What is language?

Everybody knows the answer to this question but

nobody has so far been able to come out with any
standard definition that fully explain the term
language.
It is a situation like trying to define the term life.
Everybody knows what life is but one cannot present
a satisfactory definition of life. In order to understand
a term like “life”, one has to talk of the properties of
characteristics of living beings (eg: motion,
reproduction, respiration, growth, power of self-
healing, excretion, nutrition, morality, etc). similarly,
the term “language” can be understood better in
terms of its properties or characteristics. Some
linguists, however, have been trying to define
language in their own ways even though all these
definitions are far from satisfactory. Here are some of
these definitions.
1)Language is a symbol system based on pure or
arbitrary conventions, infinitely extendable and
modifiable according to the changing needs and
conditions of the speakers. Robins 1985.
According to this definition, language is a symbol
system. Every language (that exists in the written
form) selects some symbols for its selected sounds.
For the sound /k/, in English we have the symbol k
and in Hindi we have ae. These symbols form the
alphabet of the language and join in different
combination (according to a well laid out system) to
form meaningful words.
The system talked of here is purely arbitrary in the
sense that there is no one to one correspondence
between the structure of a word and the thing it
stands for the combination of letters p.e.n., for
example stands, in English, for an instrument used for
writing. Why could it not be e.p.n. or n.e.p. ? Well, it
could also be e.p.n. or n.e.p., and there is nothing
sacrosanct about the combination p.e.n. except that
it has now become a convention a convention that
cannot be easily changed.
As stated here, language conventions are not easily
changed yet it is not impossible to do so. Language is
infinitely modifiable and extendable. Words go on
changing needs of the community using it.
Shakespeare, for example, used the word stomach to
mean courage. Similarly words like laser laser,
sputnik, and astronaut are of quite recent origin in
the English language.
2)Language is a purely human and non- instinctive
method of communicating ideas emotions and
desires by means of a system of voluntary
produced symbols. Sapir 1921.
There are two terms in this definition that call for
discussion: human and non- instinctive. Language, as
Sapir rightly said, is human. Only humans possess
language and all normal humans uniformly possess it.
Animals do have a communication system but it is
not a developed system. That is why language is said
to be species – specific and species – uniform.
Also, language does not pass from a parent to a child.
In this sense, it is non-instinctive. A child has to learn
language and he/she learns the language of the
society he/she is placed in.
3)Language is the institution whereby humans
communicate and interact with each other by
means of habitually used oral-auditory arbitrary
symbols. Hall 1969.
This definition rightly gives more prominence to the
fact that language is primarily speech produced by
oral – auditory symbols. A speaker produces some
string of oral sounds that get conveyed through the
air to the listener who, through his hearing organs,
receives the sound waves and conveys these to the
brain that interprets these symbols to arrive at a
meaning.
(4) A language is a set (finite or infinite) of sentences,
each finite in length and constructed out of a finite
set of elements. Noam Chomsky 1957.
Chomsky meant to convey that each sentence has a
structure. Human brain is competent enough to
construct different sentences from out of the limited
set of sounds/symbols belonging to a particular
language. Human brain is so productive that a child
can at any time produce a sentence that has never
been said or heard earlier.
(5) A language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols
used for human communicate. Wardaugh 1972.
(6) A language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols
by means of which a social group cooperates. Bloch
and Trager 1942.
Both the definition 5 and 6 above prominently point
out that language is a system. Sounds join to form
words according to a system. The letters k, n, i, t join
to form a meaningful word knit, whereas
combinations like n-k-i-t, t.k.n.i or i.nk.t do not form
any meaningful or sensible combinations. As said
earlier, although initially the formation of words, is
only arbitrary, convention makes them parts of a
system. Words too join to form sentences according
to some system. A sentence like: Cricket is a game of
glorious uncertainties is acceptable but one cannot
accept a string of words like: a game is of cricket
uncertainties is acceptable but one cannot accept a
string of words like: a game is of cricket uncertainties
glorious. It is in this sense that language is said to be
a system of systems.
(7) Language is undoubtedly a kind of means of
communication among human beings. It consists
primarily of vocal sounds. It is articulatory,
systematic, symbolic and arbitrary. Derbyshire 1967.
Derbyshire, while accepting that language is the
property of human beings and that it is primarily
speech, brings out the point that it is an important
means of communication amongst humans. Before
the start of civilization, man might have used the
language of signs, but it must have had a very limited
scope. Language is a fully developed means of
communication with the civilized man who can
convey and receive millions of messages across the
universe. An entire civilization depends on language
only. Think of a world without language man would
only continue to be a denizen of the forest and the
caves. Language has changed the entire gamut of
human relations and made it possible for human
beings to grow into a human community on this
planet.
