[split] The Zipf law and the Voynich Manuscript

[ReneZ]

While Zipf's law is largely followed by the Voynich MS text, in a similar way to known texts in various langauges, it is correct that this does not prove that the Voynich MS text is meaningful.

However, it does put a constraint on the possible ways in which the text could have been generated.

[Antonio García Jiménez]

Note, Rene, that every time you use the word text, and you do so repeatedly in your previous post, you are assuming that we are dealing with a language, which is far from being demonstrated. I think it's better to use the word script, which is neutral.

How the script was generated may be an issue, but it's a secondary issue in my opinion, because educated people of the time wouldn't have needed the script to know the book was meaningful. They would have known how to interpret the imagery and make sense of it.

[ReneZ]

When I write text, I include the possibility that this is meaningless text.

[nablator]

Some statistics depend on correct identification of words more than others... It's not just uncertain spaces, the subjective tendency to "see" words as they should be, standardize glyph shapes and perceived spaces, may play a large part in the (unreliable) result.

[Antonio García Jiménez]

But maybe there are no words at all, but each glyph is a concept, as Friedman thought. Then it would seem like meaningless text, but it would have meaning.

[Gabriel L]

But maybe there are no words at all, but each glyph is a concept, as Friedman thought. Then it would seem like meaningless text, but it would have meaning.

Hi, I am trying to understand what this could mean.
If each glyph a pictogram, aren't just too few "concepts" to encode any meaningful information?
Are there any existing examples of something like this?
Is there any evidence that there is no language? 

Regards,
G.

[Antonio García Jiménez]

I have put in my thread No text but a visual code an explanation about what Friedman thought and my theory.

Here I will only say that for me the solution to the Voynich must be a joint one: the script and the imagery, because both complement each other. And above all, this is a medieval document and we cannot approach it with the rationality of the 21st century.

[Bluetoes101]

Its a bit of a stretch. Constructed doesn't imply it can't be read or doesn't have words or meaning. 

Solresol
You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.