Pre-Greek languages

[Ralf-Stefan Georg]

>>Why did Anatolian have to move through the Balkans?

>Starting from the Ukraine, we have the following constraints:
>A) there is no evidence of any IE languages ever having been in the
>Caucasus prior to Armenian, making that route unlikely in the extreme.

This is a classic argumentum e silentio. Othoh, while it is true that these
things are extremely controversial, some possible early loanwords of IE
provenance in NE Cauc lgs. are sometimes being discussed.

>B) cultures with written history predate the probable appearance of the
>Hittites in Anatolian in Mesopotamia.  None of these written sources give
>*any* indication of any likely pre-Anatolian people anywhere near
>Mesopotamia.

I'd say Anatolia *is* near Mesopotamia !?!

>(They do indicate an early appearance of proto-Iranian
>peoples to the east of Mesopotamia)

Indian

>>Even if you don't buy Anatolia as the PIE homeland, why couldn't Anatolian
>>have entered Anatolia across the Caucasus or from east of the Caspian Sea,
>>through Iran?

>The first is made unlikely by the lack of IE-related cultural artifacts in
>the Caucusus

what is an "IE-related cultural artefact" ???

>and the *total* lack of any pre-Armenian IE substratal
>influences in any of the non-IE languages of the Caucasus.
>
>For the second you have to explain why the Sumerians, Old Bablyonians and
>Assyians make NO mention of any possible pre-Anatolian peoples, while they
>*do* give indications of the existence of proto-Iranian peoples in Iran
>(look at the Mitanni words for charioteering).

Indian

Just asking ...

Stefan Georg
Heerstrasse 7
D-53111 Bonn
FRG
+49-228-69-13-32