Meillet's principle

In comparative linguistics, Meillet's principle (/meɪ.ˈjeɪz/ may-YAYZ), also known as the three-witness principle or three-language principle, states that apparent cognates must be attested in at least three different, non-contiguous daughter languages in order to be used in linguistic reconstruction. The principle is named after the French linguist Antoine Meillet.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.