Language and Culture●IntroductionSince human being appeared ,all kinds of languages came into being bir by bit .And with the development of languages ,cultures, varieties of cultures grew ,too .What we can not deny is that there is a intimate relationship between language and culture . There are many ways in which the phenomena of language and culture are intimately related. Both phenomena are unique to humans and have therefore been the subject of a great deal of anthropological, sociological, and even memetic study. Language, of course, is determined by culture, though the extent to which this is true is now under debate. The converse is also true to some degree: culture is determined by language - or rather, by the replicators that created both, memes.●Language as Determined by CultureEarly anthropologists, following the theory that words determine thought, believed that language and its structure were entirely dependent on the cultural context in which they existed. This was a logical extension of what is termed the Standard Social Science Model, which views the human mind as an indefinitely malleable structure capable of absorbing any sort of culture without constraints from genetic or neurological factors.In this vein, anthropologist Verne Ray conducted a study in the 1950's, giving color samples to different American Indian tribes and asking them to give the names of the colors. He concluded that the spectrum we see as "green", "yellow", etc. was an entirely arbitrary division, and each culture divided the spectrum separately. According to this hypothesis, the divisions seen between colors are a consequence of the language we learn, and do not correspond to divisions in the natural world. A similar hypothesis is upheld in the extremely popular meme of Eskimo words for snow - common stories vary from fifty to upwards of two hundred.Extreme cultural relativism of this type has now been clearly refuted. Eskimos use at most twelve different words for snow, which is not many more than English speakers and should be expected since they exist in a cold climate. The color-relativity hypothesis has now been completely debunked by more careful, thorough, and systematic studies which show a remarkable similarity between the ways in which different cultures divide the spectrum.Of course, there are ways in which culture really does determine language, or at least certain facets thereof. Obviously, the ancient Romans did not have words for radios, televisions, or computers because these items were simply not part of their cultural context. In the same vein, uncivilized tribes living in Europe in the time of the Romans did not have words for tribunes, praetors, or any other trapping of Roman government because Roman law was not part of their culture.Our culture does, sometimes, restrict what we can think about efficiently in our own language. For example, some languages have only three color terms equivalent to black, white, and red; a native speaker of this language would have a difficult time expressing the concept of "purple" efficiently. Some languages are also moreexpressive about certain topics. For example, it is commonly acknowledged that Yiddish is a linguistic champion, with an amazing number of words referring to the simpleminded.Language is never the entity which has been invented or scripted in isolation. It certainly has evolved gradually with the continuous development of a culture. A culture being a building made of social behaviors, human emotions, or way of expressing feelings, the language has continually adapted accordingly to accommodate these identified notion and gesture of human activity. Finding a symbolism every time to register it in the language, thus contributing to its growth. A language has always been a weapon to express one's ideas and feelings. And the reason enough to make this weapon more efficient to handle one's need of expressing things with intended accuracy. It has been tuned-up with each new finding, getting honed up continually to get its flawless shape with developing culture.●Cultu Culture and Language - United by MemesAccording to the memetic theorist Susan Blackmore, language developed as a result of memetic evolution and is an example of memes providing a selection pressure on genes themselves. The definition of a culture in memetic theory is an aggregate of many different meme sets or memeplexes shared by the majority of a population. Using memetic reasoning, it can be seen that language - itself created by memes and for memes - is the principal medium used for spreading memes from one person to another.As Blackmore states in The Meme Machine, memes were born when humans began to imitate each other. According to her theory, this event preceded - indeed, had to precede - the development of language. When imitation became widespread, producing selection pressure on genes for successful imitation, memes began to exploit