Between Arbitrariness and Logic: Revisiting Universal Traits in Natural Languages

A panoply of researches have consistently isolated certain features that characterize the human language, one of which is the arbitrariness of linguistic forms (Sapir, 1921; Hall, 1968; Gimson, 1980; Eka and Udofot, 1996; Essien, 2006; Josiah, 2009). This paper re-examines some peculiar characteristics of natural languages, and then, presents a theoretic polemic: that language is both arbitrary and logical in nature – a position that tends to contradict earlier semantic purview on the concept. While this article upholds, on the one hand, that linguistic forms evolve from accidental choices of symbols and their referent following the tacit agreement of members of the speech community involved, it equally stresses on the other, that from a functional perspective, the human language involves some forms of logic. This conclusion is drawn after examining some definitions of language in the light of earlier submissions vis-à-vis its meaning and usage. For its theoretical thrust, the work is anchored on the concept of logical semantics exemplified in Lyons (1968) and popularized in Lyons (1977; 1990). In the end, the paper re-presents a tersely modified definition of language to emphasize its logical content, asserting that it is the latter that identifies man as a rational being capable of organizing thought that could shape up the society where he lives.