Learning Journal #6 (SDLC 105)

[Carson Watlington]

Learning Journal #6: Reflect on how knowing a language's history can help you learn the language.Language evolves in order to meet the demands of that language’s people and culture, so knowing a language’s history would better inform me about why the language is the way it is today. Going back to a the origins of a language and identifying its language group tells what other languages it’s similar to, and those languages could better inform you about the language you’re trying to study. Learning more about major historical influences helps explain why certain things or anomalies exist in the language. For example, knowing about the strong influence China has had over Korean for centuries explains why kanja was used before the invention of the Korean writing system, and why kanja is still sometimes used today. Studying other international interactions can give more insight into vocabulary that does not have Korean origin, such as loan words taken from Japanese, English, etc. and then incorporated into the modern Korean language. All in all, understanding how a language came to be gives context to the rules and vocabulary that is associated with the language being studied.