Culture—Origins/Diffusion of Language

Geography is Physical Landscape

….and Cultural Landscape

When did you last eat a hamburger?

Got beef?

Characteristics of Culture

• Culture is learned, not inherited.

• Culture is changeable through discoveries, diffusion and assimilation.

• Culture is ethnocentric.

• Culture is help us to navigate our place in the world.

Why is language so vital to a culture?

Family/Branch/Group

There are 1,250 to 2,100[1] and by some counts over 3,000 languages spoken natively in Africa,[2] in several major language families:Afroasiatic is spread throughout the Middle East, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, and parts of the SahelNilo-Saharan is centered on Sudan and Chad (disputed validity)Niger–Congo (Bantu and non-Bantu) covers West, Central, Southeast and Southern AfricaKhoe is concentrated in the deserts of Namibia and BotswanaAustronesian is spoken in Madagascar.Indo-European is spoken on the southern tip of the continent.

What do these words mean?

• Queue

• Rubbish

• Nappy

• Football

• Torch

• Flat

• Lorrie

• Peggies

What do these words have in common?

• Mocassin squash• Tipi kayak• Massachusetts canoe• Delaware turkey• Missouri igloo• Skunk Connecticut• Racoon moose• Pecan caucus

The Incredible Diffusion of EnglishThe Incredible Diffusion of English

300 million native speakers300 million native speakers

300 million use English as a second 300 million use English as a second language.language.

100 mill. use English as a foreign lang.100 mill. use English as a foreign lang.

Official lang. of 50 countries.Official lang. of 50 countries.

Language of entertainment, aviation, Language of entertainment, aviation, diplomacy, computing, science, diplomacy, computing, science, tourism-the lingua francatourism-the lingua franca

How does English begin?

Celtic (Welsh)-derived place-names are scattered across Great Britain, with many occurring in the West Country; some examples are:Avon from abonā = "river" (cf. Welsh afon)Britain from Pritani = "People of the Forms" (cf. Welsh Prydain "Britain", pryd "appearance, form, image, resemblance")Dover from Dubrīs = "waters" (cf. Welsh dŵr, older dwfr)Kent from canto- = "border" (cf. Welsh cant "rim or periphery")Lothian (Lleuddiniawn in medieval Welsh) from *Lugudũn(iãnon) "Fort of Lugus"Severn from Sabrīna, perhaps the name of a goddess (in Welsh, Hafren)Thanet from tan-eto- = "(place of the) bonfire" (cf. Welsh tân "fire", Old Breton tanet "aflame") or more probably tann-eto = "oak grove" (tanno- "kind of oak", Breton tannen "oak")Thames from Tamesis = "dark" (akin to Welsh tywyll "darkness", from Brittonic *temeselo-)York from Ebur-ākon = "stand of yew trees" (cf. Welsh Efrog, from efwr "yew" + -og "abundant in") via Latin Eburacum > OE Eoforwic (re-analysed with OE roots as 'boar-village') > ON Jorvik

The Lord's Prayer in Old EnglishMatthew 6:9-13.

Fæder ure þu þe eart on heofonum;   

Father our thou that art in heavens

Si þin nama gehalgod   

be thy name hallowed

to becume þin rice    come thy kingdom

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaCjqf3_T6M

How does Old English sound?

Norse placenames

http://www.stavacademy.co.uk/mimir/vikingplace.htm

Words Borrowed from Norse

anger grief (9th Century-except Sussex) 

axle ox tree  

bag    

bait cause to bite  

berserk   The name of a warrior who fought with frenzied fury.

birth    

blunderstumble around

blindly 

bore wave Tidal estuary wave.

bulk cargo  

by-law town law Used in the UK.

call    

cast   As in "cast off" from the shore in a boat.

club  Item used for hitting. One of many fighting words from

Norse.

crawl    

creek   Short arm of a river; inlet on sea coast.

die    

Bayeux Tapestry

The introduction of Christianity from around 600 encouraged the addition of over 400 Latin loan words into Old English, such as priest, paper, and school, and fewer Greek loan words. The Old English period formally ended some time after the Norman conquest of 1066, when the language was influenced to an even greater extent by the Normans, who spoke a French dialect called Old Norman.

