Cooper Union forum; 7; Fall 1970

From the Great Hall of the Cooper Union in New York City. National Educational radio presents a lecture entitled languages and linguistics. This lecture was recorded for broadcast by station WNYC. Now to introduce the speaker. Here is the chairman of the Cooper Union forum series. Dr. Johnson a Fairchild Good evening ladies and gentleman welcome to the group for you and for all. We have a very fascinating and interesting discussion tonight. The problem of language of languages which I'm sure all of you realize that has something to do with some of the revolutions that are occurring in the world today. At least part of the problem. Problems. Have to do with the language and understanding of Syria and Iraq and the tomorrow you pay. Who is our speaker this evening.

Probably now as many languages as most people. He only claims to be fluent in four or five but I can tell you he speaks around 30. I'm lucky to be able to speak one. OK recently in Paris I used to have one. But that's about it. In case any of you do not happen to know he comes from two hours from Columbia University Professor of romance languages. His background I used to do with the ROM. And. He currently lives in New Jersey to the US anymore. And any of you have. More fascinating book titles out there was done a great deal of

work. And that is probably one of the great linguistic authorities which we have certainly in this area and maybe in the world. He's written such things as all about language. The Story of English family is a word. Language for everybody. Dictionary of linguistics. The story of language. Many other members of our loves associations like ours and are very important in the long Western world. And you know he's a very eclectic man. He not only has written a novel. When you write short stories. What's your latest things 30 years May 2nd where you live.

Words in sheep's clothing is his latest book. I think that's a I think that's a lovely title and Serb writes A We've had a lot of words in sheep's clothing in this particular spot so that we know exactly what you're talking about. Mariel Thanks for coming in. In. The ATL. It's a pleasure to be with you again. I am one of your a bitch your lecturers. The topic for tonight the year olds with language generally and particularly. And we might begin by remarking that if there is one characteristic. That distinguishes the human beings from the rest of the animal species at least

outwardly it is a possibility into the community at least not in a limited fashion but thoroughly and completely with his fellow human beings through the instrument. Our the language. You might say that other animal species are also employing. The sounds of the old crank to convey meaning. But outside of that. Fact that the meanings they convey are quite limited. There are two very definite limitations upon any type of animal language that do not apply using human language. The animal is restricted not only to a few basic meanings but also use

restricted asked to sign and ask for space. We ran human language Cranston's time and space. The dog can warn you with his bark of an impending danger but I can warn you with my voice of a danger that may be thousands of miles away or one year off in the future that the dog cannot do. Another characteristic of human language is its changeability. Human language is forever transforming itself. Animal language. There remains the same for each species. It is a standard joke among linguists that back in the order days of ancient Greece

the bleating of a sheep was represented in writing by name two letters of the Greek alphabet. Bita and ether which at that time were pronounced B. B comes pretty close to the bleating of the sheep. Today the sheep still says be but those two letters in spoken Greek have changed their sound to the point where they are pronounced V which as you see has nothing in common with the bleating of the sheep. So the human language and its own characteristics permits communication across time and space. Can even be portrayed symbolically through the use of writing. And here's

one of the most precious tools that the human being has at his disposal. Back in the days of ancient Greece there was considerable speculation as to the nature and origin of language. Their ears are still in existence. A dialogue written by Plato supposed to be based upon the. The things that he had learned from his master SOCRATES And him this play in your in this interchange of ideas on rattlers. There are several different characters who discuss their views concerning the nature and origin of language and they divide themselves up into two main camps. One that claims that

language is God given comes from above and is a good bestowed upon man. The other school. Of course the theory in that language is something conventional something reached through mutual agreement among human bein's. Basically something like this. A certain group of human beings agree that a certain sequence of sounds will represent or symbolize a certain object or a certain action or a certain quality and then they go on and use that sequence of sound in that. Term. The modern view of linguistics certainly favors the second theory.

If language were any gift from above. Then it would be unchanging. And universal. All men speak in the same fashion and there would be no change in language because there would be no. Real reason for change. On the other hand we know that language does change and we also know that language has infinite variety. Now there's infinite variety is easily explainable if we suppose that there were different groups of human beings and that each group arrived at a sawn convention at its own agreements with. A group of primitive men wandering about in the forest with hear the barking of a dog in the distance.

