[d]→[c]Certainty: 5/5Commonality: 3/5
Voiced alveolar plosive to Voiceless palatal plosive
The shift from voiced dental stop [d] to the voiceless palatal stop [tɕ] (or [c]) involves both palatalization and devoicing, typically occurring before high front vowels. This is a major process in Mandarin Chinese (Ming–Qing dynasties) and Slavic historical phonology, where dental stops become palatal affricates in pre-palatal environments.
Phonetic Effects
Palatalization, Devoicing, Assimilation
Language Examples
Late Ming Mandarin: Old Mandarin *[d-] before [i], [ɥ]→Modern Mandarin [tɕ] (jia, jing, jiong in pinyin)— During the Qing dynasty (1644–1911), dental stops [d] underwent palatalization to [tɕ] before high front vowels and glides, merging with earlier palatal affricates. Example: Old *di → Modern jī [tɕi]
*diao (Middle Chinese dental initial before [i] coda)→Modern Mandarin jiào /tɕiɑ̌w/— Dental-to-palatal palatalization in the Qing period merged dental and palatal series, creating the modern jia/jie/jiu initial set.
*d before front vowels→[tɕ]— Early Slavic palatalization where dental stops devoiced and palatalizedbefore high front vowels.
Latin *d→[tʃ] / [ts]— In various Romance dialects, Latin dental stops underwent multi-stage palatalization, often through an intermediate [tɕ] stage before reaching modern outputs.
Related Transformations
More Assimilation Shifts
Sources & References
- Norman, J. (1988). Chinese. Cambridge University Press.
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_Chinese_phonology
- Ladefoged, P., & Maddieson, I. (1996). The Sounds of the World's Languages. Oxford University Press.
- Campbell, L. (2013). Historical Linguistics: An Introduction.
- Schenker, A. M. (1995). The Dawn of Slavic.
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