Research on the Phenomenon of Alternation of d/t in the Written Contracts of Uygurs in the Mongol Era
(60th Meeting of the PIAC, Székesfehérvár 2017)
The written Contracts of the Uygurs are first-hand materials in the study of ancient Uyghur history and culture. The methods of dating, however, are not the same as when using the Western calendar. It is important to make good use of these dating materials.
Previous scholars have provided a variety of factors of dating, including the written form of d/t in the documents. Some scholars argue that if d/t in Latinization has no dot beneath it, then it is the language phenomenon of the Mongolian era, and some scholars use it to date the documents.
From the perspective of Turkic linguistics, some scholars call the interchange of d/t a phenomenon of alternation, other scholars explicitly call it them voiced or devoiced consonants, yet others call it a mixed usage.
The author looks into fifteen written contracts in Uygur, and expounds the following views:
Firstly, the alternation of mutually devoiced or voiced sound of d/t is a common phenomenon of Uygur written contracts in the Mongol era.
Secondly, it is a coexisting phenomenon in the written contracts of this period that d/t is not interchangeable or mutually devoiced or voiced. Thus, it is not appropriate to use d/t for dating without considering this.
Thirdly, the author supports her view with the relevant facts in the paper, and points out the types of the phenomenon of the alternation or mutually devoiced or voiced sound of d/t.