Introduction to Language and Linguistics

What We Know About Language

• Linguistics explores the nature, structure, and use of human languages
• Linguistic analysis of spoken languages dates back to at least 1600 B.C. in Mesopotamia

Facts About All Languages

• All humans have language
• There are no primitive languages; all are equally complex
• Languages can expand their vocabulary to include new concepts
• Languages change over time
• Relationships between sounds/meanings and gestures/meanings are mostly arbitrary
• Languages use a finite set of sounds or gestures to create infinite sentences
• Grammars contain similar rules for word and sentence formation across languages
• Every spoken language contains discrete sound segments defined by sound properties
• Every spoken language has vowels and consonants
• Similar grammatical categories like noun and verb exist across languages
• Semantic universals such as male/female and animate/human are found in every language
• Languages can refer to past time, negate, ask questions, and issue commands
• Speakers can produce and understand infinite sentences
• Syntactic universals exist such as every language has a way of forming sentences
• Any normal child can learn any language they are exposed to regardless of background
• Language differences are not due to biological reasons

The Origin of Language

• Religions and mythologies contain stories about language origin
• Theories range from divine origin to human invention and evolutionary development

Challenges in Determining Language Origin

• Humans have existed for millions of years
• The earliest written records are only about 6,000 years old, from the Sumerians in 4000 B.C.E.
• Linguistic Society of Paris "outlawed" papers on language origin in 1886
• Otto Jespersen stated linguistic science cannot refrain forever from asking about linguistic evolution

Divine Origin Theories

• Judeo-Christian belief: God gave Adam the power to name all things
• Egyptians: Thoth was the creator of speech
• Babylonians: Nabu was the language giver
• Hindus: Brahma's wife, Sarasvati, gave humans language
• Belief in divine origin is linked to magical properties of language
• Children use "magic" words for good luck
• Name-calling can be insulting and cause for legal punishment
• Some cultures require responses to certain words
• Religions use special languages in prayers and rituals
• Hindu priests believed Vedic Sanskrit had to be used
• Panini wrote a Sanskrit grammar in the 4th century B.C.E. to preserve religious pronunciation
• The language used by God, Adam, and Eve has been of interest

Early Language Experiments

• To verify theories of the first language "scientific" experiments were devised
• Egyptian pharaoh tried to find the "natural" language by isolating infants with a mute servant
• The pharaoh believed the children would develop their own language
• Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II tried a similar test in the 13th century, but the children died

Bow-Wow Theory

• Proposed that the earliest language was imitative
• Claims dogs were designated by "bow-wow" because of their bark sounds
• Language began with emotional ejaculations of pain, fear, surprise etc
• Jean Jacques Rousseau proposed "cries of nature" as earliest language form in the 18th century
• Primitive words imitated natural sounds
• "Cook-a-doodle-doo" is "cucuricu" to a Ukrainian, showing differences in sound perception
• Arbitrariness: no direct relation between an object and its name
• Onomatopoeic words have pronunciations that sound like the object
• Greek onomatopoeia means "making names"

Criticisms of the Bow-Wow Theory

• Cannot explain names for soundless or abstract concepts
• Example: love, hatred, anger, beauty, electrical, technical

Alternative Hypotheses

• Language arose from rhythmical grunts of men working together
• These proposals, like divine origin beliefs, are untestable

Human Language vs. Animal Communication

• Most linguists agree that animals communicate, but do not have language
• Language is a major attribute separating humans from the animal kingdom
• Bees convey messages by odor or dancing
• Ants use antennae in intercommunication
• Human language displays infinite variability, flexibility, and change
• Human speech is abstract, highly differentiated, and a "second signalling system"
• Language and thinking are related and have an essential social function

Development of Language in the Species

• Biologists and linguists have interest in language and evolutionary development
• Continuity view: language ability is a difference in degree between humans and primates
• Discontinuity view: language ability is a qualitative leap
• Vocal tract must be capable of producing sounds
• Brain and nervous system complexity is also important
• Mynah birds and parrots can imitate speech but not acquire language
• Hearing speech sounds is not necessary for language acquisition
• Deaf signers' brains are neurologically equipped to learn language

