BSEE 22 – LANGUAGE, CULTURE, AND SOCIETY

NAME: Joshua H. Lagonoy DATE: March 14, 2020

SECTION: BSE 1-1 E INSTRUCTOR: Ms. Borja

1. Research about the evolution of the English Alphabet. Compare and contrast the Old English, Middle
English, and the Modern English using a table.

Old English Middle English Modern English

Old English was from 450 AD  Middle English was from Modern English was from 1500 AD till
to 1100 AD or, in other 1100 AD to 1500 AD or, in the present day, or from late 15th
words, from Mid 5th century other words, from late 11th century to the present.
to Mid 11th century. century to late 15th century.
Old English had Latin Middle English had French Modern English developed as a
influence influence. language of its own as a developed
version of the language.
The word order and the Middle English has the same Modern English follows the subject-
sentence structure were sentence structure as the verb-object sentence structure.
rather free. Modern English (Subject-
verb-object).
Old English exhibits a variety Middle English exhibits a Modern English exhibits, usually, one
of pronouns for the same variety of pronouns for the pronoun for each case of the pronoun.
pronoun in the same case for same pronoun in the same For example, his for genitive case.
the first and second person case. For example, hir, hire,
pronouns. For example, þē, heore, her, here for her in the
þeċ for You in the accusative genitive case.
case.
Old English had some silent All written letters were Some letters are not pronounced in
letters. For example, in pronounced in Middle Modern English. For example, K in
sēċean, you will not English. knight is silent.
pronounce c. That means the
word is pronounced as ‘seek.’

2. Research about the evolution of the Filipino Alphabet. Compare and contrast the language used during the
pre-colonial period (Baybayin), the Spanish period (Abecedario), American period (Abakada), 1970s
 (Revised Abakada), and the Present Filipino Alphabet using a table.

Pre-colonial Spanish American 1970s Present

Early in the pre-colonial With colonization The end of Spanish rule Abakada remain The current
period, the ancient and the arrival of the
peoples of the under Spain came American style public ed the national 28 letter
Philippines did not the Latin alphabet education in the Philippines language’s Filipino
have any writing introduced Filipinos to the
system, and so they and the decline and English language and to its alphabet from alphabet
relied on oral tradition eventual disuse 26-letter alphabet. Despite 1940 to 1976. In was
in recording folklore this,
and folk history. of baybayin. Spanis the abecedario remained in that period, established
use by Philippine
h missionaries, who languages, as many words questions were following
Sometime in the
13th century, writing served as the first still used Spanish letters. raised about the the signing
systems derived from teachers in the validity of of the 1987
the Indian-influenced However, the use of
cultures of Indonesia islands, taught abecedario was threatened Tagalog as basis Constitution
and Malaysia came to by both the English-based
converted Filipinos of the national .
the islands, leading to educational and Philippine
the emergence of Catholicism, the nationalism. In 1937, language, as
native writing systems following the establishment
called baybayin, primari Latin alphabet, and of the Philippine majority of
ly used by certain the Spanish Commonwealth, the Filipinos spoke
inhabitants of Luzon government ordered for the
and the Visayas. language. adoption of a national other native
language based on Philippine
Tagalog, and for the
preparation of a dictionary languages,
and a grammar book for
causing a debate
the national language.
in the definition of
the national
language.
Baybayin is an alpha- The Doctrina does The resulting product of The 1973 Following
syllabic script, meaning
certain characters not begin with this logic reduced the 32 Constitution the
in baybayin can stand prayers but with a letter abecedario into 20 issued a new constitution
for either a single
consonant or vowel, short instruction in letters. Furthermore, the definition of the al mandate
while some characters the Latin alphabet, letters were to be read in national of
stand for an entire
syllable. a syllabary, and its an abakada manner as language, developing
counterparts in the opposed to the English or renaming it as Filipino with
In the Tagalog version
of baybayin, syllabic Tagalog baybayin Spanish pronunciaton of Filipino and the other
characters in script. The the letters. stating that it is a non-
themselves consist of a
consonant followed by alphabet, as it In 1939, Lope K. Santos language in the Tagalog
the vowel A (i.e. ba, ca, developed Ang Balarila ng
da/ra). In order to appears in the Wikang Pambansa (The process of native
change the vowel of Doctrina, consist of Grammar of the National development. languages
the syllable, a mark – Language). Apart from
called a kudlit – is the following: rules on grammar, it Based on this in mind, the
added. Adding a kudlit A, B, C, D, E, F, G, contained the alphabet for definition, a comission
above syllabic the national language – the
character changes the H, IJ, L, M, N, O, P, abakada, named after its revision of the undertook a
vowel sound from A to first 3 letters. Following the
E/I." Q, RR, S, T, U, V, advice of past scholars, Filipino alphabet study on
X, Y, and Z Santos retained only one was needed, reforming
The extent to which letter to represent a
Beginning in the significant sound in the as abakada was yet again
early Filipinos were
literate in the native 17th Century, Tagalog language –for a Tagalog the Filipino
script varied from example, since C, Q, and K
colonized Filipinos often made the same alphabet. alphabet
region to region over
the span of the 16th to sound in Tagalog, only one
followed the and spelling
early 17th centuries. should be retained.
Spanish alphabet rules of
and its Filipino to
developments. reflect the
Eventually, the alphabets
number of letters in and spelling
the alphabet used methods of
In the islands, other
called Philippine
the abecedario, languages.
reached 32 letters:

