Transcript Introduction to Language

• Language: a system of
communication thru speech,
signs, gestures, etc
–Ensures cultural transmission
• Literary Tradition: a system of
written communication
• Many countries have an official
language.
– Used by govnts for laws, reports, and
public objects
• If a country has more than 1 official
lang.  can require all public
documents to be in both langs.
– As of 1988, Canada has 2 official langs,
English and French
• States Right in US (Wikipedia link to list)
• Most people in the US know only
English
• English is the official language in
over 50 countries
– 1/3 of the world’s population live in
countries where English is the official
language
• English is the second most
spoken language in the world
• The distribution of language is a
result of interaction and isolation
– Interaction occurs when ppl migrate to
another place and teaches their
language to the ppl they encounter
– Isolation occurs if the people have few
connections after the migration
– Examples?
• English is widely dist. thru world as a
result of British Imperialism
– English diffused to NA in the 1600’s w/
the settling of Jamestown
– English diffused to Ireland, India,
Australia, New Zealand, Southern
Africa, etc. in the form of Colonialism
• US also brought English to other
countries (Philippines, PR)
• The Celts came to GB in 2000 B.C.E. 
Celtic
• In 450 C.E., tribes from Europe
invaded, pushing the Celts into modernday Scotland and Wales
Invading groups:
Angles (northern Germany),
Saxons (southern Denmark)
Jutes (northern Denmark)
• One reason English and German are
different today  Normans (1066)
• The Normans spoke French 
official lang of England for 300 yrs
• In 1489, English became the official
lang of England
Origin of English in England
- French only spoken by
royal family, nobles, clergy,
judges
- Majority of people
(uneducated) still spoke
English
Today:
- Simple, straightforward
words from Germanic roots
(man, woman, sky, horse)
- Fancy, more elegant
words from French roots
(celestial, equestrian,
masculine, feminine)
• Dialect: a regional variation of a
language distinguished by
distinctive vocabulary, spelling,
and pronunciation
– Usually, a speaker of one dialect can
understand the speaker of another
• Ex: American English and Australian English
• Sometimes a dialect is recognized
as being a standard language
– Example: British Received
Pronunciation (BRP)
• This was the language used at
universities like Oxford and
Cambridge
• Oh why can’t the English learn to
speak?
• The first colonists spoke a British
form of English
– With isolation from GB, and the arrival
of immigrants, the form of English
shifted into what it is today
• American and British English
differ in 3 ways: vocabulary,
spelling, and pronunciation
• New names needed for features,
plants, animals, etc.
• Native Americans also added to
our vocabulary: canoe and
moccasin
• New inventions like the elevator
(lift), flashlight (torch), toilet (loo)
• Noah Webster was determined to
make American English unique, &
published his dictionary with that
agenda
– Reduce dependence, nat’l pride
• He created new grammar and
spelling rules
– Color vs. Colour,
– Analyze vs. Analyse
– Center vs. Centre
• One key difference between
American and British pronunciation
are the sounds of the letters a and r.
– Fast vs. faaaahhhst
– Lord vs Laaahhhd
– Secretary vs. Secratry (we pronounce
all syllables)
• See Hugh Laurie 
• There are many words in the
United States that are unique to
that region
• An isogloss is a word-usage
boundary
– Cellar or Basement?
– Coke, Pop, or Soda?
– Water fountain or drinking fountain?
– Are Mary, Merry, and Marry
pronounced the same?