ever sufficiently similar to be considered as representing the same social reality. The worlds
in which different societies live are distinct worlds, not merely the same world with differ-
ent labels attached.^13
Sapir and Whorf proposed that“even ideas such as time, space, and matter are
conditioned by the structure of our languages.”^14 If this be the case, those who
support linguistic relativity conclude that people who speak different languages
also perceive certain portions of the world in dissimilar ways. Perhaps a few exam-
ples will help to demonstrate this notion.In the Hindi language of India, there are
no single words equivalent to the
English words for “uncle” and“aunt.”
Instead, as Rogers and Steinfatt relate,
Hindi has different words for your
father’s older brother, your father’syoun-
ger brother, your mother’solderbrother,
your mother’s older brother-in-law, and
so forth.^15
Another cultural example deals with the Hopi language (spoken by the Hopi, an
American Indian people). Hua offers the following examples to explain how language
and experiences are linked in that culture:
According to Whorf, in the Hopi language, there is no plural form for nouns referring to
time, such as days and years. Instead of saying“they stayed ten days,”the equivalent in
Hopi is“they stayed until the eleventh day”or“they left after the tenth day.”In
addition, all phrase terms, such as summer, morning, etc., are not nouns, but function
as adverbs.^16
Bonvillain demonstrates yet another cultural trait and how it is reflected in their
language. In this case, it is the Navajo’s concern for individual autonomy:
English Speaker:“I must go there.”
Navajo Speaker:“It is only good that I shall go there.”
English Speaker:“I make the horse run.”
Navajo Speaker:“The horse is running for me.”^17
Although complete acceptance of linguistic relativity is controversial, even
critics agree that a culture’slinguisticvocabularyemphasizeswhatisconsidered
important in that culture. Salzmann contends that“those aspects of culture that
are important for the members of a society are correspondingly highlighted in the
vocabulary.”^18 For example, Ronnie Lupe, chairman of the White Mountain
Apache tribe, noted,“To the white man, he thinks, land is just‘real estate.’But in
Apache the word for land is also the one for mind:‘So I point to my mind, I also
point to my land.’”^19
This kind of culture–language synergy is also illustrated by comparing a food sta-
ple from the United States with one from Japan. As Table 8.1 reveals, each nation
has a large vocabulary for the product that is important but few words for the less
used product. In the United States“rice”refers to the grain regardless of context—
whether it is cooked, found in the store, or still in the field. Similarly, when discussing
“beef,”the Japanese use only the traditional wordgyunikuor the adopted English word
bifuorbifuteki.CONSIDER THIS
How would you explain the following phrase:“Language
profoundly shapes the perceptions and worldview of its
speakers”?272 CHAPTER 8• Verbal Messages: Exchanging Ideas Through Language
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