Language & Vocabulary Acquisition
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Language acquisition and vocabulary acquisition are governed by a number of factors. The development of vocabulary is also governed by factors in culture and psychology, and borrowing words form other languages depends on the proximity of the two language groups, the cogency of the new term, and other factors that have been studied and about which theorists have speculated. Language is a vital part of human life, and hundreds of different languages are in use in the world today. Yet much is not known about the origin of language, the way languages have developed, the relationships among certain languages, and even the manner of acquisition of language. Linguists have developed the idea of different families of language to show how certain existing languages developed from an earlier root, though whether all languages can at some point be traced back to a single Ur-language remains a controversial subject. Words are being borrowed from other languages without perhaps considering why certain words are borrowed and why borrowing does not take place with other words, a process that has been continuing throughout human history. Certain of these factors are involved in any sort of language acquisition or vocabulary building. Snow and Shapira look at the question of why some second-language learners achieve greater proficiency than others under the same conditions and find that this has puzzled researcher for many years, with many explanations. They find that much of the e
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omprehensible input in a low-anxiety situation, when the learner is presented with interesting messages, and when the learner understands these messages:
Comprehensible input has been the last resort of the language teaching profession: We have tried nearly every other possibility--grammar teaching, dialogue memorization, pattern drills, and expensive and awkward teaching machines. None of these approaches attempts to provide the essential ingredient--comprehensible input (10-11).
Languages affect one another in a number of ways; even without intentional learning, such as when a student tries to learn a second language, languages in close proximity affect one another:
The necessities of intercourse bring the speakers of one language into direct or indirect contact with those of neighboring or culturally dominant languages . . . Whatever the degree or nature of contact between neighboring peoples, it is generally sufficient to lead to some kind of linguistic influencing (Sapir 192).
Languages considered at the center of a culture are more likely to exert an appreciable influence on other languages in the region than to be influenced by them, but borrowing does take place (Sapir 192-193).
The study of the borrowing of words
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1397
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)
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