Language change theories Flashcards
Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis
This states that the certain thoughts of an individual in one language cannot be understood by those who live in another language. The way people think is strongly effected by their native languages. This also known as linguistic relativity and linguistic determinism
the idea went out of favor with scientists when Noam Chomsky’s theories of language gained popularity in the 1960s and ’70s. Dr. Chomsky proposed that there is a universal grammar for all human languages—essentially, that languages don’t really differ from one another in significant ways.
One big problem with the original Sapir-Whorf hypothesis stems from the idea that if a person’s language has no word for a particular concept, then that person would not be able to understand that concept, which is untrue. Language doesn’t necessarily control humans’ ability to reason or have an emotional response to something or some idea. For example, take the German word sturmfrei, which essentially is the feeling when you have the whole house to yourself because your parents or roommates are away. Just because English doesn’t have a single word for the idea doesn’t mean that Americans can’t understand the concept.
There’s also the “chicken and egg” problem with the theory. “Languages, of course, are human creations, tools we invent and hone to suit our needs,” Boroditsky continued. “Simply showing that speakers of different languages think differently doesn’t tell us whether it’s language that shapes thought or the other way around.”.
Substratum Theory
William Labov
The way that different forms of languages come into contact with English. These create imperfections that is then passed down generationally, in turn, altering language forms.
- Substratum theory emphasizes the role of the displaced language in influencing the lexicon and grammar of the dominant language after contact.
- The theory often applies in contexts like colonialism, where indigenous languages have left traces in the colonizers’ languages.
- Examples of substratum influence can be found in various regions, such as Caribbean English Creoles reflecting West African languages.
- Substratum theory helps explain why certain linguistic features persist even after a community shifts to a new dominant language.
- The interplay between substrate and superstrate languages showcases the dynamic nature of language evolution through contact.
Aitchinson’s Damp Spoon Metaphor
Language forms that are lazy stick, like a damp spoon in a sugar bowl. Bad English sticks with people who are lazy and passive.
prescriptive
Aitchinson’s Crumbling Castle Metaphor
The beauty of English is crumbling away and decaying like a castle that is worn away over time. Aitchison suggests that the “crumbling castle”, “damp spoon” and “infectious disease” approaches are exhibited by many prescriptivist thinkers.
The “Crumbling Castle” myth likens the English language to a castle
It suggests that although English was once a great castle, over time it has decayed and crumbled
She states this is false because the description of English as a ‘once fine language ‘ is a particularly inaccurate one, as language is constantly changing and evolving. “No year,” she said, “can be found when language achieved some peak of perfection.”
Aitchinson’s Infectious Disease Metaphor
The “Infectious Disease” myth suggests that ‘bad English’ is like a horrible disease that spreads from person to person.
It is suggested that there is no vaccine - meaning that there is no way to stop it.
Aitchison suggests that the idea that changes are ‘caught’ and ‘spread’ is technically correct, but it is no disease. People pick up changes in language because they want to.
David Crystal’s linguistic economy view
The way we communicate online is similar to how we communicate in real life. He believes we are now living in a linguistic economy in which now language is more practical than formal, we shorten words for practicality, this has derived from things like text speech.
Sharon Goodman on informalisation
She explores two aspects of language change: Firstly, she states that that we are living in a time where language has become informalisation, this the idea that language which was used in close personal relationships is now being used in wider sociological context.
She also talks about supercharged typographic icon- Letters in the English language act as symbols in modern society with meanings behind them. e.g. x meaning incorrect.
“Is the English language becoming increasingly informal? The argument put forward by some linguists (such as Fairclough) is that the boundaries between language forms traditionally reserved for intimate relationships and those reserved for more formal situations are becoming blurred. . . . In many contexts, . . . the public and professional sphere is said to becoming infused with ‘private’ discourse. . . .
“If the processes of informalization and marketization are indeed becoming increasingly widespread, then this implies that there is a requirement for English speakers generally not only to deal with, and respond to, this increasingly marketized and informal English, but also to become involved in the process. For example, people may feel that they need to use English in new ways to ‘sell themselves’ in order to gain employment. Or they may need to learn new linguistic strategies to keep the jobs they already have–to talk to ‘the public,’ for instance. In other words, they have to become producers of promotional texts. This can have consequences for the ways in which people see themselves.”
Donald Mackinnon’s categories of perceptions on language
Categorises the attitudes people may have to language use:
- As incorrect or correct;
- As pleasant or ugly;
- Socially acceptable or socially unacceptable;
- Morally acceptable or morally unacceptable;
- Appropriate in context or inappropriate in context; 6. Useful or useless.
