Language isolate: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 02:14, 5 June 2004

Revision as of 04:27, 5 June 2004

Line 1:

A '''language isolate''' is a [[natural language]] with no cleardemonstrable genetic relationship to or affinity with other languages. Unlike English, which is clearly related to other Germanicliving languages, or the various Chinese languages, isolates generally stand apart from their surrounding languages in terms of their [[phonology]], [[grammar]], and [[syntax]]. Examples include [[Basque language|Basque]], [[Ainu language|Ainu]], [[Burushaski language|Burushaski]], and [[Japanese language|Japanese]].

[[nl:Isolaat]] [[fi:Isolaattikieli]][[eo:Lingvo izolita]]

A '''language isolate''' is a language with no clear relationship to or affinity with other languages. Unlike English, which is clearly related to other Germanic languages, or the various Chinese languages, isolates generally stand apart from their surrounding languages in terms of their [[phonology]], [[grammar]], and [[syntax]]. Examples include [[Basque language|Basque]], [[Ainu language|Ainu]], [[Burushaski language|Burushaski]], and [[Japanese language|Japanese]].

Some languages became isolates in historical times, after all their known relatives became extinct. The [[Pirahã language]] of Brazil is one such example, the last surviving member of the [[Mura languages|Mura]] family. Others, like Basque, have been isolates for as long as their existence has been documented.

==Genetic relationship==

The term "genetic relationship" above is meant in the sense of [[historical linguistics]]. Almost all languages spoken in the world today can be grouped by this criterion into a relatively small number of [[language family|families]]. Thus [[English language|English]] is clearly related to several other [[Indo-European languages]], and [[Mandarin language|Mandarin]] to many other [[Sino-Tibetan languages]]. Language isolates are few and scattered, which only adds to their intellectual charm.

==Looking for relationship==

It seems likely (but by no means certain) that all languages spoken in the world today are genetically related, by descent from a single ancestral tongue; the established language families would then be only the upper branches of the genealogical tree of all languages. For this reason, isolate languages have been the object of uncountable studies seeking to uncover their genealogy. Thus, for instance, Basque has been compared with every living and extinct language family, from [[Sumerian language|Sumerian]] to the [[South Caucasian languages|South Caucasian]] — without convincing results, of course.

==Isolate, not Isolate''d''==

One should not confuse the concept of a ''language isolate'' with a language whose speakers are isolated in some sense, e.g. because they have little contact with other cultures (like the language of [[Easter Island]]), or because they live far away from the regions where related languages are spoken (like the [[Malagasy language]] of [[Madagascar]], whose closest relatives are spoken in [[Southeast Asia]]). These two languages are defintely not ''isolates''.

Isolate languages are often the subject of intensive studies in order to attempt proof of genetic relationships between languages. [[Basque language|Basque]], for instance, has been the subject of comparisons to the [[South Caucasian languages]] and the [[Indo-European]] language family.

==List of language isolated==

Some languages are isolates because all the other languages in that language family have died. The [[Pirahã language]] of Brazil is one such language, the last language alive belonging to the Mura family. In contrast, there are languages whose relatives are spoken by communities a long distance away, because of past migrations. Such languages are not considered isolates.

Below is a list of known language isolates, along with notes on possible relations to other languages or language families:

Line 48 ⟶ 59:

</TR>

</TABLE>

[[nl:Isolaat]] [[fi:Isolaattikieli]][[eo:Lingvo izolita]]