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Re: Ancient conlang

From:Andreas Johansson <andjo@...>
Date:Thursday, January 15, 2004, 6:30
Quoting Costentin Cornomorus <elemtilas@...>:

> --- John Cowan <cowan@...> wrote: > > Paul Bennett scripsit: > > > > > For example, I am willing to bet that this > > entire email message could be > > > translated into any natlang, living or dead, > > and it could be readily > > > understood by any person reasonably fluent in > > that language. > > > > Provided it had the necessary modern > > vocabulary: there's no word for > > "email" or "hominid" or "chimp" in Hittite. > > Circumlocutions. For "hominid", use "manlike"; > for "chimp" use "monkey". > > Email could be "lightning courrier" or similar.
The real question, I guess, is not whether the language has fixed terms for the things, but if the speaker in question know of them. A user of any modern "primitive" language is quite likely just to borrow the English words. Andreas