The Comparative Method and "semantics"

[X99Lynx at aol.com]

I wrote:
<< But the "exceptionless sound laws" support the idea that if two words are
a phonologically the same, they have a high probability of common ancestry.>

In a message dated 9/14/1999 6:37:16 PM, kurisuto at unagi.cis.upenn.edu writes:

<<As I've pointed out, this is incorrect.  There are several other ways that
such pairs could arise.>>

Quick note.  I'm dealing with Hurricane Floyd.

Take a close look at what you are saying here,

I wrote that "if two words are a phonologically the same [within the workings
of the sound rules, of course], they have a high probability of common
ancestry"

You write that's "incorrect."  Because "There are several other ways that
such pairs could arise."

That doesn't follow.  The fact there are other ways they could arise only
means that the probability is not 100%.  It doesn't mean the probability is
not high.

You're denying that the phonetics can yield a high level of confidence about
ancestry strikes me as odd.   I don't think you really think the statement is
incorrect.  If you think about it.

Regards,
Steve Long