Question 1

The lexicon of a language is

Accepted Answer

A)  a dictionary containing all of its morphemes and their meanings. 
B)  its degree of complexity. 
C)  the set of rules that govern the written but not spoken language. 
D)  its symbolic and poetic value. 
E)  the range of speech sounds. 
A)  a dictionary containing all of its morphemes and their meanings. 
B)  its degree of complexity. 
C)  the set of rules that govern the written but not spoken language. 
D)  its symbolic and poetic value. 
E)  the range of speech sounds.

Question 2

According to some estimates,the world's linguistic diversity has been cut in half in the past 500 years,and half the remaining languages are predicted to disappear during this century.Why does this matter? Isn't this just a natural result of globalization,something we should actually celebrate because it makes communication among diverse groups much easier?

Accepted Answer

The loss of linguistic diversity is a si

Question 3

Recent genetic research suggests that a speech-friendly mutation took hold in humans around 150,000 years ago,thus conferring selective advantages (linguistic and cultural abilities)that allowed those who had it to spread it,at the expense of those who did not.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 4

What type of term is used to convey or imply a status difference between the speaker and the person being referred to or addressed?

Accepted Answer

A)  formal addresses, but sociolinguists rarely pay attention to them, because their use in a social situation is always a result of linguistic exploitation 
B)  honorifics 
C)  style shifts 
D)  diglossia 
E)  linguistic relational 
A)  formal addresses, but sociolinguists rarely pay attention to them, because their use in a social situation is always a result of linguistic exploitation 
B)  honorifics 
C)  style shifts 
D)  diglossia 
E)  linguistic relational

Question 5

Which of the following statements about sociolinguists is NOT true?

Accepted Answer

A)  They are concerned more with performance than with competence. 
B)  They look at society and at language. 
C)  They are concerned with linguistic change. 
D)  They focus on surface structure. 
E)  They are more interested in the rules that govern language than the actual use of language in everyday life. 
A)  They are concerned more with performance than with competence. 
B)  They look at society and at language. 
C)  They are concerned with linguistic change. 
D)  They focus on surface structure. 
E)  They are more interested in the rules that govern language than the actual use of language in everyday life.

Question 6

What are some ways in which linguistics can aid archaeologists,biological anthropologists,and sociocultural anthropologists who are interested in history?

Accepted Answer

Linguistics can aid archaeologists, biol

Question 7

One aspect of linguistic history is language loss.When a language disappears,

Accepted Answer

A)  less strain is put on the educational system, because it has less language diversity to deal with. 
B)  historical linguists have confirmation that language is also a victim of evolutionary forces. 
C)  so does pride in one's heritage. 
D)  cultural diversity is reduced as well. 
E)  humanity is that much closer to global integration. 
A)  less strain is put on the educational system, because it has less language diversity to deal with. 
B)  historical linguists have confirmation that language is also a victim of evolutionary forces. 
C)  so does pride in one's heritage. 
D)  cultural diversity is reduced as well. 
E)  humanity is that much closer to global integration.

Question 8

Creole languages are commonly found in regions where different linguistic groups come into contact with one another.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 9

Sapir and Whorf argued that all humans share a single set of universal grammatical categories.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 10

What is the term for the ability to create new expressions by combining other expressions?

Accepted Answer

A)  displacement 
B)  diglossia 
C)  productivity 
D)  morphemic utility 
E)  phonemic utility 
A)  displacement 
B)  diglossia 
C)  productivity 
D)  morphemic utility 
E)  phonemic utility

Question 11

Research on the communication skills of nonhuman primates reveals their inability to refer to objects that are not immediately present in their environment,such as food and danger.The ability to describe things and events that are not present is called

Accepted Answer

A)  cultural transmission. 
B)  displacement. 
C)  linguistic imagination. 
D)  phonology. 
E)  productivity. 
A)  cultural transmission. 
B)  displacement. 
C)  linguistic imagination. 
D)  phonology. 
E)  productivity.

Question 12

Phonology is the study of speech sounds.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 13

Linguistic anthropologists also are interested in investigating the structure of language and how it varies across time and space.What is the study of the forms in which sounds combine to form words?

