[Lingtyp] Language change

[Johanna Laakso]

Dear Ian,

Finnish is not a good example of a written language "remaining conservative". Modern Standard Finnish as it was codified in the late 19th century is a strongly planned language, involving numerous combinations of different features and compromises between originally highly divergent Western and Eastern dialects and, therefore, lots of unintended or implicit archaisms. It looks conservative on paper, but this is a product of conservative or archaizing language planning and the conscious shifting of the language’s dialectal basis.

Best
Johanna
--
Univ.Prof. Dr. Johanna Laakso
Universität Wien, Institut für Europäische und Vergleichende Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaft (EVSL)
Abteilung Finno-Ugristik
Campus AAKH Spitalgasse 2-4 Hof 7
A-1090 Wien
johanna.laakso at univie.ac.at • http://homepage.univie.ac.at/Johanna.Laakso/
Project ELDIA: http://www.eldia-project.org/ 







> JOO Ian via Lingtyp <lingtyp at listserv.linguistlist.org> kirjoitti 09.04.2025 kello 15.50:
> 
> Dear Mira,
> 
> By spoken language I guess you mean opposed to written/formal language and not as opposed to sign language?
> If so, then it would be easy to find cases where the written form of a lect has remained conservative whereas the spoken form has changed considerably, e.g. Finnish, Burmese, Arabic, Tamil, and many others.
> 
> From Otaru,
> Ian
> 
> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
> 朱　易安 
> JOO, IAN 
> 准教授 
> Associate Professor 
> 小樽商科大学 
> Otaru University of Commerce
> 
> 🌐 ianjoo.github.io
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> 
>> 2025/04/09 22:46, Mira Ariel via Lingtyp <lingtyp at listserv.linguistlist.org> 작성:
>> 
>> 
>> Dear colleagues,
>> 
>> I have always assumed that language change typically occurs in spoken language, but can't recall references to this claim, which a colleague asked for. Can I get some help?
>> 
>> Thanks,
>> Mira Ariel
>> 
>>  
>> Mira Ariel
>> 
>> Email: mariel at tauex.tau.ac.il <mailto:mariel at tauex.tau.ac.il>
>> Website: https://www.tau.ac.il/~mariel/
>> 
>> Zoom: Mira Ariel’s zoom room <https://tau-ac-il.zoom.us/my/mira.ariel>
>>  
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