Understanding Language Evolution and Change

Oct 2, 2024

Language Change Over Time

Introduction

  • All languages change as long as they have speakers.
  • Language change viewed negatively by older speakers, but it's natural and has patterns.

Types of Variation

  • Synchronically: Differences among languages and dialects as they exist today.
  • Diachronically: Changes in languages and dialects over time.

Examples of Language Change

  • Old English: The Lord's Prayer from around 1100 A.D. is unrecognizable to modern speakers.
  • Middle English: Geoffrey Chaucer's time still poses comprehension challenges.
  • Early Modern English: Shakespeare's time is more recognizable to modern readers.

Historical Context

  • Sir William Jones: Noted philologist who studied language change.
    • Noticed cognates among Latin, Greek, and Sanskrit.
    • Established the concept of Indo-European as a language family.
    • Started comparative linguistics.

Mechanisms of Language Change

Phonological Change

  1. Metathesis: Switching of sounds in a word.
    • Example: 'aks' instead of 'ask'.
  2. Parenthesis: Addition of a sound in the middle of a word.
    • Example: 'athlete' pronounced as 'ath-e-lete'.
  3. Prothesis: Addition of a sound at the beginning of a word.
    • Example: 'school' pronounced as 'es-cool' by some Spanish speakers.

Morphosyntactic Change

  • Grammaticalization: A form takes on a more grammatical function.
    • Example: 'go' in English indicating future tense ("I'm going to").
    • Romance languages use similar strategies (e.g., Spanish "voy a").

Semantic Change

  1. Broadening: A word takes on a broader meaning.
    • Example: 'dog' used to refer to a specific breed, now means any canine.
  2. Narrowing: A word takes on a narrower meaning.
    • Example: 'hound' used to refer to any dog, now a specific breed.
  3. Amelioration: A word takes on a more positive meaning.
    • Example: 'bad' in slang means something good.
  4. Pejoration: A word takes on a more negative meaning.
    • Example: 'hussy' used to mean housewife, now means an immoral woman.

Conclusion

  • Language change is complex and involves various mechanisms in phonology, morphosyntax, and semantics.
  • Understanding these changes helps us appreciate the evolution of language.