Société des Américanistes, III (1901), 1-42.
[Contains a map of the region occupied by the Matlatzincas in 1470.]

Guevara, Miguel de. “Arte doctrinal y modo para aprender la lengua Matlaltzinga,”
Boletín de la Sociedad Mexicana de Geografía y Estadística, IX (1862), 197-
260.
[Guevara’s manuscript is of 1638. The editorial comments consider
Guevara’s grammar to be more thorough than Basalenque”s. Part of
Guevara’s manuscript was missing, however, so the section on the verbs was
taken from Basalenque’s manuscript, described above.]

León, Nicolás. “Orígen, estado actual y geografía del idioma pirinda ó matlatzinca
en el estado de Michaocán,” Gaceta oficial del Gobierno del Estado de
Michoacán, I (1886), n.p.
[Evidently reprinted in México, 1944.]

qqqqq. “Los Matlatzincas,” Boletín del Museo Nacional, I (1903), 57-82.

The Reconstruction of Otopamean 292

qqqqq. Catálogo de la colección de antigüedades matlatzincas del territorio

michoacano existentes en el Museo Nacional de México, arreglado por el
profesor de etnología, Dr. Nicolás León. México: Imprenta del Museo
Nacional, 1903.
[Contains material on the Matlatzinca calendar.]

Pimentel, Francisco. Cap XLI “El Matlatzinca ó Pirinda,” Obras Completas, Vol. II.
México: Tipografía Económica, 1903, pp. 136-63.

qqqqq. Cap. XLII “Observaciones sobre el Matlatzinca ó Pirinda,” Obras

Completas. Vol. II, México: Tipografía Económica, 1903, pp. 164-71.

Plancarte, F., y León, Nicolás. “Noticia de un Dialecto nuevo del Matlatzinca,”

Boletín del Museo Nacional, I (1903), 201-203.
[About the dialect of San Francisco Oztotilpan, Edo. de México.]

Ramírez, José Fernando. “Calendario Matlatzinca,” Anales del Museo Nacional, 2a

época, II (1905), 377-386.

Schuller, Rudolf. “Los indios matlatsinca y su lengua,” Ethnos, 3a época, I (1925),

105-114.
[Contains bibliography of old material on Matlatzinca.]

qqqqq. “An Unknown Matlatsinka Manuscript.” Indian Notes, VII, 1930. 175-94.
[Notice of the manuscript dictionary by Andrés de Castro in the margins of
Molina’s 1555 Spanish-Nahuatl dictionary. Schuller planned to publish the
manuscript, but died before this was possible. Plans are again underway to
publish this valuable dictionary.]

Sermones sobre los Evangelios y fiestas del año en la lengua Matlaltzingue de las
Indias. (Photograph manuscript of the 17th century. 570 pp. 14.3 cm.
Imperfect, lacking leaves 1-62, 136-140. W. E. Gates collection, Newberry
Library, Chicago. Photographed from the original Ms. in Bibliothèque
Nationale.

Weitlaner, Robert J. “Beitrag zur sprache der Ocuilteca von San Juan Acingo,” El
México Antiguo, IV (1939), 297-328.

Pame
Castro, Carlo Antonio. “La Pluralización en Pame Meridional,” Revista Mexicana
de Estudios Antropológicos, XIV (1954-55), 213-218.

qqqqq. “Testimonio Pame-Meridional para la Etimología de México,” Tlatoani,

(1952), 33.
 293 Bibliography

Gibson, Lorna. “El sistema de parentesco pame,” Yan, II (1954), 77-84.

qqqqq. “Pame (Otomi) Phonemics and Morphophonemics,” International Journal of

American Linguistics, XXII (1956), 242-65.

qqqqq. “Patterning in Pame Noun Morphology.” Unpublishd manuscript, 1964.

qqqqq. and Olson, Anne. “Four Pame Texts,” Tlalocan, IV (1963), 125-43.

Manrique Castañeda, Leonardo. “Descriptive Sketch of South Pame (Jiliapan

Dialect),” to appear in Handbook of Middle American Languages, ed. N. A.
McQuown.

qqqqq. “Dos grámaticas pames del siglo XVIII,” Anales del Instituto Nacional de
Antropología e Historia, XI (1960), 283-87.

Maza, Dr. Antonio de la. “La Nación Pame,” Boletín de la Sociedad Mexicana de
Geografía y Estadística, LXIII, (1947), 493-575.
[Includes a vocabulary of about 1000 words from Santa María Acapulco.
Also contains the present tense conjugation of 18 verbs.]

Olson, Anne Blackman. Pedagogical Grammar of Pame. Unpublished manuscript,

1953-54.

Olson, Donald. “Spanish Loan Words in Pame,” International Journal of American

Linguistics, XXIX (1963), 219-21.

Soriano, Fr. Juan Guadalupe. Difícil Tratado del Arte y Unión de los Idiomas
Othomii y Pamee. Doctrina Christiana, para la fácil enseñanza he
intelligencia de los Misterios de Ntra. Santa Fee en el idioma Pame, para
bien de las Almas. (Manuscript, 1776. Dr. de la Maza made a copy of the
manuscript from archives in Madrid. The copy is now in the possession of
Leonardo Manrique.)

Soustelle, Jacques. “Documentos sur les langues Pame et Jonaz du Mexique Central
(Hidalgo, Querétaro, et San Luis Potosí),” Journal de la Société des
Américanistes, XL (1951), 1-20.

Valle, Francisco. “Quaderno de Algunas Reglas y Apuntes Sobre El Idioma Pame:

Notas acerca de las letras con que se escriben muchos términos, sus acentos,
y modo de pronunciar,” Bibliografía Española de Lenguas Indígenas de
América, Madrid: N.P., 1892. 287-314.
[Published (incomplete) by Rudolf Schuller with the title La Unica
Gramática Conocida de la Lengua Pame, México, Secretaría de Educación
Pública, Depto. de Antropología, 1925.]
The Reconstruction of Otopamean 294

Chichimeco
Angulo, Jaime de. “The Chichimeco Language (Central Mexico),” International
Journal of American Linguistics, VII (1933), 153-94.

Driver, Harold E., and Driver, Wilhelmine. “Ethnography and Acculturation of the
Chichimeco-Jonaz of Northeast Mexico.” Indiana University Research
Center in Anthropology, Folklore, and Linguistics, No. 26, International
Journal of American Linguistics, XXIX (1963).

Gerste, Aquiles. “La langue des Chichimèques,” Revue des Questiones

Scientifiques, XXX (1891), 81-103.
[Also published separately with the title La langue des Chichimèques: Etude
ethnologique. Bruxelles: Polleunis et Ceuterick, 1891.]

González Casanova, Pablo. “Un vocabulario chichimeco,” Proceedings of the

XXIII International Congress of Americanists, 1930, 918-25.

Romero Castillo, Moisés. “Los Fonemas del Chichimeco-Jonaz,” Anales del

Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, XI (1957-58), 288-99.

qqqqq. Vocabulario Chichimeco. In press.

295