Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site fortune.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!ihnp4!fortune!polard
From: polard@fortune.UUCP (Henry Polard)
Newsgroups: net.nlang
Subject: Re: Esperanto and the origins of some in
Message-ID: <4872@fortune.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 11-Jan-85 11:34:20 EST
Article-I.D.: fortune.4872
Posted: Fri Jan 11 11:34:20 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 12-Jan-85 05:54:19 EST
References: <1129@druny.UUCP> <10500037@uiucdcsb.UUCP>
Reply-To: polard@fortune.UUCP (Henry polard)
Organization: Fortune Systems, Redwood City, CA
Lines: 30
Keywords: English, Russian Esperanto
Summary: Russian related to English



In article <10500037@uiucdcsb.UUCP> you write:
>This kind of etymology is kind of suspect.  I once had a friend
>(a linguist, who should have known better) try to demonstrate that
>Russian was related to Latin on the basis of some similar vocabulary
>between Italian and Russian.  I am still not sure she could have
>been serious.  
She was.  Latin and the language that Russian, Polish, and the other 
Slavic languages came from were (metaphorically) cousins.  The parent
language is called Proto Indo-european.  Look it up in a good encyclopedia.
A good introduction to the family is _Indo-european Philology_ by 
Lockwood, pub. by Longman's.
BTW,

>provi   try	Russian: probat' - to try
>		related to the word "prove"?
>voli    will	Russian: vol' - will (as in "by force of ... ")

supports the relationship - prove comes from the Latin probare via
Old French prover; vol- is a good Latin root for wishing or willing,
and shows up e.g, in voluntary, from voluntas, choice.

There's a fascinating language family out there - check it out!

-- 
Henry Polard (You bring the flames - I'll bring the marshmallows.)
{ihnp4,cbosgd,amd}!fortune!polard
N.B: The words in this posting do not necessarily express the opinions
of me, my employer, or any AI project.