LANGUAGE AND CULTURAL MEANING Cultural behavior is not essentially different from other forms of learned behavior; it is a consequence of the dynamic of social living over many generations, while individual members of the social system are replaced (Foley, 1997: 12)

Questions How do members of different cultures express their worldviews? How do members of different cultures express events, experiences, and intentions through language? How do speakers express their way of being in the world through a particular use of their languages?

By the way a speaker frames intentions and activities through language Usage of contrasting words (Blue/white, good/bad) Grammatical forms (Example: the structuring properties of sentences)

The framing of intentions and activities English: I must go there. English: I make the horse run. Navajo: It is only good that I shall go. Navajo: The horse is running for me.

Language expresses and reflects worldviews Cultural models: shared cultural attitudes Language: key for transmitting cultural models Language ----Proverbs, stories, etc. -- conveying a way of being in the world --guiding human thought and action -- provides moral lessons

Dime con quien andas y te dire quien eres.

Concrete and symbolic meanings “The horse is running for me” concrete object (horse) “Don’t cry over spilt milk” symbolic meaning, metaphorical

Why do we study language? To identify cultural models Understand the relationship between language and environment language and society

The Foundations of Linguistic Anthropology Edward Sapir (1884—1939) and his student Benjamin Whorf (1897—1941) Linguistic research among Native Americans Sapir: lexicon or vocabulary Whorf: Grammatical structures

Edward Sapir physical environment and social environment through the use of language Elements of vocabulary influence speakers perceptions Different experience of our world The Paiute utilize unique words for valuable geographical locations

Sand flat, semicircular valley or hollow, spot for level ground in mountains surrounded by ridges.

Benjamin Whorf Influences on though and behaviour Grammatical structures of language Grammatical structure and conceptualization of time, number, duration

Whorf studies among the Hopi Time, number and duration fundamental for Hopi culture Hopi: Emphasis: continuity, cyclicity and intensity: English: Emphasis on boundedness and objectification Morning “While morning-phase is occurring”

Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis Language influences people’s perception of the world “Weak version” “Strong version”

Lexical and Cultural Categories Taxonomic systems: The classification system that orders things in a logical hierarchical way, a system that orders by indicating natural relationships Semantic domains: a summative of words (words put together). All sharing a core meaning, related to a specific topic: Example: Kinship terms, body-parts words, or colours

Language expresses Cultural focus: cultural priorities: Horse versus chipmunk Transformative: gun and bow Not static; changes over time

Why are semantic domains important in the study of culture?

Semantic domains are important because: Speaker’s perception of his/her cultural universe Degree of cultural interest innovation, extension of semantic domains Shows how language and meaning changes over time

Lexical (vocabulary) components Kinship terminology comparison Peoples’ priorities in social relations Usage of words to name relatives Mother, father, son, daughter, etc

The analysis of these contrasts reveals that First: there is a distinction between generations grandmother/mother, father/son Two: there is a distinction of sex: father/mother, son/daughter Third: there is also a distinction between direct and collateral relatives: mother/aunt, son/nephew

Componential analysis Determines significance of contrast by isolating components of meanings Example kinship terminology ---Younger generation-female-lineal= daughter ---Older generation-male-lineal = grandfather

Kinship terminology not a universal (Seneca ) Iroquoian languages (Quebec, Ontario, and New York) My Grandmother and her sister (s): one word My Grandfather and his brother (s): one word My Mother and her sister (s): one word My Father and hiss brother (s): one word

Seneca Kinship Terminology Different terms for for older and younger siblings My mother’s sister’s daughter –sister My mother’s sister’s son = brother My Father’s brother’s daughter = sister My father’s brother’s son – brother

Lexical classifications Classification of words to make sense of speech Degrees of complexity Ambiguity: Whale fish or mammal Classification indicates: cultural interest discrimination

Ethnoscience A classification system in a given domain that organizes people’s knowledge of aspects of their universe, as, for example, botanical or zoological terminologies. Ethnoscientific systems are based on taxonomic hierarchies of similarity and contrast.

The classification of words is culturally specific Papagos (Arizona) Life is divided: living things and plants Word for living = animals Animals are the prototype (best example) of living things among the Papagos

Focal points and prototypes Focal point of a word is its central sense, its best example, agreed upon by culture Prototype: idealized, internalized conceptualization of an object, quality or activity, needs to be understood in the context of culture

Cultural Presuppositions. Cultural presupposition is the notion that participants in speech interactions come to interactive situations with certain cultural knowledge.. Transmitted language. Some more complex: symbolic, rhetorical

Summary Members of different cultures express different worldviews through a particular use of their languages (language frames) Cultural models are expressed and reflected primarily through language Proverb: “The early bird catches the worm.” Worldviews are expressed through language use Language frames intentions and activities Framing accomplished through contrasting of words, classification of words

Discussion Question: How do cultural models provide frameworks for understanding the physical and social world we live in?