Topic: Language Introduction Aim: How is language an essential element of culture? Do Now: List 5 words that you know in a different language in your notebook, along with how you know each of these words (who taught you?) The Seris (Sonora MX) have more than 50 terms for kinship relationships, such as between these two cousins, many specific to the gender and birth order of the relative. A woman uses a different word for father than a man does.

Discussion: How many of you… Speak another language fluently? Understand but don’t speak another language? Can write fluently in another language? Actually think in a different language at times? Why would someone want to speak another language?

What is Language? A mutually agreed upon system of symbolic communication Has a spoken expression Usually has a written expression

Geographers’ Perspective on Language “Language is the essence of culture, and culture is the epoxy of society.” - Harm deBlij Possibly the most important medium by which culture is transmitted Languages structure the perceptions of their speakers Attitudes, understandings, and responses are partly determined by the words available. “How Language Influences Emotion” Languages are a hallmark of cultural diversity with distinctive regional distributions 4

Going by native speakers (people who speak it as a first language), what are the top 10 spoken languages (by number of speakers) in the world today? (If you know why, even better!)

World’s Top 10 Languages (via Ethnologue) Mandarin Chinese 848 Million Spanish 399 Million English 335 Million Hindi 260 Million Arabic 242 Million Portuguese 203 Million Bengali 189 Million Russian 166 Million Japanese 128 Million Lahnda 89 Million

Cool infographic!

World Languages 7000+ languages spoken today, not including dialects 1500+ in Sub-Saharan Africa alone 400+ in New Guinea alone 100+ in Europe However, this diversity is diminishing: 2000+ threatened or endangered languages As many as 1/2 8

Language distribution indicates: History and conquest Isolation or integration of cultures Migration of peoples Economic domination of certain cultures Influence of wealth and technology Political divisions (country boundaries) Physical geography barriers (mountains, deserts, etc.)

How Language Influences Culture Character and sounds of a culture Visual landscapes of signs script, letters, ideograms

How Language Indicates Cultural Values class structure gender differences in vocabulary environmentally specific vocabulary formal and informal relationships technology of a culture