Language and Culture_ TR23

TASK 1 Languages and dialects

What languages and dialects do you speak?

Languages

• First language: ………………………………………………..

• Second language: ………………………………………………

• Other languages: ……………………………………………………………………

Dialects. Now think about your best or strongest language (this could be the language you
acquired first, or another one.) Does it have more than one variety, spoken in different
places?

• The first language variety you speak: ……………………………..

• Other regional varieties of that language:…………………………………………

DISCUSSION: Tell the other people in your group about how the regional varieties of your
first language differ.

TASK 2 Social Variation

Language and class.
Think of any language you know well. Write down three linguistic features that are strongly
marked for stigma (grammar, pronunciation, or vocabulary).

e.g. In Australian English, using the past participle instead of the simple past examples:
Standard: “I saw him yesterday” and Non-standard (and stigmatized): “I seen him
yesterday”

1. …………………………………………………………………………..

2. …………………………………………………………………………..

3. …………………………………………………………………………..

Who typically speaks like this? …………………………………….

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DISCUSSION: How would you tackle these stigmatized differences when interpreting?

……………………………………………………………………………………..
……………………………………………………………………………………..
……………………………………………………………………………………..……………………..

TASK 3: Looking at language and culture up close

The Pirahã culture, an indigenous group living in the Amazon rainforest of Brazil, speaks a
language, also called Pirahã, which is remarkable for its unique features, including a limited
numerical system. Pirahã has an extremely restricted numerical system. It only distinguishes
between three quantities:

“hói”: Refers to one or a small quantity.

“hoí”: Refers to two or a slightly larger quantity.

“baágiso”: Refers to many or a larger, unspecified quantity.

Beyond these three terms, Pirahã lacks specific words for higher numbers. They do not have
words for three, four, or any other specific numerical values. The Pirahã culture places a
strong emphasis on direct experience and immediacy. They prioritize what they can
perceive directly through their senses. Their language reflects this cultural focus. The
absence of precise numerical terms aligns with their world-view, emphasizing the here-and-
now rather than abstract concepts.

DISCUSSION:

● How does the Pirahã culture’s emphasis on immediate experience and direct
perception influence the structure of their language?
● What strategies could be employed to convey abstract numerical ideas to Pirahã
speakers without violating their cultural and linguistic norms?
● To what extent does language influence Pirahã culture, cognition, and worldview?
● To what extent does the Pirahã language’s absence of specific words for higher
numbers challenge our understanding of linguistic relativity and the relationship
between language and cognition?