Table of Contents
Definition of Linguistic Relativity
(noun) The hypothesis that people understand the world through the lens of their own language.
Linguistic Relativity Pronunciation
Syllabification: lin·guis·tic rel·a·tiv·i·ty
Audio Pronunciation
Phonetic Spelling
- American English – /ling-gwI-stik rel-uh-tIv-uh-tee/
- British English – /ling-gwI-stik re-luh-tIv-i-tee/
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /lɪŋˈgwɪstɪk ˌrɛləˈtɪvəti/
- British English – /lɪŋˈgwɪstɪk ˌrɛləˈtɪvɪti/
Usage Notes
- Plural: linguistic relativities
- Linguistic relativity contends language is transferring cultural beliefs, norms, and values.
- Also called:
- linguistic relativity hypothesis
- Sapir-Whorf hypothesis
- Whorfian hypothesis
Related Videos
Additional Information
- Word origin of “linguistic” and “relativity” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
- Martin, Lauras. 1986. “‘Eskimo Words for Snow’: A Case Study in the Genesis and Decay of an Anthropological Example.” American Anthropologist 88(2):418–23. doi:10.1525/aa.1986.88.2.02a00080.
Related Terms
Works Consulted
Macionis, John, and Kenneth Plummer. 2012. Sociology: A Global Introduction. 4th ed. Harlow, England: Pearson Education.
Ravelli, Bruce, and Michelle Webber. 2016. Exploring Sociology: A Canadian Perspective. 3rd ed. Toronto: Pearson.
Wikipedia contributors. (N.d.) Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. (https://en.wikipedia.org/).
Cite the Definition of Linguistic Relativity
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “linguistic relativity.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved September 14, 2024 (https://sociologydictionary.org/linguistic-relativity/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
linguistic relativity. (2013). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/linguistic-relativity/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “linguistic relativity.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed September 14, 2024. https://sociologydictionary.org/linguistic-relativity/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“linguistic relativity.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2013. Web. 14 Sep. 2024. <https://sociologydictionary.org/linguistic-relativity/>.