I. What is language?
1. What is language?
Language can mean what a person says (e.g. bad language, expressions) the way of speaking or writing(e.g. Shakespeare's language Luxun's language a particular variety or level of speech or writing (e. g language for special purpose, colloquial language the abstract system underlying the totality of the speech/writing behavior of a community(e.g. Chinese language, first language) the common features of all human languages (e.g. He studies language a tool for human communication. (social function) a set of rules. rule-governed
Language can mean ◼ what a person says (e.g. bad language, expressions) ◼ the way of speaking or writing (e.g. Shakespeare’s language, Luxun’s language) ◼ a particular variety or level of speech or writing (e.g. language for special purpose, colloquial language) ◼ the abstract system underlying the totality of the speech/writing behavior of a community (e.g. Chinese language, first language) ◼ the common features of all human languages (e.g. He studies language) ◼ a tool for human communication. (social function) ◼ a set of rules. (rule-governed)
Sapir's definition (1921) Language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires by means of voluntarily produced symbols
Sapir’s definition (1921) ◼ “Language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires by means of voluntarily produced symbols
Halls definition(1968) language is " the institution whereby humans communicate and interact with each other by means of habitually used oral-auditory
Hall’s definition (1968) ◼ Language is “the institution whereby humans communicate and interact with each other by means of habitually used oral-auditory arbitrary symbols
Chomsky s definition (1957) From now on /will consider language to be a set of ffinite or infinite) sentences, each finite in length and constructed out of a finite set of elements
Chomsky’s definition (1957) ◼ “From now on I will consider language to be a set of (finite or infinite) sentences, each finite in length and constructed out of a finite set of elements