Re: Language superiority, improvement, etc.

Matt Pearson wrote:

> Nik Taylor wrote:
>
> >Uh, I think that stone tools are primitive technology when compared wi=
th
> >computers.  What's wrong with calling the kettle black?
>
> Ever tried flaying a dead mastodon with a computer?  :-)
The discussion was about the ability of a society to do something.We have=
 other tools to
do this, we just happen also to have
other whole kinds of tools that they do not.

(I understand it was meant tongue-in-cheek, but I felt like
pointing out the problem with the reasoning still, as I saw it)

> But this does not, of course, have anything to do with the *structure*
> of English, merely the vocabulary.  And vocabulary items can easily be
> acquired to fit the changing needs of language users.  If the Mbabaram
> people of Australia suddenly became regular computer users, they could
> easily and quickly borrow or invent as many computer terms as they need=
ed,
> and from that point on, Mbabaram would be just as suitable a medium for
> discussing computer technology as English is.
The normal trend however is either to borrow words from the sourcelanguag=
e, or, perhaps
more likely, forget about using Mbabaram for
computer technology entirely and use English instead in that case.  This
is much what my Bengali speaking friends do when discussing chemical
engineering concepts (and this is only to show how it would be much
easier to do one than another...).

> The point is:  Languages adapt their lexicons to the needs of their
> speakers, and since the needs of speakers differ, the lexical inventori=
es
> of their languages will differ as well.  But these differences are in p=
rinciple
> transitory and (I would argue) non-essential, since new words are being
> acquired and old words are being discarded all the time.  To use sugges=
tive
> words like "superior" and "inferior" to describe the lexical resources =
of
> a particular language at a particular time just seems a little extreme =
to
> me.
Yes, I agree.  What makes the real difference in languages is the existen=
ce
of entirely different and new paradigms from which to produce meaningful
ideas and locutions.


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Tom Wier <artabanos@...>
ICQ#: 4315704   AIM: Deuterotom
Website: <http://www.angelfire.com/tx/eclectorium/>
"Cogito ergo sum, sed credo ergo ero."

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  Schw=F6rt bei diesem goldnen Wein,
Dem Gel=FCbde treu zu sein,
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