The Whorfian Hypothesis, otherwise known as the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, is a linguistic theory developed by Benjamin Lee Whorf and his mentor, Edward Sapir, in the early 20th century. The Whorfian hypothesis basically states that language influences thought, and the way people think. Sometimes this theory is also called “linguistic relativity.”
Originally an engineer, Whorf developed his ideas about lingusitc relativity while working for an insurance company. When Whorf’s interests in linguistics and anthropology led him to Yale University, he met and impressed Edward Sapir. Sapir and Whorf developed the theory of linguistic relativity together, though many other linguists did not value Whorf’s input much, due to his nontraditional educational track. Sapir and Whorf included a much stronger anthropological element to their studies than previous linguists, taking the time to study different cultures and languages in the field.
As previously mentioned, the Whorfian hypothesis says that language influences thought. Different languages from across the world have extremely different structures, syntaxes, and vocabularies, and the structure and content of these languages can influence how people in different cultures think about their surroundings.
One of the examples often used by linguistic relativists to demonstrate this theory is an anthropological study of the Hopi Indians in 1911 by Franz Boas, Sapir’s mentor. Boas found that the Hopi language did not have a concept of time as an objective entity. In other words, the Hopi don’t have words or grammar tenses to distinguish the past, present, and future in the way that the English language, and many other languages, do.
Sapir, Whorf, and other linguistic relativists argue that, because the Hopi do not have words that talk about the past and the future in a way we’re familiar with, this changes the way they think about time. The Hopi have no real concept of the past because they have no words to express ideas about the past.
The Whorfian theory has been heavily disputed and debated since its inception. Most linguists reject a strong version of the theory (thought is totally determinate on language), but agree with a soft version of the theory (language does influence thought, but it is not the only factor.) Nevertheless, the Whorfian hypothesis was an important one in the field of linguistics and anthropology, showing a shift from a focus on language and the speaker as an abstract concept to studying language as one factor in a culture, one that influences and affects, and is in turn affected, by the world around it.
