Evidence for the Indo-European and Balkan Origin of Burushaski
The monograph provides a comprehensive discussion and analysis of the systematic correspondences discovered in establishing genetic relationship of the language isolate Burushaski with Indo-European at the phonological, grammatical and lexical level. It consists of nine etymological studies. At the grammatical level comparison is made of the pronominal systems, the nominal systems in general, the adjectival, numeral, as well as the verbal systems. It analyses correspondences in the semantic fields of anatomical parts, kinship terms, shepherd vocabulary, plant names and other etymologies of the Burushaski inherited Indo-European lexicon which are correlated with the various Indo-European branches, in particular with the ancient and modern Balkan languages. The specific lexical closeness of Burushaski within Indo-European with the Phrygian language is examined in separate chapters.
The volume makes a contribution to the understanding of aspects of Burushaski synchronic and historical phonology and the historical development of the Burusho people.
It proposes that the Burushaski language should no longer be considered an isolate, but rather a North-Western Indo-European language which at some stage of its development was in contact with an agglutinative and ergative system and was shaped in this language contact situation. .
ISBN 9783862887231. LINCOM Etymological Studies 05. 212pp. 2016.
