Exam 4: Language

Terms like the "N-word," as the text suggests, carry a wide range of meanings. In a similar way, use of the term "queer" has had many different uses and meanings over the past decade. The use of such terms illustrates what concept in linguistic anthropology?

We communicate with verbal language, but sometimes words cannot convey everything. Sometimes we may unknowingly resort to a system of body movements as well as a collection of noises and tone of voice in order to fully convey what?

When anthropologists emphasize how culture, society, and a person's social position shape language, what kind of anthropology are they describing?

Historically, European languages initially spread throughout the world and became globally dominant as a result of what?

The Summer Institute of Linguistics, or SIL:

In Montreal, Quebec, Canada, signs posted in public view (such as for streets or restaurants) are required to show the words in French first, usually above English, and in larger type sizes. This reflects:

Both efforts to enforce and efforts to deviate from standard English in a school setting frequently evoke controversy. What did the schools in Oakland, California, that introduced Ebonics seek to accomplish?

What do we call the system of human communication based on a set of symbols and signs with learned and shared meanings?

What might an anthropologist interested in kinesics study?

Anli is an anthropologist studying how relationships have evolved over time with the use of social media. Specifically, she is interested in how people ascribe social meaning to "friending" and "unfriending" people on social networking platforms and how these words developed. What kind of language is she studying?

The work of the Summer Institute of Linguistics presents a challenge to anthropology because it:

Language can be a form of cultural capital that is used to reinforce power dynamics that are established by a culture's institutions. What is the kind of language used to establish this "norm" against which all speakers are judged called?

To investigate the focal vocabulary of a language in a particular community, a linguistic anthropologist would most likely:

What did Rickford and Rickford conclude in their study of "Spoken Soul"?

What does the term language continuum refer to?

Linguistic anthropologists have shown that languages are disappearing at an unprecedented rate. Many argue that efforts should be made to preserve these endangered languages by documenting their lexicon and grammar. Why are anthropologists interested in preserving languages? Do you agree with these efforts? Why or why not? Which types of knowledge are embedded in language that might make them worthwhile to preserve? What are some of the techniques or strategies that have been used to either preserve or revitalize less-prominent languages? Discuss two examples where anthropologists have been involved in preserving endangered languages, and reflect on how information technology may be used in language revitalization.

Which component of any language refers to names, ideas, and events that offer a kind of catalogue of what is spoken and can be compiled into something accessible to others?

A linguist who is studying how a group of people use noises such as laughing and crying to convey emotional information is studying what?