AP Human Geography Chapter 5 - Language

Complete the chart based on the reading

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Label the map

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Using Figure 5-12, make brief notes about the language situation in India. Shade and label the map to illustrate your notes.

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Write notes of interesting facts regarding each of the differences between the British and American dialects of English: Vocabulary

Settlers in America encountered many new objects and experiences not present in England. Climate and geography differ significantly between England and America. Unfamiliar physical features (mountains and large forests) had to be given new names, often with help from the Native Americans. As new inventions appeared, they acquired different names in both countries (elevator/lift, trunk/boot, etc.).

How has the Internet strengthened the dominance of English?

55.5% of all Internet content is in English. This makes knowledge of English essential for Internet users around the world. The early dominance of English on the Internet was partly because the U.S. had a head start on the rest of the world in making the Internet available to most of its citizens. However, a decreasing percentage of Internet users are English speakers.

Why is English so important globally?

A Polish airline pilot who flies over Spain speaks to the traffic controller on the ground in English. Swiss bankers speak German among themselves, but with German bankers prefer to speak English. English is the official language at an aircraft factory in France and an appliance company in Italy. The dominance of English as an international language has facilitated the diffusion of popular culture and science and the growth of international trade.

Define isogloss

A boundary that separates regions in which different language usages predominate.

Define Ebonics

A combination of ebony and phonics; a dialect created by African Americans who migrated to the North and Midwest. Sometimes called AAVE, or African American Vernacular English.

Define pidgin language

A form of speech that adopts a simplified grammar and limited vocabulary of a lingua franca; used for communications among speakers of two different languages.

What is an endangered language?

A language at risk of falling out of use as its speakers die out or start to speak another language.

Define Lingua Franca

A language of international communication, such as English.

Define isolated language and provide an example.

A language that is unrelated to any other and therefore not attached to any language family. An isolated language, such as Basque (first language of 600,000 people in the Pyrenees Mountains of northern Spain and southwestern France), arises because the speakers of that language have limited interaction with speakers of other languages.

Define Creole languages

A language that results from the mixing of a colonizer's language with the indigenous language of the people being dominated.

Define growing language and provide an example.

A language that was once rarely used but is more commonly used now. An example of this is Hebrew, because it diminished in use in the fourth century B.C. and was thereafter retained primarily for Jewish religious services.

Define extinct language and provide an example.

A language that was once used by people in daily activities but is no longer in use. An example of this is Liv, a language belonging to the Uralic family. It became extinct on June 5, 2013, when its last speaker, Grizelda Kristina, died in Latvia. Around 200 ethnic Livonians live along the northwestern coast of Latvia, but none of them speak Liv.

Add notes about the combining of English with other languages: Franglais

A mix of English and French.

Define dialect

A regional variation of a language distinguished by distinctive vocabulary, spelling, and pronunciation

Define subdialect

A subdivision of a dialect. Two subdialects of the same dialect share relatively few differences, primarily in pronunciation and a small amount of vocabulary.

Define language

A system of communication through speech; a collection of sounds that a group of people understands to have the same meaning.

Define the source of settlers for the region: Southeast

About half of the English colonists came from southeastern England. They represented a diversity of social-class backgrounds.

In what region of the world are Indo-European languages not found?

Africa (except for South Africa)

Add notes about the following African Language Family, including specific languages spoken: Afro-Asiatic

Arabic is the major language. It is the official language in 24 countries of southwestern Asia and North Africa. It is one of the 6 official languages in the U.N. The Afro-Asiatic family also includes Hebrew.

Which language has influenced the writing of Japanese?

Chinese; Japanese is written either in place of Chinese characters or alongside them.

Korean is usually classified as a ________________ language family.

East Asian

What is notable about some of the endangered languages in North America?

Five endangered Native American languages are reawakening. The Miami Native Americans´ Myaamia language has not been spoken as anyone´s first language since the 1960s, but Daryl Baldwin has acquired fluency and taught it to his two children as their first language.

How does "isolation" impact the distribution of language around the world?

If two groups have few connections with each other (isolation) after the migration, their languages will begin to differ. After a long period without contact, the two groups will speak languages that are so different that they are classified as separate languages. The interplay between interaction and isolation helps explain the distribution of individual languages and entire language families.

Should English be the official language of the U.S.? Why or why not?

In favor: 58 countries and 28 U.S. states already make English official. Requiring the use of English is a symbol of national unity. Knowledge of English is essential for survival in the U.S. Providing services to non-English speakers is expensive. In opposition: A law is unnecessary because English is already the primary language of the U.S. The government should not interfere with people's language rights. Advocating English-only attacks immigrants from non-English-speaking countries.

