lexico-statistics

[C Hogan]

----------------------------Original message----------------------------

>Where may I get a reading list on lexico-statistics? I was
>introduced to it through SWADESH.

I do have such a bibliography that I copied out of the following book:

Embleton, Sheila.  Statistics in Historical Linguistics.  Quantitative
Linguistics vol. 30.
Bochum: Studienverlag.  1986.

It is quite substantial; can you supply a FAX number that I can use to
send it to you?  Or maybe a snailmail address.

btw, that book is itself pretty interesting: Embleton proposes an
extended version of lexicostatistics that takes into account borrowing
and other factors.  Unfortunately there is absolutely no way that the
necessary parameters could be estimated (a problem with the convential
method as well).

>Was SWADESH's list of universal
>words supported by research?

My understanding is that his words lists were supported by research, but
that the number of languages he used wasn't nearly enough to be
"conclusive".

--chris
____________________
christopher m. hogan
compling at juno.com
pittsburgh, pa

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