The Indo-European Hypothesis [was Re: The Neolithic Hypothesis]

[Steven Schaufele]

> RAY HENDON:
>   The exposure side (rate of contact between infecteds and
>   susceptibles) of the equation is easily identified in the linguistic
>   community:  The relatively few Romans sent to govern England was not
>   sufficient to generate a critical mass of exposure units for Latin
>   to predominate.  And the Romans left local courts and laws stand,
>   lessening the need for everyone to know Latin in order to get along.

To which Glen Gordon replied,

> Number might have something to do with it but what about languages or
> dialects that become viewed as prestigious? I'm sure it's more
> complicated than the above otherwise we would have had a secure model
> 100 years ago :)

Be it noted that the Brits to a great extent followed the Roman model in
administering their own Empire during the 19th and early 20th centuries:
allowing local courts and laws to stand (insofar as they were compatible
with fundamental British legal principles, e.g., no slavery) and
maintaining a relatively minimal expatriate governing force.  HOWEVER,
the Brits did strongly encourage local rulers to send their sons to
Britain to be educated, necessitating some degree of fluency in English.
Does this difference from Roman Imperial policy wrt administrative
practice have anything to do with the fact that English remains the
dominant language throughout most of the former British Empire?

Best,
Steven
--
Steven Schaufele, Ph.D., Asst. Prof. of Linguistics, English Department
Soochow University, Waishuanghsi Campus, Taipei 11102, Taiwan, ROC
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