1. Basics of Language and Linguistics
An Introduction to Language
and Linguistics
A. Multiple Choice Questions.
1. Which of the following is not the characteristic of language?
a)
Voluntary
b)
Genetics
c)
Arbitrariness
d)
Vocal
2. 'Language is the totality of the utterances that can be made
in a speech community'. is defined by....................
a) Chomsky
b)
Richards et al.
c) Ferdinand
d) Bloomfield
3. 'Language is the system of human communication by means of a
structured arrangement of sounds (or their written representation) to form
larger units, e.g. morphemes, words, sentences' is defined
by..........................
a) Chomsky
b)
Richards et al.
c) Ferdinand
d) Bloomfield
4. ...............................is a voluntary vocal system of
human communication.
a) Language
b) Dialect
c) Parole
d) Register
5. ....................refers to the interest or will to speak.
a)
Voluntary
b)
Genetics
c)
Arbitrariness
d)
Vocal
6. Language is produced using
several........................parts, such as mouth, lips, teeth, vocal cords,
lungs and other parts of the oral cavity.
a)
Voluntary
b)
Genetics
c)
Arbitrariness
d)
Vocal
7. If there is no geometrical similarity between the word and
its meaning, then it is said to have.......................
a)
Voluntary
b)
Genetics
c)
Arbitrariness
d)
Vocal
8. ..............................is one of the key features of
human communication which relates the understanding of the message in language
communication, it relates the transmission of a message being same in both
speaker and hearer.
a)
Voluntary
b)
Genetics
c)
Interchangeability
d)
Vocal
9. Human language is finite and limited in relation to
animal...............
a)
register
b)
communication
c)
idiolect
d)
linguistics
10. There are more than 7000 languages spoken in the world
today.
a) 4000
b) 5000
c) 6000
d) 7000
11. When a dialect is different in its form of language
according to geography, then it is called.......................
a) social dialect
b) temporal dialect
c) historical dialect
d) regional dialect
12. A variant form of a language according to social classes or
castes is called social dialect or.......................
a) temporal dialect
b) sociolect
c) historical dialect
d) regional dialect
13. The variant of a language according to time is called
temporal dialect or the......................
a) social dialect
b) sociolect
c) historical dialect
d) regional dialect
14. ...........................is a speech variety used by a
particular group of persons, usually sharing the same occupation or the same
interest.
a)
register
b)
communication
c)
idiolect
d)
linguistics
15. ..............................is the language system of an
individual expressed by the way he or she speaks or writes within the overall
system of a particular language.
a)
register
b)
communication
c)
idiolect
d)
linguistics
16. 'Linguistics is a scientific discipline whose
representativeness are concerned with the description and of language in
general and national languages/dialects in particular' is defined
by..................
a) Noam Chomsky
b)
Richards et al.
c) Michael Bryam
d) Bloomfield
17.
...........................studies the language principles in general.
a) Applied linguistics
b) Theoretical linguistics
c) Synchronic linguistics
d) diachronic linguistics
18. .....................is
an interdisciplinary field that explores the language-related problems in the
world.
a) Applied linguistics
b) Theoretical linguistics
c) Synchronic linguistics
d) diachronic linguistics
19. General linguistics studies the universal nature,
characteristics and functions of language.
a) Applied linguistics
b) General linguistics
c) Synchronic linguistics
d) diachronic linguistics
20. Synchronic linguistics is the study of language at a given
point of time. It deals with sounds, words and structures of language at a
certain time.
a) Applied linguistics
b) General linguistics
c) Synchronic linguistics
d) diachronic linguistics
21. Microlinguistics is the narrower study of language. It is
the detailed study of language in depth.
a) General linguistics
b) Microlinguistics
c) Ethnolinguistics
d) diachronic linguistics
22. Macrolinguistics is the broader study of language. It is the
surface study or the general study of language.
a) Applied linguistics
b) Ethnolinguistics
c) Macrolinguistics
d) diachronic linguistics
23. Psycholinguistics is the study of language in relation to
mind.
a) Psycholinguistics
b) Theoretical linguistics
c) General linguistics
d) diachronic linguistics
24. Sociolinguistics is the study of language in relation to
society.
a) Ethnolinguistics
b) General linguistics
c) Synchronic linguistics
d) Sociolinguistics
25. Historical linguistics is the study of language change over
a period of time. It is concerned with the study of phonological, grammatical,
and semantic changes of language.
a) Applied linguistics
b) Historical linguistics
c) Synchronic linguistics
d) Ethnolinguistics
26. Ethnolinguistics is the study of the relationship between
language and culture in any group of people.
a) Applied linguistics
b) Historical linguistics
c) Ethnolinguistics
d) Historical linguistics
27. ..................describes how a particular language is
actually used at a certain time. It describes the language or some aspects of
language at a given point of time.
a) Descriptive linguistics
b) Historical linguistics
c) Ethnolinguistics
d) Historical linguistics
28. The branch of linguistics which studies the acquisition of
language in children is called...
