Diachrony

/ˌdaɪˈækrəni/ noun

Definition

The study of how languages or phenomena change and evolve over time; historical development.

Etymology

From Greek 'dia-' (through) + 'chronos' (time) + '-y' (noun suffix), literally 'the study of change through time.'

Kelly Says

Diachrony is how linguists proved that all European languages descended from a single Indo-European ancestor—by tracking sound changes backward like a linguistic time machine to around 4000 BCE.

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