Which of the following statements best describes the meaning of the saying language and culture are intertwined?

A particular language points to the culture of a particular social group. Learning a language, therefore, is not only learning the alphabet, the meaning, the grammar rules and the arrangement of words, but it is also learning the behavior of the society and its cultural customs. Thus; language teaching should always contain some explicit reference to the culture, the whole from which the particular language is extracted.

The human communication process is complex, as many of our messages are transmitted through paralanguage. These auxiliary communication techniques are culture-specific, so communication with people from other societies or ethnic groups is fraught with the danger of misunderstanding, if the larger framework of culture is ignored.
Growing up in a particular society, we informally learn how to use gestures, glances, slight changes in tone or voice, and other auxiliary communication devices to alter or to emphasize what we say and do. We learn these culturally specific techniques over many years, largely by observing and imitating.

The most obvious form of paralanguage is body language, or Kinesics, which is the language of gestures, expressions, and postures. However, the meaning of words can also be altered by tone and character of voice.

Language is culture and culture is language

Language and culture have a complex, homologous relationship. Language is complexly intertwined with culture (they have evolved together, influencing one another in the process, ultimately shaping what it means to be human). In this context, A.L.Krober (1923) said, “culture, then, began when speech was present, and from then on, the enrichment of either means the further development of the other.”

If culture is a product of human interaction, cultural manifestations are acts of communication that are assumed by particular speech communities. According to Rossi Landi (1973), “the totality of the messages we exchange with one another while speaking a given language constitutes a speech community, that is, the whole society understood from the point of view of speaking.” He further explains that all children learn their language from their societies, and during the process of learning a language also learn their culture and develop their cognitive abilities.

Language communicates through culture and culture also communicates through language: Michael Silverstein proposed that the communicative force of culture works not only in representing aspects of reality, but also in connecting one context with another. That is, communication is not only the use of symbols that “stand for” beliefs, feelings, identities, or events, it is also a way of bringing beliefs, feelings, and identities into the present context.

According to the linguistic relativity principle, the way in which we think about the world is directly influenced by the language we use to talk about it. “The real world is, to a large extent, unconsciously built up on the language habits of the group. No two languages are ever so similar that they represent the same social reality. The worlds in which different societies live are distinct, not merely the same with a different label attached” (Edward Sapir, 1929). Therefore, to speak is to assume a culture, and to know a culture is like knowing a language. Language and culture are homologous mental realities. Cultural products are representations and interpretations of the world that must be communicated in order to be lived.

The problem lies in what happens when cross-cultural interactions take place, i.e., when message producer and message receiver are from different cultures. Contact among cultures is increasing and intercultural communication is imperative for anyone wanting to get along with and understand those whose beliefs and backgrounds may be vastly different from their own.

Language can mark the cultural identity, but it is also used to refer to other phenomena and refer beyond itself, especially when a particular speaker uses it to explain intentions. A particular language points to the culture of a particular social group. We can therefore presume that language learning is cultural learning, so language teaching is cultural teaching due to the interdependence of language and cultural learning.

Culture is a fuzzy set of attitudes, beliefs, behavioral conventions, basic assumptions, and values that are shared by a group of people and that influence each member’s behavior and each member’s interpretations of the meanings of other people’s behavior. And language is the medium for expressing and embodying other phenomena. It expresses the values, beliefs and meanings which members of a given society share by virtue of their socialization into it. Language also refers to objects peculiar to a given culture, as evidenced by proper names which embody those objects. Byran posited that “a loaf of bread” evokes a specific culture of objects in British usage unless a conscious effort is made to empty it of that reference and introduce a new one. So, we can conclude that language is a part of culture, and through it, we can express cultural beliefs and values, and that the specific usages of a given word are peculiar to a language and its relationship with culture.

In fact, language teaching means, inevitably, language and cultural teaching. According to Buttjest, “Culture learning is actually a key factor in being able to use and master a foreign linguistic system.” The Bellagio Declaration of the European Cultural Foundation and the International Council for Educational Development states, “For effective international cooperation, knowledge of other countries and their cultures is as important as proficiency in their languages and such knowledge is dependent on foreign language teaching.”

Learning a language is therefore learning the behavior of a given society and its cultural customs. Language is a product of the thought and behavior of a society. An individual language speaker’s effectiveness in a foreign language is directly related to his/her understanding of the culture of that language (Taylor, 1979), and it is possible to consider teaching culture through learners’ own languages, which can be used in a specific way to interpret the other culture (Ager).

