Abstract
Focusing on the process of mid-vowel raising (*e>i, *o>u), which took place throughout the Ryukyuan-speaking area in the past, this paper provides one type of method for historical phonology using the data collected from modern dialects. Based on the pattern of change shown by the spirantization of the /k/ sound (*k>h), observed in the northern region of the main Ryukyu island, which took place before [-high] vowels (*a, *e, *o ), and focusing on the fact that the /k/ is spirantized just in front of *o, but not in front of *e in a number of dialects in this region, this paper concludes that the process of mid-vowel raising proceeded from the front vowel (e>i) rather than the back one (o>u). Thus, this paper shows that an examination of a trace of competing change may often provide a key for analyzing the process of a certain change already completed in the past.
