Tangut and Tibeto-Burman morphology

Abstract

Since the earliest serious Tangut studies (Laufer 1916) it has been generally accepted that Tangut is a Tibeto-Burman lan¬guage, with particular links to the Lolo-Burmese branch of the family. Despite certain embarassing problems at the outset (Pelliot 1926), nothing has emerged in Tangut studies since that time which seriously challenges this view, which is sub¬scribed to by both the Leningrad and Kyoto factions.' Recently, however, a dissent to this view has been voiced by Professor Kwanten, who suggests that there may be problems with currently available reconstruction schemes for Tangut which invalidate the evidence for its TB affiliation. In a recent paper in this journal (1982) Kwanten specifically calls into question the reliability of some of the work of K.B. Kepping on Tangut verb morphology.