According to Antonio "LL" stood for an The resulting product of This change in In addition,
de Morga’s Events in “elye” sound for this logic reduced the 32 the study
the Philippine Spanish words, like letter abecedario into 20 the alphabet factored in
Islands (1609), and caballo (horse) letters. Furthermore, the followed the 1976 the Filipino-
the Doctrina or relleno (stuffed), letters were to be read in English
Christiana, a catechism while ÑG an abakada manner as Filipino Bilingual
and one of the first represented an opposed to the English or Education
Orthography
books ever printed in "enye-ge" sound, Spanish pronunciaton of Policy in the
the Philippines found in names the letters. Reform approved Philippines.
(1593), baybayin had 3 like Zuñga.
alphabet characters by the Institute of
The
representing vowels (A, Today, LetterABKDEGHILMAbaka the National revisions
E/I, and O/U), while the abecedario lette da
there were 14 Language. Under were
rs CH, LL, and RR published in
characters representing are still used in the Department of DECS
syllables that begin alphabet of the Order No.
with the consonants (B, Education,
Chavacano 81 s, 1987,
C/K, D/R, G, H, L, M, language, a heavily Culture and also known
N, NG, P, S, T, W, and Spanish-based creo as
Y). le (mixed Sports (DECS) “Alphabet
Spanish/Native) and Spelling
language commonly memorandum Guide of the
During Magellan’s
arrival in the Visayas in spoken in order 194, 11 Philippine
1521, his chronicler, Zamboanga City in Language.
Mindanao and letters made a
Antonio Pigafetta,
noted that the Visayans some parts of comeback in the
were illiterate. The Cavite City in
natives were amazed Luzon. revised Filipino
when he wrote down alphabet – C,
some of their words
and repeated it to CH, F, J, LL, Ñ,
them. On the other Q, RR, V, X, and
hand, in the 1600's,
Morga stated that the Z – reflecting the
natives of Luzon and its
other Filipino
surrounding Islands
wrote excellently in the languages that
native script and that
there were only very still used those
few who did not write it letters.
well.

3. Define the following words/concepts and give two examples for each item:

a. Spelling Reform

A spelling reform is a deliberate, often authoritatively sanctioned or mandated change to spelling rules.
Proposals for such reform are fairly common, and over the years, many languages have undergone such
reforms.

Recent high-profile examples are the German orthography reform of 1996 and the on-off Portuguese spelling
reform of 1990, which is still being ratified by the different countries.

