Name: 什麼是語言？| 語言如何運作 (What is Language? | How Language Works)
Uploaded: 2025-09-26T04:54:05.000Z
Duration: 8 min 59 s

程度副詞

Right now, just by listening to me, you're taking part in one of humanity's biggest miracles, the ability to use language.

現在，只要你聽我說話，你就在參與人類最大的奇蹟之一--使用語言的能力。

You use it every day, but how much do you really know about how it works?

您每天都在使用它，但您真正瞭解它的工作原理嗎？

Welcome to Mango's foundational series, How Language Works, where we break down everything you need to know about this amazing, intricate, and at times totally bizarre thing that we call language.

歡迎來到芒果網的基礎系列《語言是如何工作的》，在這裡，我們將為您解析關於語言這一神奇、複雜、有時甚至是完全怪異的事物所需要了解的一切。

The story of language is quite a fascinating one, so where else to start but at the very beginning?

語言的故事非常精彩，除了從頭開始，還能從哪裡說起呢？

In this video, we're talking about what language is and why it matters.

在本視頻中，我們將討論什麼是語言以及語言為何重要。

Among other things, you'll come to understand why there isn't one perfect definition for language, you'll discover what we call the people who study language, and you'll learn that there's more to language than just what we say.

除其他事項外，您將瞭解為什麼語言沒有一個完美的定義，您將發現我們如何稱呼研究語言的人，您還將瞭解語言不僅僅是我們所說的。

My hope is that you'll leave today's video thinking about language in new and exciting ways.

我希望您在觀看今天的視頻時，能以全新的方式思考語言。

I love language so much that I got a PhD in it, and now the best part is I get to share all of the information about how language works with you.

我如此熱愛語言，以至於獲得了語言學博士學位，而現在最棒的是，我可以與你們分享關於語言如何運作的所有資訊。

The truth is, language is so much a part of our day-to-day that we tend to take it for  For example, when you listen to someone speaking in your native language, it doesn't take much mental effort to understand them, right?

例如，當你聽別人用你的母語說話時，並不需要花費太多的心思就能聽懂，對嗎？

Hearing our native language feels kind of effortless.

It's like tasting coffee or seeing colors.

就像品嚐咖啡或看到顏色一樣。

It's just something that you understand and can do automatically, almost like you're on autopilot.

這只是一些你能理解並自動去做的事情，就像你在自動駕駛一樣。

But if you've ever studied a foreign language as an adult, then you know all too well just how complex language systems actually are under the hood.

但是，如果你在成年後學習過外語，那麼你就會非常清楚語言系統在引擎蓋下究竟有多複雜。

When you're learning a language, you're learning hundreds of thousands of words and a quite detailed list of nuanced grammatical patterns and word order rules.

當你學習一門語言時，你要學習成千上萬的單詞，以及相當詳細的文法模式和詞序規則。

You're also learning a sound system, gestural patterns, conventionalized facial expressions, hand configurations if you're learning a sign language, and discourse norms, all of which can vary from community to community, country to country.

你還要學習聲音系統、手勢模式、約定俗成的面部表情、手型（如果你學習的是手語）以及話語規範，所有這些都會因社區、國家而異。

And it's honestly amazing that we can understand each other at all.

老實說，我們能互相理解真是不可思議。

Now imagine for a moment your life, but without language.

現在想象一下你的生活，但沒有語言。

Collect your thoughts, take collective action, communicate an idea, work.

集思廣益，集體行動，交流想法，開展工作。

Language is so tied up with who we are and how we navigate the world.

語言與我們的身份以及我們駕馭世界的方式息息相關。

Every sentence you utter, each word you use, and how you say it says something about who you are and where you come from, even the language that you choose to speak in.

你說的每一句話，你用的每一個詞，以及你說話的方式，都說明了你是誰，你來自哪裡，甚至你選擇的語言。

And when it comes to language, there is so much to learn and unpack.

說到語言，有太多東西需要學習和解讀。

So where do you go to learn about language?

那麼，你該去哪裡學習語言呢？

Well, beyond watching this series, the answer lies beyond old, dusty dictionaries and grimmer books.

