LING 15 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Der Mond, Grammaticalization, Lexical Item
The complexity of human language
Animal communication
➔Holistic, situational, non-remote
Human language
➔Abstract, patterned, combinatorial
Patterned combination
➔Languages vary in arrangement of symbols and organization of information
◆Ideas may be grammatically, lexically, or phrasally encoded in different ways in
each language
Different ways of encoding
Lexical
➔Single words encode multiple concepts
➔Conceptual groups visible in word categories
Grammatical
➔Concepts indicated via affixation (suffix or prefix)
◆A part is added to a word to add category membership
➔Words can encode extra information about their category
Phrasal
➔Concepts indicated via syntax
◆Arrangement of words
➔Words of one class fit into a sentence in a certain way, and words of a different class fit
differently
Typology
The study of different systems of grammatical organization
➔Word classes and categories
➔Grammatical structure
➔Social and gender stratification
Weighted by language, not speakers
➔Gives better balanced representation to types
Numeral systems
➔Numeral: a symbol that represents an amount
◆1, 2, 3 are written numerals
◆One, two, three are spoken numerals
➔Languages vary in how they use lexical or complex symbols to indicate numbers
➔Decimal (base 10) system
◆One lexical item for each number between one and ten
◆Ten is an organizing principle for larger amounts
● For-ty = four x ten
● Fif-ty = five x ten
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Document Summary
Languages vary in arrangement of symbols and organization of information. Ideas may be grammatically, lexically, or phrasally encoded in different ways in each language. Concepts indicated via affixation (suffix or prefix) A part is added to a word to add category membership. Words can encode extra information about their category. Words of one class fit into a sentence in a certain way, and words of a different class fit differently. The study of different systems of grammatical organization. Numeral: a symbol that represents an amount. Languages vary in how they use lexical or complex symbols to indicate numbers. One lexical item for each number between one and ten. Ten is an organizing principle for larger amounts. Clusters of biologically and socially constructed traits. Multiple interpretations that are nuanced and complicated. Not created with social meaning as a goal. Pronunciation gives a clue to what gender it belongs to.