And the the head man of the group the man who had prestige would point in the direction of the sound and say Bow wow. And the rest of the group with except the Bow Wow was that there's ignition of the animal that made the sound. But another group of primitive men wandering around in the same fashion would hear the same sound. But the head man in this case wouldn't hear of this would work. And then the dog would be home before. It is an interesting theory this theory are on a map. Here is the Arjen of language. While I don't own that in its entirety there undoubtedly is a good deal of truth in it because we do

know that there are a great many words that are in imitation of natural sounds. We also know that these words are heard and interpreted differently by different groups. The English speakers if they're asked to reproduce the sound of a rooster crowing will give you a clue dude. The French speakers will give you a couple who are the German or Spanish speakers that will give you Kiki. So the rooster is always coming out with the same message but they hear it and interpret it differently and it comes out in different forms. Sometimes you hand me an animal sound or a sound in nature that was heard and interpreted pretty much the same way by everybody. The yelling about facts for example comes

out of this meow or Mauer or some similar form in practically all languages in the case of the north you have a large variety not only among the different languages but even within the same language. Consider in English for example which Bow-Wow would you get off. These are all imitating the sounds of the dog of course you might say that there are more. Are different varieties of dogs than there are ads. And the sound made by a trained traveler or a Chihuahua I would not be quite the same sound as the one made by a Great Dane. Even so there are these differences these basic differences and the interpretation are natural sounds by different groups of speakers. And this leads us to the conclusion that the second group are the

disputants in rattlers and probably in the more correct theory concerning the origin of language and the nature of language. The modern theory is best stated by fear of the non The so sure you know who says that language has the characteristics are being conventional and arbitrary. Conventional in the sense that it depends upon mutual agreement on the part of the group all the members of which agree to accept certain values for certain sounds in the same fashion that all the people in the United States or at least most of them accept conventional leave a dollar bill at its feet that you. Force the dollar bill changes to just one language and its purchasing power. We know something about that reason.

The convention of course need not at all be universal. There is one convention that applies to the speakers of the language called English. They agreed to accept the dog as the designation of a certain species. The speakers of French agreed to accept it. She had to speak of Spanish too except there all. The speakers are Russian Pioche or some back of. The speakers of Japanese imu. These are all very different words. They cannot by any stretch of the imagination be said to have the same origin. And yet within the range of that particular group of speakers that is the word that is accepted to designate the creature that we call dog.

The arbitrary nature of language means that. Language can mean whatever you want that to me or whatever the group wants it to mean. If we group agree this is purely imaginary but let us suppose that the group of English speakers. Were to agree to morrow that the door should no longer be to open the door but should be token on the arse. They could but that reform through as a matter of fact they have done that very thing in the case of many words and many expressions to the point where the word and completely reversed its original meaning. He the peace of the world like grave. We all

know what we mean when we say that a man as brave as courageous. He has some fine all of it. And yet the origin of the brave years and the Latin travelers. Which is at the root of the depraved than the privately. Now how can a man be depraved than Brady but at the same time. Well there was a process of semantic change with the speakers of the different generations. Gradually changing the meaning of the word as they went along. Original we probably use memes physically not look at it and know that there you have an exact parallel to our use of crook and rabbit. Physically crooked then them morally crooked The scoundrel. So deep I was just weird to the Roman speaker who

was a scoundrelly man and Cicero in his orations against God online on the summit thunders against his political opponent of all the robbers. Scoundrels. At the same time in the same speech Cicero also admits. That in carrying out his evil beams Adeline had Crain himself to undergo hunger in the third and all sorts of our trips so that he could harden themselves to perpetrate the crimes against the state that he wanted the perpetrator. There you have the roots of the new meaning. If the man could do all those things he had to have some good qualities. At least you have to have some guts. And Cicero admits that.

As time goes on you have this former theme of what I wish. Apply. In many mobiles are going to be hired retainers hired Ruffins if you read the numbers on these commissions sponsoring you find that the henchmen of the arch villain of the piece the ones who are assigned to do the job of frightening the population kidnapping girls holding people for ransom funding that angers Internet necessary are called Ravi. The brave man the man with the scoundrel the qualities but also with guts. In medieval Spain you find that the term gravel gets applied to a bull.

The border what I watch Spain is not. Real we not literally a brave bull he is a mean fierce honorable he is the backbone of them you are the one that ran his horns into the mouth of good idiots half a chance. So it's the orneriness of the critter that stands out there. But of course the poet is courageous. He stands up to his tormentors and fights back. So you have the blending of these two. All of these all of these being mean. You are being scoundrelly and the Pahlavi of having heard Roger all the courage takes the upper hand until finally ultimately when you speak of a brave man it doesn't occur to you that that could never have meant a scoundrel. A brave man is

a man of courage he's a man that you admired. He may have other polities in his make up but you don't know anything about that. You are simply accepting his bravery at its face value. As a matter of fact the word laws are non. Continuing to change its meaning. In both French and the fact that if you put the Braves after the man only just say a number are in French or more. But I would if you knew me any great evil rhetoric just man. But I didn't put the adjective before the noun to be a sample I've done are wrong but I will more. It no longer means braver it means Bill. Is a good man shortened by one. The fine. But I want more. Than excellent.

