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- For example, we can characterise spoken language as quite informal, colloquial and presumably unstructured (since it is often spontaneous). Furthermore, spoken language mostly takes place in the form of a dialogue with another speaker. Written language, on the other hand, is generally more structured, formal, impersonal and wordy.
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Nov 21, 2023 · Learn about spoken language and its features. Identify the characteristics and importance of spoken language, and discover the most common spoken languages. Updated: 11/21/2023.
- 5 min
- Spoken language is a broad category that includes languages like English, Spanish, Arabic, Japanese, and Korean. It also includes sign languages li...
- The languages with the highest number of speakers, both native and non-native, include English, Mandarin Chinese, Hindi, Spanish, and French. Other...
- Spoken language is important because it is the primary mechanism through which human beings communicate with one another. The ability to speak is f...
- Spoken languages can be divided into two main categories. Languages produced with the mouth and vocal cords are called oral or verbal languages, wh...
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- Overview
- Definitions of language
language, a system of conventional spoken, manual (signed), or written symbols by means of which human beings, as members of a social group and participants in its culture, express themselves. The functions of language include communication, the expression of identity, play, imaginative expression, and emotional release.
Many definitions of language have been proposed. Henry Sweet, an English phonetician and language scholar, stated: “Language is the expression of ideas by means of speech-sounds combined into words. Words are combined into sentences, this combination answering to that of ideas into thoughts.” The American linguists Bernard Bloch and George L. Trager formulated the following definition: “A language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols by means of which a social group cooperates.” Any succinct definition of language makes a number of presuppositions and begs a number of questions. The first, for example, puts excessive weight on “thought,” and the second uses “arbitrary” in a specialized, though legitimate, way.
A number of considerations (marked in italics below) enter into a proper understanding of language as a subject:
Every physiologically and mentally typical person acquires in childhood the ability to make use, as both sender and receiver, of a system of communication that comprises a circumscribed set of symbols (e.g., sounds, gestures, or written or typed characters). In spoken language, this symbol set consists of noises resulting from movements of certain organs within the throat and mouth. In signed languages, these symbols may be hand or body movements, gestures, or facial expressions. By means of these symbols, people are able to impart information, to express feelings and emotions, to influence the activities of others, and to comport themselves with varying degrees of friendliness or hostility toward persons who make use of substantially the same set of symbols.
Britannica Quiz
Languages & Alphabets
Different systems of communication constitute different languages; the degree of difference needed to establish a different language cannot be stated exactly. No two people speak exactly alike; hence, one is able to recognize the voices of friends over the telephone and to keep distinct a number of unseen speakers in a radio broadcast. Yet, clearly, no one would say that they speak different languages. Generally, systems of communication are recognized as different languages if they cannot be understood without specific learning by both parties, though the precise limits of mutual intelligibility are hard to draw and belong on a scale rather than on either side of a definite dividing line. Substantially different systems of communication that may impede but do not prevent mutual comprehension are called dialects of a language. In order to describe in detail the actual different language patterns of individuals, the term idiolect, meaning the habits of expression of a single person, has been coined.
Spoken language is the most common form of communication, involving the vocal production of sounds and words. Characteristics include intonation, rhythm, and nonverbal cues such as gestures and facial expressions.
Linguists analyze how certain speech patterns correspond to particular behaviors, including how language can impact people’s buying decisions or influence their social media use.
A spoken language is a language produced by articulate sounds or (depending on one's definition) manual gestures, as opposed to a written language. An oral language or vocal language is a language produced with the vocal tract in contrast with a sign language, which is produced with the body and hands.
May 23, 2024 · Spoken language is a form of communication in which people uses the mouth to create recognizable sounds. These sounds come from a large vocabulary of sequences of sounds with agreed-upon meanings. These sequences of sounds are called words, and each represents one or more objects or concepts.
Jun 6, 2024 · While sign languages, which use visual-manual modality, are fully functional languages with their own grammar and syntax, spoken languages are the most common form of human communication. The vocal nature of language allows for rapid and dynamic interaction, making it an efficient medium for conveying complex information quickly and effectively.