a)
developmental linguistics
b)
neuro-linguistics
c)
general linguistics
d)
micro linguistics
29. The branch of linguistics that studies language in relation
society is called...............
a)
Sociology
b)
dialect
c)
Sociolinguistics
d)
social behavior
30. Which of the following is not the characteristic of
language?
a)
Displacement
b)
Heredity
c)
Arbitrariness
d)
Double articulation
31. Which of the following is the common characteristic shared
by human and animal communication?
a)
Open system
b)
Flexibility
c)
Grammaticality
d)
Behavioral
32. What are the three broad levels of language?
a)
Phonology, Grammar, Morphology
b)
Phonology, Grammar, Semantics
c)
Phonology, Semantics, Meaning
d)
Phonology, Phonetics, Grammar
33. What are the three major varieties of language?
a)
Dialect, Register, Idiolect
b)
Phonetics, Register, Idiolect
c)
Phonology, Discourse, Semantics
d)
Phonology, Idiolect, Dialect
34. When the same language is used differently by the users due
to geographical distances between them, the variety of language is known as
...............
a)
register
b)
regional dialect
c)
idiolect
d)
linguistics
35. Nepali spoken in Arghakhanchi is...............of Nepali.
a)
A social dialect
b)
an idiolect
c)
a geographical dialect
d)
a register
36. Who introduced the concept of competence and performance?
a)
Noam Chomsky
b)
David Crystal
c)
George Yule
d)
John Lyons
37. Which of the following is least important in a scientific
study?
a.
simplicity
b.
objectivity
c.
exhaustiveness
d.
consistency
38.
Which of the following statements is correct?
a.
Human language is inherited.
b.
Human language is unchanged.
c.
Human language is not culturally transmitted.
d.
Human language is culturally transmitted.
39. Western people of Nepal use "Kothi" to refer to
"room", which is an example of .....
a.
register
b.
a sociolect
c.
an idiolect
d.
a geographic variation
40. What is the procedure of scientific study of language?
a.
Theory, experiment, Hypothesis, observation
b.
Observation, hypothesis, Experiment, theory
c.
Experiment, hypothesis, observation, theory
d.
Hypothesis, theory, experiment, observation
41. The branch of linguistics that deals with the relationship
between language and mind is called.....
a.
Psychology
b.
psycholinguistics
c.
sociolinguistics
d.
Neuro-linguistics
42. What are the major three varieties of language?
a.
Dialect, register, idiolect
b.
phonology, grammar, semantics
c.
phonetics, register, dialect
d.
phonology, idiolect, dialect
43. Chomsky's competence refers to the internalized set of rules
of.............
a.
an individual speaker-hearer
b.
a community
c.
a speech community
d.
all the speakers of the language
44. Linguistics is regarded as a scientific discipline because
its findings are................
a.
testable and verifiable
b.
testable and suitable
c.
testable and agreeable
d.
suitable and verifiable
45. Which of the following is not true about syntagmatic
relation in language?
a.
It has an order of succession
b.
It is the relation in present
c.
It is horizontal
d.
It is the relation in absentia
46. The branch of linguistics that studies the relation between
language and society is called.............
a.
social behaviour
b.
sociology
c.
social studies
d.
sociolinguistics
47. If the same language is used differently by the users
because of the geographical distance between them, the variety of the language
is called.............
a.
sociolect
b.
regional dialect
c.
idiolect
d.
register
48. Linguistics is directly concerned with.............
a.
pedagogical aspects of languages
b.
classroom teaching
c.
the writing of teaching manuals
d.
description of languages
49. Idiolect is a.............
a.
personal dialect
b.
social dialect
c.
regional dialect
d.
geographical dialect
B. Short Questions and Answers.
1. "Language is arbitrary vocal system of human
communication." Explain.
Language
is a means to share our ideas or thoughts, to express our desires, or to
interact with each other. Mostly, we use language for the purpose of
communication in the workplaces, home, schools, rituals or other several social
gatherings. Language is simply a code which is used to communicate with each
other. We use language to express our thoughts and feelings or share our
intentions with others. Language is connected with human communication.
Language
is a voluntary vocal system of human communication. Here, voluntary refers to
the desire to speak and vocal refers to oral system which means a
well-organized code. It is used to exchange or share feelings with one another,
and we speak a language based on our thoughts or wish. This is why we call language
voluntary. For example, when we are thirsty, we ask for water saying,
"Please give me something to drink. I'm thirsty." This expression is
produced based on our will or desire to drink something. It is vocal in the
sense that we produce language using our vocal organs such as mouth, lips, and
movement of the tongue to produce certain sounds in a meaningful way.
Therefore, the language needs to be meaningful. The other key term is a system.
Here, a system refers to the phonological, grammatical and semantic systems of
the language.
