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TODAY’S EPISODE:
Language:
A powerful human tool
In today’s article we’ll talk about Language, a powerful tool for communication and information transmission. According to a survey by Ethnologue carried out in 2021, there are 7,139 languages in the world. The African and Asian continents dominate 62% of the most common languages around the world. However, 3,018 languages (42%) are threatened with extinction. A language becomes extinct when the last fluent speaker of that language dies. The stability and continuity of a language is guaranteed when more than 50% of new speakers, especially children, learn to use a certain language.
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Human Language
Language gives us the ability to communicate. Language is a complex system of meaning, grammar, body language, sounds, and in some cases, writing.
Human language, recognized as a communication system, is different and much more complex than any other communication system established among other species. The human communication system is based on a diversified system of rules that are based on symbols for the generation of meanings, resulting in an indefinite number of possible innovative expressions from a finite number of elements. From this comes the different ways of saying the same thing, depending on the context, the situation, the person, the moment, among other factors.
Not even in your native language is it possible to know absolutely all forms of expression and vocabulary that constitute it, and this extends to the new language in which you are learning. This variety of forms of expression and diverse communication skills will only emerge with time, with practice and with the development of different cognitive skills.
Language and Culture
Language has become something directly linked to human culture. While other animals have the ability to communicate in limited forms (like bees telling other bees where to find nectar), their communication is extremely limited. They aren’t able to talk about their feelings, or about where honey used to be three days ago. Human communication is unique in that way. Human language has social and cultural uses and applications, such as the expression of identity, social stratification, maintenance of unity in a community, and entertainment.
All languages have a process called semiosis, meaning the language connects a sign to a certain meaning. Both spoken and sign languages contain the same principle of creating a linguistic system that governs how sounds or visual symbols are articulated to form sequences known as words or morphemes.
Furthermore, languages have a syntactic system that governs the way in which words and morphemes are used in order to form standardized sentences and utterances, called grammar.
Written languages use visual symbols as a way to represent the sounds of spoken languages, also presenting syntactic rules that govern the production of meaning from the sequences of words. However, even with this standardization, languages evolve and diversify over time. Languages are understood in context, and have an essentially variable reality. In this way, the notion of right and wrong originates in society, not in the structure of the language.
The history of the evolution of languages can be reconstructed from comparisons of modern languages. A group of languages that descend from a common ancestor is known as a language family.
The languages that are most spoken in the world today belong to the Indo-European family, which includes languages such as English, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian and Hindi; the Sino-Tibetan languages, which include Chinese, Mandarin, Cantonese, and many others; the Semitic languages, which include Arabic, Amharic, and Hebrew; and the Bantu languages, which include Swahili, Zulu, Shona, and hundreds of other languages spoken across Africa.
We hope you learned a lot of new information from this article! If you have any questions or curiosity, let us know!
So now that you’ve learned more tips about the language you’re studying, it’s time to improve your English!
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Sources:
https://www.ethnologue.com/guides/how-many-languages
https://www.yspanuslanguages.com/post/quantos-idiomas-existem-mundo
https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linguagem#cite_note-HOUAISS_lingua-3
Until next time, Happy Learning!
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Jhessika Nascimento
Director of International Partnerships
Jhessika Nascimento is the Director of International Partnerships for Study With Andrea and lives in Brasilia, Brazil.
Jhessika is a bilingual teacher of English and Portuguese, studying for a Master's Degree in Strategic Management in Information Technologies at the Universidad Internacional Iberoamericana.
Graduation in Letters - Portuguese and English.
Postgraduate in Teaching in Higher Education.
Postgraduate in Risk Management and Cybersecurity.
Postgraduate Executive MBA in Process Management BPM-CBOK.
Postgraduate in Translation and Proofreading of Texts in English.
The following is a TOEFL Reading practice test to help you prepare for the Reading section of the TOEFL test.
Instructions: Read the sample passage below and then answer the questions that follow.
TOEFL Reading Practice Passage
Gorillas are ground-dwelling, predominantly herbivorous apes that inhabit the forest of central Sub-Saharan Africa. The genus Gorilla is divided into two species: the eastern gorillas and the western gorillas (both critically endangered), and either four or five subspecies. They are the largest living primates. The DNA of gorillas is highly similar to that of humans, from 95 to 99% depending on what is included, and they are the next closest living relatives to humans after the chimpanzees and bonobos.
