"According to the Gamkrelidze and Ivanov model, this protolanguage initially contains two major dialect groupings, which they call A and B. Group A consists of Anatolian, Tocharian, and Italic-Celtic, group B, of Indo-Aryan, Greek, Armenian, Balto-Slavic, and Germanic. Anatolian, which is held to have uniquely preserved some very archaic language features as I have discussed, is the first to break away from the home-land, leaving the rest of group A and group B together for a period during which they develop some common isoglosses not visible in Anatolian. Many scholars hold that Tocharian was the next to break off. After the initial departure of Anatolian, and Tocharian group A my parts company with group B and eventually subdivides into the Celtic and Italic language groups that enter into protohistory. After being separated from group A, several isoglosses in group B require that Indo-Iranian, Greek, Germanic, and Balto-Slavic all coexisted in some degree of proximity. Subsequently this group also subdivides into Balto-Slavic-Germanic and Indo-Iranian-Greek-Armenian, but in such a way that Indo-Iranian maintains a central position for a period. This centrality allows it to share isoglosses with Slavic, on the one hand, and Germanic, on the other, even while remaining more closely affiliated with Greek and Armenian. Balto-Slavic-Germanic also goes its separate way in time, and the remainder of group B, having developed some common features among its members, also eventually breaks down into the individual Indo-lranian, Greek, and Armenian groups that ultimately manifest in the historical record. These morphological isoglosses separating the various groups are further reinforced by phonemic and lexical isoglosses, which are "unambiguous evidence for the historical reality of the dialect areas of Indo-European" (Gamkrelidze and Ivanov 1995, 364)."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Bryant, E. F. (2001). The Quest for the Origins of Vedic Culture : the Indo-Aryan migration debate. Oxford University Press.
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Tamaz_V._Gamkrelidze
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Tamaz V. Gamkrelidze
2005 – 2013
Tamaz Valerianis dze Gamkrelidze (Georgian: თამაზ ვალერიანის ძე გამყრელიძე; 23 October 1929 – 10 February 2021) was a Georgian linguist, orientalist public benefactor and Hittitologist, Academic (since 1974) and President (2005–2013) of the Georgian Academy of Sciences (GAS), Doctor of Sciences (1963), Professor (1964).
2 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Tamaz V. Gamkrelidze →
Related Quotes
"The Common Indo-European word for 'beaver', *bi»ibher ~ *bi»ebher, preserves an original meaning 'brown' or 'shiny' i…"
"H. Kern in his book Over het woord Zarathushtra (1867) states, “the Bactrian (i.e. Avestan) is so (greatly) related t…"
"The Buddha was a proponent of simple, direct teaching aimed at liberation and free of theoretical frills: his intent …"
"If one wanted to summarise the essence of Buddhism in one sentence, it could only be this: everything that is transie…"
"The Doctrine (“”Dhamma“”) allows one to attain a state in which suffering can no longer take root, because one embrac…"
"After all, “'nibbàna”' is not a concept: this is why attempts to illustrate it through language and logic lend themse…"
"[The Buddha] advised bhikkhus to be an island (“'dìpa”') or a refuge for themselves. After his passing, their only su…"
"The Master wanted to provoke our critical spirit so that, by studying his doctrine, we could probe ourselves. [...] I…"
"Patañjali, or whoever wrote on his behalf, seems to follow a “Kantian” line of thought: it is necessary to understand…"
"In Yoga there is a precise correspondence between theory and practice. This is far from the case with those European …"