Commentary: Defining and assessing constraints on linguistic forms

Abstract

In their paper, Everett et al. (2016) stress how a shift could or should take place from autonomous linguistic forms to ecologically adaptive ones. This raises the issue of the meaning of ecology when it comes to languages, and to what the Greek root of this word— oikos , the house or the habitat—actually refers. Several authors have equated the ecology of languages with their social environment, i.e., communities of speakers. When describing the ecology of language evolution , Mufwene (2001) exemplified how situations of contact between several languages in colonial plantations resulted in specific selections and assemblages of linguistic forms. More recently, Lupyan and Dale’s (2010) ecolinguistic niche hypothesis points at how differing social contexts may shape language structures, much as ecological niches shape organisms. They suggest in particular that a high percentage of adult L2 learners in a linguistic community may push toward less morphological complexity. Another example of social influences on linguistic forms is the debated positive correlation between the number of speakers of a language and the size of its phonological inventory (Hay and Bauer 2007; Bybee 2011). The notion of ecology can also relate to the natural environment in which speakers live and interact, as it is the case in Everett et al.'s contribution. Different phenomena can be acknowledged, which may take place simultaneously or not in specific situations. First, as highlighted by the authors, indirect influences may be identified: different ecological settings can induce different social or sociolinguistic situations, which may in turn partly shape linguistic forms. According to Nettle (1996), increased ecological risk leads to wider networks of mutual exchange and as a consequence reduced linguistic diversity and wider language areas. For Munroe et al. (1996), warm climates promote more frequent usage of Consonant–Vowel syllables and sonorous sounds, since …