I had a pretty interesting experience today related to this entry. I have been making effort to learn German since I’m surrounded by German speakers. What Is the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis? PAUL KAY University of Calqornia, Berkeley WILLETT KEMPTON Michigan State University The history of empirical research on the. Origin of hypothesis. Gr, groundwork, foundation, supposition ; from hypotithenai, to place under ; from hypo-, under + tithenai, to place: see hypo- and amp; do Whorf is best known as the main proponent of what he called the principle of linguistic relativity, but which is often known as the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis , named. Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis. R. S. Badhesha Spring 2002. It is often thought that the reality expressed in spoken word is the very same as the reality which is. Acknowledgments. This entry benefitted from the feedback of Shaun Nichols, Amanda Bryant, and the editors of the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. In linguistics, the Sapir–Whorf hypothesis (SWH) states that there is a systematic relationship between the grammatical categories of the language a person speaks. What is the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis? Paul Kay & Willett Kempton (1984) Based on a powerpoint presentation by NT Rusiyanadi.