Re: Linear A tablet Hagia Triada 95

From: Peter T. Daniels (grammatim_at_worldnet.att.net)
Date: 07/23/04 

Date: Fri, 23 Jul 2004 11:03:08 GMT

Franz Gnaedinger wrote:
>
> "Peter T. Daniels" <grammatim@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message news:<40FFAA5E.7517@worldnet.att.net>...
>
> > > > > Peter T. Daniels: here is what Walther Hinz wrote about the
> > > > > kinship of Minoan and Eblaite. The dwellers of Ebla (now Tell
> > > > > Mardich, some 40 km south of Aleppo) had cuneiform signs for
> > > >
> > > > Mardikh
> > >
> > > Thank you for the correction.
> > >
> > > > > both r and l, already in 2300 BC, however, they echanged
> > > > > the signs freely, for example writing bu-ka-lu when meaning
> > > > > bu-ka-ru = first born; and lyra once gi-na-rum, next time
> > > > > gi-na-lum. The Minoans pronounced r and l in the same way,
> > > > > as the Japanese do, and always wrote r also when meaning l.
> > > > > This peculiar exchange of r and l occurred in only two
> > > > > Mediterrannean languages, namely Eblaite and Minoan,
> > > > > and proves the kinship of the two languages, and that Minoan
> > > >
> > > > BULL ***!!!!!!! How does that not make them related to Japanese as
> > > > well?
> > >
> > > I render what Walther Hinz wrote. If it is nonsense, you have
> > > every right to tell me so, but I must say I am a little amused
> > > to see you adopt the writing style of - you know whom I mean.
> >
> > Don't you see the point? If confusion of r and l is sufficient to claim
> > that Eblaite and "Minoan" are related (assuming that a "Minoan" language
> > has been deciphered), then why wouldn't it suffice to claim that
> > Japanese is related to them too?
>
> The r and l case is not yet closed. Upon leaving the library where
> I type my messages I knew what I should have replied. Here it comes.
>
> Consider biology. The eye had been "invented" about 17 (seventeen)
> times independently, whereupon each eye evolved further, branching
> off the taxonomic bush. Now if two similar eyes occur at a close
> taxonomic range they have a common origin, but if there is a large
> taxonomix distance between them they are independent biological
> inventions of the same or very similar structures (to put it simply).
> The l and r convergence (whatever the correct biological term may
> be) presumably is the phenotype of a micro-evolutionary genetic
> shift that may well have occured at several places, and seems to
> have occured at least twice, in Syria, and in Japan. Seen through
> the eyes of a taxonomist, the Syrian and Minoan phenotypes must
> in all probability have a common origin, whereas the Japanese
> phenotype represents an independent genetic shift of the same kind.
> (Hope I made myself halfways understandable.)

So you think persons of Japanese heritage "can't" distinguish r and l
because there's something unusual about their vocal tract?

Perhaps you've never met a Japanese-American. Persons of Japanese
heritage whose native language is English have no trouble with r and l. 

-- 
Peter T. Daniels                       grammatim@att.net
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