"I can say that our ancestors never died. The spark of their soul is thinking in our brains through our daily language habits. Language and culture have always connected us to our ancestors. This connection will always be stronger than blood. ”

When Ingrid said this, it was a day in February 2029.

Xiang Shan has just returned from his vacation in Beiping. He was holding a tablet in his hand and was scrolling through the news.

Due to the gradual downgrading of the classification of the Rama Special Project, some electronic devices can now be brought into the park. Xiang Shan didn't subscribe to the news in particular, but the current chat software comes with news pop-ups. He would occasionally glance at him.

And in the corner of the office area, Ingrid and Kamihara were chatting with Yagmov.

Yagmov had come to ask questions about the Chinese language.

"Hey, friends of the Republic over there?" Ingrid picked up a small piece of paper and threw it over: "This brother is here to learn your native language, don't you say two words?" ”

Xiang Shan took his attention off the news article titled "The Republic Runs in Many Directions to Promote the Establishment of the Pacific Rim Agricultural Community" and raised his hands: "I'm sorry, I'm an engineering student. Inga, Ingrid: Your level of proficiency in this language is much higher than mine. I'm very unprofessional in this area. ”

As a result of a joint project currently underway, a group of linguists, including Ingrid, have simply opened an office area in the engineering research center to work together on "something".

In his spare time, Yagmov is studying Chinese on his own. Although the misunderstanding has long been resolved, according to Yagmov himself, learning the language is not because of Xiang Shan's joke last year. He did have that in mind.

It should be said that he thought so several years ago. It's just that I was busy with work at the time.

And now, with a group of native speakers and some of the world's best linguists around him – why not take the chance?

Since a year ago, he and Kamihara Zun and Xiangshan became the first scholars to come into contact with "Ogon", so he also has a little reputation in the scholar community. This seems to have opened up Yagmow's social circle.

Of course, this is the same for Xiang Shan.

And Ingrid has always been very generous.

But Yagmov is still distressed: "I think my study efficiency is too low. Although I have memorized a lot of articles, I still feel that I am not comfortable using this language. ”

Ingrid shrugged, "It's a very difficult question, Yog. Did you know that there are many second language learners who are unable to use this second language as well as their mother tongue in their lifetime, and some learners can do so very easily? ”

"Unfortunately, there are no convincing enough statistical surveys to point out the proportion of these two types of people in the population."

Speaking of this, Ingrid was a little regretful: "It's a real pity. To be honest, the funding available in this area is really very small. ”

As if he was touched by the sadness of his heart: "The travel expenses for fieldwork will never be enough to spend......"

Linguistics is really the legendary "aristocratic profession". The input is high, the output is low, and the family has no capital to waste enough.

Instead of following the two linguists, Yagmov pondered, "Is this difference due to some kind of genetic expression?" Is there evidence that this 'second language acquisition' is hereditary? ”

Ingrid shrugged: "It's a question worth looking into, but you have to apply for funding." ”

Xiang Shan closed the news window and raised his head again: "But not everyone needs a second language now...... right?"

"No, the ultimate goal of our research on the process of second language acquisition is to extrapolate how the 'first language' and 'mother tongue' are acquired by us. It ultimately solves the problem of the mechanism of 'language acquisition' itself. ”

"From a purely linguistic point of view, it pursues a 'universal grammar'. From a neuroscience perspective, it explores the brain's mechanisms of input, storage, and processing of information. From the perspective of cultural studies, it encompasses the interaction between people and social culture. ”

Ingrid took a sip of her tea.

Kamihara said, "But I still reserve my opinion on this point. I've investigated many ancient languages in Africa, the region where humans originated. I don't get a sense of what you call a 'universal grammar' from learning these languages. There's always something about their language that you can't imagine. ”

"Personal opinion." Ingrid raised an eyebrow: "Do you have any recommended papers?" タケル君 [タケル, the pronunciation of "respect"]"

Yagmov mused: "I thought the 'universal grammar' thing should be obvious. ”

There are some differences between the original gods: "Do you have any opinions?" ”

"Hmm...... For example, in all languages in the world, the pronunciation of 'mother' contains the sound 'ma'? ”

Kamihara was stunned for a moment, then turned away, his shoulders shaking twice.

It's supposed to be laughing.

