Language, Communication, and the Nature of Signs

Posted on Apr 4, 2025 in Arts and Humanities

Understanding Language and Communication

Language encompasses all media used for communication. It directly transmits and communicates information and ideas. According to Lyons, communication is a concept with two main senses:

  • A general sense: Social interaction or a response to a stimulus.
  • A more concrete sense: The intentional transmission of information through an established signaling system.

Communication is not exclusive to linguistics; other sciences study it in various ways. The etymology of the word comes from Latin, meaning “to involve someone in something.” Communication involves the exchange of information between a speaker (sender) and a receiver via a message, a code, and a channel.

Languages are systems of symbols that enable communication.

Semiology: The Science of Signs

Semiology is the science that studies all systems of signals; therefore, linguistics is part of semiology. Semiology is abstract and aims to:

  1. Define the forms of communication in modern society.
  2. Clarify the place of language among these forms of communication.

Semiology highlights how dependent we are on signs.

The Semiotic Act in Communication

All linguistic communication occurs within a semiotic act, which involves:

  1. Participants in the speech: The speaker (sender) and the receiver.
  2. The code: All memorized elements ready for use at any moment.
  3. The message: Experience encrypted according to the units and combinatorial rules of the code.
  4. The channel: The technical support for the message.
  5. Noise and interference: Factors that can disrupt communication.
  6. Redundancy: Used to prevent disruptions.
  7. The extralinguistic context: A set of factors surrounding the communication act, known by the sender and receiver.

Defining the Sign in Semiotics

A sign is a perceived physical object involved in the communication process, representing another reality. The semiological process occurs between the transmitter and receiver, involving encoding and decoding. For a sign to exist, there must be an interpreter.

Ullman’s Sign Classification

Ullman distinguishes between two large groups of signs:

  • Non-linguistic signs (e.g., expressive gestures)
  • Linguistic signs (spoken or written language)

Criteria for Classifying Signs

Signs can be classified according to several criteria:

  1. Intentionality: Whether the sign is intentional or unintentional.
  2. System Coherence: Whether the elements are part of an organized, coherent system. Systems often consist of a few elements that alternate in a fixed order.
  3. Sensory Channel: Based on the sense involved. Unintentional signs often relate to any sense, while intentional ones are typically reduced to hearing and sight.
  4. Linearity vs. Spatiality: Signs that develop sequentially (linear) versus those reflected in space without sequence (spatial).
  5. Iconic vs. Conventional: Distinguishing between sign proper and symbol.
    • The indication (or symptom) has no communicative intention.
    • The iconic sign (or icon) is not arbitrary; it reproduces features of the reality it represents.
    • The conventional sign (or symbol) is arbitrary; its meaning is based on agreement or convention.
  6. Derived vs. Direct: Some languages have derived sign systems, like writing, which is based on a direct sign system (speech). Writing translates speech sounds into visual signs.