Théorie des laryngalesLa théorie des laryngales s'est développée au début du , à partir d'une hypothèse initialement proposée par le linguiste suisse Ferdinand de Saussure en 1879, expliquant les alternances vocaliques qualitatives et quantitatives à la fin de certains radicaux proto-indo-européens par des « coefficients sonantiques », modulant une « voyelle élémentaire » /e/. Cette hypothèse a été étendue par le Danois Hermann Møller (1906) et ensuite le Français Albert Cuny (1912), qui ont proposé de voir dans ces coefficients des consonnes « laryngales ».
Linguistic reconstructionLinguistic reconstruction is the practice of establishing the features of an unattested ancestor language of one or more given languages. There are two kinds of reconstruction: Internal reconstruction uses irregularities in a single language to make inferences about an earlier stage of that language – that is, it is based on evidence from that language alone. Comparative reconstruction, usually referred to just as reconstruction, establishes features of the ancestor of two or more related languages, belonging to the same language family, by means of the comparative method.
Internal reconstructionInternal reconstruction is a method of reconstructing an earlier state in a language's history using only language-internal evidence of the language in question. The comparative method compares variations between languages, such as in sets of cognates, under the assumption that they descend from a single proto-language, but internal reconstruction compares variant forms within a single language under the assumption that they descend from a single, regular form. For example, they could take the form of allomorphs of the same morpheme.
Mass comparisonMass comparison is a method developed by Joseph Greenberg to determine the level of genetic relatedness between languages. It is now usually called multilateral comparison. The method is rejected by most linguists , though not all. Some of the top-level relationships Greenberg named are now generally accepted, though they had already been posited by others (e.g. Afro-Asiatic and Niger–Congo). Others are accepted by many though disputed by some prominent specialists (e.g.
LexicostatisticsLexicostatistics is a method of comparative linguistics that involves comparing the percentage of lexical cognates between languages to determine their relationship. Lexicostatistics is related to the comparative method but does not reconstruct a proto-language. It is to be distinguished from glottochronology, which attempts to use lexicostatistical methods to estimate the length of time since two or more languages diverged from a common earlier proto-language.
Linkage (linguistics)In historical linguistics, a linkage is a network of related dialects or languages that formed from a gradual diffusion and differentiation of a proto-language. The term was introduced by Malcolm Ross in his study of Western Oceanic languages . It is contrasted with a family, which arises when the proto-language speech community separates into groups that remain isolated from each other and do not form a network. Linkages are formed when languages emerged historically from the diversification of an earlier dialect continuum.
Loi de GrassmannLa loi de Grassmann, dite aussi « loi de dissimilation des aspirées », est une loi phonétique qui décrit une modification intervenue dans un stade préhistorique du grec ancien et du sanskrit (une phase ayant directement suivi l'indo-européen, en sorte), modification qui est restée effective tout au long de leur histoire. Elle est étudiée en phonétique historique de ces deux langues. Bien que connue et correctement expliquée par les grammairiens indiens, la loi porte le nom d'Hermann Grassmann, qui l'a popularisée dans l'Occident.
Attested languageIn linguistics, attested languages are languages (living or dead) that have been documented and for which the evidence (“attestation”) has survived to the present day. Evidence may be recordings, transcriptions, literature or inscriptions. In contrast, unattested languages may be names of purported languages for which no direct evidence exists, languages for which all evidence has been lost, or hypothetical proto-languages proposed in linguistic reconstruction.
GlottochronologieLa glottochronologie est une technique visant à calculer la distance temporelle ou la divergence entre deux langues que l'on suppose apparentées. Elle est basée sur une estimation du taux de substitution des mots par d'autres au cours du temps. Morris Swadesh, en se basant sur les données relatives à différentes familles de langues dont l'histoire est documentée, a estimé que, compte tenu des changements internes et des apports externes, environ 14 % du lexique basique d'une langue était remplacé tous les mille ans.
Glottalic theoryThe glottalic theory is that Proto-Indo-European had ejective or otherwise non-pulmonic stops, , instead of the plain voiced ones, as hypothesized by the usual Proto-Indo-European phonological reconstructions. A forerunner of the theory was proposed by the Danish linguist Holger Pedersen in 1951, but he did not involve glottalized sounds.