“Pardon my French…”

Words Borrowed from Norman French 1066 AD- (300 year occupation)

accuse   One of many legal words from Norman French.

adultery    

archer   One of several military words from Norman French.

arson   Crime of deliberate burning.

assault    

asset enough  

bacon   Cured pig's meat. One of many names for meats from Norman French.

bail to take charge Security for a prisoner's appearance.

bailiff carrier Officer who executes writs.

beef   Meat of ox or cow.

butcher seller of goat flesh A dealer in meat.

button    

chivalry horseman One of many words used in royal life from Norman French.

comfort strengthen  

court retenue  

courtesy    

crime judgement  

curfew cover fire Period to be off the streets.

custard   Baked mixture of eggs and milk.

defeat    

dungeon  

Even after the decline of Norman-French, standard French retained the status of a prestige language and had a significant influence on the language, which is visible in Modern English today. A tendency for French-derived words to have more formal connotations has continued to the present day. For example, most modern English speakers consider a "cordial reception" (from French) to be more formal than a "hearty welcome" (from Germanic).

From The Canterbury Tales:General Prologue

lines 43-78: The Knight

       A KNYGHT ther was, and that a worthy man,

That fro the tyme that he first bigan

To riden out, he loved chivalrie,

Trouthe and honour, fredom and curteisie.

Ful worthy was he in his lordes werre,

And therto hadde he riden, no man ferre,

As wel in cristendom as in hethenesse,

        A KNIGHT there was, and what a gentleman,

Who, from the moment that he first began

To ride about the world, loved chivalry,

Truth, honour, freedom and all courtesy.

Full worthy was he in his sovereign's war,

And therein had he ridden, no man more,

As well in Christendom as heathenesse,

And honoured everywhere for worthiness.

At Alexandria, in the winning battle he was there;

Possible causes:

Experts in linguistics and cultural history continue to debate possible reasons for the Great vowel shift.[8]Some theories emphasize the mass migration after the Black Death in the mid-14th century to southeast England, where differences in accents led to some groups modifying their speech to allow for a standard pronunciation of vowel sounds.Another theory foregrounds a sudden social mobility after the Black Death, with people from lower levels in society moving to higher levels (the pandemic also having hit the aristocracy).Another explanation highlights the language of the ruling class: the medieval aristocracy had spoken French, but by the early 15th century they had come to use English. This may have caused a change to the "prestige accent" of English, either by making pronunciation more French in style or by changing it in some other way, perhaps by hypercorrection to something thought as "more English" (England being at war with France for much of this period). But there is just as much evidence of the hypercorrection to be "more English" as there is for it to be "more French"[citation needed] (with French still the slightly favored language of the upper class).

Colonized or controlled by Britain beginning with the 1600s

Contributors to English

caribou   A type of reindeer.

caucus advisor Political committee.

Massachusettsplace near the big little hills

USA state.

Missouritown of the large canoes

USA state.

moccasins    

Oregon beautiful water USA state.

pecan   A type of nut.

raccoon  Nocturnal animal.

What does Indo-European mean?

Common Proto-Indo-European Common Proto-Indo-European Roots Roots

BeeBeeOakOakPheasantPheasantBearBear

DeerDeerBeechBeechWinterWinterSnowSnow

In the 16th century, European visitors to the Indian Subcontinent began to suggest similarities between Indo-Aryan, Iranian and European languages. In 1583, Thomas Stephens, an English Jesuit missionary in Goa, in a letter to his brother that was not published until the 20th century, noted similarities between Indian languages, specifically Sanskrit, and Greek and Latin.

Another account to mention the ancient language Sanskrit came from Filippo Sassetti (born in Florence in 1540), a merchant who travelled to the Indian subcontinent. Writing in 1585, he noted some word similarities between Sanskrit and Italian (these included :

•devaḥ/dio "God", •sarpaḥ/serpe "serpent", •sapta/sette "seven", •aṣṭa/otto "eight", •nava/nove "nine")

It was Thomas Young who in 1813 first used the term Indo-European

Centre

OrganisationDefenceRealiseColour27 March 2007CatalogueTheatreAnalogue

Noah Webster

Slowly, edition by edition, Webster changed the spelling of words, making them "Americanized". He chose s over c in words like defense, he changed the re to er in words like center, and he dropped one of the Ls in traveler. At first he kept the u in words like colour or favour but dropped it in later editions. He also changed "tongue" to "tung"—an innovation that never caught on.

What are some British spellings we have retained?

