Towards a Panchronic Perspective on a Diachronic Issue: The Rhyme in Old Burmese

Abstract

This paper aims at introducing the panchronic perspective by solving a specific problem of historical linguistics in Burmese, namely the phonetic value of the rhyme <-uiw> in Old Burmese. Its purpose is to demonstrate that a diachronic account is not exclusively indicative of system internal contingencies, but also a medium through which socio-cultural situations of the past surface. As such, I will argue that internal (systemic) as well as external (socio-cultural) factors of a specific diachrony contribute to and complete our understanding of panchrony, and that a combined analysis of both diachronic factors generates powerful explanatory models.