The classification of languages

1. The classification of languages Introduction to Linguistics 2

2. Defining language • Dialect and language • Defining criteria • If two speeches are mutually intelligible, they are dialects.

3. Fuzzy boundaries • Claimed to be one language, but there are a variety of mutually unintelligible ‘dialects’. • Chinese • Taiwanese, Cantonese, Mandarin/ Putonhua, Wu… • Claimed to be two independent languages, but they are actually mutually intelligible. • Serbian and Croatian

4. Approaches to language classification • Genetic classification • Linguistic typology

5. Genetic Classification

6. Genetic classification • Languages with related historical decent are said to be genetically related. • ‘language families’

7. Language families

8. Case Study: The Indo-European language family

9. Linguistic Typology

10. Languages are grouped together according to the similarities of their linguistic features. Linguistic typology

11. Linguistic Universals • The common linguistic features that are found in all or most languages.

12. How to describe linguistic universals • Absolute universals vs. universal tendencies • Implicational universals • Markedness theory

13. Absolute universals vs. universal tendencies • Absolute universals • The linguistic features that occur in ALL languages • Universal tendencies • The linguistic features that occur in MOST languages

14. Implicational universals • The presence of one linguistic feature in one language must indicate the occurrence of another. • If A is found in language L, B must be also present in language L. • The implication is one-way. • Example: • If one language has fricative phonemes, it will also have stop phonemes

15. Implicational universals: Example • The implication is one-way. • Example: • If one language has fricative phonemes (/s/, /z/), it will also have stop phonemes (/p/, /t/). • But not vice versa.

16. Markedness theory • The most common/default features are unmarked. • The less common features are marked.

17. Markedness theory:example • Gender in nouns • Which is marked? Masculine or feminine? • Prince-princess; actor-actress • Doctor-female doctor; nurse-male nurse • 萬綠叢中一點紅 • Which is marked?

18. Typological classification by • Phonology • Morphology • Syntax

19. Typology: phonology • Vowel systems • Consonant systems • Suprasegmental systems • Syllable structure

20. Typology: phonology: vowel • Universals • The most common vowel system • 5 vowels /a/-/i/-/u/-/e/-/o/ • The most common phonemes • /a/-/i/-/u/ • Front vowel phonemes are generally unrounded. • Low vowels are generally unrounded.

21. Typology: phonology: Consonant • Universals • All languages have stops • /p, t, k/ • The most common fricative phoneme is /s/ • Most of languages have at least one nasal. • Implicational universals • Fricatives -> stops • Voiced obstruents -> voiceless obstruents • Affricates -> stops and fricatives

22. Typology: phonology: suprasemental • Types • Tone languages • Languages that use pitch to make semantic distinctions of words • Mandarin Chinese • Stress languages • Fixed stress • Free stress • Syllable structure • CV, V

23. Typology: morphology • The isolating type • The polysynthetic type • The synthetic type • The agglutinating type • The fusional type

24. Typology: morphology: The isolating/analytic type • One word represents one single morpheme. • No affixes • Mandarin Chinese

25. Typology: morphology: The polysynthetic type • One single word with a long string of roots and affixes • The semantic equivalent of one sentence in other languages. • Qasu-iir-sar-vig-ssar-si-ngit-luunar-nar-puq ‘some one did not find a completely suitable resting place.’ (Inuktitut)

26. Typology: morphology: The agglutinating type • An agglutinating words • Contains several morphemes • The root and affixes in the words can be semantically identified. Swahili Tu –ta –wa -on- esha we-fut.-them-see-cause 'we will show them'

27. An aggluinating example:Antidisestablishmentarianism • establish (9) • to set up, put in place, or institute (originally from the Latin stare, to stand) • dis-establish (12) • ending the established status of a body, in particular a church, given such status by law, such as the Church of England • disestablish-ment (16) • the separation of church and state (specifically in this context it is the political movement of the 1860s in Britain) • anti-disestablishment (20) • opposition to disestablishment • antidisestablishment-arian (25) • an advocate of opposition to disestablishment • Antidisestablishmentarian-ism (28) • the movement or ideology that opposes disestablishment

28. Typology: morphology: The fusional/inflectional type • A fusional/inflectional word contains several morphemes which indicate grammatical categories. • Ein kleiner Hamster "a little hamster" (nominative case) • Der kleine Hamster "the little hamster" (nominative case) • Ich sah den kleinen Hamster "I saw the little hamster" (accusative case) • Mit kleinem Hamster "with little hamster" (dative case).

29. Typology: syntax • Word order universals • SVO • SOV • VSO

30. Word order: SVO • John loves Mary.

31. word order: SOV • 私 は 箱 を 開けます。 • watashi-wa-hako-o-akemasu. • I box open • ‘I open the box.’

32. word order: OSV