Examples include light, German Licht; knight, German Knecht; ocean, French océan; occasion, French
occasion. Critics argue that re-spelling such words could hide those links. Another criticism is that a reform
may favor one dialect or pronunciation over others, creating a standard language.

b. Cut spelling

Cut Spelling is a system of English-language spelling reform which reduces redundant letters and makes
substitutions to improve correspondence with the spoken word. It was designed by Christopher Upward and
was for a time being popularized by the Simplified Spelling Society.

"Wen readrs first se Cut Spelng, as in this sentnce, they ofn hesitate slytly, but then quikly becom acustmd to
th shortnd words and soon find text in Cut Spelng as esy to read as traditional orthografy, but it is th riter ho
realy apreciates th advantajs of Cut Spelng, as many of th most trublsm uncertntis hav been elimnated."

Th Space Race was th competition between th United States and th Soviet Union, rufly from 1957 to 1975. It
involvd th efrts by each of these nations to explor outr space with satlites, to be th 1st to send there a human
being and to send mand and unmand missions on th Moon with a safe return of th humans to Erth.
c. Parallel English/Globish

Globish (also known as Parallel English) is an artificial language created by Madhukar Gogate that attempts to
simplify English,[2] including the use of phonetic spelling,[3] and the removal of most punctuation and capital
letters

Globish is a simplified version of Anglo-American English used as a worldwide lingua franca. (See Panglish.)
The trademarked term Globish, a blend of the words global and English, was coined by French businessman
Jean-Paul Nerrière in the mid-1990s. In his 2004 book Parlez Globish, Nerrière included a Globish vocabulary
of 1,500 words.

Globish is "not quite a pidgin," says linguist Harriet Joseph Ottenheimer. "Globish appears to be English
without idioms, making it easier for non-Anglophones to understand and to communicate with one another
(The Anthropology of Language, 2008).

For example, chat becomes speak casually to each other in Globish; and kitchen is the room in which you cook
your food. Siblings, rather clumsily, are the other children of my parents. But pizza is still pizza, as it has an
international currency, like taxi and police."

d. SaypU (Spell As You Pronounce Universally)

SaypU ("Spell As You Pronounce Universally") is an approximative phonetic alphabet of 24 alphabet letters to
spell languages, including English. The spelling system was adopted by Jaber George Jabbour to write English
more phonetically.

● “Get yor hed ɘround shwaa”. This phrase illustrates how to pronounce “ɘ” (shwaa). Shwaa is a short vowel
sound. If you make it as a short a/e/i/u sound your pronunciation will probably be close enough to be
understood. More on Shwaa a bit later.

● “Dayr yu drink dhɘ hayr ɘv dhɘ dog?” “ay” is a long “A” sound in SaypYu such as in “care” or “air”. Hence
“Hair” = “Hayr” and “Dare” = “Dayr”. It is usually followed by an “r” to make “ayr”.

● “ow” as in “show” and “know”, not as in “how” and “now”.

● “ai” as in “thai” which rhymes with “thigh”. “I” as in “mile” or “might” is written “ai” so “nice” = “nais”.

e. Simpel-Fonetik
Simpel-Fonetik is a system of English-language spelling reform that simplifies the reading, writing, and
pronunciation of words in English. It was created by Allan Kiisk, a multi-lingual (English, German, Latin, and
Estonian) professor of engineering.

Example
The Star (H. G. Wells)
It was on the först dei of the nuu jiir thät the ännaunsment was meid, olmoust saimulteiniosli from thrii
obsöörvatoris, thät the moushon of the plänet Neptune, thi autermoust of ool the plänets thät wiil öbaut the
san, häd bikam veri erräätik. Ö retardeishon in its velossiti häd biin saspekted in Disember. Then ö feint, rimout
spek of lait was diskaverd in the riidshon of the pörtöörbd plänet. Ät föörst this did not koos eni greit
eksaitment. Saientifik piipl, hauever, faund the intelidshens rimaarkabl inaf iiven bifor it bikeim noun thät the
nuu bodi was räpidli grouing laardsher änd braiter, änd thät its moushon was kwait different from the oorderli
progres of the plänets.

