Language As with any complex, emergent concept, language is somewhat resistant to definition; however, most would agree that language is a system of communication or reasoning using representation along with metaphor and some manner of logical grammar. Many languages use gestures, sounds, symbols, or words, and aim at communicating concepts, ideas, meanings, and thoughts, though the problem of linguistic vagueness often rears its head when we try to distinguish between these things. The study of language Main article: Linguistics The success of science, mathematics, and other formal systems in the 20th century led many to attempt a formalization of the study of language as a "semantic code". This resulted in the academic discipline of linguistics, the founding of which is attributed to Ferdinand de Saussure. Philosophers such as Ludwig Wittgenstein, W. V. Quine, and Jacques Derrida have disputed the possibility of such a rigorous study of language by questioning many of the assumptions necessary for such a study, and have put forth their own views on the nature of language. There is no end in sight to this debate. Human languages Making a principled distinction between one language and another is usually impossible. For example, the boundaries between named language groups are in effect arbitrary due to blending between populations (the dialect continuum). For instance, there are dialects of German very similar to Dutch which are not mutually intelligible with other dialects of (what Germans call) German. Some like to make parallels to biology, where it is not always possible to make a well-defined distinction between one species and the next. In either case, the ultimate difficulty may stem from the interactions between languages and populations. (See Dialect or August Schleicher for a longer discussion.) The concepts of Ausbausprache, Abstandsprache, and Dachsprache are used to make finer distinctions about the degree of difference between languages or dialects. Origins of human language Main article: Origins of language Scientists do not yet agree on when language was first used by humans (or their ancestors). Estimates range from about two million years ago, during the time of Homo habilis, to as recently as forty thousand years ago, during the time of Cro-Magnon man. Language taxonomy Main article: Language families and languages The world languages have been be grouped into families of languages which have similarities. Some of the major groupings are the Indo-European languages, the Afro-Asiatic languages, and the Sino-Tibetan languages. Constructed languages Main article: Constructed language One prominent artificial language, called Esperanto, was created by L. L. Zamenhof. It was a compilation of various elements of different languages, which was intended to be an easy-to-learn language. Other writers, such as J. R. R. Tolkien, have created fantasy languages, for literary, linguistic, or personal reasons. One of Tolkien's languages is called Quenya, which is a form of Elvish. It includes its own alphabet and its phonology and syntax are modelled after Finnish. The writer, linguist and Star Trek actor James Doohan devised the original vocabularies of Vulcan and Klingon speech which have been developed by others into full languages. Animal (non-human) language Main article: Animal language While the term animal languages is widely used, most researchers agree that they are not as complex or expressive as the human language. Some researchers argue that there are significant differences separating human language from the communication of other animals, and that the underlying principles are not related. Other researchers argue that a continuum exists among the communication methods of all animals. Almost all researchers agree that human language is more complex than communication between other animals. Formal languages Main article: Formal languages Mathematics and computer science use artificial entities called formal languages (including programming languages and markup languages). These often take the form of character strings, produced by some combination of formal grammar and semantics of arbitrary complexity. See also Common phrases in different languages Computer-assisted language learning (a historical perspective) Deception Ethnologue, which provides a fairly complete list of languages, locations, population and genetic affiliation Extinct language Foreign language Formal language General semantics How to learn a language ISO 639 (2- and 3-letter codes for language names) Language education Language policy Linguistic protectionism Linguistics basic topics List of language academies List of languages Naming Non-sexist language Orthography Philology and Historical linguistics Philosophy of language Phonology Profanity Psycholinguistics Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis Second language Semantics Slang Symbolic communication Speech therapy Tongue-twister Translation Whistled language References Crystal, David. (1997). The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. Crystal, David. (2001). The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. Katzner, K. (1999). The Languages of the World. New York, Routledge. McArthur, T. (1996). The Concise Companion to the English Language. Oxford, Oxford University Press. External links Mark Rosenfelder's Metaverse provides a useful listing of 4000 languages and dialects (grouped by their relationships), where the numbers one to ten in each language can be found Foreign Language Discussion Forum Museum of Languages The Ethnologue, a catalog of the world's languages LingoTeach, GPL tool to learn languages Animal sounds in different languages Distribution of languages on the Internet Speech accent archive a collection of bird songs provides many kinds of bird songs The Animal Communication Project Languages Articles simple:Language tlh:Hol tokipona:toki Most Popular Articles: Music    Musical Instruments    Guitar    Classical Music    History    Music Definition    Country Music    Rock Music    Pop Music    Hip Hop    Rap    DJ    Video Games    Casino Games    Poker    Blackjack    Casinos    Real Estate    Loan    Auction    eBay    Marketing    Search Engine Optimization    File Sharing    MP3    Music Industry    Kazaa    Internet    Supermodel    Fashion    Fashion Designers    Erotica    Modeling    Clothing    Boots    Shoes    Diamond Engagement Rings    Diamond    Rugs    Gospel Music    Affiliate    E-Commerce    Radio This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License at http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html You may copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license. 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