Re: Indo-European Studies
R. Wallace (cla02@cc.keele.ac.uk)
31 Jul 1995 14:08:36 GMT
Gerold Firl (geroldf@sdd.hp.com) wrote:
[substance of posting deleted]
: Again, this is conjectural, but it seems plausible. Did you have any
: alternatives in mind?
If I may say so without giving offence, this comment seems to me to sum up
what is wrong with a lot of discussions on this group. A plausible
conjecture is just that, and no more. The fact that something could have
happened is not evidence that it did. Looking at some other threads
currently proceeding interminably should warn us that going beyond what can
be supported by evidence leads to fantasy.
Alternatives? Well, I would start by observing that a linguistic community
is not necessarily a cultural community; differing cultures may be linked
linguistically by a process of convergence - look at English.
I'm not saying that it is not the case that there was an original culture
speaking PIE; why not? It's a possible explanation. But lets keep
conjectures as conjectures.
One of the really useful things about this group is the constant
illustrations of the kind of madness you can fall into when you choose to
ignore simple historical methodology.
Sorry to be boring!
Richard Wallace
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