Linguistic Diversity

There are some 6,500 different languages in the world. This book investigates why diversity arose, how it relates to the origins and evolution of language and culture, and whether the uneven distribution of human languages may be linked with patterns of human geography and history. Daniel Nettle draws on work in anthropology, linguistics, geography, archeology, and evolutionary science to explain linguistic diversity.

List of Figures

ix

List of Tables

xi

Introduction

1

(14)

Preamble

1

(2)

The Family-Tree Model

3

(2)

The Linguistic Item and the Linguistic Pool

5

(5)

Levels of Diversity in the Linguistic Pool

10

(1)

Justification, Disguised as Apology

11

(1)

The Need for an Interdisciplinary Approach

12

(3)

Language Evolution: Basic Mechanisms

15

(22)

Introduction

15

(1)

The Neutral Model

16

(2)

Problems with the Neutral Model

18

(11)

Additional Amplifiers

29

(6)

Summary and Conclusions

35

(2)

Language Evolution: Computer Simulations

37

(23)

Introduction

37

(1)

The Use of Computer Simulations

37

(2)

Methods

39

(4)

Basic Results

43

(3)

More Realistic Social Structures

46

(2)

Social Selection

48

(3)

Functional Selection

51

(2)

Discrete Traits

53

(1)

Discussion

54

(2)

Adaptive Significance of Social Selection

56

(4)

Language Diversity: Patterns in Space

60

(37)

Introduction

60

(3)

Quantifying Language Diversity

63

(3)

Vectors of Language Spread

66

(4)

Case Studies

70

(9)

Ecological Risk as a Universal Constraint

79

(3)

Testing the Theory: Methods

82

(2)

Testing the Theory: Results

84

(8)

Hunter-Gatherers

92

(2)

Conclusions

94

(3)

Language Diversity: Changes in Time

97

(18)

Introduction

97

(3)

The Palaeolithic Equilibrium

100

(3)

The Neolithic Punctuation

103

(2)

The Neolithic Aftershock

105

(3)

The Industrial Punctuation

108

(4)

Prospect

112

(3)

Phylogenetic Diversity

115

(15)

Introduction

115

(1)

Lineages and Stocks

115

(1)

The Distribution of Stocks

116

(4)

Stocks and Time: Nichol's Model

120

(1)

Stocks and Time: An Alternative Model

121

(5)

Validating the Model

126

(3)

Conclusions

129

(1)

Structural Diversity

130

(19)

Introduction

130

(1)

Causes of Structural Diversity

131

(4)

Geographical Distribution of Structural Diversity

135

(6)

Case Study: Phonological Inventory and the Lexicon

141

(6)

Conclusions

147

(2)

Epilogue

149

(3)

Appendix. Global Language Diversity Data

152

(3)

References

155

(12)

Index

167

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Summary

Table of Contents

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