--- In
cybalist@yahoogroups.com, "Brian M. Scott" <BMScott@...> wrote:
>
> At 12:14:34 on Monday, 31 October 2005, mkelkar2003 wrote:
>
> >> By the way, I see that you're still grossly misrepresenting
> >> Merlijn de Smit by quoting him out of context.
>
> > But i see your point. Smit is criticising "back
> > reconstruction" not the comparative method used by IEL.
>
> Don't be ridiculous. KÜNNAP objects to what he calls
> 'back-reconstruction'. DE SMIT criticizes KÜNNAP:
>
> The method named "back-reconstruction" by Künnap is, far
> from a closet skeleton of the comparative method, part and
> parcel of it.
>
> He goes on to mention '[a] beautiful example of
> "back-reconstruction" which would horrify Künnap but which
> actually demonstrates the power of the comparative method'.
> Evidently it isn't just the technical material that goes
> over your head.
>
> 'Never ascribe to malice that which can be explained by
> incompetence.'
>
> Brian
>
I do not really care whether innovationst or traditionalist are being
criticized by Smit and which side of the fence he is on. The quotation
serves *MY* purpose about what should be to **ME**, the real purpose
of historical linguistics.
"first of all, that language history is something which has REALLY
HAPPENED, not just determined by the eye of the beholder, and that it
can be researched by using certain methods, that the aim of these
methods is to uncover reality and that its results are no mere
"theoretical or methodological constructs
in which the actual goal of
any historical linguistics - uncovering REAL PAST LANGUAGE CHANGES."
There MUST be *non-linguistic* evidence that two or more groups of
people who are now living apart were once living together, and they
spoke a language which has gone extinct. Only then you can
reconstruct that extinct lanuage to understand how languages change or
evolve. In the case of IEL there is not an iota of evidence that
these so called "Indo-Iranians" and "Balto-Slavic" were
a. a real people and b. they once lived together.
And that is exactly what the CPHL group has uncovered. There is
inter-breeding among *only* European "IE langauges." So go ahead and
reconstruct them to your heart's content. But either study the Indo
properly in its own cultural and historical context or *leave it out.*
Stop messing around.
M. kelkar