After birth, we gradually learn a language as we grow up. We learn one, two,
three or more languages. First, we learn a language and gradually we learn
other languages based on the need and social interaction or schooling. The
first language that every normal human child acquires is known as a mother
tongue or first language. This first language helps us in basic communication
to express our thoughts to each other for our survival. We mostly, use the
first language to ask for our needs, share feelings, express emotions and do
other activities in the initial stage of child development. At present, most of
the societies are multilingual, which means we find people speaking more than
one language. This situation helps us to learn more than at single language.
Learning more languages is mostly useful to us. Human language has different
characteristics that make us different from animal communication.
2. What are the basic features of human language? Describe
briefly.
Or,
What are the characteristics of human language? Explain briefly.
Or,
Define language. List the characteristics of language and
explain any one of them.
Language
is a means for human communication which has a voluntary vocal system. It needs
to be meaningful based on the context following a certain set of rules or
units. Furthermore, the communication that human beings do to each other to
share their feelings is known as human communication. Language is a voluntary
vocal system of human communication. Here, voluntary refers to the desire to
speak and vocal refers to oral system which means a well-organized code. It is
used to exchange or share feelings with one another, and we speak a language
based on our thoughts or wish. This is why we call language voluntary.
Characteristics
of Language
a)
Human Entity
A
language is a creative form of expression produced by human beings. We use
language as a means to share information, feelings and message to each other.
The language contains the oral, written or non-verbal mode of communication. In
such a situation, our emotions like pain, suffering and happiness are connected
with language. The use of language is made creative by human beings. Human
beings have an innate capacity to use language creatively and logically based
on their context.
b)
Voluntary
Voluntary
refers to the interest or will to speak. Here, language is not a forced
activity. We speak when it is necessary to speak. In a few cases, we might
remain silent as well. Therefore, it is one of the special voluntary features
of the language.
c)
Vocal
Language
is produced using several vocal parts, such as mouth, lips, teeth, vocal cords,
lungs and other parts of the oral cavity. The use of vocal organs plays a
significant role in speech or language production.
d)
System
Language
is an organized form of linguistic units. In most of the cases, when we produce
a language, we speak in an organized manner. The use of parts of speech like
noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, interjection
and determiner are organized in a proper way before we produce sentences.
e)
Arbitrariness
Arbitrariness
deals with the interrelationship of the linguistic form (object) and its
meaning (word). If there is no geometrical similarity between the word and its
meaning, then it is said to have arbitrariness. The connection is quite
arbitrary. For example, there is no relation in the word 'table' and the shape
of the thing that we call table.
f)
Interchangeability
Interchangeability
is one of the key features of human communication which relates the understanding
of the message in language communication. Here, it relates the transmission of
a message being same in both speaker and hearer.
g)
Cultural transmission
Language
and culture are interrelated. Social rules are passed behaviorally from one
generation to other. This process whereby a language is passed from one
generation to the next is described as cultural transmission.
Therefore, the major features of human communication have the characteristics
of the duality of patterning, productivity, arbitrariness, interchangeability,
specialization, displacement and cultural transmission. There might be other
characteristics as well, such as open-endedness where the learners develop
their vocabulary as they grow up and become mature. Likewise, the other feature
could be non-instinctive. It relates that human beings, by birth, possess the
ability to acquire a language. The acquisition of language might differ
depending upon the context where we live and grow up.
3. What are the varieties of language? Explain them briefly.
Variety
refers to the system of linguistic expression which is changed or governed by
situational variables. There are more than 7000 languages spoken in the world
today. This figure does not include the dialects. Among these languages, some
are locally or nationally used and others are globally used. The use of
language varies from one place to another. When a language is used differently
in different situations and varies in its use and forms, these variants in
language are known as varieties of language.
For
example, if we consider English, it is spoken differently in Britain, the
United States, Canada, New Zealand, or Australia. Similarly, the use of English
in the government office, canteen, and bus stop might be different even in the
same context. It might be different in terms of the way they pronounce words,
select vocabulary, accent and other features. All these varieties of language
are termed as dialect, register, idiolect, pidgin and Creole.
Dialect
a) A dialect is a variety of a language spoken in one part of a country or by
people belonging to a particular social class which is different in vocabulary,
grammar, and pronunciation from other forms the same language. It is often
associated with language variant or difference in the accent in a particular
part of the country.
b)
When a dialect is different in its form of language according to geography,
then it is called regional dialect; a variant form of a language according to
social classes or castes is called social dialect or sociolect, and the variant
of a language according to time is called temporal dialect or the historical
dialect.
Register
A register is a speech variety used by a particular group of persons, usually
sharing the same occupation or the same interest. A register often
distinguishes itself from other registers by having several distinctive words
or phrases in a particular way and sometimes by special grammatical
constructions. It is concerned with the particular use or the manner of using
the language. For example, the language used in the language pedagogy is
different from its use in literary analysis. Similarly, the language used in
sports is different from the language used in laboratory sciences. Hence, the
field of the users of a language is called a register. Some examples of a
register in the English language are given below:
Idiolect
An idiolect is the language system of an individual expressed by the way he or
she speaks or writes within the overall system of a particular language. Here,
the two individuals might speak the same language in different ways. They might
differ in terms of their accent or they might use different vocabulary or the
forms while using a language. It might be different within an overall system of
an individual language. The choice might differ in terms of the utterances or
the way they interpret the utterances. In a speech, it might be different in
terms of the voice quality, pitch and speech rhythm. An idiolect is often
regarded as a speech habit of a particular speaker in a particular situation.
