Comments for A Love of Words

Comment on Linguistic Determinism by Ways of Speaking, Ways of Thinking « Speaking In Tongues

Ways of Speaking, Ways of Thinking « Speaking In Tongues — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:29:06 +0000

[...] interesting, however, is that many linguists have disregarded this theory, sometimes referred to as linguistic determinism, (though many believe that language’s effect on thought exists more on a continuum, which [...]

Comment on Why is English so popular? by Abigail

Abigail — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 04:37:37 +0000

One thing English does have going for it, independent of history and politics (though history and politics are at the source of this oddity) is that it has about twice as many words as most languages. The reason: it developed after the Battle of Hastings when William of Normandy came over to what we now now as England and conquered the locals who, at the time, were speaking German (notice I said ‘locals’ not natives). The blending of the languages spoken by the conquered (German) and the conquerors (French) is what became English. And the etymology here is fascinating: from German we get house (haus) and from French we get mansion (maison); from German we get swine (schwein) and from French we get pork (porc). It’s pretty clear who was living in what kind of home, who was tending the animals and who was doing the fine dining based on the words that have come down from each language…

Comment on Linguistic Determinism by Abigail

Abigail — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 04:20:11 +0000

I definitely think that language shapes thought, though that is not the only thing that shapes thoughts. Sensory perception must be the genesis of thought and memory, but language, after a while, becomes like a sixth sense and seems to take over our thoughts for better or worse…

Comment on The Swahili Language by Amy B.

Amy B. — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 08:48:10 +0000

The Amyloidosis Foundation estimates that approximately 3,000 people are diagnosed with amyloidosis each year in North America and that blood cancers overall have increased more than 40% in the last decade.

Comment on Linguistic Determinism by Frank Evans

Frank Evans — Sun, 02 May 2010 12:41:30 +0000

The site address:

http://www.languageandthought.com

should have been given above

Comment on Linguistic Determinism by Frank Evans

Frank Evans — Sun, 02 May 2010 12:39:36 +0000

I think we speak and therefore we are.

See website above for detailed argument

Comment on Linguistic Determinism by Gelaw A. Yohannes

Gelaw A. Yohannes — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 15:02:02 +0000

I think they are inseparable. What does Language mean? Is it only the form what we utter? If it is not and includes the intuitive knoledge of language too, we think through language. We can’t have an idea about the thing we don’t know its name. Just when we exprience an idea (signified)we hand in hand familiarize about its form (signifier).

Comment on Does language make us human? by Recipe: Indian Curry (Delicata my love…) — Say Yes to Salad

Recipe: Indian Curry (Delicata my love…) — Say Yes to Salad — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 12:44:21 +0000

[...] I also wrote this post: Does language make us human? [...]

Comment on The Swahili Language by Anna

Anna — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 04:01:22 +0000

Yay! Swahili is awesome. I actually didn’t know what uhuru meant, depite the fact that one of Nairobi’s main thoroughfares is named Uhuru Highway. Makes sense!

Comment on The Swahili Language by Natalie

Natalie — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 15:14:25 +0000

i love your blog. what a cute layout. This is so great. I have really enjoyed reading so far!