What Is Language? Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsIntroduction to LinguisticsDarrell LarsenLinguistics 101Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsOutline1What Is Language?Defining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage Miscellania2LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaDarrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsDefining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage MiscellaniaCommon Definitions of LanguageDefinition“a systematic means of communicating by the use of sounds orconventional symbols”(wordnetweb.princeton.edu)Definition“a system of arbitrary signals, such as voice sounds, gestures orwritten symbols that encode or decode information. Humanspoken and written languages can be described as a system ofsymbols.and the grammars (rules) by which the symbols aremanipulated”(www.phillwebb.net)Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsDefining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage MiscellaniaClass Definition of LanguageDefinition1 a conventional set of arbitrary signs (called the lexicon)2a grammar with rules manipulating these signs and constraintson their distributionDarrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsDefining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage MiscellaniaCore Components of LanguageGrammarrules for putting sounds togetherrules for making wordsphonologymorphologyrules for making sentencessyntaxrules for deriving meaningssemanticsLexicondictionary of arbitrary signsDarrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsDefining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage MiscellaniaCommon MisconceptionsMisconceptionWriting is language.CorrectionWriting is a product of language.Language exists without writing.Language, but not writing, is learned without explicitinstruction.Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsDefining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage MiscellaniaCommon MisconceptionsMisconceptionLanguage obeys prescriptive grammar.CorrectionLanguage obeys one’s mental grammar.Prescriptive grammars attempt to shape language.Prescriptive grammars involve largely arbirary rules.Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsDefining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage MiscellaniaPrescriptive GrammarClaims one manner of speech is ‘correct’, others are‘incorrect’.In English, prescriptive rules are often based on Latin.So-called ‘proper’ forms are not always natural.Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsDefining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage MiscellaniaPrescriptive Grammar: ExamplesClaim: Double negatives are illogical!‘good’:‘bad’:I don’t know anything.I don’t know nothing.Problem: Double negatives are common(French)Je ne sais rien.I not know nothing‘I don’t know anything.’Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsDefining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage MiscellaniaPrescriptive Grammar: ExamplesRule: ‘Who’ is for subjects, ‘whom’ is for objects!‘good’:‘bad’:Whom did Jeff call?Who did Jeff call?‘good’:‘bad’:I know whom you called.I know who you called.‘good’:‘bad’:Whom do you love?Who do you love?Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsDefining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage MiscellaniaPrescriptive Grammar: ExamplesRule: Don’t end sentences with prepositions!‘good’:‘bad’:For whom did you buy beer?Who did you buy beer for?‘good’:‘bad’:With whom did you go?Who did you go with?‘good’:‘bad’:From where did you just come?Where did you just come from?Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsDefining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage MiscellaniaPrescriptive vs. Descriptive GrammarPrescriptive Grammar‘grammar’ as taught in English classesdictates how we should speak.according to some blokeDescriptive Grammardescribes how we actually speakfocus of linguisticsDarrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsDefining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage MiscellaniaWhat Are the Features of Human Language?Modality / Mode of CommunicationSemanticityPragmatic FunctionInterchangeabilityCultural roductivityDarrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsDefining LanguageWhat Isn’t Language?Design Features of LanguageLanguage MiscellaniaSome Basic Facts about LanguageAll languages are systematic.Despite appearances, languages are surprisingly similar.All living languages are constantly changing.Human infants acquire language quickly despite its complexity.Human infants acquire language without explicit instruction.Any normal child can learn any human language.Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaWhat Is Linguistics?Definitionthe scientific study of languageLinguistics is not simply the study of foreign languages.Linguistics does not preach about so-called ‘proper’ language.Linguistics does focus on describing actual language use.Linguistics does attempt to understand how language isrepresented in the mind.Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaHow Can We Study Language?[Einstein & Infeld, 1938]“In our endeavor to understand reality we are somewhat like a mantrying to understand the mechanism of a closed watch. He seesthe face and the moving hands, even hears its ticking, but he hasno way of opening the case. If he is ingenious he may form somepicture of a mechanism which could be responsible for all things heobserves, but he may never be quite sure his picture is the only onewhich could explain his observations. He will never be able tocompare his picture with the real mechanism and he cannot evenimagine the possibility of the meaning of such a comparison.”Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaHow Can We Study Language?Linguists examine language from the outside (our words,sentences, pronunciation, etc.) to discover the internallanguage mechanism.The following are just a few examples of what provides usclues about language.Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaAmbiguity(1)I shot the bear in my pajamas.i. I am in my pajamas.ii. The bear is in my pajamas.(2)The door is unlockable.i. unable to be lockedii. able to be unlocked(3)Everyone loves someone.i. For every person x, there exists some person that xloves.ii. There is some person y such that every person loves y.Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaUngrammaticality(4)a.b.c.d.WhoWhoWho* Who(5)a.b.c.d.Sarah plays the trumpet.What does Sarah play?Sarah plays the trumpet and the clarinet* What does Sarah play the trumpet and(6)a.b.diddiddiddidyouyouyouyousay he saw?say that he sawsaysaw him?saw him?say that?Did the Johnsons want to see them?(‘them’ 6 ‘the Johnsons’)Who did the Johnsons want to see them?(‘them’ can ‘the Johnsons’)Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaSound Structure / Intuitions(7)Which are possible English words?a. blickb. ngaughtc. redokzd. twigglee. bhasaf. wugDarrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaSound Structure / MistakesMistakes follow specific patternsLikely: dear old queen queer old deanUnlikely: dear old queen near old queedDarrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaWhat We Know, and What We DoIn language, as in other aspects of life, our performance isoften not entirely reflective our our knowledge. Linguists findit useful to make the following distinction.Linguistic CompetenceThe lexicon and grammar as it exists in our minds; i.e., ‘whatwe know’Linguistic PerformanceLanguage as we use it.Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaLinguistic CompetenceSome examples of what we know about our language:which sounds are / are not in our languagewhich sound patterns are / are not allowed in our languagewords (i.e. sound-meaning association)what are natural sentences vs. unnatural sentenceshow to create novel utterancesDarrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaLinguistics PerformanceOur performance is suboptimal in many waysComphrehension limitationsmy great, great, great, great, great.grandmotherThe horse raced past the barn fell.Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaLinguistics PerformanceOur performance is suboptimal in many waysPhysical limitationsrunning out of breathforgetting the main pointstutteringchanging thought mid-sentencedying mid-sentenceDarrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaLinguistics PerformanceOur performance is suboptimal in many waysSlips of the tongueSpoonerisms (e.g. Three cheers for our queer old dean!)Freudian slipsDarrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaSubfields of LinguisticsWhat We Will nguage inguisticsDarrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaSubfields of LinguisticsWhat We Will Not Studypragmaticshistorical linguisticsapplied linguisticscomputational linguisticsnatural language processingspeech pathology.Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
What Is Language?LinguisticsWhat Is Linguistics?What Do Linguists Examine?Competence vs. PerformanceLinguistics MiscellaniaJobs/Fields for Linguistsprofessorlanguage education (1st or 2nd )language documentationpublishing of language booksspeech pathologistspeech therapistcomputational applicationsspeech recognitionspeech synthesisparsingmachine translationartificial intelligenceDarrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
References IEinstein, Albert & Léopold Infeld (1938) The Evolution ofPhysics.Darrell LarsenIntroduction to Linguistics
Darrell Larsen Introduction to Linguistics. What Is Language? Linguistics What Is Linguistics? What Do Linguists Examine? Competence vs. Performance Linguistics Miscellania Sound Structure / Intuitions (7)Which are possible English
Introduction to English Language & Linguistics 0. Introduction to language and linguistics 0.1. grammar linguistics from school 0.2. linguistics thinking about language 0.3. features of human language 1. Phonetics & phonology 2. Morphology & word formation 3. Syntax and grammar 4. Semanti
1. Essential Introductory Linguistics (Hudson) 2. An Introduction to Language (Fromkin, Rodman, Hyams) 3. Linguistics, An Introduction to Language and Communication (Akmajian and colleagues) 4. Linguistics and Language (Falk) 5. Language and Linguistics (Lyons
Language Files: Materials for an Introduction to Language and Linguistics. 12th edition. Department of Linguistics, Ohio State University. o Available to check out for 2 hours at the Library check-out desk, 3rd floor Peterson, David. 2015. The Art of Language Invention: From Ho
Forensic linguistics Forensic linguistics is a branch of applied linguistics that applies linguistic theory, research and principles to real life language in the legal context. Even more generally, it can be viewed as analyzing examples of language to discover properties that reveal more than just what is said.
Corpus linguistics 9/18/2020 27 Corpus linguistics is the study of language by means of naturally occurring language samples; analyses are usually carried out with specialised software programmes on a computer. Corpus linguistics is thus a method to obtain and analyse data quantitatively and qualitatively ra
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. The subject of linguistics, obviously, is language. Language is a fascinating phenomenon. In every part of our life we find language. Language can be used for several things
Applied Linguistics Research Journal Applied Linguistics to Identify and Contrast Racist ‘Hate Speech’: Cases from the English and Italian Language Original Research 1. Introduction In the late sixties through the seventies/early eighties, applied linguistics was an area of study mainly concentrating on applying
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