verbalizations for better and more frequent transmission. The end result of this complex process was language, and the anatomical alterations needed for its successful use.Language, created by memes as a mechanism for ensuring better memetic propagation, has certainly been a success. Today, the vast majority of memes are transmitted via language, through direct speech, written communication, radio or television, and the internet. Relatively few memes are transmitted in a non-linguistic way, and those that are have very specific, localized purposes, such as artwork and photography. Even these media, though nonlinguistic in themselves, assume language and very rarely appear without some sort of linguistic commentary. This might take the form of a critical analysis of an artwork, a caption for a photograph, a voice-over for a video, etc.●Language as Part of CultureFor many people, language is not just the medium of culture but also is a part of culture. It is quite common for immigrants to a new country to retain their old customs and to speak their first language amid fellow immigrants, even if all present are comfortable in their new language. This occurs because the immigrants are eager to preserve their own heritage, which includes not only customs and traditions but also language. This is also seen in many Jewish communities, especially in oldermembers: Yiddish is commonly spoken because it is seen as a part of Jewish culture. Linguistic differences are also often seen as the mark of another culture, and they very commonly create divisiveness among neighboring peoples or even among different groups of the same nation. A good example of this is in Canada, where French-speaking natives of Quebec clash with the English-speaking majority. This sort of conflict is also common in areas with a great deal of tribal warfare. It is even becoming an issue in America as speakers of standard American English - mainly whites and educated minorities - observe the growing number of speakers of black English vernacular. Debates are common over whether it is proper to use "Ebonics" in schools, while its speakers continue to assert that the dialect is a fundamental part of the "black culture".English is far more world wide in its distribution than all other spoken languages. It is an official language in 52 countries as well as many small colonies and territories. In addition, 1/4 to 1/3 of the people in the world understand and speak English to some degree. It has become the most useful language to learn for international travel and is now the de facto language of diplomacy. In 2001, the 189 member countries in the United Nations were asked what language they wish to use for communication with embassies from other countries. More than 120 chose English, 40 selected French, and 20 wanted to use Spanish. Those who wanted English to be the common language included all of the former Soviet republics, Viet Nam, and most of the Arab world. English is also the dominant language in electronic communication, particularly on the Internet. However, the percentage of Internet users who are not native English speakers is increasing rapidly, especially in Asia. In fact, China estimated in 2008 that there are now more people who have online access in their country than in the U.S., which had been the global leader in Internet access.In reality, the distribution of languages globally is very complex and difficult to easily describe. Numerous migrations of people over the last several centuries have resulted in most large nations now having many different languages. There are at least 165 languages spoken in the United States today. Consequently, it is somewhat misleading to describe the U.S. as being an English speaking country. The same caution applies to other multicultural nations as well.Some parts of the world have unusually high concentrations of different languages. There are around 900 native languages spoken by the 5-10 million people of New Guinea and its neighboring islands. That is roughly 1/6 of all languages being spoken by far less than 1% of the world's people. Other language high density areas have been native California and the Caucasus Mountains north of Turkey and Iran.The majority of the languages in the world are unwritten and many of them are disappearing. About 1/2 of the world's languages are no longer spoken by children. This is the first step in the extinction of a language. About 2,000 languages now have less than 1,000 speakers. The most threatened are the indigenous languages of Australia and the Americas. By the end of the 20th century, about 200 Australian languages survived, but more than 1/2 had less than 10speakers. Two dozen had a single elderly speaker. Young Aborigines now predominantly speak English, especially in urban areas. There has been a similar pattern in California where Indian languages disappeared at the rate of nearly one a year during