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Trilingualism and C ognition : Evidence from Liangshan

This paper explores language diversity, language universals, and their connection to cognitive diversity and universals based on empirical evidence from Liangshan, China. The study focuses on kinship expressions in Yi, Mandarin Chinese, and English, highlighting the reflection of cognitive diversity and universals. The pedagogical implications for trilingual education, including language transfer and cross-cultural communication competence, are also discussed.

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Trilingualism and C ognition : Evidence from Liangshan

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  1. International Symposium on Multilingualism and Multilingual Education in China (he University of Nottingham, Ningbo, China, 28th – 30th November 2014) Trilingualism and Cognition: Evidence from Liangshan LIU Chengyu (刘承宇) Southwest University, Chongqing E-mail: liucy@swu.edu.cn

  2. Trilingualism and Cognition: Evidence from Liangshan • ABSTRACT: This paper investigates the language diversity and language universals in relation to cognitive diversity and cognitive universals based on some empirical evidences collected from Liangshang Yi Autonomous Prefecture of Sichuan Province, China. The study focuses on kinship expressions in Yi (Nuosu), Chinese (Mandarin) and English. The results indicate that both language diversity and language universals can be identified in such culturally-loaded expressions in the three languages, which can then be interpreted as the reflection of cognitive diversity and cognitive universals of the speech communities involved. The pedagogical implications of this investigation for trilingual education will then be explored, particularly highlighting language transfer and cultivation of cross-cultural communication competence in TEFL in the trilingual context. • KEY WORDS: trilingualism; language diversity/universals; cognitive diversity/universals; language transfer; cross-cultural communication competence

  3. OUTLINE • 1. Introduction • 2. Language and cognitive diversity/universals • 3. Trilingualism and cognition: Evidence from Liangshan • 4. Implications for trilingual education • 5. Conclusion • References

  4. 1. Introduction

  5. 1. Introduction Trilingualism and trilingual education in Liangshan L1: Yi (Nuosu) L2: Mandarin Chinese L3: English

  6. 1. Introduction Research Questions: • 1. Are there any language and cognitive diversity / universals between Yi (Nuosu), Mandarin Chinese and English? If yes, then what are they? • 2. What are the relationship between language diversity / universals and cognitive diversity /universals? • 3. What impacts do the language and cognitive diversity / universals have on trilingual education?

  7. 2. Language diversity / universals vs. cognitive diversity / universals • 2.1 Language diversity vs. language universals Language diversity: Language can differ in substantial ways from one another. Language universals: All language share certain features, and these features are often referred to as “language universals”.

  8. 2. Language diversity / universals vs. cognitive diversity / universals • Even if all human languages share numerous abstract linguistic universals, there are often large differences in their syntactic structures and their lexicons. (Cook & Bassetti, 2011, p.25)

  9. 2. Language diversity / universals vs. cognitive diversity / universals • 2.2 Cognitive diversity and cognitive universals Cognitive diversity: Human cognition can differ in substantial ways from one culture from another, or even from one individual from another. Cognitive universals: This refers to the shared, universal core of human thinking and knowing. This is what Leibniz called “the alphabet of human thoughts”, i.e. a small set of universal semantic primes, and an even smaller set of foundational building blocks of human knowledge.

  10. 2. Language diversity / universals vs. cognitive diversity / universals • 2.3 The relationship between language and cognition • A.The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis (or Whorfianism) • Language determinism (i.e. the strong version): Language determines thought, and linguistic categories limit and determine cognitive categories. • Linguistic relativity (i.e. the weak version): Linguistic categories and usage influence thought and certain kinds of non-linguistic behavior.

