Lighthouse77

Can other languages be as complex as English? like this: Children With Cochlear Implants and Complex Needs: A Review of Outcome Research and Psychological Practice -- Edwards 12 (3): 258 -- The Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education (noticed all the big fancy words they used for this journal)

I'm not talking about sign languages or any visual signs... just that i read a mother who decided to implant her child so he could be exposed to complex languages and felt that ASL does not provide that for her children. I just wondering if other languages are like that too -- you know big fancy word that only intelligent college education people use as if they have a dictionary in their brain LOL. Or only English language does this?

__________________
Good thing about standards is that there are so many of them to choose from.

Deafness

__________________
This advertising will not be shown in this way to registered members.
Register your free account today and become a member on AllDeaf.com

CJB

Nope that definitely happens in all languages.

And ASL is just as complex and rich a language as any other language.

Alee

No, Spanish ( my mother language) is harder than english when it starts getting fancy, there are tons and tons of different words there. Fascinating.

The same with LSE, it's rich and complex in words, I don't really know if it varies much from ASL though, I know some ASL signing that is totally different from LSE and they mean the same, kwim?

__________________
Alejandra & Edgar <3

Waxy

According linguistics, there are no richier or poorer languages. They exist in the complexity that the users needs.

__________________
Better be hated than forgotten.

sr171soars

Complexity of any given language is directly proportional how complex one wants it to be.

Where English stands out as difficult is two main areas...
1) Size of vocabulary - It has the largest vocabulary of any language. I believe Chinese follows as a distant second.

2) It's basic core is Old English in its roots and structure. That can confuse anybody learning the language. For native speakers, it is no big deal as they live and breathe it.

It is simpler in some ways over other languages like German or Russian. They have all these "cases" which prefix many of the words (i.e., German words are Masculine, Feminine, or Neuter). Try learning every word with its case...whew! English really doesn't care about that. Other than knowing the obvious gender of living things, all non-living things are generally feminine (i.e., look at that ship...isn't she beautiful!). But on the other hand, English is very particular about its structure and it must be in a certain way. German and Russian for example it is not as important but rather has a looser structure with more flexibility (and thus complicated in its own right).

I have a co-worker who is Ukrainian and knows Ukrainian and Russian as his native languages. He just has trouble speaking English quickly as he always thinking in his Slavic mindset (he learn fluent English later in life). He told me that English is a very direct and precise language. You say what you mean and no more. In either Ukrainian or Russian, you often have to use more words than English to say the same thing.

__________________
But trailing clouds of glory till He comes...

Foolishness is not a virtue

Lighthouse77

I thought they refer non-living things as it (look at that ship... isn't it beautiful!)

and that guys usually refer items as "she" when they are in love with it (like a mustang car)

__________________
Good thing about standards is that there are so many of them to choose from.

CJB

The only inanimate objects that get referred to as "she" in English are ships and countries. But many people just use "it" nowadays, Lighthouse77.