Qwiz5 Quizbowl Essentials - The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis

The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis, also commonly known as the Theory of Linguistic Relativity, is a highly controversial linguistic theory that was in vogue in the first half of the 20th century. The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis argues that one’s language determines the way one perceives the world, rather than the other way around. The limits of our language may or may not be the limits of our world, but once you read this guide your world won’t be limited by a lack of knowledge of linguistic relativity. 

Edward Sapir

By analyzing questions, you can see patterns emerge, patterns that will help you answer questions. Qwiz5 is all about those patterns. In each installment of Qwiz5, we take an answer line and look at its five most common clues. Here we explore five clues that will help you answer a tossup on The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis.

WILHELM VON HUMBOLDT

The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis is named for two American linguists, Benjamin Whorf and Edward Sapir. However, the theory didn’t originate in its entirety from the two men. German linguist and philosopher Wilhelm von Humboldt was highly influential among American linguists. Writing in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Humboldt was one of the first to argue that an individual perceived the world through a linguistic medium. 

HOPI LANGUAGE

Whorf researched the language of The Hopi, a Native American tribe living in Arizona. Whorf claimed that the Hopi did not possess the general concept of time held by other cultures. Based on certain unique features of Hopi’s tense system, Whorf’s theory held that as there was no way for the Hopi to express the concept of time, since they lacked the conception of it. This has since been disproven by many linguists. 

GASOLINE DRUMS

Prior to working as a linguist, Whorf was a chemical engineer for the Hartford Insurance Company. His experiences there investigating fires would also inspire his theories. Whorf noticed that workers would frequently smoke around gasoline drums that had been labelled “empty,” even though the fumes remaining in the empty drums were more flammable than the liquid in the full gasoline drums. Whorf explained this by positing that the workers had a different linguistic conception of the term “empty.” 

LOGLAN

Extraordinary claims require verification. Unsurprisingly, many linguists attempted to put the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis to the test. Dr. James Cooke Brown developed Loglan, a logically-constructed language, in part to test the premise of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis. Brown argued that Loglan’s structure was so different from other languages that it would cause people learning it to think differently. 

PINKER CRITICISM

Many linguists have criticized the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, but Canadian linguist Steven Pinker is among its most vociferous critics. Pinker famously criticized the hypothesis as a kind of mysticism. Pinker argues that language and thought are independent, and that we do not actually use "natural" language when we think, which would render the hypothesis meaningless.

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Quizbowl is about learning, not rote memorization, so we encourage you to use this as a springboard for further reading rather than as an endpoint. Here are a few things to check out:

• Some evidence supporting a form of the Whorfian hypothesis can be seen in differences in color perception across cultures. Read more about that here.

  
  

• A common trope that supports the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis is the notion that there are multiple words for snow in the “Eskimo language.” The truth, however, is far more complicated. Read more about it here. 

• In contrast to the theory of linguistic relativity is the theory of universal grammar, holding that certain linguistic properties are constant across all languages and cultures. Watch a video about it here.

• Although most mainstream linguists have dismissed the strongest forms of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, the idea still has a certain pop cultural cachet. Read more about that here.

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