Chapter 6

Language

What We Will Learn How does human language differ from forms of

communication in other animals? How do children acquire language? How do languages change? Are some languages superior to others? What is the relationship between language and

culture? How do people communicate without using

words?

The Nature of Language Found in all cultures of the world. Symbolic system of sounds that conveys

meaning when put together according to a set of rules.

Meanings attached to any given word in all languages are totally arbitrary.

Diversity of Language There are as many as 6,000 discrete

languages. 95% of the world’s people speak fewer than 100

of approximately 6,000 languages. Mandarin accounts for about 1 in every 5

people on earth. English, Hindi, Spanish, and Russian, accounts

for about 45%.

Major Languages of the World

Language Primary Country

Number of Speakers

Mandarin China 874,000,000

Hindi India 366,000,000

English UK/USA 341,000,000

Spanish Spain/South America

322,000,000

Bengali Bangladesh 207,000,000

Portuguese Portugal/Brazil 176,000,000

Major Languages of the World

Language Primary Country

Number of Speakers

Russian Russia 167,000,000

Japanese Japan 125,000,000

German Germany 100,000,000

Korean Korea 78,000,000

French France 77,000,000

Wu China 77,000,000

Characteristics of Human Communication Systems

Capable of sending an infinite number of messages.

Humans are only animals that speak of events from the past or in the future (displacement).

Language is transmitted largely through tradition rather than experience alone.

Structure of Human Languages Phonological structure includes rules of how

sounds combine to convey meanings. Each language has a grammatical structure that

governs: How morphemes are formed into words

(morphology). How words are arranged into phrases and

sentences (syntax).

Morphemes Make Up Words

Language Change Language is constantly changing. When linguists study how languages change

over time, they are engaged in diachronic analysis.

Historical linguists may study changes in a single language, such as changes from Old English to modern English.

Comparative Linguists can look at changes that have occurred in related languages.

Language Families A language family comprises all of the

languages that derive from its common protolanguage.

The English language is part of the family known as the Indo-European language family. Germanic is the mother of English. French and Spanish are sister languages. Russian, Bulgarian, and Polish share a

common Slavic mother.

Language Families Linguists generally agree that there are

more than 250 different language families in the world today.

Of these 150 are found in the Americas, 60 in New Guinea, 26 in Australia, 20 in Africa, and 37 in Europe and Asia.

Colloquialisms From Baseball She threw me a curve. You’re way off base. You’re batting 1,000 (500, zero) so far. I want to touch all the bases. He went to bat for me. He has two strikes against him. That’s way out in left field. He drives me up the wall.

Sapir–Whorf Hypothesis Language influences perception. Language establishes mental categories

that affect the ways people conceptualize the real world.

Diglossia The situational use of language in

complex speech communities. A linguistic situation where two varieties

of the same language (such as standard form, dialect, or pidgin) are spoken by the same person at different times and under different social circumstances.

Examples of DiglossiaHigh Form Low Form

Religious service Marketplace

Political speeches Instructions to subordinates

Legislative proceedings Friendly conversations

University lectures Folk literature

News broadcasts Radio/TV programs

Newspapers Cartoons

Poetry Graffiti

Nonverbal Communication Most messages are sent and received

without words: Facial expressions Gestures Eye contact Touching Posture

Quick Quiz

1. The language characteristic of ________ allows humans to speak of things or events that have happened in the past, or may occur in the future.

a) displacement

b) frame substitution

c) glossolalia

d) morphology

Answer: a The language characteristic of

displacement allows humans to speak of things or events that have happened in the past, or may occur in the future.

2. _______ involves the study of the basic building blocks of a language.

a) Linguistics

b) Phonology

c) Phonology

d) Grammar

Answer: b Phonology involves the study of the

basic building blocks of a language.

3. The ________ is a combination of phonemes which convey some meaning.

a) morpheme

b) allomorph

c) phoneme

d) grammar

Answer: a The morpheme is a combination of

phonemes which convey some meaning.

4. The rules of a language which controls how people speak and make themselves understood make up its

a) phonemes.

b) syntax.

c) grammar.

d) morphemes.

Answer: c The rules of a language which controls

how people speak and make themselves understood make up its grammar.

5. _______ suggests that language actually establishes mental categories that predispose people to see things in a certain way.

a) Diachronic analysis

b) Historical linguistics

c) Descriptive linguistics

d) The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis

Answer: d The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis suggests

that language actually establishes mental categories that predispose people to see things in a certain way.