In
neuropsychology,
linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Lingu ...
, and
philosophy of language, a natural language or ordinary language is any
language
Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of ...
that has
evolved naturally in
human
Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...
s through use and repetition without conscious planning or premeditation. Natural languages can take different forms, such as
speech or
signing. They are distinguished from
constructed and
formal language
In logic, mathematics, computer science, and linguistics, a formal language consists of words whose letters are taken from an alphabet and are well-formed according to a specific set of rules.
The alphabet of a formal language consists of s ...
s such as
those used to program computers or to study
logic
Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premis ...
.
Defining natural language
Natural language can be broadly defined as different from
* artificial and
constructed language
A constructed language (sometimes called a conlang) is a language whose phonology, grammar, and vocabulary, instead of having developed naturally, are consciously devised for some purpose, which may include being devised for a work of fiction ...
s, e.g.
computer programming languages
* constructed
international auxiliary language
An international auxiliary language (sometimes acronymized as IAL or contracted as auxlang) is a language meant for communication between people from all different nations, who do not share a common first language. An auxiliary language is primaril ...
s
* non-human
communication systems in nature such as
whale and other marine mammal vocalizations or
honey bee
A honey bee (also spelled honeybee) is a eusocial flying insect within the genus ''Apis'' of the bee clade, all native to Afro-Eurasia. After bees spread naturally throughout Africa and Eurasia, humans became responsible for the current cosmop ...
s'
waggle dance.
All
varieties of
world languages are natural languages, including those that are associated with
linguistic prescriptivism or
language regulation. (
Nonstandard dialects can be viewed as a
wild type in comparison with
standard languages.) An
official language
An official language is a language given supreme status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically the term "official language" does not refer to the language used by a people or country, but by its government (e.g. judiciary, ...
with a regulating academy such as
Standard French, overseen by the
Académie Française
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...
, is classified as a natural language (e.g. in the field of
natural language processing), as its prescriptive aspects do not make it constructed enough to be a constructed language or controlled enough to be a
controlled natural language.
Controlled languages
Controlled natural languages are subsets of natural languages whose grammars and dictionaries have been restricted in order to reduce
ambiguity and complexity. This may be accomplished by decreasing usage of
superlative or
adverbial
In English grammar, an adverbial ( abbreviated ) is a word (an adverb) or a group of words (an adverbial clause or adverbial phrase) that modifies or more closely defines the sentence or the verb. (The word ''adverbial'' itself is also used as a ...
forms, or
irregular verbs. Typical purposes for developing and implementing a controlled natural language are to aid understanding by non-native speakers or to ease computer processing. An example of a widely-used controlled natural language is
Simplified Technical English, which was originally developed for
aerospace
Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and astrona ...
and
avionics industry manuals.
International constructed languages
Although constructed,
International auxiliary language
An international auxiliary language (sometimes acronymized as IAL or contracted as auxlang) is a language meant for communication between people from all different nations, who do not share a common first language. An auxiliary language is primaril ...
s such as
Esperanto and
Interlingua
Interlingua (; ISO 639 language codes ia, ina) is an international auxiliary language (IAL) developed between 1937 and 1951 by the American International Auxiliary Language Association (IALA). It ranks among the most widely used IALs and is ...
are not considered natural languages, with the possible exception of true native speakers of such languages.
[Gopsill, F. P., "A historical overview of international languages". In ''International languages: A matter for Interlingua''. Sheffield, England: British Interlingua Society, 1990.] Natural languages evolve, through fluctuations in vocabulary and syntax, to incrementally improve human communication. In contrast, Esperanto was created by Polish ophthalmologist
L. L. Zamenhof
L. L. Zamenhof (15 December 185914 April 1917) was an ophthalmologist who lived for most of his life in Warsaw. He is best known as the creator of Esperanto, the most widely used constructed international auxiliary language.
Zamenhof first dev ...
in the late 19th century.
Some natural languages have become organically "standardized" through the synthesis of two or more pre-existing natural languages over a relatively short period of time through the development of a
pidgin, which is not considered a language, into a stable
creole language
A creole language, or simply creole, is a stable natural language that develops from the simplifying and mixing of different languages into a new one within a fairly brief period of time: often, a pidgin evolved into a full-fledged language. Wh ...
. A creole such as
Haitian Creole has its own grammar, vocabulary and literature. It is spoken by over 10 million people worldwide and is one of the two official languages of the
Republic of Haiti.
As of 1996, there were 350 attested families with one or more
native speakers of Esperanto.
Latino sine flexione
Latino sine flexione ("Latin without inflections"), Interlingua de Academia pro Interlingua (IL de ApI) or Peano's Interlingua (abbreviated as IL), is an international auxiliary language compiled by the Academia pro Interlingua under chairmanshi ...
, another international auxiliary language, is no longer widely spoken.
See also
*
*
*
*
*
Notes
References
*
ter Meulen, Alice, 2001, "Logic and Natural Language," in Goble, Lou, ed., ''The Blackwell Guide to Philosophical Logic''. Blackwell.
{{refend
Natural language processing
Neuropsychological assessment
Language
Philosophical logic
Philosophy of language
Linguistics terminology