Course Name: Linguistics and Phonetics 1

Instructor Name: Dr. Lydia Idir

Lecture 5: Language Characteristics and Origin

1. Definitions of Language by Different Scholars

Many of us want to get the answer to the question ‗what is the definition of language„? In

fact, everybody is capable of answering this question somehow or other. Nonetheless, we are not

able to find a single definition of language that has completely explained the phenomenon in that

particular question and give us the satisfaction and stopped scholars, authors, and linguists to

define the exact answer of that question.

However, we can say language is basically a system of conventional, spoken, or written

symbols by means of which human beings are used to communicate with each other. There are

approximately 6,500 spoken languages available in the entire world used by different social

groups and cultures.

Let us now go through the definition of language delivered by different scholars and linguists.

I. Aristotle

Speech is the representation of the experience of the mind. That is according to Aristotle,

language is a speech sound produced by human beings in order to express their ideas, emotions,

thoughts, desires, and feelings.

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 II. Halliday

According to him, “A language is a system of meaning – a semiotic system.”

III. Wardhaugh

A language is a system of arbitrary vocal sounds used for human communication. This

definition of language by, Wardhaugh mainly insists on arbitrariness, vocal sounds, humans, and

communication.

IV. Lyons

Language is the principal system of communication used by particular groups of human

beings within the particular society of which they are members.

2. Human Language vs. Animal Language/ Communication

Human language is a complex system of communication that utilizes symbols, sounds, or

gestures to convey meaning. It is characterized by features such as grammar, syntax, and

semantics, allowing individuals to express thoughts, emotions, and ideas.

Animal language refers to the various systems of communication used by animals to convey

information and express emotions.

2.1. Properties of Human Language

Properties of human language are features that are unlikely to be found in the communication

systems of other living creatures.

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 2.1.1. Displacement

Most animals can communicate about things in the immediate environment only. A bird, for

example, utters its danger cry only when danger is present. Human language, by contrast, can

communicate about things that are absent as easily as about things that are present. This is called

―displacement. It allows the users of language to talk about events and things not present in the

immediate environment and to create fiction and to describe possible feature worlds. Animal

communication is generally considered to lack this property.

2.1.2. Productivity (Creativity)

Most animals have a very limited number of messages they can send or receive. This type of

limitation is not found in human language. Language users manipulate their linguistic resources

to produce new expressions and new sentences. This property of human language is known as

productivity or creativity. It is an aspect of language which is linked to the fact that the

potential number of utterances in any human language is infinite. Animal signals, on the other

hand, have features called fixed reference that means each signal is fixed as relating to a

particular object or occasion.

2.1.3. Arbitrariness

It is generally the case that there is no natural connection between a linguistic form and

its meaning. The form of the word CAT has no natural relationship with that animal. The

property of linguistic signs is their arbitrary relationship with the objects they are used to

indicate. The forms of human language demonstrate this property because they do not, in

any way, fit the object they denote.

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2.1.4. Discreteness

The sounds we use in language are meaningfully distinct. Language consists of distinct

sounds (phonemes) that can be combined to form words. For example, changing just one sound in

a word can create a completely different meaning (e.g., "bat" vs. "pat").

2.1.5. Duality

Language is organized in two levels. This property is called ―duality‖ or ―double

articulation‖. One level is when we produce individual sounds like “n, t, d, i”. In another level

we produce these sounds in a particular combination “bin, tip” and we are producing a meaning

that is different from other combination of these sounds. At one level we have a distinct sound

and at another level we have a distinct meaning. With a limited set of distinct sounds we are

capable of producing a very large number of sound combinations which are distinct in meaning.

Animals have a stock of basic sounds which vary according to species.

Note: by duality we mean this organization of language into two layers– a layer of sounds

which combine into a second layer of larger units.

2.1.6. The Need for Learning

Many animals automatically know how to communicate without learning. Their systems

of communication are genetically inbuilt. • This is quite different from the long learning

process needed to acquire human language, which is culturally transmitted. (Language is

passed from one generation to another not genetically or biologically but through a process

of teaching and learning and in a community of speakers.) • A human being brought up in

isolation simply does not acquire language. And there is almost certainly some type of innate
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predisposition towards language in a new-born child. This latent potentiality can be activated

only by long exposure to language, which requires careful learning.

