Language, Culture and Thought

PRESENTED BY: GROUP 8

Relationship between Language, Culture and Thought: An Introduction

Culture
Socially Acquired Knowledge

Language
Expression of Thoughts and Ideas

Thought
Concepts, Ideas

Culture: An overview
The term and its meaning is purely contextual Different anthropologists used it differently

Always refers to some characteristics shared by a community

A societys culture consists of whatever it is one has to know or believe in order to operate in a manner acceptable to its members -Ward Goodenough

Culture: Broken into Components

Culture

Socially Acquired Knowledge

Common Sense Knowledge

Specialized Knowledge

Thought
Knowledge itself is embedded in thoughts Thought covers different types of mental activities

Knowledge is of three types:

1. Cultural knowledge 2. Shared non-cultural knowledge 3. Non-shared non-cultural knowledge.

Theories of concept
1. Prototype theory of concepts 2. Critical Feature Theory

Prototype theory helps explain how ones thinking is largely shaped by ones culture.

Language: The ultimate Expression

Language is used for expressing ones thoughts, ideas, emotions etc. Language is defined as a mode of communication or expressing ones thoughts and ideas.

Lost in Translation

Culture

Thought

Language

Kuuk Thaayorre speakers talk in terms of absolute cardinal directions (north, south, east, west, and so forth) People who speak languages that rely on absolute directions are remarkably good at keeping track of where they are- Stephen C. Levinson of the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics in
Netherlands, and John B. Haviland of the University of California

CONCLUSION