Has anyone wondered how many different languages we speak in a day? If I take my example, in a day I use words from as many as 6 different languages i.e. Konkani, Malayalam, Hindi, English, few Tamil words and one question in Kannada to my colleague asking him whether he is leaving for the day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have been really interested in studying new languages, though I have not succeeded so far in learning anything new since the ones I studied from my school days!!!! The question now arises is what is a language? The explanation given by Wikipedia is
“A language is a system, used to communicate, comprising a set of arbitrary symbols and a set of rules (or grammar) by which the manipulation of these symbols is governed. These symbols can be combined productively to convey new information, distinguishing languages from other forms of communication.”
Too confusing, isn’t it. Well language is a means of communication. It need not necessarily be spoken. Even signs or symbols can be a language if they can communicate information. There are about an estimated 4000 to 6000 languages in this world. Each language made up of different words, sounds and even symbols.
Then can we say that small infants have their own language. Last weekend I had visited my friend’s house and we were playing with his son. His son’s is less than a year old and was making some sounds which I mimicked. To my amazement I saw the child responding to this mimicking as if it was understanding and replying. Now whether he understood something or not only he and god will be able to say, but I felt that there is certainly some communication effort from him. I don’t know how many of u hav tried communicating with babies through sounds!!!!! May be people can try that. Who knows it may be the start of a research on a totally new language!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Coming back to grown ups speaking different languages, in earlier times, we would not have imagined speaking more than 2 or 3 languages. Why this change? Is it that instead of cities becoming metropolitan/cosmopolitan, the world has become one big city? People are learning more and more languages. I know a colleague who is proficient in 8 languages!!! We have been working with people from different cultures and languages. By constantly interacting with them we tend to share our languages and cultures.
All this makes me think whether we are witnessing the /contributing to the birth of a new language which combines all the languages of the world? Well do tell me if it so.
I have been really interested in studying new languages, though I have not succeeded so far in learning anything new since the ones I studied from my school days!!!! The question now arises is what is a language? The explanation given by Wikipedia is
“A language is a system, used to communicate, comprising a set of arbitrary symbols and a set of rules (or grammar) by which the manipulation of these symbols is governed. These symbols can be combined productively to convey new information, distinguishing languages from other forms of communication.”
Too confusing, isn’t it. Well language is a means of communication. It need not necessarily be spoken. Even signs or symbols can be a language if they can communicate information. There are about an estimated 4000 to 6000 languages in this world. Each language made up of different words, sounds and even symbols.
Then can we say that small infants have their own language. Last weekend I had visited my friend’s house and we were playing with his son. His son’s is less than a year old and was making some sounds which I mimicked. To my amazement I saw the child responding to this mimicking as if it was understanding and replying. Now whether he understood something or not only he and god will be able to say, but I felt that there is certainly some communication effort from him. I don’t know how many of u hav tried communicating with babies through sounds!!!!! May be people can try that. Who knows it may be the start of a research on a totally new language!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Coming back to grown ups speaking different languages, in earlier times, we would not have imagined speaking more than 2 or 3 languages. Why this change? Is it that instead of cities becoming metropolitan/cosmopolitan, the world has become one big city? People are learning more and more languages. I know a colleague who is proficient in 8 languages!!! We have been working with people from different cultures and languages. By constantly interacting with them we tend to share our languages and cultures.
All this makes me think whether we are witnessing the /contributing to the birth of a new language which combines all the languages of the world? Well do tell me if it so.
1 comment:
namaskara rahul.channakithara?nimma blogs thumba channakiyhe.{this s kannada gothayatha}.my god bless u 2 learn more?more languages.
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