ABSTRACT
Language is a more-or-less formally established collection of symbols that has meaning for a specific group of people, whereas verbal communication is the exchange of meanings using the written or spoken symbols of a language system. Most language systems also have a lexicon, or formal system of written characters representing the spoken words of a language system. All animals seem to be capable of some form of communication, and certain animals seem to have complex systems of noises and behaviors that send messages to others in their group. The personal meanings attached to words, as well as to how language is used, are very much a product of one’s frame of reference. One of the more controversial issues related to the nature of language is the question of just how much the symbols and the structure of a language affect the perceptions of the language-user.
