Use cross-linguistic similarities in function words (pronouns, numerals, deictics) as durable markers of past cultural diffusion and cognitive schemas when material or genetic evidence is sparse.
— Offers a general measurement strategy linking linguistics, anthropology, and cognitive history, informing contested narratives about when and how key mental models and social structures emerged.
Seeds of Science
2025.06.11
100% relevant
The claim that first-person singular forms worldwide disproportionately include an 'n' and likely diffused ~15,000 years ago, with case studies in Papua New Guinea and Australia.
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