Ch. 7: Language & Culture

Which most accurately describes a relationship shown on the language tree above?

• Polish grew out of Balto-Slavic

• Celtic is based on Welsh

• Greek is a Romance language

• French and Spanish are creole languages

• Hindi is an older language than Indo-Iranian

One distinctive feature of the Indo-European family is that it

• has a smaller spatial distribution than other language families

• is the only language family with just one major lingua franca

• includes most of the world's oldest languages

• is spoken by nearly half the world's population

• is the only one that is spoken in Europe today

Some countries have several official languages because they want to

• make international diplomacy easier

• foster political cooperation with neighboring countries

• make government operate more efficiently

• prepare students to participate in the global economy

• give recognition to different groups within the country

Which statement best describes the most common reason groups wish to preserve their traditional languages?

• Language is central to cultural identity, so preserving a language helps preserve a culture.

• Language is used in religious services, so preserving a language is primarily a religious obligation.

• Language is used for trade, so preserving language is one way to keep a group economically prosperous.

• Language change is politically disruptive force, so preserving a language is one way to keep stability.

• Language preservation passes on a group's history, so preserving a language is the only way to record history accurately.

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

The Arabic language spread from its hearth and became one of the major global languages mainly through

• increased use of communication technology in Arab nations

• spread of Middle Eastern multinational oil corporations

• worldwide colonization beginning around 600 C.E.

• conquest and its use as a standard religious language

• resisting colonization by European nations and the United States

Which phrase does NOT help explain the language distribution shown on the map?

• the ease of trade between Great Britain and the United States

• the widespread use of the Internet

• the differences between American and British English

• the impact of British colonization in Africa and Asia

• the increase in power of U.S.-based corporations

Which resulted from the mixing of two languages to create a new one so that people who spoke different languages could trade more easily?

• Indo-European

• Amerindian

• American English

• Arabic

• Swahili

Which is the best example of the diffusion of a language?

• the decline in use of the Navajo language

• the spread of English via the Internet

• the creation of a new language in Haiti

• the designation of one official language for a country

• the use of bilingual signs in a country with two official languages