1. Systematicity: Languages are not random collections of sounds or symbols. They have systematic structures and rules that govern how sounds, words, and sentences are formed.
2. Arbitrariness: The relationship between a word and its meaning is arbitrary. There's no inherent reason why a specific sound combination represents a specific concept. "Cat" doesn't sound like a cat, but we all agree it does.
3. Productivity: Languages are productive, meaning we can create new expressions and meanings, even for things we've never encountered before. We can combine existing words and grammatical structures to express novel ideas.
4. Displacement: Languages allow us to talk about things that aren't present in time or space. We can discuss past events, future plans, and even abstract concepts.
5. Duality of Patterning: Languages operate on two levels: sounds (or phonemes) and meanings (or morphemes). Sounds are combined to form meaningful units (words), and words are combined to form sentences.
6. Cultural Transmission: Languages are learned, not innate. They are passed down from generation to generation through cultural transmission.
7. Recursion: Languages allow for embedding structures within other structures. This allows for complex and nuanced expressions, such as "the cat that chased the mouse that stole the cheese."
8. Variability: Languages change over time, evolving in their pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar. This is why modern English is different from Old English, for example.
9. Ambiguity: Language can be ambiguous, meaning that a single expression can have multiple interpretations. This can lead to misunderstandings, but it also allows for creative and nuanced communication.
10. Adaptability: Languages adapt to their environments and the needs of their speakers. New words are coined, old words are repurposed, and grammatical structures evolve to reflect changing social and cultural norms.
These are just some of the core characteristics that define all languages. While languages vary widely in their specific structures and features, they all share these fundamental principles of human communication.