What are the 5 largest language families?

Indo-European (46.5%), Sino-Tibetan (20.1%), Niger-Congo (6.9%), Afro-Asiatic (6%), and Austronesian (5.5%).

Which 4 Indo-European branches are very widely spoken?

Indo-Iranian, Germanic, Romance, and Balto-Slavic

Where is Austronesian mostly spoken?

Indonesia. Indonesia's most widely used first language is Javanese, mostly on the island of Java.

In a single word, why is American English different from British English?

Isolation

Why is Icelandic an "unchanging language?"

It has changed less than any other Germanic language. Iceland is an isolated country and has not been influenced by other languages because it has little contact with other countries.

Why is its existence difficult to prove?

It is only proved by internal evidence related to the physical environment. Linguists believe that the words must represent the things experienced in their daily lives.

How does the Korean language differ from written Sino-Tibetan languages and Japanese?

It is written in a system known as hankul; each letter represents a sound, as in Western languages. Most of the Korean vocabulary derives from Chinese words.

Why does Indonesia have such a large number of distinct languages and dialects (think physical geography)?

Its inhabitants are dispersed among thousands of islands; isolation plays a key part in the common language starting to develop differences and evolve into distinct languages and dialects.

Add notes about the following African Language Family, including specific languages spoken: Nilo-Saharan

Spoken by 43 million people in north-central Africa, immediately north of the Niger-Congo region. Despite having relatively few speakers, the Nilo-Saharan family is divided into six branches, plus numerous groups and subgroups. The total number of speakers of each individual Nilo-Saharan language is extremely small.

Write notes of interesting facts regarding each of the differences between the British and American dialects of English: Pronunciation

The primary cause of differences regarding pronunciation was limited interaction between speakers of varying dialects. What interaction there was consisted mainly of printed letters, where pronunciation could not be expressed. Pronunciation has changed more in England, however, than in the United States.

Describe how African American dialects have impacted English

These dialects are heavily influenced by the group's distinctive heritage of forced migration from Africa during the 18th century to be slaves in the southern colonies. The dialects were then created partly to communicate in a code not understood by the white masters. In the 20th century, many African Americans migrated from the South to the large cities in the Northeast and Midwest. Their dialect remained relatively preserved due to racial segregation. Use of this dialect, characterized by the use of double negatives and simplified grammar, is controversial within the African American community because some view it as subpar, while others view it as an important preservation of culture.

Why are some in Portugal upset about it?

They are upset that the new standard language created to unify Portuguese, Brazil, and Portugal in Portuguese-speaking countries in Africa is closer to Brazilian. Many words are included in the standard language that are exclusive to Brazilian, including types of flowers, animals, and natural environmental features found in Brazil but not Portugal.

Define the source of settlers for the region: Midlands

This was the most diverse group of immigrants. The early Pennsylvania settlers were predominantly Quakers from the north of England. There were also Scots and irish who went to Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. In the Middle Atlantic colonies were many German, Dutch, and Swedish immigrants.

Add notes about this multilingual place: Belgium

Those who live in Southern Belgium (Walloons live in Wallonia) speak French. Those who live in Northern Belgium (Flemings live in Flanders) speak Flemish. Pressure from the Flemish speakers led to the division of Belgium into two independent regions with each controlling their own cultural affairs, public health, and urban development. This is because Flanders has been much more prosperous than Wallonia in recent years, and those who reside there do not want to spent their tax dollars on those who live in poorer Wallonia.

What is the most important west Slavic language?

Polish (followed by Czech and Slovak)

Add notes about the following Asian Language family, including specific languages spoken: Altaic

Primary Altaic language is Turkish. Altaic language became the official language of several countries that gained independence when the Soviet Union broke up, such as Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan. Thought to have originated in the Qilian Shan and Altai mountains between Tibet and China.

Add notes about the following Asian Language family, including specific languages spoken: Dravidian

Principal languages spoken in southern India, e.g., Telugu and Tamil. Unknown origin.

What is the name of the theoretical common ancestral language of all languages of the Indo-European Family?

Proto-Indo-European

How did English become so widely diffused?

The people of England migrated with their language when they established colonies over the course of four centuries. English's first diffusion was in the seventeenth century, from England to North America. The British went on to take control of Ireland in the seventeenth century, South Asia in the mid-eighteenth century, the South Pacific in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, and southern Africa in the late nineteenth century.

Why do some scholars speculate that speakers of Tai-Kadai languages may have migrated from the Philippines?