Some more definitions
(8) Language is a system of conventional spoken or
written symbols by means of which human beings, as
members of a social group and participants in its
culture, communicate. Encyclopedia britanica
(9) Languages are the principal systems of
communication used by particular groups of human
beings within the particular society (linguistic
community) of which they are members. Lyons 1970.
It is clearly evident from all these definitions, none
which completely defines the term “language”, that it
is not possible to have a single definition that brings
out all the properties of language. On the basis of
these definitions, one can, however, list out the
various characteristics of language. It would,
therefore, be better to list these characteristics and
discuss them in detail.
Characteristics of Language
Language is a means of communication
Language is a very important means of
communication between humans. A can
communicate his or her ideas, emotions, beliefs of
feelings to B as they share a common code that
makes up the language. No doubt, there are any
other means of communication used by humans, eg,
gestures, nods, winks, flags, smiles, horns, short-
hand, braille alphabet, mathematical symbols, morse
code, sirens, sketches, maps, acting, miming,
dancing, and so on. But all these systems of
communication are extremely limited or they too, in
turn, depend language only. They are not so flexible,
comprehensive, perfect and extensive as language is.
Language is so important a form of communication
between humans that it is difficult to think of a
society without language. It gives shape to people´s
thoughts, and guides and controls their entire
activity. It is a carrier of civilization and culture as
human thoughts and philosophy are conveyed from
one generation to the other through the medium of
language. Language is ubiquitous in the sense that it
is present everywhere in all activities. It is as
important as the air we breathe and is the most
valuable possession of man. In the scheme of things,
all humans are blessed with language and it is the
specific property of humans only. Language is thus
species-specific and species-uniform. It is because of
the use of language that humans are called “talking
animals” (homo loquens).
Animals too have their system of communication but
their communication is limited to a very small
number of messages, eg. Hunger, and thirst, fear and
anger. In the case of humans, the situation is entirely
different. Human beings can send an infinite number
of messages to their fellow beings. It is through
language that they store knowledge, transfer it to the
next generation and yoke the present, past and the
future together.
Language is arbitrary.
Language is arbitrary in the sense that there is no
inherent relation between the words of a language
and their meanings or the ideas conveyed by them
(except in the case of hieroglyphics, where a picture
of an object may represent the object). There is no
reason why a female adult human being be called a
woman in English, istree in Hindi, auratt in Urdu, Zen
in Persian, Femine in French or tivi in Punjabi.
Selection of these words in the languages mentioned
here is purely arbitrary, an accident of history. It is
just like christening a new born baby John or Janes.
But once a child is given some name in a purely
arbitrary manner, this name gets associated with the
child for this entire life and it becomes an important,
established convention. The situation in the case of
language is a similar one. The choice of a word
selected for a particular referent; it comes to stay as
such.
It may be noted that had language not been arbitrary,
there would have been only one language in the
world.
The arbitrary nature of language permits or
presupposes change, but such changes do not
normally take place. Names once given are not
normally changed. Words in a language are more
difficult to change because a whole society has
accepted them. Therefore, while the arbitrary nature
of language permits change, is conventionality gives
it stability.
There are words in some languages, which do have a
relation with the meanings or ideas they stand for.
Onomatopoeia is a term used for words that imitate
the sounds they stand for, eg. Bang, thud, buzz, hum.
But such words are very few, and for the same sound,
different languages have different words. These
words, therefor, do not invalidate the fact that words
in a language are arbitrarily selected and that the
relationship between words and their referents is
purely arbitrary.
Language is a system of systems
Language is not an amorphous, disorganized or
chaotic combination of sounds. Any brick may be
used anywhere in a building, but it is not so with
sounds or graphic symbols standing for the sounds of
a language. Sounds are arranged in certain fixed or
established, systematic order to form meaningful
units or words. Similarly, words are also arranged in a
particular system to frame acceptable meaningful
sentences. These systems operate at two levels:
phonological and syntactical.
At the phonological level, for example, the sounds of
a language appear only in some fixed combination.
There is on word, for example, that starts with bz- lr-
or zl combination. Again while there are several
English words having an initial consonant cluster
with three consonants (eg, spring/string), there are
no initial tetraphonemic consonant clusters (a string
of four consonants in the same syllable) in English.
There is no word that begins with a /N/ sound or
ends in a /h/ sound. Similarly, words too combine to
form sentences according to certain conventions (i.e
grammatical or structural rule) of the language. The
sentence “The hunter shot the tiger with a gun” is
acceptable as the word order in the latter sentence
does not conform to the established language
conventions.
