INTRODUCTION
It is commonly known that studies in phonetics and phonology are based on natural languages. Therefore, since language may be seen as the subject of phonetics and phonology, it would appear that a good knowledge about language will be a necessary background for an understanding of phonetics and phonology, especially at the introductory stage. Also, since language is expressed through mediums, it is important to understand the particular medium that concerns us in this unit.
3.1 Language: Meaning and Origin
The simplest way to explain the term language is probably to say that it is a means of communication. Such communication may take place between individuals, groups and nations. Through language, people are able to live together to interact and to express their thoughts and feelings. The entire world bubbles and remains alive as a result of language. The world is, in a way, held together because people learn or acquire each others’ languages thereby maintaining constant interaction and relationship. To use a modern expression associated with wireless communication, language helps mankind to “stay connected!” Try to imagine how difficult life would be in the world, if there were no languages and mankind had to use gestures or other nonverbal expressions only for communication.
It is, however, almost disappointing that in spite of the communicative and social roles of language, nobody knows precisely how it originated. The matter has remained a speculation. One such speculation is the Divine Source. According to this source, God
created Adam … and gave him the ability to speak … and whatsoever Adam called every living creature that was the name thereof (Genesis 2:19). There are other speculations such as the natural sounds source and the oral-gesture source (Yule 1996: 1-5). We have not gone beyond this point because the issue of language origin is not of a primary concern for us in this course. But it is good to have a hint about it, as done, so that those who are interested in finding out more about the topic can read it up in other sources. For now, it is enough to say that all the speculations lead to one direction: uncertainty about the origin of language.
Self-assessment Exercise 1
1. How does language enable us to “stay connected?”
2. State very briefly what you have learned about the origin of language.
3.1 3.2?? Language: Technical definitions
Even though the origin of language is not yet known, quite a few scholars have provided technical definitions. The definitions are useful because they tend to bring out the main features of language. Three of such definitions and their sources are cited below:
(i) Sapir (1921: 18) sees language as:
…a purely human and non instinctive method of
communicating ideas, emotions and desires by means of a system of voluntarily produced symbols.
(ii) Gimson (1980: 4-5) describes language as:
…a system of conventional symbols used for
communication by a whole community, the pattern of
conventions covers a system of significant sound units,
the inflection and the arrangement of words and the association of meaning with words.
(iii) Hall (1968: 158) says that language is:
…the institution whereby humans communicate and
interact with each other by means of habitually used oral- auditory arbitrary symbols.
From the above definitions, we can isolate some features which are common to all languages. The first of these features is that language is arbitrary and conventional. This means that there is generally no necessary connection between a word and what it stands for. For instance, the word school has no necessary link between the name and what it stands for. If English people or those who provided their various sources
of borrowing had used the word farm to describe “an institution where learning (of all sorts) takes place”, then by agreement and convention every speaker of English would have used the word in that way. Here we notice that even onomatopoeic words … words whose pronunciations suggest their meanings such as clean, sneeze, flush … are still subject to the arbitrary and conventional reference.
Secondly, we observe from the definitions that language is non instinctive. This means that it is an acquired or learned behaviour. A child born into a society acquires the language of its environment, and does so effortlessly. Do you remember how you acquired your first language? You hardly can! This is because the process of acquisition is normally without any really conscious effort, hence the description effortlessly! If the same child goes on to learn another language – a language different from the one he has acquired – he learns with some amount of effort and determination. The degree of success will depend upon a large number of factors, the most important being perhaps the child’s innate ability at language learning, the quality of the person he takes as his model and the suitability of the environment for learning. You can see that while you acquired your first language effortlessly, you are still struggling to learn the English language which is a second language in Nigeria.
Thirdly, all the definitions show that language is essentially used among human beings. However, since it is commonly known that birds, animals and even machines have their own language, we can say that the three explications relate to “natural” languages i.e. languages used by human beings – languages into which human beings are born. The other languages may be said to be “artificial” or “nonhuman.” Such include animal and machine language. There are also artificial languages crafted from existing natural language(s). These include Esperanto which was crafted in the late 19th century for international communication and the Nigerian Wazobia: “Wa-zo-bia” coined from the word meaning come in the three languages spoken by the larger ethnic groups in Nigeria (Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo) in an attempt to solve the problem of a lingua franca in Nigeria. It is important to note that artificial languages are not generally known to succeed, particularly when compared to natural languages which are culturally transmitted, and hence their chances of continuity are assured.
Self-Assessment Exercise 2
(i) Briefly explain the traits which unite all natural languages.
(ii) Briefly distinguish between natural and other forms of language.
3.2 Language: Its Mediums
A further highlight from the three explications of language in the last section is that languages are realized through symbols which are either oral-auditory (spoken) or graphic (written). This means that languages are made up of symbols which are either spoken or written. The majority of attempts to explain language state that it is made up of phonic, vocal, oral-auditory conventional symbols. The majority of sources on language indicate that speech is prior to writing. This means that practically all natural languages are usually first spoken and later written, if necessary. This explains why it is true that there are many languages in the world which are not written whereas all are spoken. This is what is often described as the “primacy of speech.” Sapir (1949: 1) summarises this primacy of speech thus:
Language is primarily a system of phonetic symbols for the expression of communicable thought and feeling. In other words, the symbols of language are differentiated products of the vocal behaviour …
From the above, we have seen that natural languages are expressed through speech or through writing. These are the two main language mediums. Spoken language consists of sounds – organised sounds – which result from the action of the speech organs. The organised sound is perceived via hearing. For this reason the spoken medium is often called the aural medium. This is so because it is the sense of hearing that is utilised to perceive spoken language. The written language is produced by use of symbols that can be visually recognised by the reader, and is referred to as the visual medium. The written language is also used by the visually impaired in the form of the braille and similar systems. This consists of symbols that are identified through the sense of ‘touch’. It is referred to as the tactile medium because the sense of touch is utilised. It is important to note that a medium is itself not language but a means through which language can be comprehended. This means that language is expressed through mediums. We shall return to the spoken and the written mediums in detail in the next unit.
A common feature of the mediums is that they serve as a link between the sender of a message and the receiver of it. What is normally perceived which affects the communication is the outcome of the activity which may be sounds or shapes. It is important to note that a language signal can be transferred from one medium to another. Thus, it is possible to write down what has been spoken and to read aloud what has been written.
4.0 CONCLUSION
In this unit, we have learned that human or natural languages can be distinguished by the features that are common to them. The features make it possible for languages to have organised sound systems and structure which is what you will learn in this course.
5.0 SUMMARY
This unit has shown that human language differs from artificial or non human language in that it has identifiable sounds and symbols that are organised. Three mediums through which human language is expressed were discussed: the aural, the visual, and the tactile. The relevance of the features of human language as the basis for description of sound systems (phonetics) and structure (phonology) is the focus of this course.
6.0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENT
In about 2 pages, discuss the following topic and submit your answer to your tutor for assessment:
“The Things I now know about Language” .
7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READING
Eka, D. & Udofot, I. (1996). Aspects of Spoken Language. Calabar: BON Universal Ltd.
Gimson, A.C. (1980). An Introduction to the Pronunciation of English. London: Edward Arnold.
Hall, R.A. (1968). An Essay on Language. Philadelphia and New York: Chilton Books.
Sapir, E. (1991). Language: An Introduction to the Study of Speech. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
Sapir, E. (1949). Culture, Language and Personality: Selected Essays. California: California University Press.
Yule, G. (1996). The Study of Language: An Introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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