Shedding more light on language classification using basic vocabularies and phylogenetic methods: a case study of Uralic
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Kaj Syrjänen [1] ; Terhi Honkola [2] ; Kalle Korhonen [3] ; Jyri Lehtinen [3] ; Outi Vesakoski [3] ; Niklas Wahlberg [3]
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[1] University of Tampere
University of Tampere
Tampere, Finlandia
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[2] University of Turku
University of Turku
Turku, Finlandia
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[3] University of Helsinki
University of Helsinki
Helsinki, Finlandia
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- Localización: Diachronica: International Journal for Historical Linguistics = Revue Internationale pour la Linguistique Historique = Internationale Zeitschrift für Historische Sprachwissenschaft, ISSN 0176-4225, Vol. 30, Nº 3, 2013, págs. 323-352
- Idioma: inglés
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Resumen
Encouraged by ongoing discussion of the classification of the Uralic languages, we investigate the family quantitatively using Bayesian phylogenetics and basic vocabulary from seventeen languages. To estimate the heterogeneity within this family and the robustness of its subgroupings, we analyse ten divergent sets of basic vocabulary, including basic vocabulary lists from the literature, lists that exclude borrowing-susceptible meanings, lists with varying degrees of borrowing-susceptible meanings and a list combining all of the examined items. The results show that the Uralic phylogeny has a fairly robust shape from the perspective of basic vocabulary, and is not dramatically altered by borrowing-susceptible meanings. The results differ to some extent from the ‘standard paradigm’ classification of these languages, such as the lack of firm evidence for Finno-Permian.
