Master thesis (Japanese Studies), University of Vienna, 2019
Numerous studies on the origins of the Japanese languages have failed to deliver a satisfactory a... more Numerous studies on the origins of the Japanese languages have failed to deliver a satisfactory answer. This is in part due to the complex nature of the problem. In this thesis I have applied a multidisciplinary approach to utilize data from a variety of fields that provide a versatile picture of the historical development of the Japanese language. My research suggests that the homeland of the Japonic language family may have been in the lower Yangtze River Valley, from where its speakers moved to the Korean peninsula and eventually into Japan during the Yayoi period. This spread is associated with the dispersal of wet-rice agriculture from the area south of the Yangtze River via the northeastern Asian mainland, where it was in contact with cultures cultivating millets, and through the Korean peninsula. The people from the supposed homeland are likely related to the Pre-Austronesians. Therefore, this hypothesis can be tested in future research by locating language data for Pre-Austronesian and comparing them with reconstructed proto-Japonic terms.
SOKENDAI Review of Cultural and Social Studies, 2024
In this study, the phonemic status of the close central vowel [ɨ] in the Nakachi dialect of the S... more In this study, the phonemic status of the close central vowel [ɨ] in the Nakachi dialect of the Southern Ryukyuan language of Irabu is examined. This study focuses on quantitative phonological analysis to clarify the distribution of [ɨ] and phonetically similar sounds in relation to the preceding and following phonetic environments and the position in the word. The distribution of the relevant sounds [i], [ɨ], [s̞ ], and [ɹ] are examined using a large set of data from a dictionary (Tomihama 2013). This study demonstrates how distributional analysis can be conducted computationally. The results confirm the general distribution of sounds in the Nakachi dialect, as shown by Tomihama (2013), and provide objective evidence that the close central vowel [ɨ] is an allophone of /i/.
In this article, I deal with the historical development of the Japanese language by applying a mu... more In this article, I deal with the historical development of the Japanese language by applying a multi-disciplinary approach that uses data from a variety of fields. My research indicates that the home-land of the Japonic language family may have been in the lower Yangtze River Valley, from where its speakers moved to the Korean Peninsula and eventually to Japan during the Yayoi period. This spread is associated with the dispersal of wet rice agriculture from the area south of the Yangtze River via the northeastern Asian mainland, where it was in contact with cultures cultivating millet. Old Japanese mythology and genealogical data suggests that the earliest known ethnic group that spoke Japonic may have been the Hayato people of southern Kyūshū.
Master thesis (Japanese Studies), University of Vienna, 2019
Numerous studies on the origins of the Japanese languages have failed to deliver a satisfactory a... more Numerous studies on the origins of the Japanese languages have failed to deliver a satisfactory answer. This is in part due to the complex nature of the problem. In this thesis I have applied a multidisciplinary approach to utilize data from a variety of fields that provide a versatile picture of the historical development of the Japanese language. My research suggests that the homeland of the Japonic language family may have been in the lower Yangtze River Valley, from where its speakers moved to the Korean peninsula and eventually into Japan during the Yayoi period. This spread is associated with the dispersal of wet-rice agriculture from the area south of the Yangtze River via the northeastern Asian mainland, where it was in contact with cultures cultivating millets, and through the Korean peninsula. The people from the supposed homeland are likely related to the Pre-Austronesians. Therefore, this hypothesis can be tested in future research by locating language data for Pre-Austronesian and comparing them with reconstructed proto-Japonic terms.
SOKENDAI Review of Cultural and Social Studies, 2024
In this study, the phonemic status of the close central vowel [ɨ] in the Nakachi dialect of the S... more In this study, the phonemic status of the close central vowel [ɨ] in the Nakachi dialect of the Southern Ryukyuan language of Irabu is examined. This study focuses on quantitative phonological analysis to clarify the distribution of [ɨ] and phonetically similar sounds in relation to the preceding and following phonetic environments and the position in the word. The distribution of the relevant sounds [i], [ɨ], [s̞ ], and [ɹ] are examined using a large set of data from a dictionary (Tomihama 2013). This study demonstrates how distributional analysis can be conducted computationally. The results confirm the general distribution of sounds in the Nakachi dialect, as shown by Tomihama (2013), and provide objective evidence that the close central vowel [ɨ] is an allophone of /i/.
In this article, I deal with the historical development of the Japanese language by applying a mu... more In this article, I deal with the historical development of the Japanese language by applying a multi-disciplinary approach that uses data from a variety of fields. My research indicates that the home-land of the Japonic language family may have been in the lower Yangtze River Valley, from where its speakers moved to the Korean Peninsula and eventually to Japan during the Yayoi period. This spread is associated with the dispersal of wet rice agriculture from the area south of the Yangtze River via the northeastern Asian mainland, where it was in contact with cultures cultivating millet. Old Japanese mythology and genealogical data suggests that the earliest known ethnic group that spoke Japonic may have been the Hayato people of southern Kyūshū.
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Theses by Patrick Elmer
Papers by Patrick Elmer