The conceptual pair in transition

Chapter 12 presents the book’s third case study, the Swedish scholar Georg Stiernhielm, a transitional figure. Driven by language-historical interests, Stiernhielm defined the conceptual pair in terms of substantial versus accidental differences. This Aristotelian interpretation he made very explicit, tying it to specific linguistic domains such as the lexicon and pronunciation. He moreover invoked mutual intelligibility in his definitions. As he was concerned in the first place with language history, his usage of the terms lingua and dialectus was also steeped in the diachronic interpretation. In the margin, the analogy / anomaly opposition and geography likewise shaped his conception of the distinction. The case of Stiernhielm, who probably did not know much Greek, confirms the tendency towards emancipation discussed in Chapter 11. It is, finally, no coincidence that his interest in the conceptual pair surfaced around 1650, just after he had met two erudite philologists: Christian Ravis and Claude de Saumaise.