For example, in Nepal, Nepali is the language used all over the country. The
Nepali of Gandaki Province is a dialect and the individuals within this
province might speak differently. These differences are idiolects.
4. Clarify the basic differences between animal communication
and human language.
Or,
How does human language differ from animal communication?
Human
beings have specialized features of communication. Animals are able to
communicate as well. Some animals communicate by gestures (bees' dance) and
some animals communicate by sounds (birds' cry) like crow and parrot. The
communication among animals might be limited though they communicate with other
species and share the information through different forms. But still, the sound
they produce cannot be described as language. Bees' dance has the properties of
productivity, interchangeability, specialization and displacement, but lacks
the properties of duality, arbitrariness, and cultural transmission.
Languages are born; they grow and die. The growth and death of language depend
upon its use by human beings. Human language is productive in the sense that a
speaker of a language can produce and understand words and sentences which he
has never spoken or heard. This feature is known as infinite in the sense that
we can produce an infinite number of sentences applying a finite set of rules.
On the other hand, language is finite and limited in relation to animal
communication. Animals can talk only about a few things using a limited
vocabulary. They cannot express the things of the past and future. Animals can
hardly link the forms of language and objects.
|
S.N. |
Human Communication |
S.N. |
Animal Communication |
|
1 |
Unlimited and infinite |
1 |
Limited and finite |
|
2 |
Open system |
2 |
Closed system |
|
3 |
Extendable, modifiable |
3 |
Unextendable, non-modifiable |
|
4 |
Flexible and full of variety |
4 |
Inflexible and without variety |
|
5 |
Non-instinctive |
5 |
Instinctive (inherent capacity) |
|
6 |
Acquired |
6 |
Inherited |
|
7 |
Conditioned by geography |
7 |
Not conditioned by geography |
|
8 |
Full of novelty and creativity |
8 |
Limited novelty and creativity |
|
9 |
Recurrent |
9 |
Repetitive |
|
10 |
Has grammaticality |
10 |
Has no grammaticality |
|
11 |
Cognitive as well as behavioural |
11 |
Behavioural |
|
12 |
Descriptive and narrative |
12 |
Non descriptive and non narrative |
5. Explain why animal communication cannot be regarded as
language.
There
are many folk tales and stories that we have heard about birds and animals
talking or carrying messages as a part of communication. Even in religious
books like Ramayana and Mahabharata, we find the meaning shared by the monkeys
and deer to communicate with humans. We may think that they are simply
fantasies or fiction. In fact, animals are able to communicate as well. Some
animals communicate by gestures (bees' dance) and some animals communicate by
sounds (birds' cry) like crow and parrot. Even in oriental philosophy, a crow
is taken as a messenger and perceived as a god.
The
communication among animals might be limited though they communicate with other
species and share the information through different forms. A bee can talk about
the flower by means of its dance. Many birds can talk with each other by means
of sound. Monkeys can use both signs and sounds. Chimpanzees, gibbons, gorillas
and some birds can produce some human sounds. But still, the sound they produce
cannot be described as language.
A
linguist carried out many experiments in terms of seven key properties of
language (duality of patterning, arbitrariness, creativity, displacement and
others) with bee dancing, stickleback courtship, herring gull care of
offsprings, and gibbon calls; and found that they could meet one or more
properties of language but not all. For example, bees' dance has the properties
of productivity, interchangeability, specialization and displacement, but lacks
the properties of duality, arbitrariness, and cultural transmission.
Language is finite and limited in relation to animal communication. Animals can
talk only about a few things using a limited vocabulary. They cannot express
the things of the past and future. Animals can hardly link the forms of
language and objects. No doubt, they associate their behaviour and emotions
with their cry. That is why their language system is finite. It has been the
same throughout the period of time. Their communication system cannot be
modified by time and place. It is inherited and unchanged. The dogs' bark; the
cows' moo, the wolves howl and the bees dance in the same way in the past and
the present; and in Nepal and other countries. In other words, their system is
not affected by time and place. The primitive barking of the dog is still the
same. The dancing of the bees, the calls of the gibbons etc. have been the same
through the period of time and all over the world.
