Chinese and Sumerian

INITIAL AND FINALE SOUNDS, ETE: 13

others. Such equivalences may justify the surmise that the Chinese k‘in, k‘im, djing, birds, stands in the same relation to the Sumerian SHEN, TIN, in MU-SHEN, MU-TIN, bird. (The MU or WU in this compound is probably the labialized pronunciation of GU, bird.)

_To a philologist there is nothing strange in the mutual equivalence or interchange of obviously related sounds, such as b, p, f, m, v, or m, n, ng, ord, t, s, z, all of which find ample illustration in the Chinese dialects. A transition from n to s, z, sh, or zh, may appear more remarkable, if not altogether incredible. But, as I pointed out many years ago, this very feature is as characteristic of Chinese as of the Sumerian language. The ninth of the ‘Ten Stems’, =F, zén, great, pronounced nin by the Japanese, fiyém in Annam, and zing, zang, dialectically, is evidently a close parallel to the Sumerian ~TTT NUN, ZIL (from ZIN), SIL (SIN), great; and, to clinch the comparison, the two characters were originally identical (Szgz-dest, No. 35). This is a specially interesting example for the general thesis of the present work on the following grounds. The character =f nin, Zén, is immediately connected with the character -f shi, Zit, R. 33, P. 28a, in the Chinese lexicons (Radical Index). The meanings of the latter symbol are male, man, husband, warrior, officer, minister (of State); see Legge, Shz keng, vol. II, index iii. But these meanings are virtually identical with those of the Sumerian character -}¥}¥ NIR, NUR, SHER, which consists of doubled >]]]? NUN; see C. T. xii. 24 and 30; D.73 and D. 43; Br.6280ff. ; SP 129; 130. (See also Lex. s.v. NIR, SHER.) And the Chinese + shi is a natural simplification of the Sumerian symbol, which is its obvious prototype; see Sign-list, No. 36,

Another clear instance of the same transition of sound in both languages is seen in the Sumerian {+£] NIN, lord, lady = « SHIN, also written ~=]y17 phonetically (Br. 9949; 9967; 2 R. 59.29 a6); a word which was probably of the same origin as ~l1& GIN and 4{ DIN, male, man, and (to say the least) strongly resembles the Chinese \. Zén, nyin, J. djin, nin, man, woman, lady (Shi dng). See R. 9; G. 5624.

Other Sumerian examples are >[>} NA, SHA, C.T. xii. 10; EJ NA, SHA; et} NA, ZA, SI; 44 NAD, SHAD; pela NAG, SHAG; Ele NAR = = EL] SAR, ar SUR, or SHAR, SHUR, C.T. xii. 40; -]<J* NAM, SIM; Se NI, ZAL; and the pronominal Far] NE, Fae NI, ¥¥ ZA, >=]! ZU. Cf also per »f- NU (from NUG ?), flesh = ra Ll U-ZU (from ZUG?), flesh, in the metaphorical expression »4»/ Fy] NU-NU-NE, ‘this one’s fleshes, z.¢. his bloodrelations (compare G, 5665).

Lastly, the equivalence of initial sounds which we see in Sumerian EP} BAR, SHAR, >< BAD, TIL, <¥' BAD, PAD, SHUG, 3-4 BAR, DAG, ZA, Se} BAR, DAG, *~ BUR, SIR, JJ PIG, SIG, has its parallel in the Chinese pi, ti, G. 8981, pi, hse, G, 8986, pit, pi, tet (=»<« BAD, BE, oe G. 8994, pik, sik, tik, G. 9027, and other instances of the same kind.