Re: Nostratic

From: Jacques Guy (jguy_at_alphalink.com.au)
Date: 09/18/04 

Date: Sat, 18 Sep 2004 03:34:54 -0700

Rex F. May wrote:
 
> "Are Chinese and English related?"

But French and Chinese _are_ related. This is
the story our tutor, Mr. Li3 Zhi4hua4, told
us: an explorer is in the Xinjiang desert.
He sees a camel in the distance, and asks
his guide, pointing at the camel: "What
does you call that?" The guide answers:
"Shamo4" ("camel" is "chameau" [Samo] in French).

Some time later, they come across a flock
of sheep and their shepherd. Pointing at
the sheep, the traveller asks: "What do you
call that?" The guide answers: "Mu4tong2"
("mouton" [mutő] is "sheep" in French).

The traveller returns home persuaded
that French and Chinese are related.

And why not? We do say "le vaisseau du désert",
a poetical term for "camel", don't we?
Natural semantic shift, there. Ditto for
"shepherd" and "sheep".

(Key: shamo4 = desert, mu4tong2=shepherd)

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