This monograph presents a groundbreaking exploration into the Nostratic macrofamily, a concept that proposes a common ancestral language for several of the world's foremost language families. The study delves deep into the roots of Altaic, Afro-Asiatic, Dravidian, Eskimo-Aleut, Indo-European, Kartvelian, and Uralic languages, offering a unique perspective on their interconnections and evolutionary paths. The authors examine five pivotal Nostratic etymons from the Swadesh index to illustrate the shared cognitive frameworks of these diverse linguistic groups. This research challenges conventional perspectives on language evolution and introduces new methodologies in cognitive macro-comparative studies. Key to the work is the hypothesis of divergent-convergent and convergent-divergent evolutionary patterns stemming from a common Nostratic origin. Beyond linguistics, this study offers insights into human cognitive development, language formation, and change mechanisms.

TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS is a series of books that open new perspectives in our understanding of language. The series publishes state-of-the-art work on core areas of linguistics across theoretical frameworks, as well as studies that provide new insights by approaching language from an interdisciplinary perspective. TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS considers itself a forum for cutting-edge research based on solid empirical data on language in its various manifestations, including sign languages. It regards linguistic variation in its synchronic and diachronic dimensions as well as in its social contexts as important sources of insight for a better understanding of the design of linguistic systems and the ecology and evolution of language. TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS publishes monographs and outstanding dissertations as well as edited volumes, which provide the opportunity to address controversial topics from different empirical and theoretical viewpoints. High quality standards are ensured through anonymous reviewing.

TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS is a series of books that open new perspectives in our understanding of language. The series publishes state-of-the-art work on core areas of linguistics across theoretical frameworks as well as studies that provide new insights by building bridges to neighbouring fields such as neuroscience and cognitive science. TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS considers itself a forum for cutting-edge research based on solid empirical data on language in its various manifestations, including sign languages. It regards linguistic variation in its synchronic and diachronic dimensions as well as in its social contexts as important sources of insight for a better understanding of the design of linguistic systems and the ecology and evolution of language. TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS publishes monographs and outstanding dissertations as well as edited volumes, which provide the opportunity to address controversial topics from different empirical and theoretical viewpoints. High quality standards are ensured through anonymous reviewing.

This volume of essays examines the claim that a linguistic macrofamily can be identified which includes not only the Indo-European and Afroasiatic language families but also the Kartvelian, Uralic, Altaic and Dravidian families. The Nostratic case was put by Aharon Dolgopolsky in his The Nostratic Macrofamily and Linguitic Palaeontology, and it is here evaluated critically by linguists specialising in the language families concerned. Contents include: The Nostratic Macrofamily (A. Bomhard); Nostratic Languages: Internal and External Relationship (V. Shevoroshkin); Beyond Nostratic in Time and Space (G. Decsy); Nostratic and Linguistic Palaeontology in Methodological Perspective (L. Campbell); Family Trees and Favourite Daughters (A. McMahon, M. Lohr & R. McMahon); Linguistis Palaeontology: For and Against (I. Hegedus); Afroasiatic and the Nostratic Hypothesis (D. Appleyard); The Dravidian Perspective (K. Zvelebil); Altaic Evidence for Nostratic (A. Vovin); On Semitohamitic Comparison (R. Voight); Toward a Future History of Macrofamily Research (D. Sinor).

The “Nostratic” hypothesis — positing a common linguistic ancestor for a wide range of language families including Indo-European, Uralic, and Afro-Asiatic — has produced one of the most enduring and often intense controversies in linguistics. Overwhelmingly, though, both supporters of the hypothesis and those who reject it have not dealt directly with one another’s arguments. This volume brings together selected representatives of both sides, as well as a number of agnostic historical linguists, with the aim of examining the evidence for this particular hypothesis in the context of distant genetic relationships generally. The volume contains discussion of variants of the Nostratic hypothesis (A. Bomhard; J. Greenberg; A. Manaster-Ramer, K. Baertsch, K. Adams, & P. Michalove), the mathematics of chance in determining the relationships posited for Nostratic (R. Oswalt; D. Ringe), and the evidence from particular branches posited in Nostratic (L. Campbell; C. Hodge; A. Vovin), with responses and additional discussion by E. Hamp, B. Vine, W. Baxter and B. Comrie.

This is a selection of papers from the 14th International Conference on Historical Linguistics held August 9-13, 1999, at the University of British Columbia. From the rich program and the many papers given during this conference, the present twenty-three papers were carefully selected to display the state of current research in the field of historical linguistics.

This book presents the basic principles of modern colour semantics and discusses the crucial differences between modern and historical colour studies.