Article published in:
Historiographia Linguistica
Vol. 47:2/3 (2020) ► pp. 303–321

A letter from Zellig Harris to André Lentin

Explanatory notes

Toward the end of his life, Zellig Harris (1909–1992) wrote a brief account of the origins and development of his work to establish the foundations of a science of language on mathematical principles. A French translation was published in 1990, and in the same publication appeared a parallel appraisal from a mathematical point of view by André Lentin (1913–2015). Early the following year, having reread Lentin’s essay several times, Harris wrote him the letter which is presented here. More than a gesture of thanks and appreciation, this letter further illuminates the comprehensive overview afforded by the two essays, both of which appeared in English in 2002.

Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Foundations of mathematics and of empirical science
    • 2.1Background
    • 2.2Constructivism, intuitionism, and tertium non datur
    • 2.3Finitism and recursive mathematics
    • 2.4On the homology with empirical science
  • 3.Grammar and its formalizations: Realism vs description
    • 3.1Properties of language, analytical methods, and formal descriptions
    • 3.2From abstract algebraic system to applicative calculus
    • 3.3Typed lambda calculus
    • 3.4Inconsistency as a challenge to finitism
  • 4.Formalization and finding further regularities in the data
    • 4.1Testing an axiomatization of grammar
    • 4.2Resolution of exception cases
    • 4.3Cryptomorphisms subject to “pertinence and linguistic transparency”
  • 5.Beyond operator grammar
  • 6.Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 02 April 2021
https://doi.org/10.1075/hl.00077.nev
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