Aspects of an ecological theory of language

Our aim and knowledge-constitutive interest is to identify some central aspects of an ecological theory of language. In our understanding of building an integrative ecological theory of language, it seems useful to look first for roots of a special ecological understanding of language. Here forerunners can be identified in several philosophical approaches beginning in the 19th century. In Section 2, contours of the dialectical theory of language and communication and the theory of language–world-systems will be described to arrive at basic elements of an integrative approach in the last sections.