The Indo-Europeans Rediscovered
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Today the number of native speakers of Indo-European languages across the world is reckoned to be over 2.6 billion or about 45% of the earth’s population. Yet the idea that an ancient, prehistoric population in one time and place gave rise to our own family of people and language is one with a long and troubled past. In this expansive investigation, based on over 50 years of research, J. P. Mallory navigates the complex history of our search for the Indo-European homeland, offering fresh insight into the debates surrounding their origin as well as the latest genetic research.
In this compelling account, Mallory explores ancient migrations, linguistics and archaeology, applying cutting edge-genetic research to untangle the key arguments with wit and verve. He addresses how the controversial idea of a single, shared homeland has been viewed by scientists, archaeologists and linguists across the past century and reconsiders how, in the case of the Nazis and more recent nationalist movements, they have been manipulated for political advantage. He goes on to unpick the linguistic trail linking us to the Indo-Europeans, looking at Sanskrit, Greek, Latin and more, tracing our linguistic origins across multiple peoples and cultures, finally bringing the most up to date phylogenetic research to bear on the story. Ultimately this book offers the most conclusive answer to the controversial question of where we are from and how we got here.
In this compelling account, Mallory explores ancient migrations, linguistics and archaeology, applying cutting edge-genetic research to untangle the key arguments with wit and verve. He addresses how the controversial idea of a single, shared homeland has been viewed by scientists, archaeologists and linguists across the past century and reconsiders how, in the case of the Nazis and more recent nationalist movements, they have been manipulated for political advantage. He goes on to unpick the linguistic trail linking us to the Indo-Europeans, looking at Sanskrit, Greek, Latin and more, tracing our linguistic origins across multiple peoples and cultures, finally bringing the most up to date phylogenetic research to bear on the story. Ultimately this book offers the most conclusive answer to the controversial question of where we are from and how we got here.
Extent: 448 pp
Format: Hardback
Illustrations: 67
Publication date: 2025-04-24
Size: 23.4 x 15.3 cm
ISBN: 9780500028636
Press Reviews
Barry Cunliffe, Emeritus Professor of Archaeology, University of Oxford
David W. Anthony Emeritus Professor of Anthropology, Hartwick College and author of The Horse, the Wheel, and Language: How Bronze-Age Riders from the Eurasian Steppes Shaped the Modern World
Kristian Kristiansen, Professor of Archaeology, University of Copenhagen
About the Author
J. P. Mallory is a world expert on the interconnection of archaeology and linguistics and is the author of In Search of the Indo-Europeans and The Oxford Introduction to Proto-Indo-European. He has published numerous other works, including the acclaimed The Origins of the Irish. He is Emeritus Professor of Prehistoric Archaeology at Queen’s University Belfast and a member of the Royal Irish Academy.
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