Language classification : history and method / / Lyle Campbell and William J. Poser [[electronic resource]]

• Record Nr.: UNINA9910454704803321
• Autore: Campbell Lyle
• Pubbl/distr/stampa: Cambridge : , : Cambridge University Press, , 2008
• ISBN: 1-107-18412-6; 1-281-75117-0; 9786611751173; 0-511-41450-1; 0-511-48690-1; 0-511-41518-4; 0-511-41289-4; 0-511-41196-0; 0-511-41381-5
• Descrizione fisica: 1 online resource (ix, 536 pages) : digital, PDF file(s)
• Classificazione: 17.14
• Disciplina: 401/.2
• Soggetti: Comparative linguistics; Language and languages
• Lingua di pubblicazione: Inglese
• Formato: Materiale a stampa
• Livello bibliografico: Monografia
• Note generali: Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015).
• Nota di bibliografia: Includes bibliographical references (p. 416-507) and index.
• Nota di contenuto: Introduction: how are languages shown to be related to one another? -- The beginning of comparative linguistics -- "Asiatic Jones, oriental Jones": Sir William Jones' role in the raise of comparative linguistics -- Consolidation of comparative linguistics -- How some languages were shown to belong to indo-European -- Comparative linguistics of other language families and regions -- How to show languages are related: the methods -- The philosophical-psychological-typological-evolutionary approach to language relationships -- Assessment of proposed distant generic relationships -- Beyond the comparative method? -- Why and how do languages diversify and spread? -- What can we learn about the earliest human language by comparing languages known today? -- Conclusions: Anticipating the future -- Appendix: Hypothesized distant genetic relationships.
• Sommario/riassunto: How are relationships established between the world's languages? This is one of the most topical and most controversial questions in contemporary linguistics. The central aims of this book are to answer this question, to cut through the controversies, and to contribute to research in distant genetic relationships. In doing this the authors aim to: (1) show how the methods have been employed; (2) reveal which methods, techniques, and strategies have proven successful and which ones have proven ineffective; (3) determine how particular language families were established; (4) evaluate several of the most prominent and more controversial proposals of distant genetic relationship (such as Amerind, Nostratic, Eurasiatic, Proto-World, and others); and (5) make recommendations for practice in future research. This book will contribute significantly to understanding language classification in general.