DESCRIPTION OF INTERACTIVE

Linguistic Anthropology:

Humans, like other animals, use the system of language to communicate with one another. But humans have the physical ability to communicate very specifically or distinctly with each other because we (humans) have different and specific areas in our brains and skeletal anatomy (e.g., Broca’s area, Wernicke’s area, and a hyoid bone!) - that other species do not have. That means that we are hard-wired or primed to be able to learn to speak and communicate verbally (definition: in the form of words) with each other.

Linguistic anthropology is the study of the structure and diversity of the language systems that are used by humans. Linguistic anthropologists are interested in learning more about the unique and complex rules (e.g., grammar) that govern or oversee language, the basic sounds in each language, and how languages change over time. Linguistic anthropologists also study how language influences the way that we see and make sense of the world around us. You will have the opportunity to learn much more about linguistic anthropology in the next activity.

To finish up your ‘Influential Anthropologists and Their Significant Contributions’ organizer, you’ll need to research Noam Chomsky and his Language Acquisition Theory (Universal Grammar). Chomsky was an anthropologist who offered very influential theories about how language develops in humans.

Anthropologist Spotlight: Noam Chomsky

Revisit the organizer you began in the previous section of this activity (where you recorded your findings about the Leakeys, Charles Darwin, and Margaret Mead). To complete the ‘Linguistic Anthropology’ section, you will need to learn more about the significant contributions that Noam Chomsky made to the study of anthropology.

Fill in this organizer:

After you’ve completed your organizer, use your knowledge to help build a class note that summarizes your collective key findings and questions.