Reconstruction:Proto-Japonic/paimpi

Alternative reconstructions

 * (JLTT 404)

Reconstruction
The reconstruction is controversial, due to the irregular correspondences between Japanese and Ryukyuan. JLTT 404 reconstructs and hypothesizes lenition and loss of medial *p (*papimi > *paymi > pemi) in Japanese, but this does not account for the Ryukyuan form, which can only be from a medial *u that became word-final from the metathesis of the nasal and either loss or metathesis of the original final vowel (*papumi > *pa(i)pum > *panpu, *penpu > *pabu, *pebu). On the surface, this might possibly underlie the same process leading to putative Korean cognate, but that term's Middle Korean ancestor forms of and  may make cognacy less likely on phonological grounds.

Etymology
Possibly cognate with 🇨🇬.

Noun

 * 1) snake