Mysteries of Language - Condensed

Phonetics

Study of physical production of speech sounds; examples include airflow and articulator movement; focuses on how sounds are made

Phonology

Study of how sounds are organized in a language; examples include phoneme patterns and rules; focuses on mental system

Larynx

Structure in the throat containing vocal folds; involved in voicing; produces sound through vibration or airflow

Vocal folds

Tissue that vibrates for voiced sounds or stays open for voiceless sounds; examples [z] vs [s]; controls voicing

Voiced sounds

Sounds with vocal fold vibration; examples [b] [d] [z]; produced with vibration

Voiceless sounds

Sounds without vocal fold vibration; examples [p] [t] [s]; produced with open folds

Oral cavity

Mouth space where sounds are shaped; used in most sounds; airflow passes through

Hard palate

Hard roof of mouth; used in palatal sounds like [j]; tongue contacts here

Velum (soft palate)

Controls nasal vs oral airflow; raised for oral sounds lowered for nasal sounds

Place of articulation

Where in vocal tract sound is made; examples bilabial alveolar velar; determined by articulators

Manner of articulation

How airflow is shaped; examples stop fricative nasal; determined by closure

Phoneme

Smallest sound that changes meaning; example [p] vs [b]; contrastive unit

Allophone

Variant of phoneme that does not change meaning; example [p] vs [ph]; predictable variation

Contrastive distribution

Sounds occur in same environment and change meaning; example Hindi [p] vs [ph]

Complementary distribution

Sounds occur in different environments; example English [p] vs [ph]

Morpheme

Smallest unit of meaning; examples un- cat -s; combines form and meaning

Root

Core meaning unit; example cat in cats; carries main meaning

Affix

Morpheme attached to root; examples prefixes suffixes; adds meaning

Prefix

Affix before root; example un-happy; modifies meaning

Suffix

Affix after root; example cat-s; adds grammatical meaning

Compositionality

Meaning depends on parts and structure; example new sentences understood; combines syntax and semantics

Constituent

Group of words functioning as a unit; example “the man”; can move together

Gricean maxims

Assumption speakers cooperate; examples quality relevance quantity; guides interpretation

Implicature

Implied meaning not stated; example indirect answer implying meaning; cancelable

Presupposition

Assumed background meaning; example “stopped” assumes prior state; survives negation

Lexicon

Stored vocabulary; includes memorized irregular forms; not rule-based

Syntax component

Combines words into sentences; example word order rules

Semantics component

Assigns meaning; example sentence interpretation

Discreteness

Language uses distinct units; example phonemes; not continuous

Productivity

Infinite new sentences possible; combines known elements

Recursion

Structures embedded within structures; allows infinite length

Duality of patterning

Sounds form words words form sentences

Arbitrariness of the sign

No natural link between word and meaning; language-specific

Displacement

Ability to discuss non-present things; past future hypothetical

Reflexiveness

Ability to talk about language itself

Cultural learning

Language learned socially from community

Onomatopoeia

Words that imitate sounds; example buzz bang

Sound symbolism

Partial sound-meaning link; limited exception

Signed languages

Full languages in visual modality; examples ASL; have grammar

Signed vs spoken languages

Same structure different modality; not word-for-word translation

Human vs ape vocal tract

Humans have lower larynx and flexible tongue; allows speech; apes limited

Animal communication lexicon

Animals have signals; example vervet calls; limited meanings

Animal communication productivity

Cannot create infinite new meanings; limited system

Bee waggle dance

Encodes direction and distance; continuous not discrete

Bird song

Structured but lacks true meaning combinations

Language family

Group of related languages; example Indo-European

Cognates

Words with shared origin; show relatedness

Proto-language

Hypothetical ancestor language

Comparative method

Reconstructs proto-language from patterns

Regularity hypothesis

Sound change applies consistently

Canadian Shift

Vowel change in Canadian English; shows ongoing sound change

Isogloss

Boundary between dialect features

Dialect continuum

Gradual transition across regions

Labov fourth floor study

Study of r pronunciation by class; Saks Macy’s Klein

Middle class crossover

Middle class overuses prestige forms

AAVE habitual be

Indicates repeated action; example “he be running”

AAVE negative concord

Multiple negatives for emphasis

Descriptive grammar

Describes how language is used

Prescriptive grammar

Rules about correct usage

Mental grammar

Internal knowledge of language

Universal grammar

Innate human capacity for language

Register

Language variation by context; formal vs informal

Vocal fry

Creaky voice; natural but socially stigmatized

Gender and language use

Women often lead change or use prestige forms

Pidgin

Simplified contact language; no native speakers

Creole

Fully developed language from pidgin; has native speakers

Superstrate (lexifier)

Dominant language providing vocabulary

Substrate

Less dominant languages influencing structure

Language bioprogram hypothesis

Children impose structure on input

Critical period hypothesis

Language learning declines after puberty

Nicaraguan sign language

Language created by children showing innate structure

Sign language phonotactics

Rules governing sign formation

Sign language parameters

Handshape movement location orientation

Sapir Whorf hypothesis

Language influences thought

Strong Sapir Whorf

Language determines thought

Weak Sapir Whorf

Language influences thought slightly

Language and color

Categories affect perception

Language and time

Metaphors affect interpretation

Language and space

Direction systems affect memory

Lexicon and culture

Vocabulary reflects cultural importance