Usage frequency and lexical class determine the evolution of kinship terms in Indo-European
Royal Society Open Science • Vol/Iss. 6(10) • The Royal Society • • Published In • Pages: ??•
By Rácz, Péter, Passmore, Sam, Sheard, Catherine, Jordan, Fiona M.
Hypothesis
The relationship between rate of word replacement and usage frequency is stronger for kinship terms than it is for core vocabulary in Indo-European languages.
Note
The relationship described in hypothesis 1 (regarding kin terms) is much stronger than for core vocabulary (est = 0.18, s.d. = 0.09, t = 2.02).
| Test Name | Support | Significance | Coefficient | Tail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phylogenetic comparative methods | Supported | UNKNOWN | UNKNOWN | UNKNOWN |
| Variable Name | Variable Type | OCM Term(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Rate of word replacement | Dependent | Vocabulary |
| Frequency of word use | Independent | Vocabulary |