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singularity2001 4 days ago

Old Chinese reconstructions drive me crazy, or the fact that some scholars insist these are 99% correct instead of 'best guesses'

earthboundkid 4 days ago | parent [-]

They are pretty well founded. You can read old rhyme dictionaries and see how the words evolved eg when borrowed by Japan at one time and then when borrowed again a couple of hundred years later. We can’t ever know 100% but it’s not idle speculation either.

4 days ago | parent | next [-]
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demetrius 3 days ago | parent | prev [-]

Rhyme dictionaries describe Middle Chinese, not Old Chinese. Old Chinese involves much more guesswork.