Amazing dialect diversity in the US-

Regional variation of language distinguished by variations in spelling, pronunciation and

vocabulary

Would you like a soda, a pop, or a coke?

http://news.msn.com/pop-culture/sub-hoagie-hero-map-shows-how-americans-speak-english-differently#image=1

Grab your tennis shoes?

http://i.stack.imgur.com/emyhR.png

Dialect Map-US

Appalachian

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03iwAY4KlIU

afeared afraid

airish breezy, chilly

bald treeless mountaintop

bluff cliff, usually facing a river

boomer red squirrel indigenous to the Smokies

bottom flat land along a stream or riverbed

branch area or settlement defined by a creek

Smoky Mountain Dialect

ALGERIAN - Someone from Algiers (the only part of the City of New Orleans to lie on the West Bank). Some locals say "Algereens", but we always said Algerians. It's funnier. ALLIGATOR PEAR - Avocado. ARABIAN - Someone from Arabi, in St. Bernard Parish. See "Algerian". AWRITE, HAWT - A female response of agreement. BACKATOWN - (i.e., "back of town") the section of New Orleans from the River to North Claiborne, popularly used in the 6th adn 7th wards (submitted by caljazz98-at-aol.com) BANQUETTE - The sidewalk. Pronounced <BANK-it>. Usage fairly rare nowadays. BERL - To cook by surrounding something in hot, bubbling 212°F liquid; the preferred method for cooking shellfish. BOBO - A small injury or wound. BOO - A term of endearment, frequently used by parents and grandparents for small children, even small children who happen to be 40 years old ... Believed to be Cajun in origin. BRA - A form of address for men, usually one with whom you are not acquainted. Usually used in this manner: "Say, bra ..." Ostensibly an abbreviation for "brother." \

Tangier Island, VA

Tangier

• http://vimeo.com/4037124

PA Dutch

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWR7_PkyJ2M

Sea Islands-Gullah

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijl7Sg3ZAd0

Gullah

Da baby cute. (or) Cute, da baby. The baby is cute.

Da book stay on top da table. The book is on the table.

Da water stay cold. The water is cold.

Pidgin English/Standard English in Hawaii

Creole

Haitian Creole French English

Liv yo Les livres The books

Machin yo Les autos The cars

Fi yo mete wobLes filles mettent des robes

The girls put on dresses

Why is language such an Why is language such an important issue in the stability of important issue in the stability of

a countrya country??

Trilingualism in Israel

The Constitution Act, 1982 entrenched much stronger and more detailed guarantees for the equal status of the two official languages... Sections 16-19 guarantee the equal status of both languages in Parliament, in all federal government institutions, and in federal courts.

These sections also mandate that all statutes, records and journals of Parliament be published in both languages, with the English and French versions both holding equal status before the courts. Section 20 guarantees the right of the Canadian public to communicate in English and French with any central government office or with regional offices where there is "a significant demand for communication with and services from that office.“...

Declaring English the official language means that official government business at all levels must be

conducted solely in English. This includes all public documents, records, legislation and regulations, as well as hearings, official ceremonies and public meetings.

Official English legislation contains exceptions permitting the use of languages other than English for such things

as public health and safety services, judicial proceedings (although actual trials would be conducted in English),

foreign language instruction and the promotion of tourism.

What does “official language” What does “official language” mean”?mean”?

Should English be our official Should English be our official language?language?

Official English promotes unity. Our national motto is E pluribus unum—out of many, one. Immigrants of many nationalities built our nation, but the "melting pot" melded us into one people. This long tradition of assimilation has always included the adoption of English as the common means of communication.

Unfortunately, the proliferation of multilingual government sends the opposite message to non-English speakers: it is not necessary to learn English because the government will accommodate them in other languages. –USEnglish.org

TEXT OF PROPOSED AMENDMENT-Prop. 103/Arizona 2006Whereas, the United States is comprised of individuals from diverse ethnic, cultural and linguistic backgrounds, and continues to benefit from this rich diversity; and Whereas, throughout the history of the United States, the common thread binding individuals of differing backgrounds has been the English language, which has permitted diverse individuals to discuss, debate and come to agreement on contentious issues; and…

Whereas, among the powers reserved to the States respectively is the power to establish the English language as the official language of the respective States, and otherwise to promote the English language within the respective States, subject to the prohibitions enumerated in the Constitution of the United States and federal statutes.

Proposition 227-California

•Requires all public school instruction be conducted in English. •Requirement may be waived if parents or guardian show that child already knows English, or has special needs, or would learn English faster through alternate instructional technique. •Provides initial short-term placement, not normally exceeding one year, in intensive sheltered English immersion programs for children not fluent in English.