2.1.7. Patterning

Many animal communication systems consist of a simple list of elements. There is no

internal organization within the system.

Human language, on the other hand, is most definitely not a haphazard heap. Humans

do not place sounds and words in a random way. Every item in language has its own

characteristics and place in the total pattern. It can combine with certain specified items and be

replaced by others.

For example: The – burglar – sneezed – loudly / A – robber – coughed – softly • That – cat –

hissed –noisily • Language can therefore be regarded as an intricate network of interlinked

elements in which every item is held in its place and given its identity by all the other items.

2.1.8. Structure Dependence

Look at the sentences: The dog chased the cat. The cat chased the dog. • Each of these

sentences has a similar basic structure (both have the same words, their meanings change based

on the structure). • Language operations are structure dependent—they depend on an

understanding of the internal structure of a sentence.

Summary:

In human language, the symbols are mostly arbitrary and the system has to be

painstakingly. • Duality and displacement are rare in the animal world. Creativity seems not to be

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present in any natural communication system possessed by animals. • Language is a patterned

system of arbitrary sound signals, characterized by structure dependence, creativity,

displacement, duality and cultural transmission.

3. The Origins of Language

When talking about the origins of language, it is interesting to discuss when exactly we as

human beings started to speak for the first time. Studies have not, so far, provided us with a

definitive answer. Yet, we know certainly that the spoken language existed even earlier than the

written one. So, as an attempt to know more about the origins of language, many studies and

experiments were carried out through history.

3.1. The Divine Source

The Divine Source Theory posits that human language originated from a supernatural

source, often described as a divine being or God. This theory suggests that language is a gift from

God rather than a human invention. It is believed that if human infants grow up isolated, they

spontaneously begin using God-given language.

Experiments were conducted in the past in order to find out about the origin of the human

language. Herodotus, a Greek writer, reported (recounts) the experiment of Pharaoh, named

“Psamtik”, on two children who grew up in the company of a mute shepherd and goats, after a

while, they uttered a Phrygian word “Bekos” which means “Bread”. This led to the conclusion

that Phrygian was the first language (god-giving language).

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 Many religious traditions include narratives where a god or gods provide language to

humans. For example, in Judeo-Christian belief, the story of the Tower of Babel describes how

God created different languages to prevent humans from completing their tower.

Another example, in Christian belief, God created Adam and “whatsoever Adam called

every living creature, that was the name thereof” as it is said in the Bible. However in Islam, in

the Qur‟an, Allah said:

3.2. The Natural Sound Source

The basic idea in this view is that primitive words could have been imitations of the natural

sounds. Several nicknames were given to different theories concerning the origins of the speech,

the “Bow-Wow” and the “Pooh-Pooh” are among them.

3.2.1. The ―Bow-Wow‖ Theory

The theory suggests that early humans began to create words by mimicking the sounds

made by animals, natural phenomena, or other environmental noises and used them to refer to

things associated with them. For example, the sound of a barking dog could lead to the word

“dog.” The supporters of this theory argue that the existence of words like splash, bang, boom,

and of course bow-wow, in the modern language, is evidence on their claim.

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3.2.2. The ―Pooh-Pooh‖ Theory

When it comes to this view, the original sounds were derived from the natural cries of

emotion, or exclamations, that people make in certain circumstances, such as, joy, pain, and

anger. Ouch, Ah, Oh, or Yuck are some interjections that could support this view.

3.3. The Social Interaction Theory

This theory suggests that language emerged primarily as a means for humans to interact,

collaborate, and build social bonds within groups. It emphasizes the role of social contexts in the

development of communication systems.

This theory places the development of human language in a social context. Early people must

have lived in groups, if only because larger groups offered better protection from attack. Groups

are necessarily social organizations, and in order to maintain those organizations, some form of

communication is required, even if it is just grunts and curses. Sounds, then, would have some

principled use in the social interaction of early human groups.

3.4. The Genetic Theory

This view suggests that human beings are born with a specific capacity for language

(genetically predisposed to acquire language). That is, human babies are equipped with an

innate ability to learn and acquire language. This is known as the innateness hypothesis. It argues

that specific biological and neurological traits facilitate language development and use,

distinguishing humans from other species.