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STEDT #352

*s-lyap

LIGHTNING / FLASH / GLITTER / BUTTERFLY
Proto-Tibeto-Burman

Reconstruction analysis

initiallrhymeep

Intermediate reconstructions

Kuki-Chin*pha-lep ‘BUTTERFLY’PKC #329

Notes

The semantic connection between LIGHTNING and BUTTERFLY seems to reside in the iridescent quality of many butterfly wings, as well as by the rapidity of their wings flapping.

Bauer (1992) has identified this root as a “pan-Southeast Asianism”, and relates it to #2790 PTB *g-yaːp FAN / WINNOW / PADDLE / WAVE (v.).

Also undoubtedly related to this etymon is #2077 PTB *s-lap WING / FLUTTER / EYELASH / GILL.

Chinese comparandum

蝶 OC *dʼiɑp, GSR #633h ‘butterfly’; Coblin 86:51 ST *ƚep > OC *diap; Schuessler 2007:281 *lêp; Mand. dié.
燁/爗 OC *gi̯əp ~ *gi̯ɛp, GSR #682a-b ‘shine, gleam’; Schuessler 2007:562 *lap ~ *wap; Mand. yè.
熠 OC *zi̯əp, GSR #690f ‘gleaming’; Schuessler 2007:570 *wəp; Mand. yì.

Reflexes & cognates63 reflexes · 22 subgroups

0Sino-Tibetan (previously published reconstructions)1

*Sino-Tibetanl+ep ‘butterfly’Coblin 86: 51

0.1Tibeto-Burman (previously published reconstructions)3

*Tibeto-Burmanlyap ‘glitter, flash, lightning’Benedict 72 STC: 213
*Tibeto-Burmans-lyap ‘glitter / flash / lightning’Matisoff 03 HPTB: 601

1.2Kuki-Chin1

*Chinpha-lep ‘BUTTERFLY’VanBik 09 PKC: 329

1.2.1.1Northern Chin2

Sizangpingmorpheme pīleap ‘butterfly’VanBik 09 PKC: 329
Thadopɛ́ŋmorpheme◦pàlép ‘butterfly’Thirumalai 72: 39

1.2.1.2Southern Plains Chin2

Ashopammorpheme-balètˊˊ ‘butterfly’VanBik 09 PKC: 329
Khumiphulíe ‘butterfly’VanBik 09 PKC: 329

1.2.2Central Chin3

Lai (Hakha)pěeŋmorpheme pha-lep ‘butterfly’VanBik 09 PKC: 329
Lushai [Mizo]pengmorpheme phe-lep ‘butterfly’VanBik 09 PKC: 329
Lushai [Mizo]phengmorpheme◦phehlep ‘butterfly’Marrison 67 Naga

1.3“Naga” Areal Group1

Maringpaipamorpheme◦lip ‘butterfly’Marrison 67 Naga

1.3.1Central Naga (Ao Group)1

Ao (Mongsen: Longchang)tsungmorpheme◦la n‘lightning’Marrison 67 Naga

1.3.3Zeme Group1

Puirontaprefix◦lep ‘butterfly’Marrison 67 Naga

1.7.2.1Tangsa-Nocte1

Tangsa (Moshang)rongmorpheme◦lep n‘lightning’Marrison 67 Naga

1.7.3.1Jingpho7

2.1.2Bodic4

Tsangla (Motuo)(taŋ⁵⁵morpheme) lep¹³ v.‘flash (of lightning)’Zhang Jichuan 86
Tsangla (Motuo)taŋmorpheme◦lep ‘flash (of lightning)’Sun H 91 ZMYY: 754.7
Tsangla (Tilang)lep v.‘flash (of lightning)’Zhang Jichuan 86
Motuo Menbataŋmorpheme lep v.‘lightning’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 1606.07

2.1.2.1Tibetan14

Sakka Trokpašūkpamorpheme-pāmorpheme◦lep ‘butterfly’Weidert 87 TBTo: 665
Tibetan (Alike)wɕamorpheme mamorpheme lep tsimorpheme n‘butterfly’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 0370.05
Tibetan (Amdo:Bla-brang)çamorpheme mamorpheme lep tsemorpheme ‘butterfly’Sun H 91 ZMYY: 154.4
Tibetan (Amdo:Zeku)wɕemorpheme mamorpheme lep tsemorpheme ‘butterfly’Sun H 91 ZMYY: 154.5
Tibetan (Batang)ɕe¹³morphemema⁵³morpheme ʔa⁵⁵morphemele⁵³ n‘butterfly’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 0370.03
Tibetan (Jirel)phemorpheme◦le◦māqmorpheme n‘butterfly’Hale 73 CSD: 03a.093
Tibetan (Sherpa)'bāmorpheme◦lip n‘butterfly’Hale 73 CSD: 03a.093
Tibetan (Written)phjemorpheme mamorpheme leb n‘butterfly’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 0370.01
Tibetan (Written)phjemorpheme mamorpheme leb ‘butterfly’Sun H 91 ZMYY: 154.1
Tibetan (Written)phyemorpheme-mamorpheme-leb ‘butterfly’Weidert 87 TBTo: 665
Tibetan (Written)phyemorpheme-mamorpheme-leb~byemorpheme-mamorpheme-leb~phyemorpheme-leb ‘butterfly’Coblin 86: 51
Tibetan (Written)phyemorpheme◦mamorpheme◦leb ‘butterfly’Marrison 67 Naga
Tibetan (Written)pʻyemorpheme-mɑmorpheme-léb ‘butterfly’Jäschke 1881
Tibetan (Xiahe)ɕamorpheme mamorpheme lep tsemorpheme n‘butterfly’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 0370.04

