«Die Sprachen als geistige Schöpfungen des Menschen, als tief in ihre geistige Entwiklung verschlungen…». Le riflessioni linguistiche di Alexander von Humboldt

The paper aims at investigating the linguistic reflections of Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859) scattered among the pages of his travelogues, his main works Kosmos. Entwurf einer physischen Weltbeschreibung (1845-1862), Relation historique aux régions équinoxiales du nouveau continent (1814-1831) and Ansichten der Natur (1808). Humboldt is world renowned for his transatlantic journey, his biological and mineralogiabstracts 201 cal discoveries, but not as a linguist. In America he did not only collect plants and stones or take measurements, but was also interested in native languages. Language is first of all a medium of communication, but also the expression of human thought. Referring to his holistic idea of science, the contribution explains how human language plays an important role in cultural transfer, contact and influence.