CURRENT WAYS OF COMPARING WORLD LANGUAGES

This article examines four main types of linguistic system comparison: genetic, typological, genetic-typological, and areal, which are aspects of a single process of comparing the world's languages. Each of these types is differentiated by its own objective, subject matter, and research method. Genetic comparison is based on the concept of linguistic kinship, which emerged from the common origin of languages. Typological comparison of systems and subsystems uses the comparative typological method and aims to study related and unrelated languages. Genetic-typological comparison seeks to explore genetic connections and typological similarities between languages. Finally, areal comparison allows for comparisons of linguistic systems within a given proximity, i.e., a geographic area.