ABSTRACT
The centrality of language in our lives, our awareness of it, and the emotional attachment we form to it sometimes result in misunderstandings about what language actually is. Here are some common attitudes about language that result from such misunderstandings:
a. We learn the structure of our language in school. b. Some languages are primitive, especially languages that are not written. c. My language is better/purer/higher/more intelligent than your language. d. Language and speech are the same thing, or, in other words, a language
that is not spoken, that has no sound, is not a real language.
