Lyle Campbell

A thorough overview of genetic language classification. To me the most interesting parts were the history sections, which looked in part at how early classification methodologies were often suspect because they relied on non-linguistic factors such as racial stereotypes for classifying languages. The constant bashing of a particular linguist called Greenberg (who was apparently very lax in his application of the comparative method in order to force data to fit pre-conceived theories) was also mildly amusing.… (más)

The Indigenous Languages of South America: A Comprehensive Guide is a thorough guide to the indigenous languages of this part of the world. With more than a third of the linguistic diversity of the world (in terms of language families and isolates), South American languages contribute new findings in most areas of linguistics. Though formerly one of the linguistically least known areas of the world, extensive descriptive and historical linguistic research in recent years has expanded knowledge greatly. These advances are represented … Show Morein this volume in indepth treatments by the foremost scholars in the field, with chapters on the history of investigation, language classification, language endangerment, language contact, typology, phonology and phonetics, and on major language families and regions of South America. Description from EBL Webstie… (más)