تويت
الموضوع التالي حول اللغات المعقدة والبسيطة أو المتقدمة والمتأخرة ربما يكون محل اهتمام البعض وهو موجود على الرابط التالي:
http://faculty.ed.umuc.edu/~jmatthew/langFAQ.htm#12
Are all languages equally complex, or are some more primitive than others?
In the last century many people believed that so-called "primitive peoples" would have primitive languages, and that Latin and Greek-- or their own languages-- were inherently superior to other tongues.
In fact, however, there is no correlation between type or complexity of culture and any measure of language complexity. Peoples of very simple material culture, such as the Australian Aborigines, are often found to speak very complex languages.
Obviously, the size of the vocabulary and the variety and sophistication of literary forms will depend on the culture. The grammar of all languages, however, tends to be about equally complex - although the complexity may be found in different places. Latin, for instance, has a much richer system of inflections than English, but a less complicated syntax.
As David Crystal puts it, "All languages meet the social and psychological needs of their speakers, are equally deserving of scientific study, and can provide us with valuable information about human nature and society."
The only really simple languages are pidgins, which result when speakers of different languages come to live and work together. Vocabulary is drawn from one or both languages, and a very forgiving grammar devised. Grammars of pidgins from around the world have interesting similarities (e.g. they are likely to use repetition to express plurals).
A pidgin becomes a creole when children acquire it as a native language; as it evolves to meet the needs of a primary language, its vocabulary and grammar become much richer. If a pidgin is used over a long period (for example, Tok Pisin in Papua New Guinea), it may similarly develop into a more complex language known as an extended pidgin.
________________________
د/بشير الشاوش
http://faculty.ed.umuc.edu/~jmatthew/langFAQ.htm#12
Are all languages equally complex, or are some more primitive than others?
In the last century many people believed that so-called "primitive peoples" would have primitive languages, and that Latin and Greek-- or their own languages-- were inherently superior to other tongues.
In fact, however, there is no correlation between type or complexity of culture and any measure of language complexity. Peoples of very simple material culture, such as the Australian Aborigines, are often found to speak very complex languages.
Obviously, the size of the vocabulary and the variety and sophistication of literary forms will depend on the culture. The grammar of all languages, however, tends to be about equally complex - although the complexity may be found in different places. Latin, for instance, has a much richer system of inflections than English, but a less complicated syntax.
As David Crystal puts it, "All languages meet the social and psychological needs of their speakers, are equally deserving of scientific study, and can provide us with valuable information about human nature and society."
The only really simple languages are pidgins, which result when speakers of different languages come to live and work together. Vocabulary is drawn from one or both languages, and a very forgiving grammar devised. Grammars of pidgins from around the world have interesting similarities (e.g. they are likely to use repetition to express plurals).
A pidgin becomes a creole when children acquire it as a native language; as it evolves to meet the needs of a primary language, its vocabulary and grammar become much richer. If a pidgin is used over a long period (for example, Tok Pisin in Papua New Guinea), it may similarly develop into a more complex language known as an extended pidgin.
________________________
د/بشير الشاوش
تعليق