Do animals have language? No as they communicate, which is the process of exchanging messages – No species other than humans that have infinite amount of creativity, or create symbolic representations Animal behaviour is innate Language elements: Phonemes smallest sound unit 13 60 depending on language – – Morphemes smallest unit that carries meaning – Conveys information about semantics Dog 1 morpheme Dogs 2 morphemes (plural) – – Suffixes/prefixes Dog + s must exist together Syntax rules for constructing sentences – Idealized form of language Word order, morphological markers, sentence structure Extra-linguistics information Needed to interpret semantics of the situation Dialects Language Development: Auditory input by 5th gestational month Pre-linguistic communication (sounds, facial expressions, gestures, imitation) Babbling Intentional vocalization, lacks meaning Deaf babies manually babble (same neural centres) Phoneme perception Critical period for perceiving (and later producing) phonemes Need social interaction for neural connections to remain open need interaction – Need facial perception that face matches information – Comprehension precedes production First spoken words (10 14 months) – Clear, consistent name to person/object Culture affects type of first words Reflects what they hear English focus on nouns Other cultures focus on verbs
Do animals have language? No – as they communicate, which is the process of exchanging messages No species other than humans that have infinite amount of creativity, or create symbolic representations Animal behaviour is innate Language elements: Phonemes – smallest sound unit 13 – 60 depending on language Morphemes – smallest unit that carries meaning Conveys information about semantics Dog – 1 morpheme Dogs – 2 morphemes (plural) Suffixes/prefixes Dog + s must exist together Syntax – rules for constructing sentences Idealized form of language Word order, morphological markers, sentence structure Extra-linguistics information Needed to interpret semantics of the situation Dialects Language Development: Auditory input by 5th gestational month Pre-linguistic communication (sounds, facial expressions, gestures, imitation) Babbling Intentional vocalization, lacks meaning Deaf babies manually babble (same neural centres) Phoneme perception Critical period for perceiving (and later producing) phonemes Need social interaction for neural connections to remain open – need interaction Need facial perception – that face matches information Comprehension precedes production First spoken words (10 – 14 months) Clear, consistent name to person/object Culture affects type of first words Reflects what they hear English focus on nouns Other cultures focus on verbs
Spoken-Language-notes-from-video-Year-10-2caw3q4.docx