Linguistic Anthropology An Introduction

/p/ /b/ /t/ /d/ Some English Phonemes Bilabial stop Alveolar stop (“pot”) /b/ (“bot”) /t/ (“tot”) /d/ (“dot”) voiceless voiced

What is Anthropology? Anthropo logy anthropos - ἄνθρωπος legein - λέγω from the Greek anthropos - ἄνθρωπος meaning “man; man-faced; a human being” from the Greek legein - λέγω meaning “to speak”

The “Study of” or “Science of” bios + logy = the study of bios (“life”) geo + logy = the study of geo (“earth”) psykhe + ology = the study of psykhe (“breath”, “spirit”, “soul”) theos + logy = the study of theos (“God”)

Four-Field Anthropology Cultural Anthropology Archaeology Linguistic Anthropology Biological (or Physical) Anthropology

Cultural Anthropology Focuses on the role culture plays in human life Culture is Learned by individuals as they grow up within a group Passed on from generation to generation The primary means by which humans adapt to their environments Constantly changing

Archaeology Focuses on human life in the past Humans of the past Relied on their cultures to adapt Shared many common features with recent and modern humans Saw their cultures change as a result of the same processes that change cultures today

Linguistic Anthropology Focuses on the role language plays in human life Language is Learned by individuals as they grow up within a group Passed on from generation to generation The primary means by which a human learns his/her culture Constantly changing

Biological Anthropology (aka“Physical Anthropology”) Focuses on humans as biological organisms Biological organisms Have similar features and needs Are the products of evolutionary and environmental forces Are genetically unique

Four-Field Anthropology Cultural Anthropology Archaeology Linguistic Anthropology Biological (or Physical) Anthropology Applied Anthropology (aka the “fifth field”) the cultural fields the biological field making it relevant

Linguistic Anthropology Uses all of the tools of Anthropology (and other fields) to study language Examples What did language evolve? What biological features make language possible? How do languages change? How does language affect culture (and vice versa)?

Other Questions What does human language actually do? How does human language do this? How is human language like non-human systems of communication? In what ways is human language different from non-human systems of communication?