What is Language? Flashcards
linguistic competence
a speakers subconscious, intuitive knowledge of the rules of their language
linguistic performance
an individual’s use of a language (what a speaker actually says, including hesitations, false starts, and errors)
performance error
errors made by learners when they are tired or hurried
speech communication chain
the process through which information is communicated, consisting of an information source, transmitter, signal, receiver, and destination
speech communication chain steps
- think of what you want to communicate
- pick out words to express the idea
- put these words together in a certain order following rules
- figure out how to pronounce these words
- send those pronunciations to your vocal anatomy
- speak: send the sounds through the air
- perceive: listener hears the sounds
- decode: listener interprets sounds as language
- connect: listener receives communicated idea
noise
interference in the communication chain
lexicon
a collection of all the words you know
mental grammar
the knowledge that a speaker has about the linguistic units and rules of his native language
language variation
the property of languages having different ways to express the same meanings in different contexts according to factors such as geography, social class, gender, etc
descriptive grammar
objective description of a speaker’s knowledge of a language based on their use of the language
evidence that writing and language are not the same (list 4 reasons)
- writing must be taught, whereas spoken language is acquired naturally
- writing does not exist everywhere, whereas spoken language does
- writing uses more areas of the brain than spoken language
- writing can be edited, whereas speech is much more spontaneous.
reasons some people believe writing to be superior to speech (list 3 reasons)
- writing can be edited, and therefore is usually more perfected than speech.
- writing must be taught and is therefore associated with education, and the educated.
- writing appears physically more stable than spoken language which consists of nothing more than sound waves. Writing lasts (on paper)
prescriptive grammar
a set of rules designed to give instructions regarding the socially embedded notion of the “correct” or “proper” way to speak or write
prescribe
to lay down rules in which grammar should be used in language
Charles Hockett’s nine design features (necessary for a communication system to be considered a language) (list)
- mode of communication
- semanticity
- pragmatic function
- interchangeability
5.cultural transmission - arbitrariness
- discreteness
- displacement
- productivity
mode of communication
part of hockett’s design features for a language: means by which messages are transmitted
semanticity
part of hockett’s design features for a language: all signals in a language convey a meaning or have a function
pragmatic function
part of hockett’s design features for a language: useful purpose of any given communication system
interchangeability
part of hockett’s design features for a language: ability of individuals to both transmit and receive messages
cultural transmission
part of hockett’s design features for a language: aspects of the language that we can only acquire culturally, interacting with others that use the same language, we learn it, even if not hereditary
arbitrariness
part of hockett’s design features for a language: property of language describing the fact that there is no natural connection between a linguistic form and its meaning
linguistic sign
the combination of a linguistic form and meaning
convention
a generally agreed-upon practice or attitude
non-arbitrariness
direct correspondence between the physical properties of a form and the meaning that the form refers to
iconic
relationship between form and meaning such that the form of a word bears a resemblance to its meaning
onomatopoeia
the formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named
conventionalized
following accepted standards
sound symbolism
the process by which the way a word sounds influences our assumptions about what it describes and attributes such as size
discreteness
part of hockett’s design features for a language: property of communication systems by which complex messages may be built up out of smaller parts
displacement
part of hockett’s design features for a language: property of some communication systems that allows them to be used to communicate about thins, actions and ideas that are not present at the place or time where communication is taking place
productivity
part of hockett’s design features for a language: capacity of a communication system (unique to human language) for novel messages built out of discrete units to be produced and understood
modality
type of communication i.e. auditory-vocal vs visual-gestural
myths about signed languages (list 4)
- signed language is derived from spoken language.
- signed languages are codes
- there is only one signed language
- deaf people will use sign language to communicate
differences between codes and languages (list 4)
- code is an artificially constructed system for representing a natural language.
- code has no structure of its own languages have structure.
- language borrows its structure from the natural language it represents they are distinct from each other and from spoken languages.
- codes never have native speakers because they are artificial systems. Signed languages are learned natively.
