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A language is a system, used to communicate,
comprised of a set of symbols and a set of rules (or grammar)
by which the manipulation of these symbols is governed.
These symbols can be combined productively to convey new
information, distinguishing languages from other forms of
communication. The word language (without an article) can
also refer to the use of such systems as a phenomenon.
Human languages use patterns of sound and/or hand gesture
for symbols. These sounds can be converted into written form
with little loss of information. Gestures and intonation are
a part of delivery, but are not conveyed in written form.
Some invented human languages have been built entirely on
visual cues to enable communication. In human languages, the
symbols are sometimes known as lexemes and the rules are
usually known as grammars. "Language" is also used to refer
to common properties of languages. Language learning is
normal in human childhood and is biologically driven: a
crucial role of this process is performed by the neural
activity of a portion of the human brain known as Broca's
area. There are thousands of human languages, and many, if
not most seem to share certain properties (see Universal
Grammar) as shown by generative grammar studies pioneered by
the work of Noam Chomsky. Recently, it has been proved that
a dedicated network in the human brain (crucially involving
Broca's area, a portion of the left inferior frontal gyrus),
is selectively activated by those languages that meet the
Universal Grammar requirements.
There is no clear distinction between a language and a
dialect, notwithstanding linguist Max Weinreich's famous
aphorism that "a language is a dialect with an army and navy."
In other words, the distinction may hinge on political
considerations as much as on cultural differences,
distinctive writing systems, or degree of mutual
intelligibility.
Humans, sometimes using computer programs, have developed
additional languages, including the auxiliary language
Interlingua; constructed languages such as Esperanto, Ido,
Klingon, and Lojban; programming languages; and various
mathematical formalisms. These languages are not restricted
to the properties shared by other languages.
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