Does language influence how we think?

I speak 5 languages. Depending on situation, I think in one or the other language. If it's about counting, I use my mother language.

So, may be, do it really influence how we think? Why not what we think?

The Chinese counting system is like one (yi, 一).. hundred (bai，百).. thousand (qian, 千）.. ten thousand (wan, 万） .... When you want to express 100k you would actually say 10x ten thousand.

It's a different approach. I don't think it shaped/shapes my thinking. It's a skill (yes) you have to exercise (yes) and to figure it out as in the linked website with the vietnamese taxi driver (no).

We do things automatically when we have things like counting, or naming a figure or saying hello to taxi drivers in Vietnam. For me, that's compelling. Language change and build up the routes in our brain, that are traversed while searching for the right Neurons.. so, I wouldn't say it influence how we think, but rather it is what we think.

Some of the info in this post is taken from the awesome Lera Boroditsky and her work. Highly recommended if you found this article interesting: https://www.edge.org/conversation/lera_boroditsky-how-does-o...

In the end, we should share what we think with others.