the late 20th century. Globally, the rate of language loss now is one every two weeks. The areas where indigenous languages are being lost the most rapidly are central South America, Oklahoma and the American Southwest, the Northwest coastal region of the U.S. and Canada, eastern Siberia, and northern Australia.There are no "primitive" languages. All languages have a system of sounds, words, and sentences that can adequately communicate the content of culture. The languages of the so-called "primitive" peoples are often very complex in their grammatical structures. There seems to be no correlation between a language's grammatical complexity and the technological level of a society or other aspects of culture. However, cultures that have more complex, diverse economies and advanced technologies have larger vocabularies. For instance, English has roughly 615,000 non-technical words. If slang and specialized technical words are added, English has more than 2,000,000 words and is growing at a rate of hundreds to thousands every year. By comparison, German has about 185,000 non-technical words, French may have less than 100,000, and Spanish even fewer. The major reason that English has so many more non-technical words is the fact that as it evolved from its Germanic roots, it acquired words from more than 240 other languages. However, it is unlikely that any one individual knows the meaning of all English words. Most Americans only use 800-1,000 words in everyday conversation. A typical American college student knows 20,000-30,000 words by the time he or she graduates. While this is 20-37 times more than the average person who has not gone to college, it is still less than 2% of all English words.Every language can create new words to describe new situations and objects. Therefore, it is not surprising that all languages change through time. None is static. However, they change at different rates at different times in response to new social, cultural, and environmental situations. Some nations strongly resist the acquisition of new words from other languages. This has been the case with the French government's response to the relentless invasion of English words in recent decades, especially in pop culture and technology. However, young people in most developed nations eagerly embrace new words regardless of attempts by their governments to retain "language purity."From hat has been discussed above ,we may safely draw the conclusion that the word men use not only express but shape their ideas .Language is an instrument ;it is even more an environment .It has as much to do with the philosophical and political conditioning of a society as geography or climate .Just as Ludwing Wittgenstein said “the limits of my language are the limits of my world”.References:⏹The Language Instinct⏹How the Mind Works⏹Words and Rules⏹The Meme Machine⏹The Environment of Language⏹ 1.爱不释手fondle admiringly.⏹ 2.百闻不如一见（眼见为实）Seeing is believing.⏹ 3.比上不足比下有余worse off than some, better off than many; to fall short ofthe best, but be better than the worst.⏹ 4.笨鸟先飞A slow sparrow should make an early start.⏹ 5.不眠之夜white night⏹ 6.不以物喜不以己悲not pleased by external gains, not saddened by personnallosses⏹7.不遗余力spare no effort; go all out; do one's best⏹8.不打不成交No discord, no concord.⏹9.拆东墙补西墙rob Peter to pay Paul⏹10.辞旧迎新bid farewell to the old and usher in the new; ring out the old yearand ring in the new⏹11.大事化小小事化了try first to make their mistake sound less serious andthen to reduce it to nothing at all⏹12.大开眼界open one's eyes; broaden one's horizon; be an eye-opener⏹13.国泰民安The country flourishes and people live in peace.⏹14.过犹不及going too far is as bad as not going far enough; beyond is as wrongas falling short; too much is as bad as too little⏹15.功夫不负有心人Everything comes to him who waits.⏹16.好了伤疤忘了疼once on shore, one prays no more⏹17.好事不出门恶事传千里Good news never goes beyond the gate, while badnews spread far and wide.⏹18.和气生财Harmony brings wealth.⏹19.活到老学到老One is never too old to learn.⏹20.既往不咎let bygones be bygones⏹21.金无足赤人无完人Gold can't be pure and man can't be perfect.⏹22.金玉满堂Treasures fill the home.⏹23.脚踏实地be down-to-earth⏹24.脚踩两只船sit on the fence⏹25.君子之交淡如水the friendship between gentlemen is as pure as crystal; ahedge between keeps friendship green⏹26.老生常谈陈词滥调cut and dried, cliché⏹27.礼尚往来Courtesy calls for reciprocity.⏹28.留得青山在不怕没柴烧Where there is life, there is hope.⏹29.马到成功achieve immediate victory; win instant success⏹30.名利双收gain in both fame and wealth⏹31.茅塞顿开be suddenly enlightened⏹32.没有规矩不成方圆Nothing can be accomplished without norms orstandards.⏹33.每逢佳节倍思亲On festive occasions more than ever one thinks of one'sdear ones far away.It is on the festival occasions when one misses his dear most.⏹34.谋事在人成事在天The planning lies with man, the outcome with Heaven.Man proposes, God disposes.⏹35.弄巧成拙be too smart by half; Cunning outwits itself⏹36.拿手好戏masterpiece⏹37.赔了夫人又折兵throw good money after bad⏹38.