Similarly,
the acquiring capacity of language between human beings and animals make them
different in the use of language. When a child is born, he has the ability to
acquire any language of the world. No matter it is English, Nepali, French or
other languages. It is believed that they have inbuilt Language Acquiring
Device (LAD). A child acquires some activities like crying, walking, and
eye-blinking by heredity. These habits are inherited from the parents. These
abilities are called instinctive but language is not inherited; it is acquired
(learnt). If we keep a child in a room and do not teach him any forms of
language, he does not learn any form of any language. However, if we keep a
baby monkey in a family, it can't acquire human language but makes sounds and
signs which it inherits from his parents. This feature relates that human
language is non instinctive. It is acquired and conditioned by geography or the
context where we are. In contrast, animal communication is instinctive and
inherited from their group or parents.
6. What are the major differences between theoretical
linguistics and applied linguistics?
Or,
Distinguish between theoretical and applied linguistics.
Linguistics
is the scientific study of languages which is more objective, systematic,
consistent and explicit to deal with the forms of language or dialects. It is
scientific as it follows a systematic process of data collection, testing
hypothesis, derive models and construct theories. It follows the systematic
procedures to study a language or language items. When we define it as a
scientific study, it comprises different components: well-defined subject
matter, scientific spirit, scientific method, procedure and scientific
principles. It carefully records, analyses, verifies the observation and
derives the findings, so it is taken as a systematic discipline. The word
'linguistics' is derived from the Latin word "lingua' which refers to the
tongue and 'istics' means science or study. Therefore, when we combine both the
words, linguistics refers to the scientific study of language.
Linguistics
is a systematic study that deals with how language works. It deals with several
aspects of language analysis in a systematic way. Here, the aspects include
linguistic, social, psychological, philosophical, pedagogical and others. The
development of linguistics was enriched by a Swiss linguist Ferdinand de
Saussure, in the early 20th century. Therefore, he is often regarded as the
father of modern linguistics. The area of study of linguistics has been
increasing day by day; therefore, various branches of linguistics have been
developed.
Theoretical linguistics and applied linguistics Theoretical linguistics studies
the language principles in general. The main aim of theoretical linguistics is
the formulation of a general theory of the structure of language or of a
general theoretical framework for the description of language. Here, a linguist
tries to find out the basic principles which could be applied to the major
languages of the world.
Applied linguistics is an interdisciplinary field that explores the
language-related problems in the world. Richards and others define that applied
linguistics "is the study of language and linguistics in relation to
practical problems such as language teaching, lexicography, translation, speech
pathology". Applied linguistics uses information from sociology,
psychology, anthropology and information theory as well as from linguistics to
develop its theoretical models of language and language use and then uses this
information and theory in practical areas such as translation, lexicography,
syllabus design, speech therapy, language planning and stylistics. Here, the
major focus of applied linguistics is to relate theory into practice and solve
the language problems in language teaching. It uses the information of
linguistics and other sciences and applies to teaching. Teaching methods and
techniques are parts of applied linguistics.
7. Distinguish between language and parole.
Langue
and parole are the terms introduced in linguistics by a Swiss linguist
Ferdinand de Saussure. Linguistics is the scientific study of languages which
is more objective, systematic, consistent and explicit to deal with the forms
of language or dialects. It is scientific as it follows a systematic process of
data collection, testing hypothesis, derive models and construct theories. It
follows the systematic procedures to study a language or language items. When
we define it as a scientific study, it comprises different components:
well-defined subject matter, scientific spirit, scientific method, procedure
and scientific principles. It carefully records, analyses, verifies the
observation and derives the findings, so it is taken as a systematic
discipline.
According
to Saussure, langue (French word- for 'language') refers to the system of
language, that is, the arrangements of sounds and words which speakers of a
language have shared knowledge. Here, the language system includes a lexical,
grammatical and phonological level. Therefore, langue is the totality of
language.
On
the other hand, parole is the actual use of the language in speech and writing.
It is what a speaker uses, i.e. langue is a language as a whole and what
somebody speaks or writes is parole. Langue is not spoken by anyone. It is the
internalized system of language forms. It is a corporate social phenomenon. It
is universal human behaviour whereas parole is individual behaviour. It is
idiosyncratic and specific to the situation in which it occurs.
The
distinction between langue and parole can be summarized in the following
points:
1.
Langue is the language system; parole is an act of speaking (i.e. the language
behaviour)
2.
Langue is the underlying system of language; parole is the actual speech act.
3.
Langue is abstract; parole is concrete because we can perceive it.
4.
Langue is shared by all the members of a speech community; parole differs from
person to person.
5.
Langue is stable and systematic, parole is dynamic and idiosyncratic.
6.
Langue is permanent and more stable, parole is transient that occurs and
finishes.
7.
Langue is psychological, parole is psychophysical.
8.
Langue is social, parole is individual.
9.
Langue is the totality or storehouse of language, parole is what we use from
that storehouse.
10.
Langue is the basic thing. It can't be described without the help of parole.
8. Distinguish between competence and performance.
Competence
and performance are the terms introduced by one of the famous linguists, Noam
Chomsky. According to him, competence consists of the mental representation of
linguistic rules which constitute the speaker-hearer's internalized grammar
whereas performance consists of the comprehension and production of language.
