Return to Saussure

            In language, the gradual march of change eclipses the fleeting rush of the swift.  Introduction In the previous article, Stability and Change in Language: An Exploration of Saussure’s Linguistic Paradox , we examined how Ferdinand de Saussure’s insights revealed a fundamental tension in language: the paradox of its stability and change. While the relationship between a signifier and a signified is arbitrary and thus theoretically open to change, the established bond within a linguistic community makes it remarkably resistant to alteration. However, over time, gradual shifts occur, highlighting the dynamic nature of linguistic systems. This follow-up article shifts focus to the deeper mechanisms that drive linguistic evolution: the role of social forces and the passage of time. We will explore how language, as a social institution, is shaped by collective usage within a community and how time inevitably introduces change, even in systems that seem fixed. By consider