Echo Reduplication in Altaic Languages: Form and Function

Mengyuan Tong

doi:10.65961/crcl-2026-0026

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Current Research in Chinese Linguistics ›› 2026, Vol. 105 ›› Issue (2) : 531-550. DOI: 10.65961/crcl-2026-0026

Special Topic: International Symposium on Silk Road Linguistics

Echo Reduplication in Altaic Languages: Form and Function

Mengyuan Tong

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Abstract

Echo reduplication is widely used in the Altaiс language family. Based on data from 40 Altaiс languages, this paper provides the first comprehensive analysis of its forms and functions. The forms are categorized into three types: C-type (consonant replacement), V-type (vowel alternation), and CV-type (initial syllable modification), among which C-type is the most common and exhibits different patterns depending on whether the base form begins with m-. Its primary function is to express similarity or plurality, which has extended to convey negative evaluative meanings, and it can be used across different word classes. Drawing on internal and external linguistic evidence, this paper hypothesizes that echo reduplication initially emerged in the Turkic branch and was subsequently borrowed into the Mongolic and Tungusic branches through language contact.

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Altaic languages / echo reduplication / form / function / origin

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Mengyuan Tong. Echo Reduplication in Altaic Languages: Form and Function[J]. Current Research in Chinese Linguistics. 2026, 105(2): 531-550 https://doi.org/10.65961/crcl-2026-0026

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