Old Dhivehi
{{Short description|Earliest form of Maldivian language}}
{{Infobox language
| name = Old Dhivehi
| familycolor = Indo-European
| region = Maldives
| era = 12-13th century CE
| fam1 = Indo-European
| fam2 = Indo-Iranian
| fam3 = Indo-Aryan
| fam4 = Southern Zone
| fam5 = Insular Indo-Aryan
| script = Eveylaa akuru (older variant of Dhives Akuru)
| image = Dambidu-Lomafanu.png
| imagecaption = Dhanbidhoo Loamaafaanu (1195 CE) is written in the Old Dhivehi language
| notice = IPA
| fam6 = Elu
}}
Old Dhivehi is the earliest attested form of the Maldivian language, with records found in the Loamaafaanu from the 12th and 13th centuries CE, as well as various Buddhist texts dating back to the 6th century CE. It is the ancestral form that evolved into the modern northern dialect of the Dhivehi language. Old dhivehi belongs to Indo-Aryan branch of the wider Indo-European language family.
No endonym for the language is known. However the language may have been called "Dhuvesi" or "Dhivesi" meaning "Islander", which has evolved into the endonym for the modern language.{{Cite journal |last=Fritz |first=Sonja |date=2002 |title=The Dhivehi Language: A Descriptive and Historical Grammar of Maldivian and Its Dialects |url=http://titus.uni-frankfurt.de/personal/sf/sf_2002a.pdf |journal=Beiträge zur Südasienforschung |volume=191 |pages=32, 61 |via=TITUS}}
History
Old Dhivehi descends through Proto Dhivehi-Sinhala or Elu spoken in 3rd century BCE. Around 1st century BCE, the unattested Proto-Dhivehi, the direct ancestor to all Maldivian dialects, started to separate from Elu prakrit. Proto-Dhivehi came to be influenced by subcontinental Middle Indo-Aryan dialects and Dravidian languages.{{Cite book |last=Dwayne. |first=Cain, Bruce |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/841782150 |title=Dhivehi (Maldivian): A synchronic and diachronic study. |isbn=978-0-599-50452-3 |pages=163–167 |oclc=841782150}}
Phonology
Vowel inventory of Old Dhivehi is mostly identical to that of modern dhivehi. Like Sinhala and Dravidian and unlike most Indo-Aryan languages, spoken Old Dhivehi distinguished between long and short forms of [{{IPA link|e}}, {{IPA link|eː}}] and [{{IPA link|o}}, {{IPA link|oː}}]. However these were not distinguished in writing.{{Cite book |last=Ahmed. |first=Maniku, Hassan |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/30815973 |title=Isdhoo loamaafaanu |date=1986 |publisher=Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka |page=iv |oclc=30815973}}
| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
!rowspan=2| !colspan=2| Front !colspan=2| Central !colspan=2| Back |
| class=small
!short !long !short !long !short !long |
| Close
|{{IPA link|i}} |{{IPA link|iː}} | | |{{IPA link|u}} |{{IPA link|uː}} |
|---|
| Mid
|{{IPA link|e}} |{{IPA link|eː}} | | |{{IPA link|o}} |{{IPA link|oː}} |
| Open
| colspan="2" | |{{IPA link|a}} |{{IPA link|aː}} | | |
- Modern [æː] developed as an independent phoneme from the Old Dhivehi diphthong /ai/.
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" |
| style="font-size: 90%;"
! ! colspan="2" | Labial ! colspan="2" | Dental/ ! colspan="2" | Retroflex ! colspan="2" | Palatal ! colspan="2" | Velar ! colspan="2" | Glottal |
| Nasal
| width="20px" style="border-right: 0;" | || width="20px" style="border-left: 0;" |{{IPA link|m}} | width="20px" style="border-right: 0;" | || width="20px" style="border-left: 0;" |{{IPA link|n}} | width="20px" style="border-right: 0;" | || width="20px" style="border-left: 0;" |{{IPA link|ɳ}} | width="20px" style="border-right: 0;" | || width="20px" style="border-left: 0;" |{{IPA link|ɲ}} | width="20px" style="border-right: 0;" | || width="20px" style="border-left: 0;" | | colspan="2" | |
|---|
| Stop/ Affricate | style="border-right: 0;" |{{IPA link|p}} | width="20px" style="border-right: 0;" |{{IPA link|t̪|t̪}} | style="border-right: 0;" |{{IPA link|ʈ}} | style="border-right: 0;" | || style="border-left: 0;" | | style="border-right: 0;" |{{IPA link|k}} | colspan="2" | |
| Fricative
| style="border-right: 0;" | || style="border-left: 0;" | | style="border-right: 0;" |{{IPA link|s̪|s̪}} || style="border-left: 0;" | | style="border-right: 0;" | || style="border-left: 0;" | | style="border-right: 0;" | || style="border-left: 0;" | | colspan="2" | | width="20px" style="border-right: 0;" |{{IPA link|h}}|| width="20px" style="border-left: 0;" | |
| Approximant
| style="border-right: 0;" | || style="border-left: 0;" |{{IPA link|ʋ}} | style="border-right: 0;" | || style="border-left: 0;" |{{IPA link|l̪}} | style="border-right: 0;" | || style="border-left: 0;" |{{IPA link|ɭ}} | style="border-right: 0;" | || style="border-left: 0;" |{{IPA link|j}} | colspan="2" | | colspan="2" | |
| Tap
| colspan="2" | | colspan="2" | | style="border-right: 0;" | || style="border-left: 0;" |ɽ | colspan="2" | | colspan="2" | | colspan="2" | |
- The Old Dhivehi vowel inventory was more limited compared to that of modern Dhivehi, as the phonemes of /{{IPA link|f}}/, /{{IPA link|z̪}}/, /{{IPA link|d͡ʒ}}/, /{{IPA link|t͡ʃ}}/ and /{{IPA link|ʃ}}/ had not evolved.
