Reflect on the history of your target language. To what language family does it belong? What sounds, words, and structures exemplify periods of contact with other cultures? How do these considerations enhance your understanding of the target language and culture in terms of their associated historical origin, development, and contemporary realization? and pragmatic questions of usage? How do languages change over time? How do linguists track, predict, and extrapolate these changes?
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Now this was surprising to me. Despite having a lot of linguistic similarities with European languages like English and Dutch, Malay belongs to the Austronesian language family. More specifically it is part of the Malayo-Polynesian branch, showcasing shared linguistic features with other regional languages such as Javanese. Geographically, this does make more sense as most languages within the Austronesian language family are found around the Southeast Asian region, near Indonesia and the Philippines. I think the similarities come from both geographic relativeness and colonial power. Interestingly, given Malaysia's position as a major trading port back in the past (when the country was called Malaya), the language of Malay came about from a combination of all these languages from trading partners coming from different parts of the world. Given that most of the countries are part of the same, my family are all island countries, perhaps trade and bartering in the past has a large role in developing language families. Overtime this association becomes more complex as languages within to form separate from one another. Linguists evaluate these relationships alongside trends and language formation and grammar determined the history and potential future of language with each language family.
I like how you talked about geography relativeness and the ways it can create similarities in different languages! I became interested in it when I started noticing words in Japanese that sounded similar to ones I knew in Korean and had similar meanings.
Korea’s linguistic origins are still debated among linguists today. There are several theories about what language family Korea belongs to, but the most most widely believed theory is that Korean belongs to the Altaic family, which includes languages like Mongolian and Turkish. However, some linguists argue that Korean is a language isolate, meaning it has no known relationship to other language families, and propose it might belong to a distinct family called the Koreanic family.
Korea has been influenced by various languages and cultures over time. For example, Korea adopted hanja (Chinese characters), which had a profound impact on the language. Additionally, Korea words like damanegi (onion) and jeonhwa (phone) sound are similar to Japan’s tamanegi and denwa, respectively. These are called loan words from Japanese, and they became common during the period of Japan’s imperial rule over Korea from 1910 to 1945. As I learn about the historical and cultural influences on the Korean language, I gain a deeper understanding of how Korea’s history has shaped modern Korean. Over time, languages evolve from the influences of media, society, and other cultures. In the case of Korea, the use of english loanwords have recently increased significantly, largely due to the growing influence of Western culture, particularly through its media. Linguists track and predict language changes by examining historical developments, current variations, and social factors. By analyzing trends and gathering data, they create models that help predict how languages might continue to evolve.
Portuguese belongs to the Proto-Indo-European language family. Portugal spoke Vulgar Latin for centuries before being controlled by Germanic tribes, the Moors, and then an independent kingdom. Over the last several centuries, the language has been influenced by French, African, and Indigenous languages.
Germanic Influences:
Moorish influences:
French influences:
African/Indigenous influences:
Regarding how these considerations 'enhance [my] understanding of the target language and culture,' I'll say that it increases my awe for history. How the Moorish conquest over a thousand years ago could turn the great Iberian empires into vectors for the Arabic language is fascinating. This also goes to show the cultural power of France (something we touched on in my Building Brasilia class where despite the royal court being driven off the continent by the French they still culturally admired them greatly). Culturally, I'm surprised there aren't more words from African/Indigenous languages and I wonder what that says about Portuguese rule in Brazil.
The borrowed words sometimes have a unifying theme like the arabic words which have an al- or a to start most of the words. When I’m learning new words in the future, if I ever see one that has this a- or al- start to a word, I’ll keep my eye out for an arab influence. This could help me as I could more easily devise mnemonics for words using shared etymologies.
Languages are living breathing organisms. They’re dynamic. They change over time. Linguistics can track this evolution by analyzing spoken and written language using quantitative methods like observing word frequency and usage patterns.
I share your intrigue about the lack of African and Indigenous words in Portuguese, especially given the historical context of colonization. It raises important questions about cultural representation and influence.