  11. 2. Language diversity / universals vs. cognitive diversity / universals • Human beings do not live in the objective world alone, nor alone in the world of social activity as ordinarily understood, but are very much at the mercy of the particular language which has become the medium of expression for their society. It is quite an illusion to imagine that one adjusts to reality essentially without the use of language and that language is merely an incidental means of solving specific problems of communication or reflection. (Sapir, 1929, p.209)

  12. 2. Language diversity / universals vs. cognitive diversity / universals • We dissect nature along lines laid down by our native languages. The categories and types that we isolate from the world of phenomena we do not find there because they share every observer in the face; on the contrary, the world is presented in a kaleidoscopic flux of impressions which has to be organized by our minds – and this means largely by the linguistic systems in our minds. […] no individual is free to describe nature with absolute impartiality but is constrained to certain modes of interpretation even while he thinks himself most free. • (Whorf, 1956, pp.213-214)

  13. 2. Language diversity / universals vs. cognitive diversity / universals • B. Linguistic influence on thought • Features of a person’s language influence how they think, and they influence it in systematic ways. (Cook & Basetti, 2011)

  14. 2. Language diversity / universals vs. cognitive diversity / universals • 2.4 The bi-directional approach to language and cognition (Cook & Basetti, 2011) • A. Language reflects and influences cognition. • Language Cognition • B. Cognition shapes language.

  15. 2. Language diversity / universals vs. cognitive diversity / universals 2.5 Implications for trilingual education • Language universals and diversities can simultaneously be identified in all languages in the world. They can on the one hand be attributed to cognitive universals and diversities between one social group and another and on the other hand may have greater or lesser impact on human cognition. • In trilingual education, cross-linguistic influences are ubiquitous due to language universals and diversities as well as cognitive universals and diversities.

  16. 2. Language diversity / universals vs. cognitive diversity / universals • Consequently, it is fundamental for us to make a comparative / contrastive analysis of language universals and diversities as well as cognitive universals and diversities involved and then explore their possible impacts on (particularly third) language acquisition.

  17. 3. Trilingualism and cognition: Evidence from Liangshan • 3.1 Kinship systems in Yi, Chinese and English • 3.1.1 Defining kinship and kinship systems • Kinship is the most basic principle to organize individuals into social groups, roles and categories. • Kinship terminology, such as father, and mother, son and daughter, brother and sister, is the linguistic reflection of human blood relations and marriage system. • Whatever the languages are, kinship systems all make use of such factors as sex, age, generation, blood and marriage in the society.

  18. 3. Trilingualism and cognition: Evidence from Liangshan • 3.1.2 Kinship systems in Yi, Chinese and English • 徐尚聪，“彝语亲属称谓词初探”，《贵州民族学院学报》1994年第3期 • 巴且日火，“凉山彝族非血缘亲属称谓试析”，《民族语文》2000年第5期 • 汉语亲属称谓汇总

  19. 3. Trilingualism and cognition: Evidence from Liangshan 3.2 Language diversity and universals in kinship systems in Yi (Nuosu), Chinese (Mandarin) and English 辈分 彝族称谓 汉族称谓 英语称谓 彝族称谓 汉族称谓 英语称谓 祖辈 ap’u 高曾祖 great great grandfather ap’umu 高祖母 great great grandmother ayap’u 曾祖父 great grandfather ayamu 曾祖母 great grandmother abu 祖父 grandfather ada 祖母 grandmother 父辈 aba 父亲 father ada 母亲 mother 平辈 　budzu 丈夫　　　husband tuineinr 妻子 wife am 哥哥　　elder brother am 嫂嫂　　 (elder) sister-in-law neba 弟弟　younger brother nebatsi 弟媳　　　(younger) sister-in-law anizu 姐夫 (elder) sister’s husband anr 姐姐　　　　elder sister tsokuiceirm 妹夫 (younger) sister’s husband tsokui 妹妹　　　 younger sister

  20. 3. Trilingualism and cognition: Evidence from Liangshan 辈分 彝族称谓 汉族称谓 英语称谓 彝族称谓 汉族称谓 英语称谓 子辈　　zu 儿子　　　　son tsiba 儿媳　　　daughter-in-law suәmluirm 女婿　　son-in-law ame 女儿　　　　daughter zundu 侄儿　　　nephewzundutsi 侄媳　　 nephew’s wife amendugirm 侄婿　　 niece’s husband amendu 侄女　　　　niece suba 外甥　　　nephew subatsi 外甥媳　 nephew’s wife subaleәm 外甥婿　 niece’s husband suba 外甥女　　　　niece 孙辈　qiba 孙儿　　　　grandson qibatsi 孙媳　　　grandson’s wife dibasirw 孙婿 granddaughter’s husband quba 孙女　 　granddaughter

