A reconstruction of the phonology of Proto-Southern Bantu

Abstract

The comparative method is applied to data drawn from a list of 800 Zulu, North Sotho, Venda, Tsonga and Zezuru glosses to obtain a reconstruction of the phonemes of Proto-Southern Bantu. The phonological relationship between these phonemes, and the general phonological structure of the proto-language, are examined; next, the reconstruction is compared to the reconstructions of Proto-Bantu made by Guthrie and Meeussen. Finally the phonological derivation of the Southern Bantu data-languages is shown, and genealogical groupings, based on common phonological innovations, are sought. The evidence examined suggests that the Southern Bantu group may form a subgroup within Bantu, but that dialectal differentiation existed even at the earliest stages. However, the focus of this study has been within the group: it is therefore premature to say whether the innovations constitute sufficient evidence of a a separate Southern Bantu subgroup.