Lecture Notes 05 14 14 Language Origins o Dunbar social Intelligence Hypothesis Vocal grooming gossip 1 to more speakers replaced social grooming 1 to 1 relation o Historical Linguistics Problem languages change at different rates No universal list of cognates o Charles Hockett comparing communicative systems Basic design features of human systems and compare them to non human systems Reconstruct communicative habits of the hominid line Work out the sequence by which that ancestral language became language as hominids became humans Language Features o Design features of Language Charles Hockett Set of 13 design features that are shared Benefits of Grooming 1 Use vocal and auditory channels o Keep the hands free for activities 2 Broadcast transmission and directional reception o Sounds can be heard and their origin determined 3 Rapid fading o Sounds do not linger 4 Interchangeability o Speaker can reproduce any linguistic message that they can understand 5 Total feedback 6 Specialization o Speaker hears everything that they say o Speech serves no function except as signals 7 Semanticity o Sounds have meaning 8 Arbitrary connections to meanings o No reason that certain words stand for specific things 9 Discreteness o Difference between range of sounds is functionally absolute 10 Displacement in time and space o Able to talk about things that are not here in the moment 11 Productivity creative o Capacity to create things that have never been heard or said before and for those things to be able to be understood Ex Bromance a close nonsexual friendship between men 12 Learned in a social context traditional transmission o Humans have cognitive capacity and predisposition to acquire and learn language o But the specifics of any language are learned and taught 13 Duality of patterning o Ability to change sounds phonemes into meaningful word morphemes o Same phonemes used to create different morphemes Ex Dog god Ex Cat tack act o Where is the line drawn between hominid animals and humans Hockett Language has 13 design features Animals and humans share 9 Humans have 4 more o Displacement productivity traditional transmission and duality of patterning Characteristics of Language o Where is the line drawn between hominids and humans Burling Animals and humans have gesture calls Only humans have language o System of sounds words sentences used for communicating Composed of o Distinct phonological sounds and o Syntactic patterning o Duality of patterning Hockett Language is digital Gesture calls are analog Digital sounds Burling o Language is Discrete Referential Differ from place to place Only humans Analog signals o Gesture calls are Continuous Emotional Almost the same everywhere Quotable gestures and vocalizations o Learned gestures o Convey referential meanings o Can be used to lie o Discrete not continuous Distinctiveness of human communication o Not in vocal abilities o It is the ability to use language whether audible or visible to Covey referential and propositional meaning Knowledge of the meaning behind the sentences and what the sentences refer to in varying contexts Functions of Language o Can you think of language functions Reference points to an object that is being referred to Expressive evoke and or express feelings and emotions Informative affirmation or denial logical Ex this semester I am enrolled in the Language and Culture class Directives turn off your cell phones Phatic languages non referential small talk elevator talk Very easy to use verbal and body language switch between o A nod vs what s up Helps promote social and cultural bonds Used the most Performative utterances language that informs what it performs Ceremonial performance with mix of other functions I do Ritualized manner Language Variation o Emotions and greetings How do different cultures attach different emotions to a greeting Example of greetings Italian pronto o o Mexican Spanish mande o Latin American long greetings and goodbyes What makes a joke funny or not How do language aesthetics affect the humor in a joke Giving directions How can it vary across cultures or backgrounds Could the languages we speak influence the way we think Three basic frames of reference o Relative frame of reference ego centric Left right front back the clock tower is to the right of Turlington Even between languages there is even more variation English the woman is in front of the tree Hausa the woman is behind the tree o Intrinsic frame of reference object centric Involving properties of a landmark the student is seating at the front of the classroom o Absolute frame of reference geo centric Cardinal directions might differ from true norths university avenue is north of Turlington