Human Neuropsychology - Language

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering fundamental concepts, anatomical localization, and disorders of language from Human Neuropsychology Lecture 15.

Communication

The exchange of information by any means, including messages, thoughts, feelings, posture, and even language.

Language

A symbolic, rule-based system of communication that is not limited to auditory forms (e.g., written, Braille, ASL).

Receptive Language

Language that an individual takes in (hears) and understands.

Expressive Language

The ability to produce coherent language.

Phonemes

Fundamental language sounds that combine in a specific order to create morphemes.

Grapheme

A written representation of a phoneme (such as a, sh, ch, or igh).

Morphemes

The smallest meaningful units of sound that combine in a specific order to form words (e.g., undo = "un" + "do"; eyes = "eye" + "s").

Lexicon

The collection of all words in a language.

Syntax

Grammar; the allowable combinations of words into phrases, clauses, and sentences.

Semantics

The meaning of words and sentences.

Formants

Three distinct, restricted frequency ranges of human speech.

Prosody

Vocal intonations that modify the meaning of words and sentences.

Discourse

The linking of sentences that constitutes a narrative.

Yerkish

An 1,800-lexigram language generated using a computer keyboard with 9 elements and 9 colors, used to study communication in chimpanzees.

Wernicke–Geschwind Language Model

A model proposing two language systems (sounds and meaning) where Wernicke's area extracts meaning from sound, information passes through the arcuate fasciculus, and Broca's area generates speech output.

Arcuate Fasciculus

The white matter pathway connecting Wernicke's area to Broca's area.

Dorsal Language Pathways

Brain pathways connecting the temporal and frontal lobes that process phonemes.

Ventral Language Pathways

Brain pathways connecting the temporal and frontal lobes that process semantics.

Aphasia

A disorder of language, including writing (agraphia) and reading (alexia), that does not result from loss of sensory input or motor output (such as paralysis or incoordination).

Fluent Aphasias

Language disorders predominantly associated with receptive impairments, characterized by normal-sounding speech production that lacks meaning, along with difficulty comprehending or repeating spoken words.

Wernicke’s (Sensory) Aphasia

A fluent aphasia characterized by intact word production but an inability to comprehend words, classify sounds into meaningful phonemes, or produce meaningful speech ("word salad").

Transcortical Sensory Aphasia (Isolation Syndrome)

A fluent aphasia where an individual can repeat and understand words and name objects, but cannot comprehend words; often involves damage to the medial temporal lobe (MTL) and/or white matter pathways.

Conduction Aphasia

A fluent aphasia in which a person can speak and understand speech but cannot repeat words.

Anomic Aphasia (Amnesic Aphasia)

A fluent aphasia where an individual can understand, produce, and repeat language but struggles to name objects (noun retrieval is linked to left temporal lobe damage, verb retrieval to left frontal lobe damage).

Nonfluent Aphasias

Language disorders predominantly associated with impairments of expressive language.

Broca’s (Expressive) Aphasia

A nonfluent aphasia characterized by intact comprehension accompanied by an inability to produce speech.

Transcortical Motor Aphasia

A nonfluent aphasia characterized by intact word repetition alongside poor spontaneous speech production.

Global Aphasia

A severe nonfluent aphasia characterized by both labored speech and poor comprehension.

Alexia

A pure aphasia characterized by the inability to read.

Agraphia

A pure aphasia characterized by the inability to write.

Word Deafness

A pure aphasia in which an individual cannot hear or repeat words.

Watershed Stroke (Border Zone Stroke)

A stroke that occurs in vulnerable areas where cerebral arteries (such as the middle cerebral artery) meet, often producing diffuse damage.