So the word completely reverses its meaning. Prom problems depraved scoundrelly it acquires the meaning of good. In fact it can even go on beyond that because in both French and if that this expression our brave man with a brain before the man and should be used ironically in the sense of a man who is so good that he is good for nothing. A deceived husband for example. Maybe ironically we call them by learning French are wrong but I want to thank him with a sort of a sneer or a lip. So you see you want the arbitrary nature of language can be what it can lead to. It can lead to semantic changes which occasionally involve complete

reversal. The. Other outstanding our thing of language is in its infinite. Variability the fact. That it can be so many different forms. Normally we are not aware of that because we live another linguistic community that speaks the same language or what passes for the same language. There may be individual differences of pronunciation and vocabulary range. For the most part through it probably around the United States you manage to understand everybody and everybody understand you. Oh yeah she may run into a few isolated communities where understanding is difficult but even there you manage to affect communication.

But if you step outside of the United States you find that there are many many places in the world where other languages have currency and English has not. And where no matter how loud I would still over here speak English it will not be understood. This is a common experience both of our tourists and of our soldiers abroad. And then of course when people come up against this interesting the bursary they get curious about it and they start asking questions. And one of the questions that they most often ask is how many languages are there in the world anyway. How numerous are these languages. And the answer is only an approximation. There are roughly

3000 different languages in spoken use throughout the world today 3000 languages a lot of languages. But remember that all language need not be a big language it can be a small language it can be the language of a small group. Some languages only years a few hundred speakers or a few thousand speakers. Others run into the millions. The. Fate of language is the tens upon political historical economic factors. Some grow very great and then when they will shrink away or often disappear others start out as being very small on

the language of a very small group and then growing growing the expansion of the fire more speakers sometimes merely by ordinary population growth. But more often by reason of Press TV. People want to acquire that language they want to identify with a group that speaks it. That was the case with Latin in ancient times. Latin started out by being the language of a very small group located around the mouths of the Tiber. There were an ancient temple in that time many other languages of the far outstripped Latin in extent and range. There was one language and particularly crosscut that extended far to the north and far to the south of Latin. Was a very widely spoken and at one time apparently the

Romans were a colonial possession of the customs because the history of Rome starts out with a line of seventy cross King kings who were later driven out and the Romans proclaim their independence. But once the Romans got going to do the very thorough job they began extending their domains extending their territory swallowing up speakers of the language of the first Their near neighbors to see mine. The speakers of asking the speakers of Umbrian the questions themselves and then they expanded outside of the fandom and saw the tkinter born today is roughly friends. Iberia which today are Spain and Portugal and many other provinces where the language did not

remain. But it did remain in enough of the countries that were conquered by the Romans to make Latin the great language of ancient times a language that extended all over the Mediterranean basin a language that lived in a state of symbiosis with Greek Greek being used in the eastern part of the Roman Empire's a language of common intercourse the Latin being used in the West are better Latin being also the language of government administration of the military which was very important in those days while the Greek was the language of philosophy culture literature. Every cultured Roman knew Greek and every culture Greek of course and even the ones who were not so cultured knew someone. And then when the Roman Empire broke them the Latin language

broke up. It broke up into separate sentence and eventually you know that French Spanish Portuguese and then Romanian plus five or six other languages which cannot be described just by Alex. And all of which exist today. So out there you have the rise and form of language use a language like Latin is today described by some people as the dead languages. I mean anything but this. It lives on and its descendants. But even outside of that it lives on under its own steam. It is still the official language of the Catholic Church. It is spoken by the priests among themselves when they have no other means of communication. It

can be used and has been used successfully by tourists in Italy particularly in Rome. If they don't know when he if I didn't know Latin all they have to do is to go to the nearest priest and ask for directions in Latin. 3000 languages. 3000 languages spoken all over the world today. You can link the ancient Semitic languages with relative ease. Hebrew and Aramaic the Kadian you can link them also all the more remotely through engines e.g. Egyptian what you do though is to establish a clear relation among all of these facts. Their structures are different. If they were originally one language they have diverged. Point

where they are no longer recognizable. As being related. That's give us high. Research. And maybe we'll be able to sound even though. I think. You've heard of Dr Mario Pei speaking on the topic languages and linguistics. This was one of the 1970 series of lectures recorded at the great hall of the Cooper Union in New York City by station WNYC. The chairman for the Cooper Union was Johnson Fairchild. This program was distributed by the national educational radio network.