The Tai-Kadai family has similarities with the Austronesian family.

What two invasions added additional words to the evolving English language?

The Vikings and the Normans. Vikings from present-day Norway landed on the northeastern coast of England in the ninth century. England was conquered by the Normans in 1066. The Normans came from present-day Normandy in France and established French as England's official language for the next 300 years. During this 300-year period, the Germanic language used by the common people and the French used by the leaders mingled to form a new language.

How are migration and language related to one another?

The contemporary distribution of languages around the world is largely a result of past migrations of people. People in two locations speak the same language because of migration from one of the locations to another.

Why is it sometimes difficult to tell the difference between a dialect and a distinct language?

The derivation of a dialect may classify it as a separate language, and vice versa. In addition, cultural preferences affect how one views a verbal means of communication; some may think that labeling it a dialect would render it obscure, and others think that a dialect could influence a popularly used language. Dialects may also be recognized by regional governments but not hold national status.

How did Russian become the most important east Slavic language?

The importance of Russian increased with the Soviet Union's rise to power. Soviet officials forced native speakers of other languages to learn Russian to preserve cultural unity among the diverse peoples. In Eastern European countries that are dominated by the Soviet Union, Russian was taught as the second language.

Add notes about the combining of English with other languages: Spanglish

The mix of Spanish and English. English is diffusing into the Spanish language spoken by 34 million Hispanics in the United States.

Add notes about the combining of English with other languages: Denglish

The mixture of German (Deutsch) and English.

Indo-Iranian Branch: Add notes about the group within the branch - Indic (Eastern)

The most widely used languages in South Asia belong to the Indic group of the Indo-Iranian branch of Indo-European. One of the main elements of cultural diversity in India is language; there are 461 languages currently spoken in India.

Add notes about this multilingual place: Canada

Canada has two official languages: French and English. French speakers clustered in Quebec make up 25% of the population. Quebec has been made predominantly French by its government (toponyms are in French). However, Quebec was a one of Canada's poorest provinces and thus lacked French-speaking leaders. Confrontation has been replaced in Quebec by increased cooperation between French and English speakers.

Write notes of interesting facts regarding each of the differences between the British and American dialects of English: Spelling

Noah Webster sought to make English used in America distinct from England to reduce cultural dependence by changing spellings of words in his dictionary. He drove the strong national feeling in the U.S. for an independent identity. He believed that this would help establish a national language as well.

Pick two of the languages in the "preserving languages" section (p.174-175) and describe them and their preservation

1. Breton: Brittany is an isolated peninsula that juts out into the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of France and thus has a language containing more words borrowed from French than do the other Celtic languages. There are around 200,000 speakers of Breton today, as opposed to 1 million in 1950. In addition, 75% of them are over 65 years old. Around 15,000 students study Breton in schools, although their principal language of instruction is French. 2. Irish: Irish is spoken by 94,000 people and 1.3 million can use it and speak it occasionally. The percentage of people speaking Irish is higher in the more remote areas of the country. In the 1300s, the Irish were forbidden to speak their own language in the presence of their English masters. However, an Irish-language TV station began broadcastinig in 196; road signs are only in Irish in portions of Ireland; and Irish singers have begun to sing in Gaelic. This is because young Irish living in other countries want to diminish themselves from English.

List the 4 major Romance languages

1. Spanish 2. Portuguese 3. French 4. Italian

Why are South Slavic languages, which were once very similar to each other, becoming increasingly different today?

Bosnians and Croats write the language in the Roman alphabet, whereas Montenegrins and Serbs use the Cyrillic alphabet. The names Bosnian, Croatian, and Serbian are preferred by people in these countries to demonstrate that each language is unique, even though linguists consider them one. This common language used to be called Serbo-Croatian, but offends the people of these countries because it recalls when they were once in a country dominated by the Serbs (Yugoslavia).

Explain how languages are like a tree.

Language families form the trunks of trees. Some trunks divide into several branches, which represent language branches. Branches representing Germanic, Balto-Slavic, and Indo-Iranian language branches divide further into language groups. Individual languages are displayed as leaves.

From what language did all Romance languages descend?

Latin

Indo-Iranian Branch: Add notes about the group within the branch - Iranian (Western)

Major group languages include Persian/Farsi in Iran, Pashto in eastern Afghanistan and western Pakistan, and Kurdish, used by the Kurds of western Iran, northern Iraq, and eastern Turkey. These languages are written in the Arabic alphabet.

What is Mandarin? Where is it the official language?

Mandarin is the most commonly used Chinese language. It is the official language of China and Taiwan. The Chinese government is imposing Mandarin countrywide.

