We explain what language is, its main characteristics and the types that exist. In addition, we explain what its functions are and more.
Language is externalized through language that uses a particular system of signs.
What is language?
The language is a human capacity that serves to communicate through a specific system of signs called language. There are different types of languages around the world, each with its own system of signs, such as Spanish or English.
Linguistics is the science that studies language and languages, both for their descriptive structure and for their evolution over time. There are several branches within linguistics, such as phonology, syntax, phonetics, semantics and lexicography, among others.
The rest of the non-human animals also communicate and do so through the senses, such as smell, sight, hearing and touch. Many species emit sound signals that have specific codes depending on what they want to convey. This is the case with birds, dolphins or dogs.
See also: Literary language
Language features
Among the general characteristics of the language the following stand out:
- It is universal, that is, it is a capacity of the human being.
- It is expressed through the use of signs, language and speech.
- It is rational because it requires the use of reason to associate linguistic signs.
- It can manifest itself verbally or non-verbally.
- It is arbitrary because a word, for example, ball in Spanish or ball in English, it maintains no logical association with the object it represents.
- It is constantly evolving as a result of the accumulation of experiences in everyday speech.
Types of language
Verbal language can be expressed orally or in writing.
Types of language can be:
- Verbal. It is made up of words that are formed from phonemes and that can be expressed orally, through the spoken word, or in writing through the graphic representation of the words.
- Non verbal. It is made up of images (such as an advertisement), symbols (such as public road signs) and gestures (such as sign language), among others.
Different types of language can be decoded by a person who uses the same system of signs with which the message was created. A sign is something that gives an idea or indication of something.For example, when seeing an object with a recycling symbol, the mind interprets that it is a material that can be reused for manufacturing.
Signs are made up of two aspects:
- One meaning. It is the concept that a word represents in the mind.
- A signifier. It is the object that is designated with a word or gesture, which is different in each language.
For example, the word home is a signifier that, in Spanish, represents a concrete structure that has walls, a roof, windows and a door. This concept of the house is the meaning. In English, the word house has no meaning, but the word house (signifier) to refer to the concept of house (meaning). For this reason, signs are arbitrary, that is, the association of the word and the object it designates varies depending on the language.
Language functions
The six main functions of language are:
- Referential. Objectively expresses the different aspects of reality, through information or the presentation of facts, concepts or ideas. For example, a journalistic note from the newspaper.
- Appellative. It seeks to influence the recipient of the message to obtain a particular reaction from them, either to make them do an action or to stop doing it. For example, a sign in a restaurant with the phrase “Please no smoking in our facilities.”
- Emotional or expressive. It seeks to convey the emotional or physical state of the person sending the message. For example, a person who has just completed a difficult activity expresses his or her feelings about the achievement: “How exciting it is to climb a mountain!”
- Phatic. It is used to start, interrupt, prolong or end a communication, so it is based on the communication channel and not on the transmission of a concept itself. An example of a phatic function to end a conversation is: “Well, thank you for everything. See you later”.
- Metalinguistics. It consists of the ability to reflect on one’s own language, through the understanding of grammar or the meanings of words, for which it is necessary to handle the same code of signs. For example, the word desire It is written with S, not with C.
- Poetics or aesthetics. It consists of altering everyday language with the aim of provoking emotion or a feeling of beauty, through the way things are said. This is the case of literary texts, novels, poems or songs. For example, “I said that you sang in the wind like the pines and like the masts.” (fragment of a poem by Pablo Neruda).
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