Comparative Philology

Comparative philology is the study of languages to understand their historical development and relationships. By analyzing similarities and differences in vocabulary, grammar, and sound changes across related languages, linguists can trace how languages have evolved from common ancestors. This helps reconstruct ancient languages and map out language family trees, revealing how human languages are interconnected. Essentially, it’s a way of uncovering the history of language, much like tracing family genealogy, but applied to languages instead of people.