Lexicographical coincidences in Khasi and Malay
This short note by R. O. Winstedt (1917) presents a list of lexicographical parallels between Khasi and Malay to support the genetic connection between the Austroasiatic and Austronesian language families as proposed by Pater Schmidt.
Summary
Winstedt acknowledges that his method is not strictly scientific, since proper comparative work would require first establishing the primitive forms of each family before cross-comparing modern languages (p. 252). He justifies his approach on the grounds that European scholars with only book knowledge of Malay may miss semantic nuances that reveal real affinities, and that many of the parallels he lists are so close as to be unrejectable even by rigorous philological standards (p. 252). The list includes correspondences such as Khasi Rynkhiang (dry, parched) with Malay Rengkiang (granary), Shynkup (enclosed porch) with Sengkuap (lean-to), and Mangkalai (long-legged, of fowls) with Mengkalai (unfinished, having long trailing ends) (p. 252). He also notes possible connections between Khasi and unexplained Malay place-names, such as Sungai Teriang (river) with Khasi Teriang (eel) (p. 252). The article closes with a brief section on instances of metathesis and a reference to Schmidt’s 1904 phonological study of Khasi in relation to Mon-Khmer (p. 257).