Ch. 5- 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 You will have until Monday to

complete your reading guide. Vocab notebook is due Wednesday.

What is Language? A system of

communication through speech.

A collection of sounds that a group of people understands to have the same meaning.

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

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

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. Hallo. Mein Name ist Herr P. Hallo. Mijn naam is Mister P.

ROMANCE BRANCH Hola. Mi nombre es Mister P. Ciao. Il mio nome è Mister P. Bonjour. Mon nom est Monsieur P.

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