Abstract
This paper reviews current theories on the linguistic prehistory of Europe in comparison to the situation of prehistoric Australia. It draws three main conclusions. First, Europe after the last ice age may well have been relatively low in linguistic diversity, giving rise to a remarkably uniform system of place names across Europe. Second, Indo-European languages were in all probability not connected to the spread of agriculture, and they spread without significant movements in population. Third, the extension of the Pama-Nyungan languages in pre-historic Australia is instructive for modelling the spread of the Indo-European languages.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | The Linguistic Roots of Europe: Origin and Development of European Languages |
| Editors | Robert Mailhammer, Theo Vennemann, Birgit Anette Olsen |
| Place of Publication | Germany |
| Publisher | Museum Tusculanum Press |
| Pages | 29-75 |
| Number of pages | 47 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9788763542098 |
| Publication status | Published - 2015 |
Keywords
- languages
- influence on English
- historical linguistics