Gorillas' natural habitats cover tropical or subtropical forest in Sub-Saharan Africa. Although their range covers a small percentage of Sub-Saharan Africa, gorillas cover a wide range of elevations. The mountain gorilla inhabits the Albertine Rift montane cloud forests of the Virunga Volcanoes, ranging in altitude from 2,200 to 4,300 metres (7,200 to 14,100 ft). Lowland gorillas live in dense forests and lowland swamps and marshes as low as sea level, with western lowland gorillas living in Central West African countries and eastern lowland gorillas living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo near its border with Rwanda.
(#1) Gorillas move around by knuckle-walking, although they sometimes walk upright for short distances, typically while carrying food or in defensive situations. (#2) A 2018 study investigating the hand posture of 77 mountain gorillas at Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (8% of the population) found that knuckle walking was done only 60% of the time, and they also supported their weight on their fists, the backs of their hands/feet, and on their palms/soles (with the digits flexed). (#3) Studies of gorilla handedness have yielded varying results, with some arguing for no preference for either hand, and others right-hand dominance for the general population. (#4)
The eastern gorilla is more darkly colored than the western gorilla, with the mountain gorilla being the darkest of all. The mountain gorilla also has the thickest hair. The western lowland gorilla can be brown or grayish with a reddish forehead. In addition, gorillas that live in lowland forest are more slender and agile than the more bulky mountain gorillas. The eastern gorilla also has a longer face and broader chest than the western gorilla. Like humans, gorillas have individual fingerprints. Their eye color is dark brown, framed by a black ring around the iris. Gorilla facial structure is described as mandibular prognathism, that is, the mandible protrudes farther out than the maxilla. Adult males also have a prominent sagittal crest.
A gorilla's lifespan is normally between 35 and 40 years, although zoo gorillas may live for 50 years or more. Colo, a female western gorilla at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, was the oldest known gorilla at 60 years of age when she died on 17 January 2017.
Questions
1. According to the passage, gorillas can live in
a. a variety of altitudes.
b. several different countries in Africa.
c. thick forests.
d. lowland forests only.
2. All of the following is true about gorillas EXCEPT
a. they primarily eat smaller animals.
b. they live in a forest habitat.
c. their genetics are similar to humans.
d. their diet consists of vegetation.
3. Look at the word predominantly in paragraph 1. The word predominantly in this passage refers to
a. impulsively
b. unfortunately
c. mainly
d. lastly
4. Look at the word inhabits in paragraph 2. The word inhabits in this passage refers to
a. lives in
b. protects
c. goes
d. works
5. The author implies that
a. most gorillas prefer using their left hand over their right.
b. gorillas rarely walk on their knuckles.
c. gorillas regularly walk upright for long distances.
d. studies haven't solidly proven which hand gorillas prefer using.
6. Why does the writer mention that the eastern gorilla also has a longer face and broader chest than the western gorilla?
a. To validate the importance a broad chest in western gorillas
b. To define the meaning of "broad"
c. To highlight a physical difference between types of gorillas
d. To demonstrate that most gorillas are identical in physical build
7. Which of the following statements is true for BOTH eastern and western gorillas.
a. Both eastern and western gorrilas are brown with red foreheads.
b. Both eastern and western gorrilas have unique fingerprints.
c. Both eastern and western gorrilas have thin hair.
d. Both eastern and western gorrilas have light brown eyes.
8. In Paragraph 3, look at the four numbers (#1, #2, #3, #4) that indicate where the following sentence would be added to the passage.
Such a range of hand postures was previously thought to have been used by only orangutans.
Where would the sentence best fit?
(View all the correct answers below.)
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Answers: 1. d 2. a 3. c 4. a 5. d 6. c 7. b 8. #3
Click on one of the following links to start speaking clearer English!
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2) free mini-course "punctuation mistakes to avoid"
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4) English Vocabulary - Audio Files & PDF - TOEFL & IELTS
About Andrea
Andrea Giordano is the founder of StudyWithAndrea.com and has taught more than 1,000,000 students from 180 countries. Andrea holds a Master of Education (TESOL) from Shenandoah University, and is the former Executive Director of TESOL and ESL programs at Campbellsville University. Andrea is a proven leader in online English teaching and is driven by her passion to help you speak English clearly.
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