Finally, we can conclude that immersion teaching accelerates the acquisition of cultural knowledge: “…the integration of language and culture learning by using the language as medium for the continuing socialization of students is a process which is not intended to imitate and replicate the socialization of native-speaker teachers but rather to develop student’s cultural competence from its existing stage, by changing it into intercultural competence” (Fengping Gao).

References Ager, D. (1993) Language Education for Intercultural Communication. U.S: Multilingual Matters LTD. Asante, M.K. (1990) Handbook of International and Intercultural Communication. SAGE Publishing’s. Brannen, N. S. (1997) “Translation Where Cultures Meet: Translation J-E.” J-E Link, Inc. Byran, M. (1989) Cultural Studies in Foreign Language Education. Multilingual Matters LTD. Byran, M and Sarries, V. E. (1989) Investigating Cultural Studies in Foreign Language Teaching. Multilingual Matters LTD. Byran, M. (1989) Cultural Studies in Foreign Language Teaching. Multilingual Matters LTD. Brannen, N. S. (1997) Communication in Japan and the United States. State University of New York Press. Clyne, M. (1994) Intercultural Communi­cation. Cambridge University Press. Dodd, H.D. (1997) Intercultural Communication. Wm.c. Brown Publisher. Hinde, R.A. (1997) Non-Verbal Communication. Cambridge University Press. Jandt, F. E. (2003) Intercultural Communi­cation: An Introduction. London: Sage Publications. Oatey, H. S. (2000) Culturally Speaking: Managing Rapport Through Talk Across Culture. London: Continuum. Samovar, L. A. (1986) Intercultural Communi­cation: A Reader. U.S: Wadsworth Publishing Company.

Fengping Gao, “Japanese: A Heavily Culture-Laden Language” Journal of Intercultural Communication, Issue 10, December 2005

Fatiha Guessabi ([email protected]) is a professor of Languages and Translation in the Literature and Humanities faculty at the Université de Béchar in Algeria.

- May 11, 2018

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The relationship between language and culture is a complex one. The two are intertwined. A particular language usually points out to a specific group of people. When you interact with another language, it means that you are also interacting with the culture that speaks the language. You cannot understand one’s culture without accessing its language directly.

When you learn a new language, it not only involves learning its alphabet, the word arrangement and the rules of grammar, but also learning about the specific society’s customs and behavior. When learning or teaching a language, it is important that the culture where the language belongs be referenced, because language is very much ingrained in the culture.

Paralanguage: The Relationship Between Language and Culture

Complex is one term that you can use to describe human communication since paralanguage is used to transmit messages. Paralanguage is specific to a culture, therefore the communication with other ethnic groups can lead to misunderstandings.

When you grow up in a specific society, it is inevitable to learn the glances, gestures and little changes in voice or tone and other communication tools to emphasize or alter what you want to do or say. These specific communication techniques of one culture are learned mostly by imitating and observing people, initially from parents and immediate relatives and later from friends and people outside the close family circle.

Body language, which is also known as kinesics, is the most obvious type of paralanguage. These are the postures, expressions and gestures used as non-verbal language. However, it is likewise possible to alter the meaning of various words by changing the character or tone of the voice.

Homologous Relationship Between Language and Culture

The phrase, language is culture and culture is language is often mentioned when language and culture are discussed. It’s because the two have a homologous although complex relationship. Language and culture developed together and influenced each other as they evolved. Using this context, Alfred L. Krober, a cultural anthropologist from the United States said that culture started when speech was available, and from that beginning, the enrichment of either one led the other to develop further.

If culture is a consequence of the interactions of humans, the acts of communication are their cultural manifestations within a specific community. Ferruccio Rossi-Landi, a philosopher from Italy whose work focused on philosophy, semiotics and linguistics said that a speech community is made up of all the messages that were exchanged with one another using a given language, which is understood by the entire society. Rossi-Landi further added that young children learn their language and culture from the society they were born in. In the process of learning, they develop their cognitive abilities as well.

According to Professor Michael Silverstein, who teaches psychology, linguistics and anthropology at the University of Chicago, culture’s communicative pressure represents aspects of reality as well as connects different contexts. It means that the use of symbols that represent events, identities, feelings and beliefs is also the method of bringing these things into the current context.