How does the widespread diffusion of English impact the motivation for English speakers to learn other languages?

Many U.S. citizens do not recognize the importance of learning other languages. The lack of effort by Americans to learn other languages is a source of resentment among people elsewhere in the worlds.

What are the endangered languages in the South Pacific?

Maori and local Aboriginal languages.

Add notes about the following African Language Family, including specific languages spoken: Niger-Congo

Niger-Congo languages are spoken by over 95% of the people in Sub-Saharan Africa. Swahili is the first language of 800,000 people, and is spoken by 30 million Africans. It is the language used to speak with outsiders from different villages. Swahili originally developed through interaction among African groups and Arab traders, so its vocabulary has strong Arabic influences. It is one of the few African languages with an extensive literature. Two other commonly spoken Niger-Congo languages are Yoruba and Igbo.

Add notes about this multilingual place: Nigeria

Nigeria has 529 distinct languages, but the main 3 used are Hausa, Igbo, and Yoruba. In addition, the north of Nigeria is predominantly Muslim, while the South is Christian. Groups living in these separate regions have battles, attempted secession, and claimed discrimination. The government has moved the capital from Lagos, located in the southwest, to Ajuba, which is located in the center of the country, where none of the three major languages or two major religions presides.

Add notes about this multilingual place: Switzerland

Switzerland peacefully exists with multiple languages. It has four official languages: German (65%), French (18%), Italian (10%), and Romansh (1%). It attributes its success to a decentralized government, in which local authorities hold most of the power, and decisions are frequently made on a local level by voter referenda.

Define logograms

Symbols that represent words or meaningful parts of words.

Where are the principal languages of the Tai-Kadai family spoken?

Thailand and neighboring portions of China.

What three European peoples originally came together to form the English people and English language?

The Angles, Jutes, and Saxons

Where did these people come from?

The Jutes came from northern Denmark, the Angles from Southern Denmark, and the Saxons from northwestern Germany.

In which two major places are Sino-Tibetan languages spoken today?

The People's Republic of China and several smaller countries in Southeast Asia.

Define the source of settlers for the region: Northeast

Two-thirds of the New England colonists were Puritans from East Anglia in southeastern England, with few migrating from the north of England. This is where the dropping of the /r/ sound is derived from.

Add notes about the following Asian Language family, including specific languages spoken: Uralic

Uralic languages are traceable back to a common language, first used 7,000 years ago by people living in the Ural mountains of present-day Russia. Migrants carried the Uralic languages to Europe in the midst of Germanic and Slavic-speaking peoples. Estonians, Finns, and Hungarians speak Uralic languages.

What is the most spoken tongue of the Austro-Asiatic language family?

Vietnamese.

Explain standardizing a language.

When a government promotes the designation of a single dialect as the official or standard language in order to promote cultural unity.

How are the world's languages organized?

a. A language family is a collection of languages related through a common ancestral language that existed long before recorded history. b. A language branch is a collection of languages within a family related through a common ancestral language that existed several thousand years ago; differences are not as extensive or as old as between language families. c. A language group is a collection of languages within a branch that share a common origin in the relatively recent past and display many similarities in grammar and vocabulary.

Define the following: a. Institutional language b. Official language c. Developing language d. Vigorous language e. Literary tradition

a. A language used in education, work, mass media, and government. b. The language adopted for use by a government for the conduct of business and publication of documents. It is not always spoken by the majority of the population. c. A language spoken in daily use with a literary tradition that is not widely distributed. d. A language that is spoken in daily use but lacks a literary tradition e. A language that is written as well as spoken

Contrast the two views on the origin of this language. Illustrate each theory on the maps. a. Kurgan Hearth Theory (Nomadic Warrior Thesis) b. Anatolian Hearth Theory

a. According to Marija Gimbutas, the earliest evidence of the Kurgans dates back to around 4300 B.C., near the border between present-day Russian and Kazakhstan. The Kurgans were among the first to domesticate horses and chariots, and migrated in search of grasslands. Between 3500 and 2500 B.C., they used these horses to establish military superiority and conquer the following: They traveled westward through Europe, Eastward to Siberia, and southeastward to Iran and South Asia. b. According to Colin Renfrew, the first speakers of Proto-Indo-European lived 2,000 years before the Kurgans, in the eastern part of present-day Turkey. Indo-European diffused into Europe and South Asia along with agricultural practices rather than by military conquest. The language triumphed because its speakers became more numerous and prosperous by growing their own food instead of relying on hunting. See study guide for map