Query Details
| Query Subject: |
Origin of Erhua in Beijing/Northern Chinese
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| Author: | Brent Woo | |
| Submitter Email: | click here to access email | |
| Linguistic LingField(s): |
Historical Linguistics
Phonology |
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| Query: |
Erhua refers to the phenomenon in Beijing and some other Northern
varieties of Mandarin Chinese where certain nouns and verbs are pronounced with r-coloring, or where the coda of a syllable is effectively replaced with the retroflex approximant. It is unique in the relationship between Chinese writing and speech because it is the only one of its kind in the language that when written down retroactively affects the preceding syllable. I have been unable to find conclusive information on the circumstances of the appearance of erhua. On one hand, it would appear to be a recent appearance since communities like Taiwan and Southern China do not pronounce erhua. But on the other, more likely hand, it seems to be a historical carryover from something since other Northern varieties, in particular the enigmatic Dungan language of Kyrgyzstan and certainly the Dungans separated long before Taiwanese Mandarin was established. Some hypotheses I have heard is that erhua is an artifact from the Manchu dynasty, reflecting the Tungusic language's influence on court language (that would explain its presence in Beijing). But if erhua appeared so long ago, how is it that both Taiwanese and non-Northern varieties unilaterally reject erhua? Is it for purely sociolinguistic reasons? That seems odd that the entire country save for the capital would reject (or not acquire?) this very distinct pronunciation. I have been unable to find any information on this other than informal discussions concerning erhua as a synchronic phenomenon; the internet seems uninterested in the history of this pronunciation. Also, it should be made clear that I am not primarily asking about the semantics of its use, although if it is part of the historical explanation, of course information of that sort is welcome. My main question, then, is: When and from where did erhua appear in Mandarin Chinese? I don't profess to be any sort of expert in Sinitic languages, so forgive any premature assumptions I have made. But this question was sparked on my preliminary investigation into the history and nature of Dungan and I feel it would greatly inform my research if I knew more about erhua. |
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| LL Issue: | 22.4280 | |
| Date posted: | 29-Oct-2011 | |
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