Language and evolution?

Question

Languages are all structured differently, and are fundamental to how we think. So is there an advantage to being a native speaker of one language over another.

Could language make it easier for a group of people to become more advanced? For example there are still groups of people living in the "stone age" in remote parts of the world. Is it possible that their language is partly responible? I'm not saying it's the only factor.

Has any research been done? Can language determine IQ?

If so which language is the "best"?

Languages are structured differently. For example in German the verb, and noun in a sentance must be in a certain place. It's very structured. Where as English is a lot more freesytle. That's why it's considered hard to learn.

Answer 1

I don't think one language can determine IQ, Our Intelligent grows as we experience more and more complex problems as for people living in a "stone age" They just simply don't encounter enough complex problems as they metropolitan counterparts, I'm not sure any research been done regarding this. Originally, IQ was calculated with the formula 100X(Mental age/Chronological age) A 10-year-old who scored as high as the average 13-year-old, for example, would have an IQ of 130 (100*13/10). The average IQ scores for many populations were rising rapidly during the 20th century: a phenomenon called the Flynn effect. It is not known whether these changes in scores reflect real changes in intellectual abilities

Answer 2

I remember hearing recently that a Russian like to write in English because it was impossible to express certain things in Russian since it involved nuances which couldn't be written down. Since writting is so important in the genearl operation of the society, I would think that a flexible language would be very imporatant. Some languages would have a hard time adapting to modern living in my opinion. I think it might be an advantage for some but only a small one. English may be best since it the universal language and has so many words that can express more.

Answer 3

Well that's stupid. Just because a people don't use the same technology as you they shouldn't be considered primitive. At least they have a culture rather then the globalized commercialized one we live in.

Language can't possibly determine IQ. Languages aren't all structurally different. They can be broken down into simple 4 structural construction. There's the basic Subject Verb Object, SOV, OSV, and OVS. This doesn't affect how a person or people become advanced.

Answer 4

Actually not every language can express every idea. Some languages only have 2 words for color. Some have 3 or 4. Some have more.
So if I were a member of a tribe that had no words for color and I was curious about colors around me, would I really have a sense of them? Would it be harder for me to 'advance" in my studies of color? I'd have to say yes.

But them, perhaps I could just make my own words and teach them to others. Languages create words all the time.

Answer 5

Most languages still convey the same things. they posses emotion, and they have the same building blocks to the language. Therefor, I would assume they all mostly promote the same types of brain development. But, if there was languages that were much more basic then others, I would think it would be a result of the basic population. So the language imitates the population, not the other way around.

Answer 6

hej do, ello, hello, hola

there are latin based languages like spanish or french, greek, and cyrillic alphabets, arabic and persian, countless dialects abound. chinese, japanese, korean, inuit and aleut. the strangest expanse of languages might be the finno-eugric group. meaning finnish is related to indian dialects. how might that have happened ?

the unstrange thing is that english replaced french as the language of diplomacy, because of economic might.

far too easy methinks to imagine any language so primitive to have not met the needs of it's speakers. sadly, in most cultures, thinking and literature has often been controlled / translated by despots and the tyrany of religions.

unbridled education / science seems to me to have helped most civilizations advance and their languages developed accordingly.

i suspect the lack of the need for a more advanced science or language in much of the " primitive " world ultimately and easily subjected them to television and nike.

of course these days it is to your best advantage to speak a smattering of english, however spanish is likewise a language of great proportion. as is chinese, japanese, hindi, urdu, and many others.

the beauty of each language seems to be best found in it's subtleties. some nearly unspoken, others assumed.

humans the world over have imagined all sorts of gods, demons and hobgoblins. their languages reflect those influences.

and in most instances written language was controlled by a patriachal system which avowed it's allegiance to some imagined god, or leathal monarchy.

if you are seriously interested in language and it's evolution
go to the british museum in london. the oriental archives are particularly interesting.

much research has been done the world over and continues.

IQ may or may not be a universally applicable standard because languages and thoughts are so diverse.

certainly linguish or spanglish or chinglish are most useful.

sorry to babble on so

Answer 7

My theory is that language is evolving because people keep making language easier to speak. 400 years ago in Shakespearean times the English language was much more difficult to speak but now people have have shortened lots of words and changed the pronunciation making the language easier to speak and learn.

Answer 8

That language is structured differently and is fundamental to how we think are both assumptions that have not been well supported empirically. Read Chomsky and Pinker; our foremost language experts.

Answer 9

In short, no. All language is capable of expressing the same level of communication that is relevant for their society. I know this because Noam Chomsky says so.

There is no language that is better or more advanced than others.

Answer 10

In general, leaps in evolution are stimulated by climate change. Language allows us to attempt to understand each other so we have more cultural exchanges with each other, but language does not cause mutation.