那麼，除了觀看這部系列劇之外，答案就在塵封的舊字典和灰暗的書本之外。

Linguistics is the name for the fascinating field of study dedicated to human language.

語言學是專門研究人類語言的迷人領域的名稱。

And the people who study linguistics are called linguists.

研究語言學的人被稱為語言學家。

Linguistics is a relatively young field of study, and it's very interdisciplinary in nature.

語言學是一個相對年輕的研究領域，而且具有很強的跨學科性質。

And by that, I mean that there's a lot of overlap between linguistics and other fields of study.

我的意思是，語言學與其他研究領域有很多重疊之處。

They are made up of speech waves, which have acoustic properties.

它們由具有聲學特性的語音波組成。

So there's a good degree of overlap between linguistics and acoustical engineering.

是以，語言學和聲學工程之間有很大程度的重疊。

Additionally, language is processed in the brain.

此外，語言是在大腦中處理的。

So there's a lot of interesting overlap between linguistics and fields like neuroscience, psychology, and cognitive science.

是以，語言學與神經科學、心理學和認知科學等領域之間有很多有趣的重疊。

Other sister fields to linguistics include anthropology, sociology, education, and computer science.

語言學的其他姊妹學科包括人類學、社會學、教育學和計算機科學。

We'll dive into the main building blocks of language in our future videos.

我們將在今後的視頻中深入探討語言的主要組成部分。

But for now, just sit back, relax, and know that there's a lot of cool ways that language intertwines with other fields of research.

但現在，你只需坐下來，放鬆一下，並知道語言與其他研究領域有很多很酷的交織方式。

What we know so far is that there is a field of study dedicated to human languages, and it's called linguistics.

我們目前知道的是，有一門專門研究人類語言的學科，叫做語言學。

But what's the actual definition of language?

Well, interestingly enough, even linguists can't all agree on one definition for language.

有趣的是，即使是語言學家也無法就語言的定義達成一致。

Language is such a pervasive tool and phenomenon that it's hard to come up with one clear and simple definition that captures all aspects of it.

語言是一種無處不在的工具和現象，很難有一個簡單明瞭的定義來概括它的方方面面。

While there doesn't exist one perfect definition for language, there are some things that you should know.

雖然語言並不存在一個完美的定義，但有些事情你還是應該知道的。

And lucky for you, I have summed them up into four simple points.

幸運的是，我把它們歸納為簡單的四點。

Okay, point number one, this is perhaps one of the most important.

好吧，第一點，這也許是最重要的一點。

Language is about more than just communicating to others.

This is one of the most common misconceptions about language.

這是關於語言最常見的誤解之一。

甚至連 Merriam-Webster 都搞錯了。

Their current definition for language is the system of words or signs that people use to express thoughts and feelings to each other.

他們目前對語言的定義是：人們用來相互表達思想和情感的文字或符號系統。

Now, is it true that all languages incorporate words?

那麼，是否所有語言都包含文字呢？

Is it true that we use language to express our thoughts and feelings to one another?

我們用語言來表達彼此的思想和情感，這是真的嗎？

It's also a powerful piece of human cognition that allows us to organize our inner thoughts.

它也是人類認知的一個重要部分，能讓我們組織內心的想法。

And it also importantly serves as a vehicle for expressing our personal identities and group affiliations.

更重要的是，它還是我們表達個人身份和群體歸屬的載體。

I mean, just think about how much of your inner thought in your mind relies on language or why you change the way that you speak when hanging out with different groups of people.

我的意思是，想想你內心的想法在多大程度上依賴於語言，或者為什麼當你和不同的人在一起時，你會改變說話的方式。

When we begin to look at language as more than just a means of communication, we start to realize that it paints a much bigger picture.

當我們開始把語言看作不僅僅是一種交流手段時，我們就會開始意識到它所描繪的圖景要大得多。

We start to see that it's not just about what we say, but how we say it.

