Re: Academic/scientific journals in Esperanto?

From: Peter T. Daniels (grammatim_at_worldnet.att.net)
Date: 03/16/05 

Date: Wed, 16 Mar 2005 13:54:26 GMT

Seán O'Leathlóbhair wrote:
>
> Peter T. Daniels wrote:
> > Seán O'Leathlóbhair wrote:
> >
> > > but possibly of a new Manx language rather than the old one. I expect
> > > that the same applies to Hebrew, there are surely native speakers of
> > > Hebrew alive today but is it the same language as the old Hebrew?
> >
> > Define "same" ...
>
> A good question. I don't know if there is a standard answer.
>
> Most languages evolve over time and hence in a sense a language today

not "most"

> may be significantly different from the language of the same name from
> a century before even if there were a substantial numbers of native
> speakers for the entire period.

over one century, not "significantly" different. How much trouble do you
have understanding your grandparents?

> For languages and dialects, the usual test is mutual comprehensibility
> but I am aware that it can be difficult to apply. Even when it is
> possible to apply it, it may give answers quite different from the
> traditional ones.
>
> So, we could try a mutual comprehensibility test for points in the
> history of a single language. Of course, there would be the additional
> problem of finding the historical speakers. But with this test, would
> you expect a resurrected speaker of ancient Hebrew to understand a
> modern speaker? Ditto Manx?

No, and why not? respectively (given that Manx lasted into the 20th
century).

> As for dialects, we would often get answers different from traditional
> usage. Old English would be a different language to modern English and
> not just a different stage in one language.
>
> But what I had in mind was a vaguer notion. Is there a smooth
> continuous evolution of the language as may have happened if it did not
> experience death and rebirth? Or is there a very large discontinuity?

The latter.

> Suppose a linguist unfamiliar with the language was presented with lots
> of material in date sequence but with the large gap masked. Would he
> be able to deduce that something unusual had happened to the language
> or would it appear as plausible gradual evolution.

??

> Do you know Crystal's book: The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English
> Language? In what sense is he using "language" in the title? Is he
> claiming that Old, Middle and Modern English are one language? Is he
> claiming that all the many dialects are one? Or is he just claiming
> that they have a common origin and there are continuous links between
> them?

Define "a language." 

-- 
Peter T. Daniels                       grammatim@att.net

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