[Pharmboy]

Asked what linguists thought of his method he said: "To be honest, they don't understand it, most of them. They don't even know what I'm talking about."

This guy must treat his undergraduate students very well (snicker).

[Pharmboy]

Top-o-the-mornin' ping to ya...

[wideawake]

The article raises an interesting point: most people assume that languages spread by conquest, but that doesn't seem to hold so well.

The Romans conquered the Greeks, but the Greeks still speak Greek and probably more Romans learned Greek than Greeks learned Latin.

Likewise, the Gauls maintained their language for centuries after Caesar's conquest, but lost it after they successfully conquered back territory.

The Germanic Franks conquered Romanized Gaul, but wound up speaking a language more Roman than German.

[ClearCase_guy]

they say that soon after the ancestral Indo-European language arrived in Europe it split into different branches leading to Celtic, Latin, Greek and English.

Someone is a moron. Probably the journalist. English is a Germanic language, with heavy influence from French (a Romance language, based on Latin). It is a staggering mistake to say that English is one of 4 early offshoots from the ancestral Indo-European language.

[Conspiracy Guy]

Did they find an ancient basketball? When were the Celtics in France I thought the were always in Boston? The NBA really goes back further than I thought.

[Labyrinthos]

Does this mean we qualify for reparations, or at least affirmative action considerations?

[TommyDale]

Upon closer examination, the NY Times reporter was found to have blonde roots.

[msdrby]

ping

[aruanan]

This guy must treat his undergraduate students very well (snicker).

Sounds as though he was just making a statement of fact. He didn't call the other linguists a bunch of ignorant monkeys.

[NittanyLion]

Interesting. Although I clicked on this expecting find a story about Larry Bird on some sort of mind-altering drug...

[Nubbytwanger]

This whole thing is really dubious. Accounts of the Milesian conquest of Ireland and the archeological evidence of the prior occupants place the arrival of the Celts well inside the first millenium BC. Put that up against 30 words? I don't think so. Furthermore, the migration of the Celts from Scythia through the Mediterranean, Egypt, Rome (where their presence is documented) through to Galicia in Spain and on to Ireland is pretty compelling.

[Prof Engineer]

ping

[Bluntpoint]

"Celtic Found to Have Ancient Roots"

When reached for comment, the Rev. Jessie Jackson stated:

"Like all blond caucasoid claims, no matter how much they claim otherwise, their roots are still black. The Celtics are a bunch of peroxide phonies."

[Revelation 911]

Celtic Found to Have Ancient Roots

[rod1]

Well in this case he is probably correct. It is hardly surprising that a vast majority of linguists would have absolutely no clue about techniques used in evolutionary genetics. In fact, there are other area of science where these techniques would be quite foreign as well.

As a geneticist I obviously applaud the application.

[CaptRon]

*ping*

Thought this might interest you. You and I exchanged posts about an item that is in this article.

[LiteKeeper]

SPOTREP

[Scenic Sounds]

Genealogy ping.

[SevenDaysInMay]

"does seem to vindicate Renfrew's archaeological idea that the Indo-European languages were spread by farmers."

The value of farmers' daughters...just talking about them spread language.

A tour of really old Europe would be a time tripper's dream.

Think of the skiing with all those newly melting glaciers. Picnics in newly flowered glens...hunting big and dangerous game for campfire feasts and jerky...bathing in snowmelt...urine tanned skins for clothing and bedding...being guests of honor with new maiden brides (small petite to say the least) at every village - if one were not murdered or killed in jealous challenges by fearfully superstitious people.

For selective breeding opportunities, at least I'm 186cm tall at 110Kg., 150cm at the shoulder, and with my all my teeth, but no tattoos. Yes, I'd carry a rifle with brass, primer, American know how & Gore-Tex gear and Mg fire starters, spices, my glasses, and rock hammer, blade and saw. In deep prehistory, modern man needs his accrutrements. {8^)

The D-2 steel, fire stick, black powder, and fire rendered liquid metal sorcerer, father of giants for those tiny maidens not killed by childbirth. The death rate of beautiful young children would have me long for the bitching about high priced, modern medicine and those rich doctors and drug companies. Who would not be king...

That human life progressed at all from melt to melt to "global warming" is a miracle.

It makes me long to visit earlier inter-glacial and full glacial periods before our trace of pre-history could begin. To visit humans of 1,000 to 25,000 generations ago would be as awesome as dangerous. Would there be blonds and redheads? Available? Central governments promoting sodomy? Plastic? Unlikely because plastic has never been found, surely lasting thousands of human generations. Was agriculture "remembered" 8,000 years ago from survivors of those deep, now dark days - too often frozen out and killed off during climate change survival migrations as tribe after tribe fought their way into occupied unfrozen lands such as those still contested by cousin Jews and Arabs?

[2nd Bn, 11th Mar]

He is certainly a cunning linguist.

[A_perfect_lady]

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