The Sapir

The Sapir- Whorf hypothesis:
The Sapir-Whorf theory is named after the American linguists Edward Sapir and his student
Benjamin Lee Whorf. First advanced by Edward Sapir in1929 and subsequently developed by
Benjamin Whorf, that the structure of a language determines a native speaker’s perception and
categorization of experience.
Edward Sapir (1929):

Human beings do not live in the soceity alone. Language of the society predispose
(influence)certain choices of interpretation about how we view the world.
Benjamin Whorf (1930s):

We dissect (analyze) nature along lines laid down by our native languages. We categorise objects in
the scheme laid by the language and if we do not subscribe to these classification we cannot talk or
communicate.
Statement:
According to Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, all levels of thinking are dependent on language.
Language determines thought.
Versions of Sapir- Whorf hypothesis:

Linguistic determinism:
The language we use to some extent determines the way in which we view and think about the
world around us.
 It is the idea that language and its structures limit and determine human knowledge or
thought.
 They had great difficulty in comprehending the difference between , say, four and five ,
which was considered to be a sign that because their language do not include the lexical
item for four and five , their mind was not able to make the difference .
Linguistic relativity:
People who speak different languages perceive and think about the world quite differently from
one another relative to their linguistic background.
 Different languages view the world differently.

 In other words, people who speak different languages perceive and
think about the world quite differently from one another.
 Accordingly the mental universe of an English speaker may be
different from that of a Chinese speaker because they happen to speak
different languages
Example:
 The Aboriginal Australian people who do not have the relative directions we have
such bas left, right , forward, backwards, up and down. They use words like east,
west, or south in order to indicate the direction.
 Take ‘rainbow’ as an example: perception of colors come from color-naming
influence of the language. All languages do not divide the colors into the same
number of basic categories. Hence a speaker of a language will not describe the
rainbow in the same way as English speakers do.
 People who don't have different words for blue and green can't distinguish them.
Arguments against Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis:

Whorf claimed (1940):
if, between two different languages, one has many words for closely related objects while
other has relatively limited vocabulary, users of L1 should have noted perceptually
characteristics of object.
As for snow Eskimo language has countless words describing shape, location and form and
English language relatively less word.
BUT this doesn’t prove English speaking people do not have the ability to distinguish
characteristics. The speakers of one language with only one lexicalized word for a specific concept such
as “snow” do not mean that they are poorer in distinguishing between different kinds of snow than the
speakers of a language with many different lexicalized words for “snow”.
Disadvantages of Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis:

Sapir-Whorf hypothesis asserts that each language has a unique system and thus cross-cultural
undertanding is impossible.
BUT we have:
 Perceptional universals (different languages may express the same thought)
 Cultural universal (each language has taboos, slang)
 Features to distinguish family and relatives (by seniority, biological bond or sex)
 Languages may exhibit a shared attitude towards one thing (respect for elderly,
objects of fear,)
Language and World views:
A worldview refers to a perosn’s overall perspective on the world and their place in it. İt includes
their beleifs , attitude , values and assumptions about reality, knowledge and ethics.
Language is only the medium by which world views are expressed. The language system is not
inherently related to world views. The speakers with the same native language do not necessarily
possess the same world views, while the speakers of different languages may share the same
world views. If language determines the world view there would be NO class conscious because
every member of the society would view the world same and think by the same thinking patterns.
Language plays an significant role in shaping a person’s worldview. The language we speak can
influence the way we think and perceive the world around us. For example, different languages
have different words to describe emotions and concepts, and this can effect how people
understand and express these ideas. İn short , a person’s worldview and language are
interconnected , and they influence eachother. Language can shape our perceptions and beliefs
and our worldview can affect the way we use language .

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The Sapir- Whorf hypothesis:

Edward Sapir (1929):

Benjamin Whorf (1930s):

Versions of Sapir- Whorf hypothesis:

 Different languages view the world differently.

Arguments against Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis:

Disadvantages of Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis:

 Perceptional universals (different languages may express the same thought)

 Cultural universal (each language has taboos, slang)

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