This is very informative and I learned a lot! I had no idea Portuguese had this many influences, and I really like how you connected the history and the Portuguese rule in Brazil in your response. I totally agree with you saying that languages are living breathing organisms! I think that is the true beauty of language, as they do evolve beyond what we give them credit for!
As I learn Korean more in-depth, I’ve realized how language forms and evolves through the constant cultural exchanges with human traveling and migration. Based on the information I found, Korean is often classified as part of the Koreanic language family, though some suggest it has connections with the Altaic languages. But despite debates on its origin, how Korean evolved uniquely especially through cultural contact with China and Japan was not debatable.
The influence of Chinese on Korean is undeniable, especially through Sino-Korean vocabulary. More than half of modern Korean words are derived from Chinese, reflecting a deep historical connection between the two cultures. This also shows in the use of Hanja, which is the Chinese characters, in the past before the creation of Hangul. Hangul’s development in the 15th century by King Sejong symbolizes Korea’s desire to create something distinct and accessible for everyone. Learning Hangul has given me a glimpse into this effort toward inclusivity and innovation.
What’s surprising to me is that there’s also the impact of the history of the Japanese colonial times in the early 20th century, which left its mark on modern Korean through loanwords, especially in governance and technology. More recently, English has greatly impacted Korean due to globalization as well. There are so many cognates between Korean and English, as well as Korean and Chinese, that it makes it easier for me to remember and connect vocabulary across these languages. Recognizing these shared roots helps me quickly relate new words to what I already know.
These layers of cultural evolution help me understand the resilience and adaptability that define Korean pop culture today. Just like its language, Korea’s pop culture has absorbed outside influences, whether from Western media or neighboring countries, while still maintaining a unique and unmistakable identity. Korea’s ability to blend these elements, while staying true to its cultural roots, is what makes K-pop, K-dramas, and K-fashion so globally appealing. For me, exploring Korean pop culture goes beyond enjoying entertainment. It’s about understanding the historical and cultural forces that shaped Korea’s influence on the world stage.
In sum, I think language naturally changes through things like human interaction, technology, and societal shifts. Linguists track these changes by analyzing written and spoken language over time, allowing them to predict how languages will continue to evolve.
Great reflection! I love how you connected language to culture and history. Your plan to read more political content and use complex sentences is a smart way to build your skills. It's interesting to see how languages evolve and how they influence pop culture. Keep up the good work!
Many linguists believe that Korean belongs to the Altaic language family that originated in North Asia. This family also includes Mongolian, Turkish, and Finnish. Another popular belief is that Korean and the Jeju language belong to their own language family: the Koreanic family. Structurally, there is a large Chinese influence on Hanja characters. Additionally, there is a significant Japanese influence on Korean words, also known as loanwords, in which words are imported from one language to another. As for sounds, there is a pretty wide Western influence on words like cognates, in which the pronunciation of words are extremely similar. Knowing that Korean has such a rich historical interaction of cultures motivates me to learn more about the origin of Korean, and in turn, enables me to conceptualize Korean in a way that can be more universally applied outside of just myself and my interpersonal interactions. I find it very interesting that as for the cultural influence, K-pop is on the rise, which is manifesting in the Korean language adopting a lot of new terms and expressions, as they reflect global trends and modern slang. I imagine that linguists track, predict, and extrapolate these changes through consistently identifying patterns that frequently present themselves within Korean itself, as well as across other languages. Additionally, linguists most likely continue to gain insights on modern usage and trends that are emerging through conducting interviews and observing the syntax and grammar that are newly developing and evolving, which ultimately enables them to perceive language attitudes and further apply this knowledge to the surrounding communities.
I agree that studying these patterns can provide valuable insights not just for linguists but also for language learners like us. The idea that Korean may belong to the Altaic family or the Koreanic family, along with its significant influences from Chinese and Japanese, highlights the rich tapestry of its history. Your connection to K-pop as a driver of new terms and expressions in modern Korean is especially interesting, reflecting how languages evolve with cultural trends.
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