- OIA sibilants historically merged /{{IPA link|ʃ}}/ and /{{IPA link|ʂ}}/ into /{{IPA link|s}}]/.{{Cite book |last=Dwayne. |first=Cain, Bruce |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/841782150 |title=Dhivehi (Maldivian): A synchronic and diachronic study. |isbn=978-0-599-50452-3 |pages=154, 155 |oclc=841782150}}
- The Old Dhivehi consonant clusters /dy/ and /ty/ evolved into later /{{IPA link|d͡ʒ}}/ and /{{IPA link|t͡ʃ}}/ respectively.{{Cite journal |last=Fritz |first=Sonja |date=2002 |title=The Dhivehi language : a descriptive and historical grammar of Maldivian and its dialects |url=https://titus.fkidg1.uni-frankfurt.de/personal/sf/sf_2002a.pdf |journal=Beiträge zur Südasienforschung |volume=191 |pages=38–39 |via=TITUS}}
- Prenasalized consonants existed in the spoken form of Old Dhivehi, however were not written down.{{Cite book |last=Dwayne. |first=Cain, Bruce |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/841782150 |title=Dhivehi (Maldivian): A synchronic and diachronic study. |isbn=978-0-599-50452-3 |pages=182 |oclc=841782150}}
- Modern Dhivehi ށ /{{IPA link|ʂ}}/ is a reflex of OIA and Old Dhivehi /{{IPA link|ʈ}}/ rather than OIA /{{IPA link|ʂ}}/.
- Old Dhivehi contrasted between the retroflex nasal ޱ [{{IPA link|ɳ}}] and dental nasal ނ [{{IPA link|n̪}}].{{Citation |title=2. The Dhivehi Language |date=2016-12-05 |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/9781614512349-005 |work=Dhivehi |pages=11–20 |access-date=2023-04-05 |publisher=De Gruyter|doi=10.1515/9781614512349-005 |isbn=978-1-61451-234-9 }}{{Cite book |last1=Ofitsch |first1=Michaela |url=https://www.academia.edu/27174520 |title=125 Jahre Indo-Germanistik in Graz: Festband anlässlich des 125jährigen Bestehens der Forschungseinrichtung "Indogermanistik" an der Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz |last2=Zinko |first2=Christian |year=2002 |page=149}}
- Old Dhivehi /{{IPA link|p}}/ shifted to /{{IPA link|f}}/ after the 17th century.{{Cite book |last=Dwayne. |first=Cain, Bruce |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/841782150 |title=Dhivehi (Maldivian): A synchronic and diachronic study. |isbn=978-0-599-50452-3 |pages=212 |oclc=841782150}}
- Vowel backing of Old Dhivehi /{{IPA link|e}}/ to /{{IPA link|o}}/ before retroflexes occurred after the 13th century.{{Cite book |last=Dwayne. |first=Cain, Bruce |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/841782150 |title=Dhivehi (Maldivian): A synchronic and diachronic study. |isbn=978-0-599-50452-3 |pages=209–210 |oclc=841782150}}
Grammar
{{Expand section|small=no|date=January 2025}}
Vocabulary
{{Expand section|small=no|date=January 2025}}
| class="wikitable"
|+ !Old Dhivehi !Modern Dhivehi !English |
| Puʈi ޕުޓި
|Fuʂi ފުށި |Islet |
| Pavuru ޕަވުރު
|Fāru ފާރު |Wall |
| Ateɭu އަތެޅު
|Atoɭu އަތޮޅު |Atoll |
| Malu މަލު
|Mā މާ |Flower |
| Raʈu ރަޓު
|Raʂ ރަށް |Island/Country |
| Keɭu ކެޅު
|Koɭu ކޮޅު |end/piece |
| Simu ސިމު
|In އިން |Border |
| Saᶯdu ސަނދު
|Haᶯdu ހަނދު |Moon |
| Doruveʈi ދޮރުވެޓި
|Dorōʂi ދޮރޯށި |Gate |
References
{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maldivian Language}}
Category:Southern Indo-Aryan languages