A Phono-Semiotic study into historical links of ‘/st̪ɑːn/’.

Abstract

This article sheds a new light on the historical links and phono-semiotic interpretations of /st̪ɑːn/ sound in various languages of the world particularly Persian, Urdu, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Arabic, Greek, German and English. By studying various signifiers and signifieds of this sound, the study enumerates and strengthens the hypothetical link connecting English, Arabic and Indo-European languages. The study tries to find answers to three basic questions. (1) Where the sound /st̪ɑːn/ could have come from?  (2) In what different forms does it spread in different languages? (3) How, semiotically it stands for the signified ideas it stands for? Using the Lexical root theory as proposed by Jassem (2012a, 2012b, 2014a, 2014b) the study digs into possible cognates of the sound /st̪ɑːn/ and establishes a semiotic link of English, Arabic and Indo-European languages.