Competence
refers to an internalized grammar of a language. It is an ability to create and
understand sentences (to know about the rule system), including sentences he
has never heard before. For example, a speaker of English would recognize 'I
want to go to college.' as an English sentence but would not accept a sentence
such as 'I want going college.' even though all the words are English. Here,
the second form of the sentence is produced when the learners lack the
knowledge of the rule system or the knowledge of sentence construction.
A
distinction is made between competence and performance which is the actual use
of the language by individuals in speech and writing. In general, sense, what a
person knows is competence and what he does performance. A native speaker
distinguishes grammatical and ungrammatical sentences because of his
(linguistics) competence. Competence is often known to have linguistic
knowledge and performance as linguistic behaviour or use.
The
distinction between competence and performance can be summarized as follows:
1.
Competence is a person's internalized grammar of his language; performance is a
person's actual use of language.
2.
Competence is what is internalized and performance is what is produced.
3.
The speaker's knowledge of the structure of a language is his linguistic
competence, and the way in which he uses it is his linguistic performance.
4.
Competence is the intuitive mastery of the rules of a language by the native
speakers of that language; performance is the actual speech and utterances of
the speakers which are infinite and variable.
5.
Competence is a linguistic knowledge, performance is a linguistic behaviour.
6.
Competence is a set of rules/principles which a speaker masters, and
performance is what a speaker does.
7.
Competence is an ability to produce and understand a vast number of new
sentences, whereas performance is an act of using the knowledge or ability in
producing and understanding sentences of the language.
8.
Because of the competence, native speakers can produce correct and appropriate
sentences i.e. competence helps the native speakers perform better (or to show
better performance).
9. Show the difference between form and function with examples.
Form
refers to the grammatical system describing the ways in which linguistic items
can be combined; while function refers to the purpose in which an utterance is
used as a means of communication. Form and function are the basic concepts in
linguistics which are associated with the language organization and use. Form
refers to the overall linguistic organization or structure of speech and
writing. Our speech and writing are referred to as forms of language.
In
many situations, form and meaning correspond to each other, but sometimes this
does not happen so. The following are the possibilities.
a)
One form many meanings
|
Form |
Meaning |
|
c) Rock |
(i) a large stone (ii) music with heavy beat |
b)
Many forms one meaning
There
are situations where many forms have one meaning. For instance; mad and lunatic
are different forms but have the same meaning. Combine, unite, join, connect,
link, merge, blend, mix, amalgamate, and synthesize, all of these forms have
only one meaning. In other words, the synonymous words are different in forms
but have a single meaning. Similarly, in sentence level, 'the girls chased the
dog' and "the dog was chased by the girl" are different in form but
same in meaning. John met Mary' and 'Mary met John' are identical in form but
different in meaning.
On
the other, function refers to the use of language in the context. It relates to
the situational analysis of language. In language use, one form might have
several language functions. For example, the imperative form may perform a
variety of different functions:
i.
Have a nice day. (wish)
ii.
Try a Himalayan Coffee. (suggestion))
iii.
Invest in professional trainings. (advice)
iv.
Please, pass me that laptop. (request)
v.
Keep quiet in the library. (order)
There
is no one to one correspondence between form and function. A single linguistic
form can express different functions and conversely, a single communicative
function can be expressed by different linguistic forms. So, the relationship
between form and function is very complex.
10. How do speech and writing differ? Clarify.
Speech
and writing are the key concepts in linguistics. Speech is related the oral
form of language use whereas writing refers to the graphological presentation
of ideas in a meaningful way. Speech is a functional unit or a stream of sound
where phonemes, morphemes and supra-segmental features, like, stress,
intonation, pitch, juncture, tempo and others combine to give meaning and make
communication possible in an oral form.
On
the other, writing is a system of written symbols which represents sounds,
syllables or words of a language in a meaningful way. Most of the linguists
believe that speech is the primary manifestation (medium) of language and
writing is an imperfect imitation of speech in printed symbols. Linguists
believe that writing is not a language but merely a way of recording language
through visible marks. The writing was taken as a standard form in the past and
was supposed to be easy compared to speech. In modern linguistics, the emphasis
was given to the spoken form of language. The speech was focused on more than
writing. There are many languages with only oral forms than written ones.
The
following are the major differences between speech and writing:
a)
Speech is the phonic representation whereas writing is the graphic
representation of language.
b)
Modern linguists believed that speech is language and writing is simply a
reflection of speech.
c)
Children always learn the speech of their mother tongue before they learn
writing as a form of formal schooling.
d)
All system of writing is based upon speech rather than writing.
e)
In educated society, spoken and written forms vary in vocabulary and grammar.
f)
In the field of a foreign language, there has been a tendency to advocate the
primacy of speech than writing.
g)
While learning a second language, sound practice is done for speech habit where
writing is supposed to be easier than this.
h)
Speech reflects the way children learn their native language; writing is only
an imperfect representation of speech which involves extra problems of
orthography.