Influencing the Way People Think

The principle of linguistic relativity tells us that language directly influences the way people view the world. Anthropologist-linguist Edward Sapir of the United States said that the language habits of specific groups of people built the real world. He further added that no two languages are similar in such a way that they would represent one society. The world for each society is different. In analysis, this means that speaking a language means that the person is assuming a culture. Knowing another culture, based on this principle, is knowing its particular language. And we need communication to highlight interpretations and representations of that world. This is why the relationship between language and culture is essential when learning any new language.

Inter-Cultural Interactions

What is likely to happen if there is interaction between two cultures? In today’s scenario, inter-cultural interactions are very common. Communication is necessary for any person who wants to understand and get along with people whose background and beliefs are greatly dissimilar from their own.

It is easy to use language to mark cultural identity. But we  also use language to describe processes and developments, like explain intentions of a specific speaker. Specific languages refer to particular cultural groups.

Values, basic assumptions, behavioral conventions, beliefs and attitudes shared by an ethnic group make up what we call culture. This set of attributes influences the behavior of the individual members of the group and their interpretations of the meanings of the behavior displayed by each member.

It is through  language that we express the attributes of culture. We also use language to point out unique objects in our cultures.

All this means that learning and teaching another language is essential for international communication and cooperation. The knowledge of other languages facilitates knowledge of other countries and the specific cultures of each one. Again, this is why the relationship between language and culture is critically important.

Transmission of Culture and Language

Language is learned, which means it can be culturally transmitted. Pre-school children take on their first language from their exposure to random words they encounter in and out of their homes. When they reach school age, they learn their first language or another language. If it is the first language, the children are taught writing and reading, the correct ways to construct sentences and how to use formal grammar. However, the child gained initial knowledge about the essential structure and vocabulary of the first language before the child started school.

Conversely, culture is transmitted in a large part, by language, through teaching. Language is the reason why humans have histories that animals do not have. In the study of animal behavior through the course of history, alterations to their behavior were the result of the intervention of humans through domestication and other types of interference.

The culture of humans on the other hand is as different as the world’s languages. They are likely to change over time. In industrialized countries, the changes in the language are more rapid.

Language Shapes Culture

Oral instruction, and not imitation, is how we learn culture. There could be some imitation, if the learner is still young. With language, we have a better way to understand methods of social control, products, techniques and skills. Spoken language offers a vast quantity of usable information for the community. This helps to quicken new skill acquisition and the techniques to adapt to new environments or altered circumstances.

The advent of writing increased the process of culture dissemination. Diffusing information became much easier thanks to the permanent state of writing. And thanks to the invention of printing and increase in literacy, this process continues to evolve and speed up.

Modern techniques for fast communication transmission across the globe through  broadcasting and the presence of translation services around the world help make usable knowledge to be accessible to people anywhere in the world. Thus, the world benefits from the fast transference, availability and exchange of social, political, technological and scientific knowledge.

Assimilation and Social Differentiation, and Language

Through time, variations appeared within a language. Transmission of a language is self-perpetuating unless there is deliberate interference. However, it became important for humans to improve their social hierarchies and social status to advance personally. It’s safe to say that many people cultivate their dialect phonologically, grammatically, and lexically to fit into new communities.

An example of this phenomenon is the insistence of immigrants from Europe to speak American English when they decided to move to the United States. It is because they realized that speaking American English is the sign of acceptance in their new home country. Unexpectedly, third generation immigrants now want to get in touch with the language of their ancestors.

Cultural and Linguistic Diversity

Culture unifies a community although there is diversity within that unity. For example, the older generation’s speech might differ from the speech younger people use. Also, different groups speak different languages. This is evident in the differences present in a professor’s speech compare to a young admin staff member at the university. People could use a different form of the same language in online forums, which would vastly differ from the language used by media and classically trained individuals.

We use language in different ways. Linguistic varieties fall into geographical, social, and functional subclasses. These factors lead to the formation of dialects that add diversity to the language.

At Day Translations, Inc., our translators are not only linguistic experts. Because they are native speakers, each of them understands their own culture like the backs of their hands. They inherently understand the nuances of their language as well as the languages they work with. They apply their deep cultural knowledge to the translation projects they handle because they have a deep understanding of the relationship between language and culture. Get in touch with our translators day or night, wherever you are. We are open 24/7, all days of the year, to provide you with professional translation service with the highest level of quality and accuracy. For an instant translation quote, send us an email at Contact us or call us at 1-800-969-6853.

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