From: Arnaud Fournet
Message: 61601
Date: 2008-11-14
----- Original Message -----
From: G&P
>> it's fascinating that H(2)ente "in front of" cannot be compared
>> to Egyptien H._nt_
>> A.
>Links outside PIE are firstly so unproved, and secondly projected across
>such a huge period of time, that I would hesitate to use any as the basis
>for a restructuring of what can be shown within PIE.
>P.
==========
If proving a relationship requires a _previous_ restructuring of PIE
modelization,
then nothing can happen with your approach.
A.
========
> I agree that links, and correspondences, and common patterns are highly
> suggestive, but it remains a great disappointment to me that neither I-S's
> attempt, nor Bomhard's (in either of its two versions)
> actually works.
> P.
==========
What do you mean ?
Not everything is bad.
I think the issue is more that many of the alleged nuggets are in fact
stones.
It needs a new phase of sorting out.
A.
=========
> So in my never-humble opinion, what we can prove about PIE must be proved
> from PIE.
> Peter
============
I don't think we can "prove" anything.
We can create a modelization of data that achieves a certain level of
coherence.
My point of view about PIE current modelization is that it's growing
increasingly abstruse and the chains of hypothesises underlying most
reconstructions are increasingly long and unclear (and sometimes circular).
Don't tell me I'm just an idiot, I think the problem is deeper than that.
It's intriguing to see that most people in that field are digging for
increasingly small gold nuggets.
And there is no real questioning about the foundations of the current
modelization of PIE.
The laryngeals date back 1870, the e/o ablaut about the same.
The root theory is Benveniste in the 1930ies.
There's a sharp contrast between macro-comparative studies that look highly
tumultuous and IE studies that are monastery-silent.
This may be misleading.
The monolithism of IE studies is more disquieting than reassuring.
Most scientific fields have competing theories.
A.
========