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HERVAS Y PANDURO, Lorenzo (1735–1809).
See original version (Italian)
82
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HERVAS Y PANDURO, Lorenzo (1735–1809).
See original version (Italian)
Estimate €300 - €500
Voluntary lot
Description
HERVAS Y PANDURO, Lorenzo (1735–1809). The Origin, Formation, Mechanism and Harmony of Languages. Cesena: Gregorio Biasini, 1785.
First separate edition, with no copy recorded at auction (RBH), of one of the fundamental works by the great Spanish linguist and Jesuit Lorenzo Hervás y Panduro, a leading figure of the Spanish Universalist School and regarded as one of the forerunners of modern comparative linguistics. The work, first published the previous year as the eighteenth volume of the monumental *Idea dell’universo* (Cesena, 1778–1787), was published here independently for the first and only time and may therefore be considered the first separate edition. The result of studies carried out during his years in the Spanish missions in the Americas and subsequently during his exile in Italy following the suppression of the Society of Jesus, the treatise systematically examines the origin, formation and structure of languages, proposing one of the earliest comparative classifications of known languages. Through the comparison of lexical roots, Hervás identifies affinities and differences between the principal language families, devoting particular attention to the indigenous languages of Spanish America, with which he had direct familiarity.
4to, (250 x 190 mm). Title-page with an engraved vignette depicting Minerva; 17 large folding comparative linguistic tables; woodcut initials and tailpieces; errata at the end (occasional short tears to the blank margins and minor wormholes, not affecting the text). Contemporary temporary boards. (1)
See original version (Italian)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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