  21. 3. Trilingualism and cognition: Evidence from Liangshan Language diversity and universals in kinship systems in Yi (Nuosu), Chinese (Mandarin) and English (see the handout) • A. L1 = L2 = L3 B. L1 > L2 = L3 • C. L1 > L2 > L3 D. L1 < L2 = L3 • E. L1 < L2 < L3 F. L1 = L2 < L3 • G. L1 = L2 > L3 • ……

  22. 3. Trilingualism and cognition: Evidence from Liangshan • Like many other language in the world, kinship systems in Yi (Nuosu), Chinese (Mandarin) and English also encode such factors as sex, age, generation, blood and marriage in the society. • But the three languages differ in the categorization of some kinship relations due to different social-cultural traditions.

  23. 3. Trilingualism and cognition: Evidence from Liangshan • The kinship systems in Yi (Nuosu): based on the marriage systems of the Yi people • (1) 同族内婚：统治等级婚姻的缔结首先限制在本民族之内； • (2) 等级内婚：以“血统”与否来确定的血缘等级内婚，而不是根据实际的经济地位来确定的阶级等级内婚，如诺合（noxo)内部依据血缘关系分为“诺伯”（nombo)和“诺低”（nodi），相互之间一般不允许通婚； • (3) 家支外婚制度：家支内部不得通婚，而是在家支外通婚。 • (苏连科，1988，p.59)

  24. 3. Trilingualism and cognition: Evidence from Liangshan • The kinship systems in ancient China: • 《尔雅·释亲》将亲属称谓分为宗族、母党、妻党和婚姻。 • The kinship systems in modern Chinese: 父系称谓、母系称谓和姻系称谓。

  25. 4. Implications for trilingual education • A. Catering to the cognitive environment (i.e. cognitive diversity / universals) of L1 speakers by exploring their awareness and competence in L1 language diversity / universals • B. Developing L1 speaker’s cognitive environment (i.e. cognitive diversity / universals) by enhancing their awareness and competence in L2 / L2 language diversity / universals

  26. 5. Conclusion • 1. Language and cognition are dialectically related. • 2. Language diversity and universals can be identified between Yi (Nuosu), Mandarin Chinese and English, as is exemplified in the comparative analysis of the kinship systems in these three languages. Such language diversity and universals can be attributed largely to cognitive diversity and universals. • 3. In trilingual education, we should on the one hand cater to the students’ cognitive environment by highlighting the language diversity and universals in the languages involved, and on the other hand develop their linguistic and cross-cultural competence by enhancing their awareness of language diversity and universals.

  27. References • Davis, L. (1999). Doing culture: Cross-cultural communication in action. Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press. • De Groot, A. M. B. (2011). Language and cognition in bilinguals and multilinguals: An introduction. New York and Hove: The Psychology Press. • Ellis, R. (2003). Second language acquisition. Oxford: Oxford University Press. • Gabryś-Barker, Danuta (ed.). (2012). Cross-linguistic influences in multilingual language acquisition. New York: Springer.

  28. References • Hall, E. T., & Hall, M. R. (1990). Understanding cultural differences. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press. • Hammarberg, B. (Ed.) (2009). Processes in third language acquisition. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. • Henn-Reineke, K. (2012). Considering trilingual education. New York and London: Routledge. • Hu, W.-Z. (1999). A survey of cross-cultural communication. Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press.

  29. References • Jia, Y.-X. (1997). Cross-cultural communication. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press. • Jordà, M.P.S. (2005). Third language learners: Pragmatic production and awareness. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters Ltd. • Samovar, L.A., & Porter, R.E. (2004). Communication between cultures (5th edition). Beijing: Peking University Press. • Scolon, R., & Scolon, S.W. (1995). Intercultural communication: A discourse approach. London: Blackwell Publishers Ltd.

  30. References • Wierzbicka, A. (1996). Semantics: Primes and universals. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. • Wierzbicka, A. (2006). English: Meaning and culture. New York: Oxford University Press. • Wierzbicka, A. (2010). Experience, evidence and sense: The hidden cultural legacy of English. New York: Oxford University Press.

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