Loaded "HOW LIKELY" questions

[Larry Trask]

Steve Long writes:

> Does the HOW LIKELY question apply when someone assumes that two different IE
> languages could have once been the same language in the same place and then
> separate and MAGICALLY become "quite distant from each other" without the
> intermediate step (required of most phenomenon in this physical universe) of
> first being close-by - and at that point very amenable to contact and
> linguistic exchange?

Nothing magical about it.  It is perfectly possible for a single
speech community to split abruptly into two or more widely separated
groups, for example because of migration or because of the intrusion
of a different group into the middle of the territory.  Norwegian
and Icelandic is perhaps a nice case in point, but there are lots of
others.  Athabaskan, for example.

Larry Trask
COGS
University of Sussex
Brighton BN1 9QH
UK

larryt at cogs.susx.ac.uk