re: Gaels, Basques, Welsh, Near East, etc.

A number of comments on linguistics and genetics from Digest 1738:

I've seen nothing in the literature to suggest that the Basques and
the Welsh are particularly closely related genetically and I'd like to see any
reference to the contrary. In fact, the Basques seem to be genetically distinct
among European populations.

It is possible that there are some links to Irish populations, assuming the
legend of Mil Espainne and the migration from Spain is true, as the Spaniards
in Roman times were a mixture of Celts and Iberians (ancestors of the Basques,
etc.).

Welsh, however, is a P-Celtic or Brythonic language related to Gaulish and
what the elite Picts spoke and not Q-Celtic or Goidelic as are Irish, Manx,
Scots, etc.
So, it seems unlikely that they would be closely related to the Basques.
Furthermore, it is known that many Celtic Britons migrated from what is now
Belgium and Northern France in the early centuries BCE.

For what it's worth, Neanderthals seem to have survived in southern Spain
long after they had been replaced by modern humans from Africa via the
Near East. Comparisons of mitochondrial DNA sequences indicate that
Neanderthals probably did not interbreed with modern humans to any
detectable extent and Y chromosome data indicates that all extant
humans are more recent than Neanderthals.

There is a very embarrassing situation at the moment re DNA tests in
the Near East. A paper published in the September issue of Human Immunology
which shows that Jews and Palestinians are closely related genetically has been
withdrawn because of political comments by the author. The data are not
in dispute, and contrary to some Palestinian propaganda, European Jews
did originate in Palestine.

There have been many suggestions that American Indian languages
are related to Welsh, Hebrew, Berber, Punic, etc. None have been
shown to be true, though there may be a few recent loan words from
Celtic via French in Alqonkin (bata (?) boat, from Fr. bateau, Gaulish bata).

A retired Harvard zoologist named Barry Fell has been pushing these ideas
in his books America B.C. and Saga America. They make rather amusing
reading, especially his translation of petroglyphs which he alleges show that
Arabic-speaking Hebrews ran a Naval Academy in the middle of the
Nevada desert.

Hopi is a Uto-Aztecan language, related to Paiute, Tarahumara,
Nahuatl, Huichol, etc. such as Gaelic Its roots and verbal system is
are very different from Indo-European languages, i.e, verbs conjugated
for degrees of validity or affirmation rather than tense). According to
Whorf, there is a form called the "impotential" which expresses teleological
ineffectiveness. An example would be "he escaped, but was recaptured, "
or I already ate, but am still hungry."

Some linguists do think that Na-Dene is related to Ket and the rest of
the Yeneseian languages (now extinct) and the Sino-Tibetan languages.
I'm not sure what the consensus is, but I think that the relation of Ket to
Sino-Tibetan is accepted, but that the wider relations to Na-Dene,
Burushaski, Hurrian, Hattic, North Caucasian, Etruscan and Sumerian
are not. My files are several years old, alas.

Genetically, Na-Dene speakers seem more closely related to North
Chinese and East Siberian peoples than to Eskimo-Aleut or other
North Eurasians. However, there is some evidence for at least one
migration of Eurasian peoples similar to the Jomon (proto-Ainu), and
other North Asian-North European groups very early into North America.
The evidence is still rather poor for this, but it would explain why
the Kennewick man looks like Patrick Stewart (of Star Trek, the Next
Generation, Dune, etc.). In any case, the skeleton is far too important
scientifically to be allowed to be reburied or destroyed.

--John

--- In tuning@y..., John Chalmers <JHCHALMERS@U...> wrote:
> Comparisons of mitochondrial DNA sequences indicate that
> Neanderthals probably did not interbreed with modern humans to any
> detectable extent and Y chromosome data indicates that all extant
> humans are more recent than Neanderthals.

Has the Meanderthal data been generally accepted? I thought there was
some controvery about it.

> There is a very embarrassing situation at the moment re DNA tests in
> the Near East. A paper published in the September issue of Human
Immunology
> which shows that Jews and Palestinians are closely related
genetically has been
> withdrawn because of political comments by the author.

This is hilarious in a sad sort of way; I thought of mentioning that
work which made the newspapers a while back.

> The evidence is still rather poor for this, but it would explain
why
> the Kennewick man looks like Patrick Stewart (of Star Trek, the
Next
> Generation, Dune, etc.). In any case, the skeleton is far too
important
> scientifically to be allowed to be reburied or destroyed.

Not according to Babbitt, where it seems we are to return it to its
proper tribe, despite the fact that his own report, which I read,
makes it clear it doesn't have one.

In a message dated 12/5/01 11:18:32 PM Eastern Standard Time,
JHCHALMERS@UCSD.EDU writes:

> . My files are several years old, alas.
>
>

Alas, John, I read this as a strict DNA test (Welsh are genetically) Basque.
It was this year, and I think it was in the NYTimes. I'll try to locate the
article as I know I kept it.

The Village Voice put out (last year) in an article on DNA and ancient
peoples that the Jomon of Japan were an early Tibetan culture that spread out
to Japan, independent of the Ainu (Otaru) people.

Good to hear that you knew of the Ket connection with the Dine.

Best, Johnny Reinhard