抛砖引玉a modest spur to induce others to come forward with valuablecontributions; throw a sprat to catch a whale⏹39.破釜沉舟cut off all means of retreat；burn one‘s own way of retreat and bedetermined to fight to the end⏹40.抢得先机take the preemptive opportunities⏹41.巧妇难为无米之炊If you have no hand you can't make a fist. One can'tmake bricks without straw.⏹42.千里之行始于足下a thousand-li journey begins with the first step--thehighest eminence is to be gained step by step⏹43.前事不忘后事之师Past experience, if not forgotten, is a guide for thefuture. 44.前人栽树后人乘凉One generation plants the trees in whose shade another generation rests.One sows and another reaps.⏹45.前怕狼后怕虎fear the wolf in front and the tiger behind hesitate in doingsomething⏹46.强龙难压地头蛇Even a dragon (from the outside) finds it hard to control asnake in its old haunt - Powerful outsiders can hardly afford to neglect localbullies.⏹47.强强联手win-win co-operation⏹48.瑞雪兆丰年A timely snow promises a good harvest.⏹49.人之初性本善Man's nature at birth is good.⏹50.人逢喜事精神爽Joy puts heart into a man.⏹51.人海战术huge-crowd strategy⏹52.世上无难事只要肯攀登Where there is a will, there is a way.⏹53.世外桃源a fictitious land of peace away from the turmoil of the world;⏹54.死而后已until my heart stops beating⏹55.岁岁平安Peace all year round.⏹56.上有天堂下有苏杭Just as there is paradise in heaven, while there areSuzhou and Hangzhou on earth⏹57.塞翁失马焉知非福Misfortune may be an actual blessing.⏹58.三十而立A man should be independent at the age of thirty.At thirty, a manshould be able to think for himself.⏹59.升级换代updating and upgrading (of products)⏹60.四十不惑Life begins at forty.⏹61.谁言寸草心报得三春晖Such kindness of warm sun, can't be repaid by grass.62.水涨船高When the river rises, the boat floats high.⏹63.时不我待Time and tide wait for no man.⏹64.杀鸡用牛刀break a butterfly on the wheel⏹65.实事求是seek truth from facts; be practical and realistic; be true to facts⏹66.说曹操,曹操到Talk of the devil and he comes.⏹67.实话实说speak the plain truth; call a spade a spade; tell it as it is⏹68.实践是检验真理的唯一标准Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth.⏹69.山不在高，有仙则名'No matter how high the mountain is, its name willspread far and wide if there is a fairy; '⏹70.韬光养晦hide one's capacities and bide one's time⏹71.糖衣炮弹sugar-coated bullets⏹72.天有不测风云Anything unexpected may happen. a bolt from the blue⏹73.团结就是力量Unity is strength.⏹74.“跳进黄河洗不清” eve if one jumped into the Yellow River, one can notwash oneself clean--there's nothing one can do to clear one's name.⏹75.歪风邪气unhealthy practices and evil phenomena⏹76.物以类聚，人以群分Birds of a feather flock together.⏹77.往事如风'The past has vanished (from memory) like wind.; What in past, ispas⏹78.望子成龙hold high hopes for one's child⏹79.屋漏又逢连阴雨Misfortunes never come singly. When it rains it pours.⏹80.文韬武略military expertise; military strategy⏹81.唯利是图draw water to one's mill⏹82.无源之水,无本之木water without a source, and a tree without roots⏹83.无中生有make create something out of nothing⏹84.无风不起浪There are no waves without wind. There's no smoke withoutfire.⏹85.徇私枉法bend the law for the benefit of relatives or friends⏹86.新官上任三把火a new broom sweeps clean⏹87.虚心使人进步,骄傲使人落后Modesty helps one go forward, whereasconceit makes one lag behind.⏹88. 蓄势而发accumulate strength for a take-off⏹89.心想事成May all your wish come true⏹90.心照不宣have a tacit understanding; give tacit consent; tacit understanding91.先入为主First impressions are firmly entrenched.⏹92.先下手为强catch the ball before the bound⏹93.像热锅上的蚂蚁like an ant on a hot pan⏹94.现身说法warn people by taking oneself as an example⏹95.息事宁人pour oil on troubled waters⏹96.喜忧参半mingled hope and fear⏹97.循序渐进step by step⏹98.一路平安，一路顺风speed somebody on their way; speed the parting guest ⏹99.严以律己,宽以待人be strict with oneself and lenient towards others⏹100鱼米之乡⏹101.有情人终成眷属'Jack shall have Jill, all shall be well.'⏹102.有钱能使鬼推磨Money makes the mare go. Money talks.⏹103. 有识之士people of vision⏹104.有勇无谋use brawn rather than brain⏹105.有缘千里来相会Separated as we are thousands of miles apart, we cometogether as if by predestination.⏹106.与时俱进advance with times.⏹107.以人为本people oriented; people foremost.⏹108.因材施教teach students according to their aptitude.⏹109.欲穷千里目，更上一层楼'to ascend another storey to see a thousand milesfurther; Ascend further, were you to look farther; Would eye embrace athousand miles? Go up, one flight.' a land of milk and honey⏹110.欲速则不达Haste does not bring success.⏹111. 优胜劣汰survival of the fittest.⏹112.英雄所见略同Great minds think alike.⏹113.冤家宜解不宜结Better make friends than make enemies.⏹114.冤假错案'cases in which people were unjustly, falsely or wrongly charged orsentenced; unjust, false or wrong cases'⏹115.一言既出，驷马难追A real man never goes back on his words.⏹116.招财进宝Money and treasures will be plentiful.⏹117.债台高筑become debt-ridden.⏹118.致命要害Achilles' heel.⏹119. 众矢之的target of public criticism⏹120.知己知彼,百战不殆Know the enemy and know yourself, and you can fighta hundred battles with no danger of defeat.⏹121. 纸上谈兵be an armchair strategist⏹122.左右为难between the devil and the deep blue sea.⏹123.纸包不住火Truth will come to light sooner or later.。