Azkue's dictionary

[Jon Patrick]

[ Moderator's note:
  This message has been languishing while I cleared up several other backlogs.
  My apologies to Mr. Patrick for letting it go for so long.
  --rma ]

ON Tue, 12 Oct 1999 11:47:03 +0100  larryt at cogs.susx.ac.uk (Larry Trask) wrote:

a response to Lloyd Anderson about the use of Azkue's dictionary. I comment
that his objections were centred firmly around its ease of use for
etymological studies not on the merit of the content itself and by default
Larry's answer justifies Lloyd's assertion, namely:

    >  On the whole, it seems from Larry Trask's review of it that Jon Patrick
    is
    >  on very solid ground in using Azkue's dictionary as a basis for
    >  analytical studies.
Larry reponded:
    But only, I think, if a detailed knowledge of Basque linguistics is first
    superimposed on the raw data.

Larry's response to Lloyd's comment struck me as an oblique but transparent
attack on the merit of my contribution to the analysis basque, being the only
person on the list without a "detailed knowledge of Basque linguistics", who
is debating the topics. Yes, I admit that I'm rising to a bait that will be
disclaimed but that's OK , I'm a grown up, I can take responsibility for my
own incompetencies.
Let me assure Larry that he has no fear of me claiming to come anywhere near
his hippopotamic knowledge base of Basque. A competency I am in awe and
admiration of.
However I am not running blind in this work.


Jose Ignatio Hualde who made a contribution to the list a few weeks ago is
supporting the work as the expert with detailed knowledge of basque. Likewise
he is in collaboration with Joseba Lakarra undoubtedly the one of most
respected living historical linguists of Basque, and more to the point both of
them are native basque speakers. As well I have presented my methods and their
putative results in a seminar to Filology Dept at the Uni of the Basque
Country in Gasteiz, where it was complimented on and considered as worthy of
publication. A point Lakarra himself took the time to make to me. Since that
time I have established a collaboration with that Dept and 2 of their PhD
students spent a month with me this summer working on preparing the data of
the Azkue list for  analysis. Furthermore I have stated publicly that whatever
I produce in terms of computational analysis has no meaning by itself but has
to be interpreted in the context of the filological traditions of the study of
Basque.

In summary the native speaking experts think my approach is sound, work
collaboratively with me, let their students lose in my hands and want me to
publish my results.  Somehow in someway I can only guess I just might be doing
something right.

Jon
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