Language AP Human Geography. About this unit… We only have 3 days in class this week… Ch. 5 = pp. 134-165 (31 pages) Ch. 5 is on you (focus on 5.1, 5.2,

LanguageAP Human Geography

About this unit…

•We only have 3 days in class this week…•Ch. 5 = pp. 134-165 (31 pages)•Ch. 5 is on you (focus on 5.1, 5.2, 5.4)•You have until Monday to complete your

reading guide/ vocab.

What is Language?• A system of

communication through speech, gestures, signs, etc.

• Allows the transmission of culture from one generation to the next.

• Languages may or may not have a literary tradition, which is a system of written communication.

Language Facts• Close to 7,000 languages worldwide.• Only 10 have 100 million+ speakers

▫Chinese (14%)▫Spanish (4.9%)▫English (4.7%)▫Hindi (2.7%)▫Arabic (3.1%)▫Portuguese (2.7%)▫Bengali (2.6%)▫Russian (2.2%)▫Japanese (1.9%)▫Standard German (1.4%)

Breakdown of Languages• Mother Tongue/ Common Language

• Language Family (Indo-European)

• Language Branch (Germanic, Romance)

• Language (English, Spanish)

• Dialect (British English v. American English, Spanish Spanish v. Mexican Spanish)

Language Families

•A collection of languages related through a common ancestral language that existed long before recorded history.

•Examples: Indo-European (German, Spanish, English)

Language Branches

•Each language family is broken down into various branches.

•Each branch is broken down into specific languages.

•For example, the Germanic branch includes English, German, Dutch and Flemish languages.

Examples•GERMANIC BRANCH•Hello. My name is Mister P. (English)•Hallo. Mein Name ist Herr P. (German)•Hallo. Mijn naam is Mister P. (Dutch)

•ROMANCE BRANCH•Hola. Mi nombre es Míster P. (Spanish)•Ciao. Il mio nome è Mister P. (Italian)•Bonjour. Mon nom est Monsieur P. (French)

Dialects•Dialect- a regional variation of a language.

▫Vocabulary (Pop vs. Coke vs. Soda, Eraser vs. Rubber)

▫Spelling (center vs. centre, shop vs. shoppe)▫Pronunciation (you all vs. ya’ll, creek vs. crick)

•Isogloss- The geographic boundary of a word or other linguistic factor.

•Standard Language- dialect that is recognized as most acceptable for govt., business, education, mass comm.

U.S. Dialects

Isogloss

Official Languages• Official language- a

language designated by a govt. for use in laws, reports, public objects (road signs)

• U.S.= No official language• Canada= French and

English• Switzerland= German,

French, Italian, Romansh• Kenya= Swahili, English