我們開始意識到，這不僅與我們說什麼有關，還與我們如何說有關。

And also what we use language for in the first place, which brings us to number two, pinning down a definition for language requires making an important distinction between capital L language and lowercase L language.

此外，我們使用語言的初衷是什麼，這就引出了第二點，為語言下定義需要對大寫語言和小寫語言做出重要區分。

Capital L language is the overall phenomenon of human language.

大寫 L 語言是人類語言的總體現象。

If I say with the exception of developmental disorders, all humans acquire language, generic language, lowercase language, on the other hand, represents the different instantiations of human languages.

如果我說除了發育障礙之外，所有人類都能獲得語言，那麼通用語言、小寫語言則代表了人類語言的不同實例。

For example, there are 7,000 different languages in the world, or my native language is English.

例如，世界上有 7000 種不同的語言，而我的母語是英語。

Both of these would be examples of lowercase language, uppercase language, lowercase language, two different things.

這兩種語言都是小寫語言的例子，大寫語言和小寫語言是兩種不同的語言。

Moving on to number three, the defining characteristic of language is that symbols are used to make meaning.

第三，語言的決定性特徵是使用符號來表達意義。

In other words, we should think of language as a code, and in order to use and decipher the code for a given language, you need to learn how specific symbols map to meaning.

換句話說，我們應該將語言視為一種代碼，而為了使用和破譯特定語言的代碼，你需要學習特定符號如何映射意義。

And side note here, when I say symbols, I'm not referring just to letters in the alphabet, but I'm referring to all the implementations of linguistic communication.

順便說一句，我說的符號並不僅僅指字母表中的字母，而是指語言交流的所有實現方式。

So that includes things like speech, writing, hand signs, gestures, facial expressions, body language, braille, the mental representations of language, but I digress.

是以，這包括語言、書寫、手勢、手勢、面部表情、肢體語言、盲文、語言的心理表徵等，但我想說的是。

The point is, all of the symbols that we rely on to make meaning are implementations of language, uppercase language.

問題是，我們賴以表達意義的所有符號都是語言（大寫語言）的實現。

Point number four, language is an inherently dynamic system, one that changes over time and place.

第四點，語言本身就是一個動態系統，會隨著時間和地點的變化而變化。

Just as culture changes, so does our language.

文化在變，我們的語言也在變。

Now it might be comforting to some people to think of language as a static thing that stays the same, but it's never been that way and it never will be.

現在，有些人認為語言是一種一成不變的東西，這可能會讓他們感到欣慰，但語言從來都不是這樣，也永遠不會是這樣。

The truth is, old languages die out, new ways of speaking will emerge, and as we know, every technological or cultural innovation will require the addition of a new word into our vocabulary system.

事實上，舊的語言會消亡，新的說話方式會出現，正如我們所知，每一次技術或文化創新都需要在我們的詞彙系統中增加一個新詞。

Even the accents that we carry today will change slightly with the next generation.

即使是我們今天的口音，也會隨著下一代而略有改變。

So when it comes to language, change is the only constant.

是以，說到語言，變化是唯一不變的。

這就是語言如此令人興奮的原因。

Well there you have it, that's everything you need to know about the foundations of  And believe me, we just scratched the surface.

好了，這就是你需要知道的關於《蝙蝠俠前傳》基礎的一切，相信我，我們只是觸及了皮毛。

There's so much exciting stuff for us to explore when it comes to language and linguistics, like what's the origin of human language?

在語言和語言學方面，有太多令人興奮的東西值得我們探索，比如人類語言的起源是什麼？

How is it that kids seem to learn languages so effortlessly?

為什麼孩子們學習語言似乎毫不費力？

Where does grammar come from and who made the rules?

文法從何而來，誰制定了規則？

And how do bilinguals keep their languages separate?

雙語者又是如何將自己的語言分開的呢？

其他物種也像我們一樣使用語言嗎？

Why can we be superstitious but not just a little stitious?

為什麼我們可以迷信，但不能只是有點迷信？

Well we'll get to all of those questions and more in this series of Adventures in Language.

在 "語言歷險記 "系列中，我們將討論所有這些問題以及更多問題。