Hockett’s Random Fluctuation Theory
Charles Hockett, 1958, proposed that random mistakes and events lead to language change. For example, the misspelling of ‘owned’ as ‘pwned’ has become a common term in the online gaming community meaning a rival has been humiliated. Random events, such as the Coronavirus pandemic, may also affect our language.
Hockett believes that language changes and develops randomly. Users pronounce words differently and this spreads until it becomes a desirable form of speech – example estuary english.
Halliday’s Functional Theory
Halliday proposed that language changes and adapts according to the needs of its users. Words disappear over time (becoming archaisms) as things change – for example, advances in technology means ‘cassette’ has been replaced with ‘CD’ which may also fall out of usage and be replaced with ‘streaming’. This theory suggests that there’s a certain logic to language change: changes reflect the sociocultural climate we’re living in.
focuses only on lexical change
David Crystal’s Tide Metaphor
He suggests that language is like a tide – constantly changing.
David Crystal’s view on Texting
Texting requires a more knowledgeable understanding of language so is not suggesting that young people are becoming less intelligent. It is an evolutionary strand of linguistics and reinforces language evolving over time.
Cultural Transmission Theory
In linguistics, cultural transmission is the process whereby a language is passed on from one generation to the next in a community. It is also known as cultural learning and socio/cultural transmission.
A system of symbols is used to share cultural ideas (semiotic system?). Language changes when individuals or groups feel they benefit from change. (offensive phrases are no longer used or less popular)
Linguist Tao Gong has identified three primary forms of cultural transmission:
- Horizontal transmission, communications among individuals of the same generation;
- Vertical transmission, in which a member of one generation talks to a biologically-related member of a later generation;
- Oblique transmission, in which any member of one generation talks to any non-biologically-related member of a later generation.
One of the most important functions of language is its role in the construction of reality. Language is not simply a tool for communication; it is also a guide to what Sapir terms social reality.
Language has a semantic system, or a meaning potential which enables the transmission of cultural values (Halliday 1978: 109). Therefore, while the child is learning language, other significant learning is taking place through the medium of language. The child is simultaneously learning the meanings associated with the culture, realized linguistically by the lexico-grammatical system of the language
Harth and Clarks cultural transmission theory considers the horizontal transmission occurs due to socialisation and imitation of peer groups.
S Curve Model
Chen
The “S-curve model” in language change refers to a theoretical concept that describes how linguistic innovations spread through a community over time, following a pattern of slow initial adoption, rapid acceleration in usage, and then a gradual stabilization, creating a curve resembling the letter “S” when plotted on a graph; essentially, a change starts slowly, picks up speed, and then slows down as it becomes widely adopted by most speakers.
Semiotic System and linguistics
Ferdinand de Saussure
Saussure argued signs consisted of two parts. He defined the physical form of the sign, whether it was written or spoken language, as the signifier. These shapes and sounds then signified certain mental concepts to the audience.
Tree Model
Related languages use similar words and grammatical features. The crucial criterium for relatedness according to the Tree Model is not similarity but the development from a common ancestor. Italian, Spanish and French all derive from Vulgar Latin, the spoken form of Latin. English, German and Dutch can be traced back to a common Proto-Germanic language. Both Proto-Germanic and Latin eventually developed from a common ancestor called Proto-Indo-European. They therefore belong to the Indo-European languages.
The Wave Model
Johannes Schmidt
the wave model or wave theory is a model of language change in which a new language feature (innovation) or a new combination of language features spreads from its region of origin, affecting a gradually expanding cluster of dialects. The theory was intended as a substitute for the tree model, which did not seem to be able to explain the existence of some features in some languages. by descent from a proto language.
The wave theory challenges the family tree theory. The wave theory holds that within the original common language before differentiation, there are dialect differences, and the characteristics of these different dialects will spread to all directions like waves, so that different languages have some of the same characteristics; languages after differentiation Nor do they develop in a vacuum, and they also affect each other.
Unfolding of Language
Guy Deutscher
Deutscher explains what he calls ‘the evolution of man’s greatest invention’ except he says it was never invented. He frames his ideas of language change as the mind’s craving for order, and the instinctive need of speakers to find regularity in language. He suggests speakers often take shortcuts in pronunciation which results in language change. Interestingly Deutscher points out a counter effect by the speakers need to be innovative, expressive and extend their range or meaning.
Thus, for Deutscher language change results from a combination of predictable patterns and shortcuts twined with our efforts to be expressive and original.
