戴炜栋何兆熊《简明语言学教程》配套笔记.docVIP

Chapter 1 What is language? [A] The origins of language Some speculations of the origins of language: ① The divine source The basic hypothesis: if infants were allowed to grow up without hearing any language, then they would spontaneously begin using the original god-given language. Actually, children living without access to human speech in their early years grow up with no language at all. ② The natural-sound source The bow-wow theory: the suggestion is that primitive words could have been imitations of the natural sounds which early men and women heard around them. The “Yo-heave-ho” theory