8_Language Communication_W25

Introduction to Anthropology

• Overview of Language and Communication.

This Topic

• Defining language and communication.

• What makes human language unique?

• Theory, design features, and components of language.

• Language learning: children's acquisition and ape language studies.

• Studying language.

• Language contact and risks to languages, along with preservation strategies.

Defining Language & Communication: Verbal Communication

• Speech: Act of producing meaningful sounds.

• Language: Cognitive processes involved in interpreting sounds.

• Speech communities: Groups sharing a common language.

  • Importance of distinguishing language from communication.

Defining Language & Communication: Nonverbal Communication

• Embodied communication includes:

  • Kinesics: Study of non-verbal communication—body language, posture, expressions, gestures, etc.

  • Non-word sounds: Examples include laughs and sighs.

  • Dress: Cultural expressions through clothing like jerseys and kimonos.

Defining Language & Communication: Nonverbal Communication (cont'd)

• Proxemics: Study of how societies perceive and use space.

  • Hall's (1966) classification of interpersonal space.

Defining Language & Communication: Nonverbal Communication (cont'd)

• Paralanguage: Vocal features conveying meaning apart from language.

  • Elements: Tone, volume, tempo, silences.

  • Contextual implications of silence.

Sign Language

• Communication method using hand movements.

• Functions as a complete communicative system like spoken languages.

• Varieties exist globally, mainly associated with the hearing impaired.

Defining Human Language: What it is NOT

• Language writing: Not a requirement for a language's validity—transcription aids research.

Defining Human Language: What it is NOT (cont'd)

• Animal Communication Systems (ACS) includes:

  • Individual survival signals.

  • Mating and reproduction signals.

  • Social signals.

Defining Human Language: Design Features

• Charles Hockett (1966) outlined key features:

  • Productivity/openness: Creating an infinite range of expressions.

  • Displacement: Communication about non-present events.

  • Prevarication: Ability to lie; grammar vs. semantics examples.

Defining Human Language: Design Features (cont'd)

• Arbitrariness: No clear relationship between symbol and meaning.

• Duality of patterning: Phonemes create morphemes at a complex level.

• Semanticity: Connection between words and meanings varies by speaker.

How Do We "Learn" Language?

• Focus on children's language acquisition and ape studies.

Language Acquisition: Children

• Innate capacity to learn all language sounds and grammar systems from birth.

• Linguistic competence (Chomsky): Mastery of grammar.

• Communicative competence (Hymes): Mastery of socially and culturally appropriate speech.

Language Acquisition: Children (cont'd)

• Examples of universal sequences include negation and wh-questions.

• Importance of cognitive growth: Memory, causality, symbolic representation.

• Baby talk is not universal.

Understanding Acquisition: Nonhuman Primate Communication

• Primate communication relies on a call system—closed repertoire.

• Capability to learn human communication systems exists through exposure to symbols.

Language Acquisition: Chimpanzee Language Studies

• Washoe: First chimp to learn ASL.

Language Acquisition: Chimpanzee Language Studies (cont'd)

• Nim Chimpsky: Conducted experiments indicating potential for language learning.

Language Acquisition: Chimpanzee Language Studies (cont'd)

• Kanzi: Understood symbols and conducted complex tasks.

Language Acquisition: Gorilla Language Study

• Koko: Learned ASL and vocabulary.

Criticisms of Ape Language Experiments

• Concerns over the Clever Hans effect: Conditioning vs. understanding.

How Do We Study Language?

• Various methodologies for studying language.

Descriptive Linguistics

• Analyzing speech patterns using:

  • Phonology: Sound creation and usage.

  • Morphology: Meaning conveyed by sound sequences.

  • Syntax: Phrase and sentence formation.

Historical Linguistics

• Examining language changes over time and divergence factors.

  • Concepts like cognates and protolanguage.

Pragmatics

• Contextual language study through linguistic and nonlinguistic contexts.

  • Discourse: Understanding speech patterns longer than a sentence.

Semiotics

• Study of signs and meaningful communication beyond language itself:

  • Iconicity, indexicality, symbolism (referencing Topic 7).

Sociolinguistics: Ethnography of Speaking

• Examining language in societal context and its reflection on identity.

What is the Relationship Between Culture and Language?

• Exploration of linguistic relativity and determinism principles.

Linguistic Influences on Culture

• Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis: Language's nature affects habitual thought.

• Linguistic determinism: Language shapes consciousness and behavior.

Multilingualism and Codeswitching

• Multilingual environments—e.g., Singapore's languages.

• Codeswitching: Usage of multiple languages in conversation.

Dialects

• Language variations influenced by regions and social differences.

  • Factors in variation: Settlement patterns, isolation, contact, gender, and class.

What Happens When Languages Come into Contact?

• Language evolution and its implications.

Pidgin Languages

• Languages forming without native speakers; develop in multilinguistic contexts.

• Creole languages emerging when passed to successive generations.

Creole Languages

• Developed through colonial history; complex language evolution across communities.

Are Languages at Risk? Can We “Save” Them?

• Examination of language extinction and revitalization efforts.

Extinction, Endangerment, & Revitalization

• Language shift: Adoption of new languages by speakers.

Extinction, Endangerment, & Revitalization (cont'd)

• Language endangerment when speakers fall below certain thresholds.

Extinction, Endangerment, & Revitalization (cont'd)

• Language extinction: Abandonment of native languages leading to loss of function.

Extinction, Endangerment, & Revitalization (cont'd)

• Revitalization challenges in maintaining local languages, requiring community involvement.

Extinction, Endangerment, & Revitalization (cont'd)

• Strategies: Classroom learning, master-apprentice systems, and online resources.

Next Topic

• Archaeology and assigned readings: Chapter 8.