< Reconstruction:Proto-Sino-Tibetan < b-ka-(n < m
Reconstruction:Proto-Sino-Tibetan/b-ka-(n/m/ŋ)
 | This Proto-Sino-Tibetan entry contains reconstructed words and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence. |
Proto-Sino-Tibetan
Etymology
- Proto-Sino-Tibetan: *b-kɑ-n (Coblin, 1986)
- Proto-Tibeto-Burman: *b-ka-(n/m/ŋ) (Matisoff, STEDT); *b-ka-n (Matisoff, 2003; Mortensen, 2012); *ka (Benedict, 1972; Weidert, 1987; LaPolla, 1987); *ka (*B) (Coblin, 1986); *kɑ (Chou, 1972)
Derivative: Proto-Sino-Tibetan *kak (“difficult, hard”).
Compare Proto-Tai *Ĉ.qɤmᴬ (“bitter”) (Thai ขม (kǒm), Lao ຂົມ (khom)); also compare: Thai ขื่น (kʉ̀ʉn), Lao ຂື່ນ (khư̄n, “bitter, astringent, ascerbic”).
Adjective
*b-ka-(n/m/ŋ)
- bitter
- bile
- liver
Descendants
- Old Chinese: 苦 /*kʰˤaʔ/ (B-S), /*kʰaːʔ/ (ZS) ("bitter; a bitter plant"); /*kʰˤa-s/ (B-S, unlisted), /*kʰaːs/ (ZS) ("difficult, hardship"); 肝 /*s.kˤar/ (B-S); /*kaːn/ (ZS) ("liver")
- Middle Chinese: 苦 (kʰuoX, kʰuoH/), 肝 (kɑn)
→ Japanese: 苦 (く, ku)
Korean: 고 (苦, go)
Vietnamese: khổ (苦)
→ Vietnamese: khó (“hard, difficult; delicate”)
→ Japanese: 肝 (かん, kan)
Korean: 간 (肝, gan)
Vietnamese: can (肝)
→ Vietnamese: gan (“liver”)
- Modern Mandarin
- Beijing: 苦 (kǔ, /kʰu²¹⁴/), 肝 (gān, /kan⁵⁵/)
- Himalayish
- Tibeto-Kanauri
- Bodic
- Tibetan
- Written Tibetan: ཁ་བ (kha ba, “bitter”), དཀ་བ (dka ba, “difficult”)
- Tibetan
- Bodic
- Tibeto-Kanauri
- Naic:
- Naish:
- Naxi: ka (“bitter”)
- Naish:
- Nungish:
- Rawang: ka (“bitter”)
- Trung/Drung/Dulong: ka (“bitter”)
- Lolo-Burmese
- Burmish
- Burmese: ခါး (hka:, “bitter”)
- Loloish
- Northern Loloish
- Yi (Liangshan): ꈌ (ke, “bitter”)
- Central Loloish
- Lisu (Northern): ꓘꓪꓽ (kʰwà, “bitter, too salty”)
- Lolopo: kar (“bitter”)
- Northern Loloish
- Burmish
- Karen: *khaᴮ (Luangthongkum, 2013)
- Sgaw: ခၣ် (khà, “bitter”)
See also
- *m-sin (“liver, heart, bile, bitter”)
- *m-ka (“mouth, opening, door”)
- *ka (“word, speech, language”)
- *tsa (“salt”)