The Influence of Language Contact on the Usages of xən35 in Duyun Dialect

Duyun has been a multi-ethnic area since ancient times, and its grammar has been influenced by both Chinese and local minority languages. This paper is intended to compare the usages of the hen-family in Duyun dialect, Mandarin, and minority languages from the perspective of language contact, and to trace the origin of xən35 in Duyun dialect by examining the evolution of hen in Chinese. It is proposed that the prepositive usage of xən35 is a historical continuation of hen in Chinese during the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, while the postpositive usage of xən35 is influenced by the local minority languages. The distinctive usages of xən35 in Duyun dialect are due to language contact.