A Study of Rank Analysis From a Micro Case of Core Word Replacement
The method of rank analysis,as a way to determine language relationships,can be supplemented and tested by observing micro cases of vocabulary replacement.In the case of the Qimaba Dai language,where core word replacement is triggered by language contact,the replacement of 200 core words strictly conforms to the distribution pattern of high rank being less than low rank,which is consistent with the theoretical assumption of rank analysis.However,in cases such as hihi-lolo and Jakarta-Leipzig adapted word lists,the number of high rank core word replacement is not always fewer than that of low rank replacement,indicating the crucial role of word list selection in the application of the rank analysis method.Through data fitting,we found that exponential or sigmoid curves can achieve higher goodness of fit than linear fitting.The data also exhibits a significant jump around 1990,indicating that the core word replacement process in the Qimaba Dai case is not uniform or gradual,but rather abrupt and non-uniform.This can also be explained by the contact mechanism,where contact suddenly occurs or intensifies within a certain time period,leading to abrupt replacements of vocabulary,similar to waves crashing.The comparison between the fitted curve and the language usage patterns shows a strong correlation,reflecting the overall changes in language contact situations.Based on the fitting of available data,it is predicted that the intersection point of high and low rank substitutions may occur for participants born between 2031 and 2033,indicating a reversal of high rank substitutions surpassing low rank substitutions.Additionally,Mandarin Chinese may completely replace Dai language as the first proficient language within language communities at this time.These predictions made by the fitting model require further tracking and survey validation.The simulation shows that the 200 core word list reflects language contact information better than the hihi-lolo list and the Leipzig-Jakarta adapted word list.When controlled for the same size of word lists,the simulation demonstrates that using the 200 word list reduces the possibility of errors or invalidity in implementing the rank analysis method compared to the other two word lists.Different core word schemes have a significant impact on whether there is a difference in the number of high and low rank replacements.Comparatively,the 200 word list is more effective in creating a difference in the number of high and low rank replacements in the cases analyzed in this study.
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