Alternate Theories

• Ability to produce and hear sounds aren't necessary nor sufficient for language

Natural Cries of Emotion Theory or Pooh-Pooh Theory

• Original language sounds came from natural emotional cries
• Exclamations like "Eh!", "Ah!", "Oh!", "Wao!", and "Hey!" have connotations
• Expressive noise during emotional reactions contains sounds not normally used
• This is linked with la-la theory that language emerged from playfulness and song

Yo-Heave-Ho or "Sing-song" Theory

• This is part of the 'natural sound' theory
• Source of human language emanates from physical exertion
• Language is evolved through grunts and groans
• Places evolution of human language within society
• This does not answer the question of origin
• Primate grunts do not mean they developed the capacity for speech
• Imitative sound can only relate to natural processes
• Onomatopoeia isn't for communication because statements cannot be expressed by onomatopoeia

Oral-Gesture Theory or Ta-Ta Theory

• Language evolved through physical gesture and orally produced sounds
• Speech came from tongue and mouth gestures to mimic manual ones
• Saying ta-ta is like waving goodbye with your tongue
• This is actually non-verbal communication which is supportive of oral communication
• Physical gestures were originally communication
• Oral gestures involving the mouth developed coordinated with physical
• Shaking hand in negation becomes tongue movement for 'no'
• It's a kind of specialized pantomime
• Most things do not have associated gestures you can imitate

Theories

• There are not people on earth who use gesture language as a means of communication
• Gesture language seems widespread among primitive peoples
• All societies have a more highly developed phonetic language
• A gesture-first is absurd because communications could only happen nearby or with the light
• The means were sound and gesture, and so it's adapted for those
• Language was always phonetic supplemented by the others

Glossogenetic Theory

• Theory focuses on biological basis of language formation
• Humans differentiated from other primates by upright posture
• Posture changes skull differences, instrumentation for speech production
• There are physiological adaptation differences of a human versus other animals
• Human brain separated functions
• Human teeth located upright
• The sound production apparatus made of the lips/mouth/tongue/larynx

Language Formation

• Discussing beginning of speech scientists refer to infancy language etc
• Observing child language development we can estimate main traits appeared

Language and the Brain

• Language is cognitive
• First speech likely 30,000-100,000 years ago
• Today there are 5,000-6,000 languages
• Brain has "layers" where intellectual functions are held
• The cerebral cortex can be injured and make lesions
• Type of damage to brain reveals functions
• Language disorder from damage called aphasia and occurs on left hemisphere
• Damage to the right would create other deficits
• Aphasics get global aphasia
• Patients manage to retain function even after injury or intellectual problems

French Neurologist Paul Broca

• Described patient only able to say one word after stroke
• Patient's brain had lesion on left hemisphere
• Broca concluded was responsible for controlling speech

Research Revealed Second Group

• Aphasic patients had trouble understanding language
• Can produce language fluently but often made sounds unorganized

Deficits and Areas

• Often referred to as Wernicke's aphasia
• German neurologist Carl Wernicke described it in 1870s
• Associated with damage to another area of left hemisphere to speech

Acquired Language

• Also refers from things like injury or seizure
• Language deficits
• All can be classified into two groups
• Non-fluent aphasias
• Difficulty producing speech
• Fluent aphasias
• Inability to understand and less coherent normal speech

Type of Non-Fluent Aphasia

• Broca's aphasia
• Difficulties starting well speech
• Language is slow, labored, ungrammatical and tense used is left out
• Produced to damage in Broca's area

Most Broca Aphasics

• Can understand but not say it

Long-standing Question

• If language has influence on thinking
• Fields range from AI to psychology

Relationship

• Everyday experience is facilitated by language
• Two extremes
• Language is separate and dependent
• Opposite extreme to engage

Internal Position

• Two conditions
• Dependent on thought
• Traditional view is thoughts brought into words
• People have influence on how mind works