Here's another one:

This is interesting: No federal government order or effort so far for ending the helter-skelter spelling. Don't beg
or long for it. It's hard for the big gorilla tu start implementing spelling dogma. It wil linger, limp, loiter, swing
from pillar tu post .

4. What is language change and what are its causes?

Language change is variation over time in a language's features. It is studied in several subfields of
linguistics: historical linguistics, sociolinguistics, and evolutionary linguistics. Some commentators use the
label corruption to suggest that language change constitutes a degradation in the quality of a language,
especially when the change originates from human error or is a prescriptively discouraged usage.

Causes
Economy: Speech communities tend to change their utterances to be as efficient and effective (with as
little effort) as possible, while still reaching communicative goals. Purposeful speaking therefore involves a
trade-off of costs and benefits.
Expressiveness: Common or overused language tends to lose its emotional or rhetorical intensity over
time; therefore, new words and constructions are continuously employed to revive that intensity

Analogy: Over time, speech communities unconsciously apply patterns of rules in certain words, sounds,
etc. to unrelated other words, sounds, etc.

Language contact: Words and constructions are borrowed from one language into another

Geographic separation: When people with one language move away from each other, the language will
gradually diverge into separate dialects, due to different experiences

Cultural environment: As a culture evolves, new places, situations, and objects inevitably enter its
language, whether or not the culture encounters different people.

Migration/Movement: Speech communities, moving into a region with a new or more complex linguistic
situation, will influence, and be influenced by, language change; they sometimes even end up with entirely
new languages, such as pidgins and creoles

Imperfect learning: According to one view, children regularly learn the adult forms imperfectly, and the
changed forms then turn into a new standard. Alternatively, imperfect learning occurs regularly in one part
of society, such as an immigrant group, where the minority language forms a substratum, and the changed
forms can ultimately influence majority usage

Social prestige: Language may not only change towards features that have more social prestige, but also
away from ones with negative prestige, as in the case of the loss of rhoticity in the British Received
Pronunciation accent Such movements can go back and forth.

5. What are the different types of language change?

Lexical changes
The study of lexical changes forms the diachronic portion of the science of onomasiology.

The ongoing influx of new words into the English language (for example) helps make it a rich field for
investigation into language change, despite the difficulty of defining precisely and accurately the vocabulary
available to speakers of English. Throughout its history English has not only borrowed words from other
languages but has re-combined and recycled them to create new meanings, whilst losing some old words.

Phonetic and phonological changes

The concept of sound change covers both phonetic and phonological developments.
The sociolinguist William Labov recorded the change in pronunciation in a relatively short period in the
American resort of Martha's Vineyard and showed how this resulted from social tensions and processes.
Even in the relatively short time that broadcast media have recorded their work, one can observe the
difference between the pronunciation of the newsreaders of the 1940s and the 1950s and the
pronunciation of today.

Spelling changes
Standardisation of spelling originated centuries ago.[vague][citation needed] Differences in spelling often
catch the eye of a reader of a text from a previous century. The pre-print era had fewer literate people:
languages lacked fixed systems of orthography, and the handwritten manuscripts that survive often show
words spelled according to regional pronunciation and to personal preference.

Semantic changes are shifts in the meanings of existing words. Basic types of semantic change include:

pejoration, in which a term's connotations become more negative

amelioration, in which a term's connotations become more positive
broadening, in which a term acquires additional potential uses
narrowing, in which a term's potential uses are restricted

Syntactic change is the evolution of the syntactic structure of a natural language.

Over time, syntactic change is the greatest modifier of a particular language.[citation needed] Massive
changes – attributable either to creolization or to relexification – may occur both in syntax and in
vocabulary. Syntactic change can also be purely language-internal, whether independent within the
syntactic component or the eventual result of phonological or morphological change.