Adam Smith's Rational Choice Linguistics

David Levy

Economic Inquiry, 1997, vol. 35, issue 3, 672-78

Abstract: Adam Smith offers an account, based on rational choice considerations, of the grammatical change experienced by languages when adults attempt to communicate across languages in such a way as to minimize transactions costs. His model predicts what is known to linguists as a 'pidgin,' a language learned by adults in which to make trades. His model can be extended to predict the grammatical trajectory toward pidgin experienced by dying languages. Copyright 1997 by Oxford University Press.

Date: 1997
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