The existence of an Indo-European linguistic family, allowing for the fact that several languages widely dispersed across Eurasia share numerous traits, has been demonstrated for several centuries now. But the underlying factors for this shared heritage have been fiercely debated by linguists, historians, archaeologists, and anthropologists. The leading theory, of which countless variations exist, argues that this similarity is best explained by the existence, at one given point in time and space, of a common language and corresponding population. This ancient, prehistoric, population would then have diffused across Eurasia, eventually leading to the variation observed in historical and modern times. The Indo-Europeans: Archaeology, Language, Race, and the Search for the Origins of the West argues that despite its acceptance and use by most researchers from different disciplines, such a model is inherently flawed. This book describes how, beginning in the late eighteenth century, Europeans began a quest for a supposed original homeland, from which a small conquering people would one day spread out, bringing their language to Europe and parts of Asia (India, Iran, Afghanistan). This quest was often closely tied to ideological preoccupations and it was in its name that the Nazi leadership, claiming for the Germans the status of the purest Indo-Europeans (or Aryans), waged genocide. The last part of the book summarizes the current state of knowledge and current hypotheses in the fields of linguistics, archaeology, comparative mythology, and genetics. The culmination of three decades of research, this book offers a sweeping survey of the historiography of the Indo-European debate and poses a devastating challenge to the Indo-European origin story at its roots.

About the Author
Jean-Paul Demoule is Emeritus Professor of Archaeology at the Universite de Paris I Pantheon-Sorbonne, an honorary member of the Institut Universitaire de France, and a former president of the Institut national de recherches archeologiques preventives (Inrap; National Institute for Preventive Archeological Research).

Reviews
With this ambitious volume, Jean-Paul Demoule exposes and criticises the theoretical and methodological flaws inherent to the 'tree model,' which propounds that Indo-European languages and speakers dispersed and branched out from a unique point in space and time. An impressive display of historiographical knowledge stretching across several centuries and disciplines, including linguistics, archaeology, history of religions, biological anthropology, and politics. * Marc Vander Linden, Bournemouth University *
A scholarly labour of many decades, Demoule's erudite but accessible treatment of the Indo-Europeans is indispensable reading for anyone interested in the relationship between language, archaeology, and biological anthropology. It is also a shrewd analysis of the slippage between science and mysticism that plagues its topic, from the seventeenth century down to the present day, exposing the roots of a tenacious, often dark undercurrent of thought about the origins and destiny of 'the West'. * David Wengrow, University College London *
With this ambitious volume, Jean-Paul Demoule exposes and criticises the theoretical and methodological flaws inherent to the 'tree model,' which propounds that Indo-European languages and speakers dispersed and branched out from a unique point in space and time. An impressive display of historiographical knowledge stretching across several centuries and disciplines, including linguistics, archaeology, history of religions, biological anthropology, and politics. * Marc Vander Linden, Bournemouth University *
A scholarly labour of many decades, Demoule's erudite but accessible treatment of the Indo-Europeans is indispensable reading for anyone interested in the relationship between language, archaeology, and biological anthropology. It is also a shrewd analysis of the slippage between science and mysticism that plagues its topic, from the seventeenth century down to the present day, exposing the roots of a tenacious, often dark undercurrent of thought about the origins and destiny of 'the West'. * David Wengrow, University College London *



Book Information
ISBN 9780197683286
Author Jean-Paul Demoule
Format Paperback
Page Count 584
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 826g
Dimensions(mm) 156mm * 235mm * 33mm