false 1591868 2 <div>It is tempting to take the tremendous rate of contemporary linguistic change for granted. What is required, in fact, is a radical reinterpretation of what language is. Steven Roger Fischer begins his book with an examination of the modes of communication used by dolphins, birds and primates as the first contexts in which the concept of "language" might be applied. As he charts the history of language from the times of Homo erectus, Neanderthal humans and Homo sapiens through to the nineteenth century, when the science of linguistics was developed, Fischer analyses the emergence of language as a science and its development as a written form. He considers the rise of pidgin, creole, jargon and slang, as well as the effects radio and television, propaganda, advertising and the media are having on language today. Looking to the future, he shows how electronic media will continue to reshape and re-invent the ways in which we communicate.<br><br>"[a] delightful and unexpectedly accessible book ... a virtuoso tour of the linguistic world."&#8212;<i>The Economist</i> <br><br>"... few who read this remarkable study will regard language in quite the same way again."&#8212;<i>The Good Book Guide</i></div> 513052 1 12 1999 History of Language (Reaktion Books - Globalities) total:3|5:1|4:2| 3 13 17 2 4 0 false false Sat Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Fri Dec 28 20:35:07 -0800 2007 Fri Dec 28 20:41:59 -0800 2007 more...]]> 0 0 false false Sat Jan 17 08:17:20 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 17 08:18:41 -0800 2009 koko the gorilla signing ASL, blue whales communicating
for miles, ants, bee dance..fascinating so far...]]> 0 0 false false Thu Aug 20 14:42:49 -0700 2009 Thu Aug 20 14:42:49 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Feb 03 20:07:34 -0800 2009 Tue Feb 03 20:07:34 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Mon Jan 26 04:44:47 -0800 2009 Mon Jan 26 04:44:47 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Fri Jan 02 15:39:05 -0800 2009 Fri Jan 02 15:39:07 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sun Nov 30 13:46:39 -0800 2008 Sun Nov 30 13:46:39 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Fri Aug 29 18:06:00 -0700 2008 Fri Aug 29 18:06:00 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Mon Jun 02 16:33:21 -0700 2008 Mon Jun 02 16:33:21 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Wed May 28 14:24:29 -0700 2008 Wed May 28 14:24:29 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Wed Feb 27 12:32:38 -0800 2008 Sun Aug 09 08:55:46 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Feb 15 05:36:37 -0800 2008 Fri Feb 15 05:36:37 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Mon May 04 10:00:22 -0700 2009 Fri Jan 25 13:13:32 -0800 2008 Mon May 04 10:00:22 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Jan 15 18:14:13 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 15 18:14:13 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Sat Jan 05 11:28:35 -0800 2008 Sat Jan 05 11:28:35 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Wed Nov 14 22:37:54 -0800 2007 Wed Nov 14 22:37:58 -0800 2007 5 0 false false Fri Jul 27 16:05:59 -0700 2007 Fri Jul 27 16:06:05 -0700 2007