Accepted Answer

A)  phonology 
B)  syntax 
C)  morphology 
D)  lexicon 
E)  grammar 
A)  phonology 
B)  syntax 
C)  morphology 
D)  lexicon 
E)  grammar

Question 14

Focal vocabularies are found only in non-Western societies like the Eskimo and the Nuer.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 15

What are phonemes?

Accepted Answer

A)  the rules by which deep structure is translated into surface structure 
B)  regional differences in dialect 
C)  syntactical structures that distinguish passive constructions from active ones 
D)  the minimal sound contrasts that distinguish meaning in a language 
E)  electromagnetic signals that carry messages between speakers in a telephone conversation 
A)  the rules by which deep structure is translated into surface structure 
B)  regional differences in dialect 
C)  syntactical structures that distinguish passive constructions from active ones 
D)  the minimal sound contrasts that distinguish meaning in a language 
E)  electromagnetic signals that carry messages between speakers in a telephone conversation

Question 16

A key feature of language that helps explain anthropologists' continued interest in studying it is that it

Accepted Answer

A)  enables us to compare human and nonhuman primate linguistic grammars. 
B)  tells us a lot about the present, although nothing about the past. 
C)  is always changing. 
D)  helps them distinguish between the more and less evolved human races. 
E)  rarely changes, so it provides a good window into linguistic uses of the past. 
A)  enables us to compare human and nonhuman primate linguistic grammars. 
B)  tells us a lot about the present, although nothing about the past. 
C)  is always changing. 
D)  helps them distinguish between the more and less evolved human races. 
E)  rarely changes, so it provides a good window into linguistic uses of the past.

Question 17

What term refers to languages that have descended from the same ancestral language?

Accepted Answer

A)  F2 languages 
B)  sibling languages 
C)  daughter languages 
D)  brother languages 
E)  protolanguages 
A)  F2 languages 
B)  sibling languages 
C)  daughter languages 
D)  brother languages 
E)  protolanguages

Question 18

Syntax refers to the rules that dictate the order of words in a language.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 19

According to the principle of linguistic relativity,all languages and dialects are equally effective as systems of communication.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 20

The origins of AAVE are found mostly in West Africa,rather than in the dialects of the southern part of the United States.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Exam 14: Language and Communication

The lexicon of a language is

Recent genetic research suggests that a speech-friendly mutation took hold in humans around 150,000 years ago,thus conferring selective advantages (linguistic and cultural abilities)that allowed those who had it to spread it,at the expense of those who did not.

What type of term is used to convey or imply a status difference between the speaker and the person being referred to or addressed?

Which of the following statements about sociolinguists is NOT true?

What are some ways in which linguistics can aid archaeologists,biological anthropologists,and sociocultural anthropologists who are interested in history?

One aspect of linguistic history is language loss.When a language disappears,

Creole languages are commonly found in regions where different linguistic groups come into contact with one another.

Sapir and Whorf argued that all humans share a single set of universal grammatical categories.

What is the term for the ability to create new expressions by combining other expressions?

Research on the communication skills of nonhuman primates reveals their inability to refer to objects that are not immediately present in their environment,such as food and danger.The ability to describe things and events that are not present is called

Phonology is the study of speech sounds.

Linguistic anthropologists also are interested in investigating the structure of language and how it varies across time and space.What is the study of the forms in which sounds combine to form words?

Focal vocabularies are found only in non-Western societies like the Eskimo and the Nuer.

What are phonemes?

A key feature of language that helps explain anthropologists' continued interest in studying it is that it

What term refers to languages that have descended from the same ancestral language?

Syntax refers to the rules that dictate the order of words in a language.

According to the principle of linguistic relativity,all languages and dialects are equally effective as systems of communication.

The origins of AAVE are found mostly in West Africa,rather than in the dialects of the southern part of the United States.

What Is Anthropology

Culture

Applying Anthropology

Doing Archaeology and Biological Anthropology

Evolution and Genetics

Human Variation and Adaptation

The Primates

Early Hominins

Archaic Homo

The Origin and Spread of Modern Humans

The First Farmers

The First Cities and States

Method and Theory in Cultural Anthropology

Ethnicity and Race

Making a Living

Political Systems

Gender

Families, Kinship, and Descent

Marriage

Religion

Arts, Media, and Sports

The World System and Colonialism

Anthropologys Role in a Globalizing World

Filters