An essay on the origin of language, based on modern researches, and especially on the works of M. Renan

CHAPTER VIII.

Chapter 8111 wordsPublic domain

THE LAWS OF PROGRESS IN LANGUAGE.

These laws psychological.--1. Languages advance from exuberance to moderation by eliminating superfluities.--Unity of speech the result of civilisation.--Redundancy marks an early stage of thought.--Superfluous words dropped or desynonymised.--2. Languages advance from indetermination to grammar.--Simplicity succeeds complexity.--Instances of agglutination.--3. Languages advance from synthesis to analysis.--Tmesis a relic of Polysynthetism.--Analysis not inferior to synthesis for the expression of thought.--Instances in the Indo-European and Semitic languages.--Grimm on the English language.--Some would add a 4th law, viz.: the progress from monosyllabism.--Arguments in favour of this law.--It remains very questionable; only a convenient hypothesis. 166