Sapir-Whorf

• Theorizes linguistic relativism
• Also called determinism
• Chomsky thought language learnable on set software in children

Ability to Say "Here and Now"

• Also to say lies
• Bees use "dance"
• There is no natural relationship

Sounds vs Meaning

• English flower is sima
• Animal languages are fixed

Production

• Allows constant utterances

Transmissions

• Children need exposure
• Almost transmitted anyway through genetics
• Has two articulate
• Limited sounds for nonmeaning in one

One Hand

• In English create variety
• Future is reflexive
• What linguists do and how languages differ
• Common points view

Brit Linguist Halliday

• Having 3 main functions
• Organize experience in real world
• Indicate address
• Create texts with situations

Professor Levitsky

• 4 main structures
• Cognitive emotions
• Meta investigates

Roman Jakobson

• Defined effective communication

Referential Function

• Statement of function

Statements

• Focus on message
• Alters internal state
• Engages receiver
• Channel factor in greetings
• To discuss another in functions

Kocheran

• Communicative and cognitive are two functions
• Connects thinking

Communications

• Working system
• Definition discusses substance
• The clear and longlasting is that non-linguistic exists

Communications

• Gestures exist there
• Unspoken ques
• Non-adquete cause failures
• Kinesics portray emphasize

Study Nonverbal

• Birdwhistell with spoken
• Behaviour cultural
• Body Haptics
• Touch positive feelings

Means

• Expressions
• Behaviours
• Chronemics

Usage

• Affect agenda
• Can show information value
• Time varies through cultures and genders

Edward Hall

• Defined proxemics in 50's
• Contrast between fixed spaces
• Hall describe in "The Silent Language." cultural differences between speaker and another
• Space vary
• Also children and adults
• Nonverbal to reinforce society
• Territory involved

Verbal Distances

• Latin America near than the US
• Germany is greater
• Communication division sources language
• Writing system "Tree international Morse
• Braille perceived through sense of touch

Communicative Systems

• Classifiable what channels
• Drum acoustic and signal optical

Serviceable Communication

• Known through other place
• Variations is distinguished meanings instrumental commonly instruments
• Slit' drums used summons
• Signs used with exclusion primary
• Deaf people two used one is manually

English Alphabet

• With 26
• Modification to optical signals with Indian sign
• To show repertory concept of cold
• Signal independence

Communciation

• Variety can out
• Communicate not light signals
• Communicates not with electric
• Means is slime non local

Pheromones

• Moths signal
• Insects used different
• Electrical impulse at radio

Colour

• Members roles and identify
• Expresses range readiness

Posture

• Communication through animals
• Dog lower
• Communication found

Gestures

• Actively waving or doing

Verbal Expressions

• Expression that recognize when do certain things

Humans

• Classify meanings from them
• Expression indicate
• Don't signal through

Features

• Serve as expression
• Created by society
• Materials the way they reflect

Essential Difference

• Ideas from another
• Restrict to people

All Signations

• Artificial but change
• Depends on members over time

Systemic

• Advantages of clear
• People means thoughts

Signs

• Scientist ancient times
• Definition language over time
• System others
• Signs ideas than signs

Signs

• Structure defined
• Ability sign denotate
• Communicative traits
• Depends perfect

Systemic

• Time change
• Universal traits
• Second relationship multi

Means

• Thought layers

Systemic Function

• Characteristics elements whole
• Interrelated elements'
• Structuring language
• Constitution perfect and whole

Language Constructive

• A structural number
• Characteristics number
• No properties traits

Phatics vs Phonology

• Level sounds
• Area system
• Classify meanings
• Level words

Languages

• Lexicolgy formal
• Close Derivation with syntax
• Meanings form traits
• Relates sentences

Typology

• Traits affiliations
• Means thought proper the touch

Traits

• Is use and traits
• Language be abstract the acts

Structures

• Can to inner

Traits

• Languages or thoughts
• Linguistics traits

Traits

• Use writing

Language