“农业—语言共扩散”假说在东亚的适用性评析

A Review of the Applicability of the"FarmingLanguage Dispersal"Hypothesis in East Asia

根据“农业—语言共扩散”假说,农业发展是推动语言扩散的主要动力之一。世界上许多语系早期的传播是由于当时的人群采用了农耕的生产方式,农业增长带动了人口增加,推动早期农民及其语言迁徙至更广阔的领域。该假说在东亚地区的适用性如何?对东亚主要语系(族)扩散与农业发展关系的语言学、考古学和遗传学跨学科研究文献的评议表明,“农业—语言共扩散”假说对东亚地区主要语系(族)——汉藏语、侗台语、苗瑶语、南岛语和南亚语的起源与扩散具有一定解释力,但假说本身也存在局限性。有关“农业—语言共扩散”假说是否适用于泛欧亚语的形成与传播,学术界还存在较大争议。该假说在使用前需要考虑气候环境、地理条件、语言接触史等因素的影响。多学科的证据展现了“农业—语言共扩散”假说在东亚地区的解释力,也深化了我们对东亚语系扩散时间及路径的认识。

According to the"farming/language dispersal"hypothesis,agricultural development is one of the main drivers of language proliferation.The early spread of many of the world's language families was due to the adoption of agrarian production methods by the people of the time,and the growth of agriculture led to an increase in population,driving the migration of early farmers and their languages to a wider area.How applicable is this hypothesis in East Asia?A review of the interdisciplinary linguistic,archaeological and genetic literature on the relationship between the spread of the major East Asian language families(ethnic groups)and agricultural development suggests that the"farming/language dispersal"hypothesis has some explanatory power for the origins and spread of the major East Asian language families(ethnic groups)-Sino-Tibetan,Dong-Tai,Miao-Yao,Austronesian and South Asian languages-but the hypothesis itself has limitations.The hypothesis requires consideration of climatic conditions,geography and the history of language contact before it can be used.Multidisciplinary evidence demonstrates the explanatory power of the"farming/language dispersal"hypothesis in East Asia,and deepens our understanding of the timing and path of the spread of East Asian language families.