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Abstract
In this paper, I examine two cases of merger, by comparing the fricatives (/s/, /ʃ/) and affricates (/ts/ and /tʃ/) in ten varieties of Mongsen-Ao, including Changki, which is structurally close to Mongsen. Based on the comparison of fricatives and affricates in the ten selected varieties, I show that the merger of /s/ and /ʃ/ as observed by Bruhn (2014) and merger of affricates /ts/ and /tʃ/ as proposed by Coupe (2003, 2007), did not take place in all varieties of Mongsen. The merger also had an impact on the following vowel, leading to a process of vowel reduction in most of the Mongsen varieties. As part of the analysis, two fricatives- *s and *ʃ, and two affricates- *ts and *tʃ, are reconstructed with all the four vowels in Proto-Mongsen.
Given the phonological variation within Mongsen varieties spoken in different villages, this paper also sheds light on some of the phonological changes across varieties.