Functional Theory

States that language changes according to the needs of its users

Words become obsolete and drop out of usage, and the changing worlds of industry and technology reveal
this keenly

Functional signifies the proposition that language evolved under pressure of the functions that the
language system must serve

What are Halliday's functions of language?

Michael Halliday, a prominent linguist, proposed a functional approach to language known as Systemic
Functional Linguistics (SFL). In 1975, Halliday published his 'seven functions of language', which
describes the way children use language, referring to these as 'developmental functions' or 'micro
functions'. Halliday's seven functions of language: instrumental, personal, regulatory, interactional,
imaginative, representational, and heuristic.