Bell Work #8 From the chatter activity: Do you agree or disagree with the following? There is more to a conversation than just the words and the sentences. We tend to judge other people based on what we think is “normal” Behaviors that we consider to be bizarre or rude may be acceptable or polite in other cultures Sometimes you feel negative about another person because his or her conversational style seems strange After time, people used to unusual behaviors and begin paying more attention to the topic of conversation

Language Notes and Language Tree Scavenger Hunt Objective: Analyze where languages are distributed worldwide and why other languages are related to English.

Comparing Language Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41lZmGcRWHU

Language A set of sounds and symbols that is used for communication Language is an integral part of culture, reflecting and shaping it How? Language reflects where a culture has been, what a culture values, even how people in a culture think, describe and experience things It is a source of pride and a means of cultural unity Language, however, can also be a dividing force

Language Tree – Turn to page 145 Roots? Trunk? Branches? Grouping of leaves off of one branch Leaves? Possible prehistoric superfamily Language Family Language Branch Language Group Language The larger the trunks/leave are? The more…?

Locations of language families (pg. 147) Indo-European? Sino-Tibetan? Austronesian? Austro-Asiatic? Afro-Asiatic? Niger-Congo? Europe, S. Asia, N. & S. America China, SE Asia Indonesia SE Asia SW Asia, N. Africa Sub-Saharan Africa

What is most important? Lineage of English Lineage of Mandarin Lineage of Hindi West Germanic languages Romance languages Language family of Arabic Language family of languages spoken in Madagascar Language family of sub-Saharan Africa Language groups of Indo-Iranian Branch Balto-Slavic Branch

Let’s do a Language Tree Scavenger Hunt!

Lineage of English Language? Language Group? Language Branch? Family? Possible prehistoric superfamily? English West Germanic Germanic Indo-European Nostratic

Lineage of Mandarin Language? Language branch? Language family? Possible prehistoric superfamily? Mandarin Sinitic Sino-Tibetan Sino-Caucasian

Lineage of Hindi Language? Language group? Language branch? Language family? Possible prehistoric superfamily? Hindi Indo-Aryan Indo-Iranian Indo-European Nostratic

West Germanic languages? English German Dutch Afrikaans Diffusion of English Germanic tribes invaded British isles (Angles, Jutes, Saxons) Similarities exist between English and French because Normans conquered England bringing French languages from Normandy – very different from German today

Romance languages Italian Spanish – largest Romance language spoken French Portuguese Romanian All developed from Latin, the “Romans’ language”

Language Family of Arabic? What is it? Afro-Asiatic What about language branch? Semitic

What language family is Madagascar related to? Austronesian – Southeast Asian/Pacific Islands Why not an African language family? Seafarers from islands of Southeast Asia crossed the Indian Ocean to Madagascar before Africans By the time Africans arrived, the language had been well established

Language family of sub-Saharan Africa What is it? Niger-Congo But English is the “official” language of Nigeria Problems with this? Local languages are spoken everywhere but English is taught in school Students emerge from school unable to function in local Nigerian society

Language groups of Indo-Iranian Branch What are they? Indic (eastern) Iranian (western? Where are Indic languages spoken? Where are Indo-Iranian languages spoken?

Balto-Slavic Branch What do you notice about the languages that are a part of the Balto-Slavic branch? Similarities/differences?

Origin and Diffusion of Indo-European Existence of a single ancestor for all Indo-European languages (Proto-Indo-European) cannot be proved with certainty because it would have existed thousands of years before the invention of writing or recorded history Evidence is “internal” Physical attributes of words themselves Common roots – linguists think similar words must represent things experienced in the daily lives of the original Proto-Indo-European speakers Linguists agree that it must have existed but disagree on when and where the language originated and the process and routes by which it diffused

Origin and Diffusion of Indo-European Sedentary Farmer Hypothesis Nomadic Warrior Hypothesis “Renfrew Hypothesis” Lived 2000 years before the Kurgans Language diffused along with agricultural innovations rather than by military conquest Language grew because speakers became prosperous by growing own food instead of relying on hunting 1st Proto-Indo-European speakers were Kurgan people Nomadic herders who used their domesticated horses as weapons to conquer much of Europe and South Asia