The unfolding of language : an evolutionary tour of mankind's greatest invention.
""Language is mankind's greatest invention - except of course, that it was never invented." So begins linguist Guy Deutscher's investigation into the evolution of language. No one believes that the Roman Senate sat down one day to design the complex system that is Latin gram...
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| Format: | Book |
| Language: | English |
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New York :
Metropolitan Books,
2005.
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| Edition: | 1st ed. |
| Subjects: |
| Summary: | ""Language is mankind's greatest invention - except of course, that it was never invented." So begins linguist Guy Deutscher's investigation into the evolution of language. No one believes that the Roman Senate sat down one day to design the complex system that is Latin grammar, and few believe, these days, in the literal truth of the story of the Tower of Babel. But then how did there come to be so many languages, and of such elaborate design? If we started off with rudimentary utterances on the level of "man throw spear," how did we end up with sophisticated grammars, enormous vocabularies, and intricately nuanced shades of meaning?" "Drawing on recent discoveries in modern linguistics, Deutscher exposes the elusive forces of creation at work in human communication, giving us fresh insight into how language is formed, evolves, and decays. He traces the emergence of linguistic complexity from an early evolutionary "Me Tarzan" stage to the astonishing power of languages today, their capacity to express even the subtlest thoughts and ideas. Arguing that destruction and creation in language are intimately entwined, Deutscher shows how these processes are continuously in operation, generating new words, new structures, and new meanings."--BOOK JACKET. |
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| Physical Description: | 358 p. : ill., maps ; 24 cm. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references (p. 329-340) and index. |
| ISBN: | 0805079076 9780805079074 |