11. What is dialect? Explain the types of it.
Dialect
is a variety of language spoken in one part of a country or by people belonging
to a particular social class which is different in some words, grammar, and
pronunciation from other varieties of the same language. It is a variety of
language because of geographical/regional and social reasons. One dialect
differs from another according to the users. So, dialect is a user-based
variety of language. It is the variation in the use of a language according to
the place, time, and group of people. It differs in pronunciation, grammar, and
vocabulary from the standard language. It belongs to a separate class, region,
or district. A language may have several dialects.
A
dialect is a variety of a language spoken in one part of a country or by people
belonging to a particular social class which is different in vocabulary,
grammar, and pronunciation from other forms the same language. It is often
associated with language variant or difference in the accent in a particular
part of the country.
Nepali
is spoken in Nepal. However, the way they speak Nepali might not be the same.
The Nepali language spoken in Far Western Region and the Eastern or Western
region might not be the same. It is spoken differently in various parts of the
country. The situation is not only geographically different, but it is also
different in different groups of people. The people of different castes speak
Nepali differently. We can even notice the changes in the Nepali language
spoken in ancient and modern times. These variations of Nepali language are
dialects of Nepali. Among these dialects of Nepali, a dialect has domination
over others and has become the standard variety of Nepali language.
When
a dialect is different in its form of language according to geography, then it
is called regional dialect; a variant form of a language according to
social classes or castes is called social dialect or sociolect, and the
variant of a language according to time is called temporal dialect or
the historical dialect. Likewise, English is spoken all over the world. In some
places (e.g., Britain, the USA, Australia), it is spoken as a native language
and in other places (e.g., Nepal, China, India), it is spoken as a foreign or
second language. These varieties differ from each other in pronunciation, spelling,
vocabulary and grammar.
12. What is register? Explain the types of it.
A
register is a speech variety used by a particular group of persons, usually
sharing the same occupation or the same interest. A register often
distinguishes itself from other registers by having several distinctive words
or phrases in a particular way and sometimes by special grammatical
constructions. It is concerned with the particular use or the manner of using
the language. For example, the language used in the language pedagogy is
different from its use in literary analysis. Similarly, the language used in
sports is different from the language used in laboratory sciences. Hence, the
field of the users of a language is called a register.
a.
Register of linguistics
Each
word belongs to a category. For example, cat is a noun; jump is a verb;
beautiful is an adjective; in is a preposition; and beautifully is an adverb. A
word such as cat shares various properties with the word chair. For example,
the plural suffix 's' can be attached to each of these words, to form the
plural cats and chairs.
b.
Register of media
Kathmandu,
Jun 19 (RSS) COVID 19 has claimed 20 lives so far in Nepal, according to
Ministry of Health and Sports. The centre also reveals that 1,800 people, 1,200
male and 600 female in the country have been affected by COVID 19 positive.
c.
Register of literature (Speech)
Today,
it is an honour for me to be speaking again after a long time. Being here with
such honourable people is a great moment in my life. I don't know where to
begin my speech. I don't know what people would be expecting me to say. But first,
thank you to God for whom we are all equal and thank you to every person who
has prayed for my fast recovery and a new life. I cannot believe how much love
people have shown me. I have received thousands of good wish cards and gifts
from all over the world. Thank you to all of them. Thank you to the children
whose innocent words encouraged me. Thank you to my elders whose prayers
strengthened me.
d.
Register of literature (Poetry)
All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts,
13. Define linguistics. Linguistics is the scientific study of
language. Explain.
Linguistics
is usually defined as "the scientific study of language". When we
observe this definition, we can find two key terms in it: scientific and
language. Linguistics is basically concerned with language as it studies about
language. However, here we have to consider how it is scientific. Linguistics
is a scientific discipline. A linguist aims to be scientific in that s/he
attempts to study language in much the same way as a scientist studies physics
or chemistry, i.e., systematically, and as far as possible without any personal
prejudice or biasness.
As
a scientific discipline, linguistics is scientific in its spirit, principles,
and methods of investigation. In other words, it is the scientific study of
language as it follows the scientific spirit, method, and principles.
A.
Scientific spirit
Scientific
spirit refers to the spirit of a person who does not take anything for granted.
A linguist challenges the old ideas and tries to find out the truth. S/he questions
others' experiments, without accepting other persons' conclusion blindly. This
spirit enables a person to question the authenticity or truth of a theory. To
carry out linguistic study or research, one must have scientific spirit.
B.
Scientific method
The
scientific method consists of observation of facts, hypothesis formation, experimentation,
and theory formation. It can be shown as "Observation - Hypothesis - Experimentation
- Theory". While studying any language, the linguist first observes the
language, then s/he makes a hypothesis, and conducts experiments to prove the
hypothesis. If s/he is fully satisfied with their experiments, then s/he
finally draws a conclusion, i.e., a theory.
C.
