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From: deb5@midway.uchicago.edu (Daniel von Brighoff)
Subject: Re: Isolating?
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Date: Wed, 5 Mar 1997 20:03:28 GMT
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>Esperanto League N America wrote:
>> 
>> Are there languages which use isolating structures in grammar
>> besides Chinese, Vietnamese, and Samoan?

Most pidgins and creoles, if I'm not mistaken.

>> BTW is Samoan genetically related to Chinese?  Are there any
>> isolating grammars in families *not* related to Chinese?

I can't think of any creole language related to Chinese.  Of course,
"genetic relationship" in regards to creoles is a tricky concept.  Is
Haitian Creole a "Romance" language because 90%+ of its vocabularly is
derived from French even though it has few of the grammatical hallmarks
that characterise the Romance languages?  One could say Chinese Pidgin
English owed some of its structure to Chinese, but that's not only
debatable (depending on which theories of pidginisation you subscribe to),
it's also moot, as the language did not creolise and is now extinct.

-- 
	 Daniel "Da" von Brighoff    /\          Dilettanten
	(deb5@midway.uchicago.edu)  /__\         erhebt Euch
				   /____\      gegen die Kunst!
