LANGUAGE AS A TOOL FOR EFFECTIVE SPORTSMANSHIP

Abstract

The idea of language in relation to sports has often been an agitating issue. However, it is very clear that sports cannot exist without language. Players communicate with one another, with the coach, and with  fans within and outside the pitch through the medium of verbal and non -verbal language. The commentators, the referees, the news analysts also discharge their functions using language. Yet, this significant role of language in sports tend to be underplayed. In an environment where many languages are spoken, sports serve as a medium that breaks down language barriers. The study therefore establishes the significant relationship between language and sports, in view of Sapir’s Hypothesis that language is purely human and a non-instinctive means of communication of one’s social identity. Just like every sporting activity, each social milieu consciously expresses its unique identity through sports with the use  of language.