Scientific principles
Scientific
principles are just like the guidelines followed by every scientist. All the
scientific principles can be termed as "EOCCES" (explicitness,
objectivity, consistency, comprehensiveness, economy, systematicness). Every
scientific subject follows these principles and linguistics also being a
scientific subject follows these principles.
a.
Explicitness: A linguistic subject follows the principle of explicitness, i.e.
clarity. Whatever study has been done should be clear and easily understandable
to others.
b.
Objectivity: It means without personal bias or prejudice. Everything must be
expressed objectively, i.e., there should be only the real facts. The scientist
presents the findings objectively without their personal opinions or ideas.
c.
Consistency: It means no contradiction between different parts of the total
statement. If the result is the same, we can say that there is consistency.
d.
Comprehensiveness: It means the adequate treatment of all the relevant
materials. It maintains that one must be thorough in his or her study,
particularly in the observation or data collection stage. If the data is
partial, then the analysis based on the incomplete data would be wrong. If the
researcher does not follow this principle, this leads him or her to the
erroneous conclusion.
e.
Economy: The scientist presents the result of an experiment as briefly as
possible to be economic.
f.
Systematicness: It means not haphazard. A scientific study is never haphazard,
it is always systematic. It always follows a rule to be systematic.
Linguistics
is a science in that a linguist follows the scientific spirit, scientific
method and scientific principles while studying any language or any aspect of
language. It includes different areas of investigation, such as sound systems,
structure systems, meaning systems, as well as language and social factors.
Linguistics is empirical, rather than speculative or intuitive; it is objective
as it is based on verifiable data. In short, linguistics is the science of language,
and it studies human natural languages.
14. What are the branches of linguistics? Explain any of them.
Linguistics
is the scientific study of language. It is a new field of knowledge which
studies languages from different angles or points of view. These different
angles of studying languages are called the branches of linguistics. The field
of linguistics can be divided into several subfields according to the point of
view or the special emphasis given.
a.
General linguistics and descriptive linguistics
General
linguistics studies the human language in general whereas descriptive
linguistics describes a particular language. General linguistics is the
theoretical study of language. It concerns itself with the basic question of
what language is. Thus, general linguistics studies the universal nature, characteristics,
and functions of language. It tries to establish the universal features or
principles of language for the study of all the languages.
Descriptive
linguistics describes how a particular language is used at a certain time. It
describes the language or some aspects of language at a given point of time. It
studies how languages are structured. It is concerned with particular languages
and their individual characteristics.
b.
Theoretical linguistics and applied linguistics
Theoretical
linguistics is the producer of theories, principles and concepts that are
consumed by applied linguistics in practical fields. Theoretical linguistics
studies the origin, nature, development, functions, and universal features of
language. In a sense, it is the producer of theories. In practice, there is no
difference between theoretical linguistics and general linguistics. Applied
linguistics is the application of the theories produced by a linguist in
practical life like language teaching. It applies the theories established by
any linguistics. In this sense, it is the consumer or user, not a producer, of
theories.
c.
Synchronic linguistics and diachronic linguistics
Synchronic
linguistics is the study of language at a given point of time. It deals with
sounds, words, and structures of language at a certain time. It deals with how
people speak in a community. It studies the language by certain speakers at any
given point of time.
Diachronic
linguistics is the study of language through a period. It studies language
change, and its causes and results of such changes. It studies the language of
one time and the development of it within the next time. It studies the
historical development of language.
d.
Microlinguistics and macrolinguistics
Microlinguistics
is the narrower study of language. It is the detailed study of language in
depth. It studies everything minutely to provide in-depth knowledge about
language. It takes a narrower view of the scope of linguistics.
Macrolinguistics
is the broader study of language. It is the surface study or the general study
of language. It does not go in depth while studying the language. It takes a
broader view of the scope of linguistics.
e.
Psycholinguistics and sociolinguistics
Psycholinguistics
is the study of language in relation to the mind. It tries to find out the
relationship between mind and language. It also investigates how an individual
acquires language. It studies the mental processes used in producing and
understanding language and how human beings acquire or learn language. It
includes the study of speech perception and the role of memory.
Sociolinguistics
is the study of language in relation to society. Language is a socio-cultural
phenomenon as language is used in society. So, sociolinguistics tries to study
the link between language and society, along with the variety of language such
as dialects and registers.
f.
Historical linguistics
Historical
linguistics is the study of language change over a period. It is concerned with
the study of phonological, grammatical, and semantic changes of language. The
study of English language from the time of Shakespeare to modern English comes
under historical linguistics. Etymology or the history of words comes under it.
It is also called diachronic linguistic.
g.
Ethnolinguistics
Ethnolinguistics
is the study of the relationship between language and culture in any group of
people. It is the difference between ethnology and linguistics, where the
former refers to the way of life of an entire community. So, ethnolinguistics
is the study of linguistic behaviour of the ethnic group of people. It studies
how different ethnic groups perceive the world with the help of the language
they use. Language is studied within a social and cultural setting.
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