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Intro.pps/pdf. Language properties. Parity Universality Mutability Tacitness Displacement Duality Productivity (creativity). Parity. All languages are equal. Universality. All grammars share some basic properties. Words Nouns Verbs Sentences Assertions Questions Semantic roles
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Intro.pps/pdf English 306A; Harris
Language properties • Parity • Universality • Mutability • Tacitness • Displacement • Duality • Productivity (creativity) English 306A; Harris
Parity All languages are equal. English 306A; Harris
Universality • All grammars share some basic properties. • Words • Nouns • Verbs • Sentences • Assertions • Questions • Semantic roles • Agents • Patients • Locations English 306A; Harris
Mutability Languages change. cool neat groovy far-out radical cool English 306A; Harris
Tacitness A great deal of grammatical knowledge is tacit knowledge. [p] vs [ph] vs [p¬] English 306A; Harris
Charles Hockett’s ‘Design Features’ • There is...a sense in which [productivity], displacement, and duality...can be regarded as the crucial, or nuclear, or central properties of human language. English 306A; Harris
Displacement • Messages can refer to things remote in time and space, or both, from the site of the communication. English 306A; Harris
Duality of patterning • At every level: elements and combinatorics • Sounds combine into syllables and morphemes • Morphemes combine into words • Words combine into phrases and sentences • Sentences combine into turns or paragraphs • Turns combine into conversations • Paragraphs combine into texts English 306A; Harris
Elements + combinatorics = Language English 306A; Harris
Language properties • Parity • Universality • Mutability • Tacitness • Displacement • Duality • Productivity (creativity) English 306A; Harris
Signs • Meaning conveyances • Symbolic • Iconic • Indexical English 306A; Harris
Signs • Meaning conveyances • Symbolic • Iconic • Indexical English 306A; Harris
Signs • Meaning conveyances • Symbolic • Iconic • Indexical English 306A; Harris
Signs • Meaning conveyances • Symbolic • Iconic • Indexical English 306A; Harris
MutabilityHistorical linguistics • Changes • Linguistic study • Reconstruction • Language families • Origins English 306A; Harris
History of English • greaser far out • dude outasite • keen rilly You are here Homo Heidelbergensis 1 English 306A; Harris
History of English Aetalects! • greaser far out • dude outasite • keen rilly You are here Homo Heidelbergensis 1 English 306A; Harris
History of English • night cough • knight name • knee mayhaps English 306A; Harris
Early modern English • I am no orator, as Brutus is; • But, as you know me all, a plain blunt man, • That love my friend; and that they know full well • That gave me public leave to speak of him: • For I have neither wit, nor words, nor worth, • Action, nor utterance, nor the power of speech, • To stir men's blood • Julius Caesar, c1599 You are here Homo Heidelbergensis 1 English 306A; Harris
Middle English (London) • Whan that Aprill, with his shoures soote • The droghte of March hath perced to the roote • And bathed every veyne in swich licour, • Of which vertu engendred is the flour; • ... • Thanne longen folk to goon on pilgrimages • The Canterbury Tales, c1380 You are here Homo Heidelbergensis 1 English 306A; Harris
Middle English (Northumberland) • Si†en †e sege and †e assaut watz sesed at Troye, • †e bor° brittened and brent to bronde and askez, • †e tulk †at †e trammes of tresoun †er wro°t • Watz tried for his tricherie, †e trewest on erthe • The Green Knight, c1380 You are here Homo Heidelbergensis 1 English 306A; Harris
Middle English (Northumberland) Regiolects! • Si†en †e sege and †e assaut watz sesed at Troye, • †e bor° brittened and brent to bronde and askez, • †e tulk †at †e trammes of tresoun †er wro°t • Watz tried for his tricherie, †e trewest on erthe • The Green Knight, c1380 You are here Homo Heidelbergensis 1 English 306A; Harris
Middle English (Northumberland) Regiolects! • Si†en †e sege and †e assaut watz sesed at Troye, • †e bor° brittened and brent to bronde and askez, • †e tulk †at †e trammes of tresoun †er wro°t • Watz tried for his tricherie, †e trewest on erthe • The Green Knight, c1380 Sociolects! You are here Homo Heidelbergensis 1 English 306A; Harris
Middle English (Northumberland) Regiolects! • Si†en †e sege and †e assaut watz sesed at Troye, • †e bor° brittened and brent to bronde and askez, • †e tulk †at †e trammes of tresoun †er wro°t • Watz tried for his tricherie, †e trewest on erthe • The Green Knight, c1380 Sociolects! Ethnolects! You are here Homo Heidelbergensis 1 English 306A; Harris
Language variation Idiolects! English 306A; Harris