Ingrid also frowned and shook her head: "Yog, this is not 'universal grammar'. And it's a misconception. ”

"Really?" Yagmov was surprised.

"There are only a few sounds that babies can easily make. It's nothing more than the sounds of 'ma', 'ba', 'pa', 'mu', 'i''o'. The sound of the baby calling out to his parents is, of course, a combination of these sounds. Infant pronunciation is characterized by nasal consonants m, n or plosives p, b, t, d plus vowel a. "In Georgia, the word 'mama' is used to refer to my father. And in the north of the Republic, there are also ethnic minorities who use the word 'ama' to call their fathers. There are also many ethnic groups who use the words 'ba' and 'da' to call their mothers. ”

Kamihara nodded and said that this was indeed the case: "It is indeed a narrow prejudice to think that all languages in the world use 'ma' to refer to mothers - it should be said that the mechanism of 'universal grammar' mentioned by Ingrid is closer to 'why do humans form these pronunciations into words for father and mother'?" Of course, it's not accurate. This is a rather complex issue. ”

Xiang Shan was a little curious: "We still have a name like 'mother' over there, right?" It was used until decades ago. ”

Ingrid rolled her eyes: "The post-nasal vowel 'iang' is not something that babies and young children can pronounce at all. Your ancestors also called your mother 'ma'. In ancient Chinese, the word 'mother' was not used to mean 'mother' at all. The term refers to all 'women' in general – both young and old. Until the Song Dynasty, 'little lady' was still a normal term for young girls. ”

"It's just that the word 'girl' appeared in the Yuan Dynasty, which squeezed out the original meaning of 'young woman' of 'mother'. As a result, the word became an honorific title for older or older married women. ”

Xiang Shan scratched his head: "The 'girl's aunt' ......"

"It is most likely from Mongolian, with a pronunciation close to 'hu hen'. Remnants of the word are still preserved in Russian and some Eastern European languages. Ingrid explains: "If you've read old vernacular works like 'Strange Tales from Liaozhai', then you should know that 'Niang' still retains the meaning of 'young girl' when used as a personal name. Japan, which was not under Mongol rule, retains this significance even more completely. ”

Yagmov pondered: "Isn't this inference too far-fetched?" Any other explanation? ”

"Oh, this...... Let's do an experiment. Ingrid leaned down and looked under her desk to find a green folder, ripped it open, and folded it into a hat. She handed the hat to Yagmow: "Put it on, and watch how your two friends react." ”

For some reason, Yagmov fastened the hat to his head and looked up.

Xiang Shan was lying on the table, his expression distorted, and his shoulders trembled. And the original god is not clear.

Yagmov looked here and there.

It took a few seconds for Kamihara Zun to show a look of sudden realization.

"What Xiang just thought in his head was nothing more than 'these two people turned out to be in this relationship', 'Is Yingjia so hilarious behind her back', or 'This joke is not appropriate but it is still funny'." Ingrid had a playful expression: "By the way, this is just an experimental project. ”

Yagmov took off his hat on his head: "What principle is this?" ”

"In the Yuan Empire in East Asia, male relatives of women who worked in the custom industry were required to wear green headscarves. But the Yuan Empire was blocked by the sea and did not bring Japan under its rule. Ingrid said, "You see, Xiang can understand in an instant, although Kamihara knows a little Chinese, he probably has to think about it before he realizes what I'm doing—but by this time he probably understands what I'm talking about 'experiment'." ”

"The brutal empire of the Mongols, whose iron hooves were trodden in the 12th and 13th centuries AD, echoes in language to this day. This is the scar it brings to the world. The scars are still alive. ”

"Sometimes what you are thinking about is not necessarily yourself, but a set of cultural symbols, a set of narrative models, and a set of discourse systems that you accept. These notions of 'language' are stirring up in your neurons. It's they who think. ”

"I can say that our ancestors never died. The spark of their soul is thinking in our brains through our daily language habits. Language and culture have always connected us to our ancestors. This connection will always be stronger than blood. ”

Xiang Shan grinned: "This is the same as the undead." ”

This statement is too idealistic and not very appetizing to him.

"Who's to say it isn't." Ingrid shrugged: "In Saussure's realm, we have met our long-forgotten ancestors countless times. They may be gods and heroes, or they may be undead. ”