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The Study of Language

This document summarizes key concepts from the first three chapters of "The Study of Language". It discusses several proposed theories for the origins and development of human language, including the divine source theory, natural sound imitation theory, and social interaction theory. It also covers the anatomy and mechanics of speech sounds, including places and manners of articulation. Main concepts in phonetics and phonology are outlined, such as phonemes, allophones, assimilation, and minimal pairs. The document provides an overview of linguistic concepts and debates around the origins and structure of human language.

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phanhoangthihien
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122 views

The Study of Language

This document summarizes key concepts from the first three chapters of "The Study of Language". It discusses several proposed theories for the origins and development of human language, including the divine source theory, natural sound imitation theory, and social interaction theory. It also covers the anatomy and mechanics of speech sounds, including places and manners of articulation. Main concepts in phonetics and phonology are outlined, such as phonemes, allophones, assimilation, and minimal pairs. The document provides an overview of linguistic concepts and debates around the origins and structure of human language.

Uploaded by

phanhoangthihien
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Study of Language (UEF)

Chapter 1
The divine source:
- God provides humans with language
- If human infants grew up without hearing any language around them, they would spontaneously
use the original God-given language

The natural sound source:


- The “bow-bow” theory: imitating the sounds around (cuckoo, boo , boom)
 Words that sound similar to the noises they describe are the examples of onomatopoeia
- The “pooh-pooh” theory: natural cries of emotion (pain, anger, joy)

The social interaction source:


- The “yo-he-yo” theory: the rhythmic chants and grunts people used to coordinate their physical
actions when they worked together

The physical adaption source:


- The “ta-ta” theory: speech comes from mouth and tongue
- The “la-la” theory: speech comes from the sound of playfulness, love, songs

The tool- making source:


- Human developed preferential right-handedness and had become capable of making stone,
wood, composite tools
 changing humans using both hand => brain at work
- The human brain: controls the motor movements involved in complex vocalization (speaking)
and object manipulation (making or using tools)

The genetic source:


- Human offspring are born with a special capacity for language. It is innate, no other creature
seems to have it, and it isn’t tired to a specific variety of language

Chapter 2
IPA: International Phonetic Alphabet
Phonetics: The general study of the charaeristics of speech sounds
Articulatory phonetics: How speech sounds are made, or articulated
Acoustic phonetics: Which deals with the physical properties of speech as sound waves in the air
Auditory phonetics: Which deals with the perception, via in the ear, of speech sounds
Voiceless: When the vocal folds are spread apart, the air from the lungs passes between them
unimpeded

Voiced: When the vocal folds are drawn together, the air from the lungs repeatedly pushes them apart
as it passes through, creating a vibration effect.

Place of articulation: The location inside the mouth at which the constriction take place
Bilabials: Both(=bi) lips (=labia) together
Labiodentals: The upper teeth with the lower lip
Dentals: The tongue tip behind the upper teeth or between the teeth
Alveolars: The front part of the tongue on the alveolar ridge (the rough area behind and above the
upper teeth)

Palatals: The tongue and the hard palate (on the roof of the mouth)
Velars: The back of the tongue on the velum (soft palate)
Glottal: Using the glottis, the open space between the vocal folds
Fricatives: Block the airflow and force it through a narrow gap, creating a type of friction
Affricatives: Combine a brief stopping of the airflow with a release through a narrow gap
Nasals: The velum is lowered, allowing air to flow out through the nose
Liquids: Formed by letting the air flow around the sides of the tongue as the tip touches near the
alveolar ridge.

Glides: The tongue in motion (or “gliding”) to or from the position of a vowel

Chapter 3
Phonology: essentially the description of the systems and patterns of speech sounds in a language
Phonemes: Each one of these meaning-distinguishing sound in a language
Phones: Phonetic units and appear in square brackets
Allophones: Totally predictable patterns of sound variation that don’t change the meaning of words
Aspiration: Put the back of your hand in front of your mouth, you should be able to feel some physical
evidence of it (the puff in air)

Minimal pairs: When two words are identical in form expect for a contrast in one phoneme, occurring
in the same position

Minimal set: When a group of words can be differentiated, each one from the others, by changing on
phoneme (always in the same position in the word)
Syllables: contain a vowel or vowel-like sound, including diphthongs
Open syllables: Have an onset and a nucleus, but no coda
Closed syllables: When a coda is present
Consonant cluster: Both the onset and the coda can consist of more than one consonant
Assimilation: When two sound segments occur in sequence and some aspect of one segment is taken
or “copied” by the other

Nasalization: (when we say words like pin and pan in everyday speech) The anticipation of forming the
final nasal consonant will make it easier to go into the nasalized articulation in advance

Elision: Process of not pronouncing a sound segment that might be present in the deliberately careful
pronunciation of the word in isolation

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