Language variation Hey, who you callin’ an idiolect, dorkosaurus? English 306A; Harris
Different persons growing up in the same language are like different bushes trimmed and trained to take the shape of identical elephants. The anatomical details of twigs and branches will fulfill the elephantine form differently from bush to bush, but the overall outward results are alike. Language variation English 306A; Harris
Different persons growing up in the same language are like different bushes trimmed and trained to take the shape of identical elephants. The anatomical details of twigs and branches will fulfill the elephantine form differently from bush to bush, but the overall outward results are alike. Language variation W.V.O. Quine English 306A; Harris
Old English (aka Anglo-Saxon) • Nu sculon herigean heofonrices weard, • meotodes meahte, and his modge†anc, • weorc wuldorfæder, swa he wundra gehwæs, • ece drihten, or onstealde. • Caedmon’s hymn, c670 You are here Homo Heidelbergensis 1 English 306A; Harris
1066 English 306A; Harris
1066 • Substratum (under-level) Germanic (Angles, Saxons etc.)king, law, deer, cow, cock, piss, … • Superstratum (over-level) Latinate (Norman French)monarch, justice, venison, beef, penis, urinate, … English 306A; Harris
1066 • Substratum (under-level) Germanic (Angles, Saxons etc.)king, law, deer, cow, cock, piss, … • Superstratum (over-level) Latinate (Norman French)monarch, justice, venison, beef, penis, urinate, … English 306A; Harris
MutabilityLanguage change • Internal (isolation, fashion, prestige, …) • External (trade, war, imperialism, …) English 306A; Harris
MutabilityLanguage change • Internal (isolation, fashion, prestige, …) • External (trade, war, imperialism, …) Phonological Morphological Lexical Syntactic Semantic English 306A; Harris
What changes Middle English hound • Modern English • dog English 306A; Harris
What changes: radial networks English 306A; Harris
Radial networks • A network with a defining centre (usually called “the prototype” of the network) English 306A; Harris
Changes in a semantic radial networkhyponym / hypernym shifts Middle English hound … dog poodle spaniel … Mastiff, Basset, … Toy, French, … Springer, Cocker, … • Modern English • dog • … poodle hound spaniel … • Toy, French, … Grey, Blood, … Springer, Cocker, … English 306A; Harris
hyponym and hypernym Middle English hound … dog poodle spaniel … Mastiff, Basset, … Toy, French, … Springer, Cocker, … hypernym hypernym hyponym hyponym English 306A; Harris
hyponym and hypernym • Modern English • dog • … poodle hound spaniel … • Toy, French, … Grey, Blood, … Springer, Cocker, … hypernym hypernym hyponym hyponym English 306A; Harris
Changes in a semantic radial networkhyponym / hypernym shifts Middle English hound … dog poodle spaniel … Mastiff, Basset, … Toy, French, … Springer, Cocker, … • Modern English • dog • … poodle hound spaniel … • Toy, French, … Grey, Blood, … Springer, Cocker, … English 306A; Harris
Changes in a semantic radial networkhyponym / hypernym shifts Middle English hound … dog poodle spaniel … Mastiff, Basset, … Toy, French, … Springer, Cocker, … • Modern English • dog • … poodle hound spaniel … • Toy, French, … Grey, Blood, … Springer, Cocker, … English 306A; Harris
Changes in a semantic radial networkhyponym / hypernym shifts Middle English hound … dog poodle spaniel … Mastiff, Basset, … Toy, French, … Springer, Cocker, … • Modern English • dog • … poodle hound spaniel … • Toy, French, … Grey, Blood, … Springer, Cocker, … English 306A; Harris
Shrinkage of a semantic radial networkpolysemy —> monosemy • Mete • 1. a. Any comestible. • b. Solid comestibles. • 2. Edible portions of fruits, nuts, eggs, …. • 3. Animal flesh for food. • 4. A meal. Meat English 306A; Harris
Shrinkage of a semantic radial networkpolysemy —> monosemy ‘many-meaning’ —> ‘single-meaning’ • Mete • 1. a. Any comestible. • b. Solid comestibles. • 2. Edible portions of fruits, nuts, eggs, …. • 3. Animal flesh for food. • 4. A meal. Meat English 306A; Harris
MutabilitySubtotal • History of English • Periods • Events • Pressures to change • Internal/external • Aeta-, regio-, socio-, ethno-lects • Objects of change • Individual elements • Radial networks English 306A; Harris
Origins and varieties of languages • Objects of change • Individual elements • Radial networks • Language families • Indo-European • Pre-Indo-European • Origins • Lexical theories • Language theories • Writing systems • Concept-to-sound migration English 306A; Harris
Philology • Looking at texts for noteworthy signifier/signified linkages • Contrast and compare English 306A; Harris
English father mother brother sister king milk meat German Vater Mutter Bruder Schwester König Milch Fleisch PhilologyLanguage families English 306A; Harris