Language is thus called a system of systems as it
operates at the two levels discussed above. This
property of language is also termed duality by some
linguists. This makes language a very complex
phenomenon. Every human child has to master the
conventions of the language he or she learns before
being able to successfully communicate with other
members of the social group in which he or she is
placed.
Language is Primarily Vocal
Language is primarily made up of vocal sounds only,
produced by a physiological articulatory mechanism
in the human body. In the beginning, it must have
appeared as vocal sounds only. Writing must have
come much later, as an intelligent attempt to
represent vocal sounds. Writing is the graphic
representation of the sounds of the language. The
letters k or q represent only the /k/ sound. Graphic
symbols had to be invented for the sake of some
sounds. There are a number of languages which
form. A child learns to speak first; writing comes
much later. Also, during his lifetime, a man speaks
much more than he writes. The total quantum of
speech is much larger than the total quantum of
written materials.
It is because of these reasons that modern linguists
say that speech is primary, writing is secondary.
Writing did have one advantage over speech it could
be preserved in books or records. But, with the
invention of magnetic tapes or audiocassetes, it has
lost that advantage too. A number of modern gadgets
like the telephone, the tape recorder, the dictaphone,
etc, prove the primacy of speech over writing in the
present time.
Language differs from animal communication in
several ways.
Language is primarily human. It is human alone that
possess language and use it for communication.
Language is, in that sense, species – specific it is
specific only to one set of species. Also, all human
beings uniformly possess language. It is only a few
deaf (and therefore dumb) persons who cannot
speak. Thus language is species- uniform to that
extent. Animals also have their own system of
communication but communication between them is
extremely limited. It is limited to a very small number
of messages. Animal communication differs from
human communication in the following.
Language can convey a large number, rather an
infinite set, of messages whereas the number of
messages conveyed through the communication
system of animals is very limited. Animals, for
example, are able to convey to their follow animals if
they are hungry or afraid. A bee, by its dance, is able
to convey the distance or the direction of the source
of nectar, but it cannot convey hoe good or bad this
honey is. Similarly, a bee cannot tell another bee that
the source of honey is 10 metres to the left of a point
15 meters to the right. Language can thus convey
messages along several directions whereas, in the
case of bees, messages are differentiated along
several directions only, ie direction and distance.
Some monkeys, it is known, can produce a number of
(not more 9 to 10) sounds to express fear, aggression,
anger, love, etc, but these messages too are
extremely limited in number.
Language makes use of clearly distinguishable
discrete, separate identifiable symbols while animal
communication system are often continuouns or non-
discrete.
One can clearly distinguish between /k/, /ae/ and /t/
in the word cat, but one cannot identify different
discrete symbols in the long humming sound that a
bee produces or the caw- caw sound of a crow.
Animal communication systems are closed systems
that permit of no change, modification or addition. A
bee´s dance or a cock+s crow is today the same that
it was 200 years ago. It is not so in the case of
language. Language is changing, growing every day,
and new words continue to be added to it in the
course of time. Words like sputnik, laser, video,
software did not, for example exist anywhere in
English language 300 years ago. Language is thus
open ended, modifiable and extendible.
Human language is far more structurally complex
than animal communication English (rp variety), for
example, has 44 sounds that join in different groups
to form thousands of words. These words can be
arranged into millions of sets to frame different
sentences. Each sentence has its own internal
structure. There is no such structural complexity in a
lamb´s bleating or a monkey´s cry.
Human language is non – instinctive in the sense that
every human child has to learn language from his
elders or peers in society. This process of learning
plays an important part in the acquisition of
language. On the other hand, bees acquire their skill
in dancing as humans acquire the skill to walk. They
are sometimes seen to make hexagonal hives. They
do not learn any geometry. Their knowledge is
inherited, inbuilt. It is not so in the case of human
beings who have to learn a language.
Displacement. Animal communication, as in the case
of communication system in birds, dogs, monkeys,
insects, etc, is limited to or related to their immediate
time and place, here and now or near about. It does
not contain any information about the past or the
future or about the events taking place in the distant
multidimensional set-up. When your pet animal
produces a sound, a car news or a dog barks, you
understand the message as relating to your
immediate present and place at the moment. It
cannot tell you where it was two days ago or where it
would be in the evening or what it was up to in the
next few minutes. Human language users are capable
of producing messages pertaining to the present,
past or future, near or distant places, ie in a
multidimensional setting. One can say, for example.