2.1.3Lepcha2

Lepchalyop ‘glitter, flash, glisten’Benedict 72 STC: 213
Lepchasălyop ‘sheet-lightning’Benedict 72 STC: 213

2.1.4Tamangish1

Tamang (Bagmati)'blapʱ-blap ‘butterfly’Weidert 87 TBTo: 665

2.2Newar1

Newarlāpā n‘butterfly’Hale 73 CSD: 03a.093

6.1.1Burmish15

Achang (Xiandao)l̥ɛp⁵⁵pɯk⁵⁵ v.‘lightning’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 1606.29
Bola (Luxi)lɛ̱p⁵⁵tʃhak⁵⁵ v.‘lightning’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 1606.32
Burmese (Rangoon)ɬjɑʔ⁴pjɛʔ⁴ v.‘lightning’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 1606.27
Burmese (Spoken Rangoon)ɬjɑʔ⁴⁴pjɛʔ⁴⁴ ‘flash (of lightning)’Sun H 91 ZMYY: 754.40
Burmese (Written)hljɑp prɑk ‘flash (of lightning)’Sun H 91 ZMYY: 754.39
Burmese (Written)hljɑp⁴prɑk⁴ v.‘lightning’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 1606.26
Burmese (Written)hlyap ‘very thin, flimsy; light, rapid; glitter; be vain, wanton’Benedict 76 WBur
Burmese (Written)hlyap ‘glitter; lightning’Benedict 72 STC: 213
Langsu (Luxi)lɛʔ tʃhat⁵⁵morpheme v.‘break (thunderbolt)’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 1247.31
Langsu (Luxi)lɛ̱ʔ⁵⁵tʃhat⁵⁵ v.‘lightning’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 1606.31
Leqi (Luxi)la̱p⁵⁵tʃhɔːk⁵⁵ v.‘lightning’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 1606.33
Maru [Langsu]lɛ̱ʔ⁵⁵tʃhat⁵⁵ ‘flash (of lightning)’Sun H 91 ZMYY: 754.43
Atsi [Zaiwa]la̱p⁵⁵tʃhik⁵⁵ v.‘lightning’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 1606.30
Atsi [Zaiwa]la̱p⁵⁵tʃhik⁵⁵ ‘flash (of lightning)’Sun H 91 ZMYY: 754.42

6.1.2Loloish1

*Loloishb-lyapᴸ ‘lightning’Bradley 79 PLo: 328

6.1.2.1Northern Loloish3

Nusu (Central)l̥a̱⁵³ v.‘lightning’Huang and Dai 92 TBL: 1606.34
Nusu (Bijiang)ɬɑ⁵³mɑ³⁵morpheme ‘flash (of lightning)’Sun H 91 ZMYY: 754.45
Nusu (Southern)ɬɛ³¹mo⁵⁵morpheme ‘flash (of lightning)’Sun J 86 Nusu

9.0.1Old Chinese3

Chinese (Old/Mid)dʼiɑp/dʼiep ‘butterfly’Karlgren 57 GSR: 633h
Chinese (Old)diap ‘butterfly’Coblin 86: 51
Chinese (Old)gamorpheme-lep ‘butterfly’Baxter 92: 1038

9.0.2Middle Chinese1

Chinese (Middle)diep ‘butterfly’Coblin 86: 51

Cite this entry

STEDT etymon #352, *s-lyap ‘LIGHTNING / FLASH / GLITTER / BUTTERFLY’.
Stable link: https://larc-iu.github.io/stedt/etymon/352
Data: STEDT v1.0 (2017). Accessed: [date].
References: cf. STC#213, HPTB pp.338, 377
BibTeX
@misc{stedt-352,
  title  = {{*s-lyap 'LIGHTNING / FLASH / GLITTER / BUTTERFLY'}},
  author = {STEDT},
  year   = {2017},
  note   = {Sino-Tibetan Etymological Dictionary and Thesaurus (STEDT) v1.0, etymon #352},
  url    = {https://larc-iu.github.io/stedt/etymon/352}
}