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From: "Paul J. Kriha" <kriha_p@actrix.gen.nz>
Subject: Re: Hungarian / Czecho-Slovakian
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Date: Tue, 24 Jan 1995 09:40:57 GMT
References: <rharmsen.176.00160003@knoware.nl> <3g11fe$dcq@overload.lbl.gov>
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> In article <rharmsen.176.00160003@knoware.nl> rharmsen@knoware.nl (Ruud 
> Harmsen) writes:
> >Is anything known about non-related but adjacent languages, that have 
> >striking similarities other than in borrowed words? E.g. Czecho-Slovak
> >and Hungarian share the stress on the first syllable and the distinction 
> >between long and short vowels. Both are also found in Finnish, but not in
> >(any?) other Slavic languages.
> >Other examples: Esperanto and Polish both have the stress on the penultimate
> >syllable, (flame bait), and Basque seems to have phonetic similarities with
> >Spanish, despite being extremely unrelated.
> >And is it a coincidence that the name of the Guaran language of Paraguay 
> >can be written so well in Spanish?

This is a joke, right?
Which language are you refering to, Czech or Slovak?
I am a native speaker of Czech. I never noticed any
striking similarities what-so-ever between Czech or Slovak
_and_ Hungarian. There are a few H loan words in S and C. 
Since Hungarians absorbed large numbers of Slavs I expect
there would be a number of Slavic loan words in Hungarian.
Anything else is coincidental. 
Which Slavic language doesn't have the distinction between
long and short vowels?

Paul JK

PS. There is one striking similarity between Hungarian,
Czech, Polish, Basque and Esperanto, though.  When people speak
their lips move!  Isn't that amazing?  It can't be a conicidence.