I was 200 km north of new York last month but will
be deep down in the south of America next week. I
witnessed a rugby match in September last but will
be an umpire in the one day cricket match at the
Mohali cricket ground.
This property is called displacement. It allows the
users of language to talk about things and events
which are not present in the immediate environment
of the speaker. Animal communication lacks this
property.
Even if some animals do display this property of
displacement in their communication system, the
messages are extremely limited. A honeybee can, for
eg, convey the distance and the direction of the
source of nectar, but it cannot tell another bee that it
should first turn right for a distance of 10 meters and
then fly across the left wall into a well in the rose
garden on the east. The persons or events that are
non existent or imaginary or are likely to be found on
other planets. We can talk of a superman, test- tube
babies, artificial limbs, havocs of war, fairies, angels,
demons, the spiderman, santa claus and the like. It is
this property of displacement that allows humans to
create, for eg, literature, fiction, fantasy or the stream
of consciousness stories.
Language is forma of social behaviour
As already stated above, language has to be learnt.
This learning is possible only in society. A human child
learns to speak the language of the community or the
group in which he or she is placed. A Chinese infant,
if placed in an Indian family, will easily learn to speak
an Indian language. He or she picks up the language
of the social set – up in which he or she grows.
Language is thus a form of social behaviour.
Language is a symbol system
A symbol is a concrete event, object or mark that
stands for something relative abstract. The cross (+),
for eg, is a symbol that stands for the great sacrifice
of Jesus Christ, ie his suffering and death on the
cross, it is also a symbol of a Christian. Similarly,
words are symbols that stand for objects. The
symbol/teibl stands for an object consisting of a
wooden – board supported by four/three legs. A
speaker or a writer wants to communicate with
another fellow – being, puts his message across in
the form of symbols (in speech or writing). The
receiver of the message, who shares a common code
with the sender of the message, decodes this
message sent in the form of symbols and interprets
these to arrive at a certain meaning. Thus language is
a symbol system, though different languages use
different symbols.
Productivity
Language is creative and productive in the sense that
a user of a language does not always produce only
sentences that has heard or learnt previously. On the
basis of his “knowledge” of the grammar and syntax
of the language, he can always produce new
literature. He can produce an infinitive number of
sentences as per the eventuality be is facing within
the framework of the grammar of the language being
used by him. This property of language is called
Productivity.
Interchangeability
It is important characteristic of human language that
it permits a speaker to become a listener and vice
versa without impairing the function of language, ie
communication. This property has been named
interchangeability by C.F. Hockett (a course in
modern linguistic). It can also be called reciprocity, ie,
any speaker/sender of a linguistic signal can also be a
listener/receiver.
Why study language?
Having outlined the various characteristics of
language, one may like to ask: why study or learn
language at all? An answer to this question can be
easily derived from a consideration of the situation
this world was in before language came into
existence. One car easily imagine that man must then
have been a denizen of the forest very much like
anyone of the other animals, viz, horse, cow, tiger,
elephant and dog. The entire human progress, in fact
everything that distinguishes humans from animals,
depends on language only. Language is, today, a
medium of literature , science and technology,
computers and cultural exchanges between social
groups, and the most powerful, convenient and
permanent means of communication in the world. It
is ubiquitous, present everywhere in all human
activities, thoughts, dreams, prayers, meditations and
relations. It is only through language that knowledge
and culture are stored and passed on from
generation to generation. Thus, all human civilization
and knowledge are possible only through language.
Summary
It is as difficult to define the term language as it is to
define the term, life. Just as life can be defined only in
terms of certain characteristics (growth,
reproduction, excretion, respiration, etc) language
can also be defined in terms of its characteristics.
Various linguists have tried to define language in their
own ways but one would like to list all the
characteristics of language as contained in these
definitions. Here are the various characteristics or
properties of language:
Language is a means of communication
Language is arbitrary
Language is a system of a systems
Language is primarily vocal. Speech is primarily,
writing is secondary
Language is human. It defines from animal
communication in several ways
Humans convey and receive an infinite number of
messages through space whereas animal
communication systems is extremely limited and
undeveloped
Language makes use of clearly distinguishable,
discrete, separately, identifiable symbols while animal
communication systems are often continuous and
non – discrete.
Animal communication systems are closed systems
and permit no change whereas language is
modifiable, extendable and open – ended.
Human language is structurally more complex than
animal communication system.
Language is a form of social behavior
Language is a symbol system.
Language is, today an inseparable part of human
society. Human civilization has been possible only
through language. It is through languages that
humanity has come out of the stone age and has
developed science, art and technology in a big way.