AHC/WI: Korean a Proto-Indo-European language

I was reading on PIE origin hypotheses and all of them seem to indicate that they were largely originated from the steppes near the Caspian. And as we know the Indo-European lanuage family is spread out from Britain to Bangladesh.
Is there a possibility for the PIE to be spread from Central Asia to Korea, allowing the Korean language to be originating from Indo-European roots?
 
How will they displace the Turkic and Tungusic speakers in their way? From what I understand, the Proto-Indo-Europeans weren't too different from them, so they all lived a similar lifestyle and couldn't really assimilate them. I'd guess they only got as far as Xinjiang (Tocharians) for a reason. And there's a lot of distance to cover between Xinjiang and Korea.
 
How will they displace the Turkic and Tungusic speakers in their way? From what I understand, the Proto-Indo-Europeans weren't too different from them, so they all lived a similar lifestyle and couldn't really assimilate them. I'd guess they only got as far as Xinjiang (Tocharians) for a reason. And there's a lot of distance to cover between Xinjiang and Korea.

Well, what I was thinking was have them go east through Mongolia into southern Manchuria. Maybe spurred by another nomadic group kicking them out from the Caspian basin?
 
Well...There's consistent theories about a possible PIE influence (linguistical and material) on early Ancient China, and presence of PIE or PIEzed peoples in Northern Steppe (Afanasevo Culture, Bronze Age Tuva, etc.)

So it wouldn't be that surprising to see a PIE presence in Korean peninsula, altough not as a massive dominant.
I'd rather see them mixing with other steppe peoples in the region as Beidi, forming an eastern continuation of eastern Iranic peoples that while mixed and influencing proto-Mongols and proto-Turks, would rather integrate them into a steppe confederation system than assimilate them (Scythians dominated proto-Turks, influenced them but not PIEzed them IOTL).

We could see this ensemble managing to enter Korea just before the Mumun period, giving it a distinct PIE influence : at least as it may have happened for China, or even stronger.

But, I don't think PIE presence would be important enough there to go trough a shift as it happened with Vinča : having more loanwords and more material culture issued from them would already be huge, while these...let's call them Europoid Altaics would have been too much of an isolate to subsiste on themselves (let alone dominate culturally).
 
I think you'll be surprised to how much influence OTL Korean culture has received from the Urallic tribes; I think a Korean culture almost completely dominated by an Indo-European language is quite possible. :p
So let's now assume some traits of the European steppe peoples - frequent use of ochre, animal remains in graves, the PIE language, and so forth - becomes transferred to Korean culture by 2000 BCE. How can we expect things to change? Will Korean culture try to stay in southern Manchuria to retain its nomadic origins? Will China become influenced by the linguistic difference? What about Japan?
 
I remember this Alexander the Great TL where he fails horribly at keeping his Persian throne and goes on a decades-long journey to the east with his remaining loyal Greeks. And he fought as a mercenary along the Silk Road, assimilated a couple Tocharian tribes, fought as a mercenary again in Warring States China, and finally settled in (read: genocided) proto-Korea.

Or is that not what you were looking for? I mean, the resulting language would possibly be a Tocharian-Greek creole with a Korean substrate and thus would be Indo-European.
 
Considering the phonological setup of Korean consonants, it would be interesting to see if the glottalic theory received renewed attention, whether in its traditional or revised forms.
 
I think you'll be surprised to how much influence OTL Korean culture has received from the Urallic tribes
Did I say the contrary? What I'm saying is that I don't think an PIE presence that was certainly IOTL much mixed on the northern steppes isn't going to be dominant for the sake of being more present in its eastern parts.

I think a Korean culture almost completely dominated by an Indo-European language is quite possible.
Why? For all we know PIE influence that might have existed is quite restricted to loanwords and material features.
Wusun peoples, which might be the last direct elements of the Afanasevo culture in northern steppe, were most probably mixed with Proto-Mongols and Proto-Turks. And that was in the western part of the Mongloic/Turkic ensemble.

Genetics studies seems to point that there, you had already a significant inter-breeding between PIE/PIEzed peoples and Mongoloids peoples. More you'd go east, more mixing you'd get.

So let's now assume some traits of the European steppe peoples - frequent use of ochre, animal remains in graves, the PIE language, and so forth - becomes transferred to Korean culture by 2000 BCE.
It borders chronological impossibility. By 2000BCE, the decline of Afanasevo culture eventually brought on non PIE influences more importantly in the region (possibly due to demographical booming, itself due to techological changes brought during Afanasevo), while distinctivly PIEzed cultures as Andronovo were more western and southern leanings.

While I could see a PIE push in the north-eastern steppe it will have to blend with Altaic and precisely Proto-Mongol and Proto-Tungusic.
At this point, arguing of a PIE Korea is a nonsense : PIE was already divided into distinct cultures and languages since thousands of years in the IInd millenium.

It is obvious that we'll be then talking of a culture more or less close to Sycthians (themselves the less further culture compared to the IVth millenium situation, but really far objectively nevertheless).

Let's say this Amur Culture (gonna simplify things) exist, it would be an important blend of different populations, on which Europoids (which is to be distinguished from IE/IEzed peoples) would be only a part that would be less important with the development (demographical or else) of Altaic peoples.

With contacts with other IE/IEzed cultures as Andronovo would be further, the IE presence in Amur would be an isolate, which is never faring much well on the long run.

Giving the lifestyle of steppe peoples, furthermore, I'd expect a focus on Korea being more likely in the Formative Mumun or later, as for exchange possibilities and eventual takeover.

Something akin to the interaction between Trypilla and Kurgan cultures, if you prefer.

Long story short : a cultural IE element that could be identifiable, archeologically, and influential (as it may have happened in China).
But dominating? Giving how much it didn't went this way IOTL, that's streching things a lot.

As for the changes...
I'd expect the appearance of a possibly more hierarchized society, would it be only as a reaction on steppe people presence : maybe a division of Korea into two roughly different cultures? As in :
- A steppe Indo-European/Proto-Mongoloid ensemble, with other Altaic substrate, a continuation of *Amur Culture
- A southern Korean culture, maybe more tied up to Liaoning culture ITTL, possibly swalloed up by its northern neighbours, but forming a huge substrate as well in the best of case.

Basically, I'd expect a different Altaic Korean culture, maybe significantly more tied up to its steppe neighbours while still inheriting the same structure than IOTL Korean development. Think Kithans on steroids.
 
Did I say the contrary? What I'm saying is that I don't think an PIE presence that was certainly IOTL much mixed on the northern steppes isn't going to be dominant for the sake of being more present in its eastern parts.
What I meant was that we probably differ in how much we think TTL assimilation is possible, but point taken.

Long story short : a cultural IE element that could be identifiable, archeologically, and influential (as it may have happened in China).
But dominating? Giving how much it didn't went this way IOTL, that's streching things a lot.

As for the changes...
I'd expect the appearance of a possibly more hierarchized society, would it be only as a reaction on steppe people presence : maybe a division of Korea into two roughly different cultures? As in :
- A steppe Indo-European/Proto-Mongoloid ensemble, with other Altaic substrate, a continuation of *Amur Culture
- A southern Korean culture, maybe more tied up to Liaoning culture ITTL, possibly swalloed up by its northern neighbours, but forming a huge substrate as well in the best of case.

Basically, I'd expect a different Altaic Korean culture, maybe significantly more tied up to its steppe neighbours while still inheriting the same structure than IOTL Korean development. Think Kithans on steroids.
This all barely makes sense but was very intriguing and interesting. Thanks for the effort put into the post. :D
 
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