How Languages Affect the Way We Think

In the words of Humphry Davy, “Language is not only the vehicle of thought, it is a great and efficient instrument in thinking”. This is how learning and communicating has become easier, through sound vibrations. But might languages also show how individuals think and behave?

It has become second nature to be born and, in time, start speaking the language of our households, our native language. Over past centuries, a common language became required, especially for bartering, trading, or negotiations amongst nations.

Image from Unsplash.com

Many languages existed and possessed unique qualities, especially noticeable when conveying a message or describing movements and elements. These have ranged from Sumerian to the common English language, from ancient Latin to today’s Spanish.

Why language is humanity’s greatest invention

Language is considered a tool but in truth, it holds a stronger power than that. The languages we speak hold hidden secrets and legacies which can help us decode past dynasties and understand the simple livelihood of the earliest humans. In simpler terms, language is “the window of human nature” (Pinker 2005). On account of this, we can grant names to the elements we see, although one dissenter, Sally Carrighar, argues that human names for defining natural things is unnecessary because all we need to do is appreciate their essence (Peterson n.d).

How does language interact with thought?

Language can be segmented into a spectrum of 5 elements that help us communicate and develop our cognitive abilities (Boroditsky 2017).

Motion of time

In linguistic terms, the Thaayorre people (aboriginals in Australia who speak Kuktayor language) are well oriented compared to the modern human. This is due to the way they structure their speech through compass directions in daily conversations; north, east, south, and west. In Kuktayor, time is based on your surrounding landscape.

That means when facing south it moves from left to right, the opposite goes for the north. When facing east, time comes towards the body and away when facing west. This is a basic shadow scale, measuring time using the sun and its directions from a person’s standpoint. Kuktayor is clearly different from English and Hebrew speakers, to give but two examples, who coordinate time according to their writing direction (left to right or right to left).

Basic perceptual decision

Languages with a clear distinction of elements empower the brain to understanding things not common to its natural surroundings and habitat. Take the Russian language, which has two different ways of saying ‘blue’ according to its contrast, light, or dark. Light blue is ‘goluboy’ and dark blue is ‘siniy’.

Studies have shown that individuals who are raised to differentiate objects according to their properties (colour, shade or shape), display a change in their brain activity when presented with the object that is slightly changed over time (Boroditsky 2017). This may prove that when languages describe an object’s essence instead of just its exterior, it allows for information to be shared clearly and accurately.

There are more distinctions in language that guide our reasoning. This is why we find masculine and feminine ways of describing objects. The way a language structure is taught, either natively or scholarly will shape how you portray information for people to understand. Is this why French is known as the language of love?

Where did we go wrong?

With 7,000 languages in the world, there is a language that dies every 2 weeks. This is because of so many people have rushed to fit into different communities. We as humans tend to lose the essence of our native languages when we become bilingual or polyglot. This is because new words and languages are created from the mixing of lingual backgrounds. It is generally a system where one language is considered more important than the other, and until this power balance is reconsidered, we cannot save endangered languages and tribes from vanishing.

The human race is changing which means more languages will become extinct, leaving behind holes in history and/or our understanding of cultures. Perhaps the only way of preserving these languages is to promote language equity everywhere. If a system is created where any person is able to communicate using their native tongue without having to learn several new languages (possibly with the aid of technology?), then at that point equity can be reached.

References

Boroditsky, L 2017, How language shapes the way we think, online video, TEDWomen, viewed 16 June 2020, <https://www.ted.com/talks/lera_boroditsky_how_language_shapes_the_way_we_think/details?utm_source=linkedin.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=social&utm_term=science>.

Peterson, D N.d, Why language is humanity’s greatest invention, online video, TEDxBerkeley, viewed 16 June 2020, <https://www.ted.com/talks/david_peterson_why_language_is_humanity_s_greatest_invention/details>.

Pinker, S 2005, What our language habits reveal, online video, TEDGlobal, viewed 16 June 2020, <https://www.ted.com/talks/steven_pinker_what_our_language_habits_reveal/up-next>.

Author:

Mokgaetji Margueritte

Social Media Coordinator

June 22, 2020

Share this article:

Disclaimer:

The opinions expressed in this article/publication are those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions or views of GiLE or its members.