LING UN3101: Introduction to Linguistics (3.00 Points)
Instructor: John Mcwhorter
Time: T Th 1:10pm – 2:25pm
Prerequisites: None
An introduction to the study of language from a scientific perspective. The course is divided into three units: language as a system (sounds, morphology, syntax, and semantics), language in context (in space, time, and community), and language of the individual (psycholinguistics, errors, aphasia, neurology of language, and acquisition). Required for the linguistics major.
LING UN3103: Language, Brain & Mind (3.00 Points)
Instructor: William Foley
Time: M W 2:40pm – 3:55pm
Prerequisites: None
The ability to speak distinguishes humans from all other animals, including our closest relatives, the chimpanzees. Why is this so? What makes this possible? This course seeks to answer these questions. We will look at the neurological and psychological foundations of the human faculty of language. How did our brains change to allow language to evolve? Where in our brains are the components of language found? Are our minds specialized for learning language, or is it part of our general cognitive abilities to learn? How are words and sentences produced, and their meanings recognized? The structure of languages around the world varies greatly; does this have psychological effects for their speakers? Fulfills: Psychology & biology of language theme or elective; Core Science C.
LING GU4376: Phonetics & Phonology (3.00 Points)
Instructor: Meredith Landman
Time: T Th 11:40am – 12:55pm
Prerequisites: (LING3101) Introduction to Linguistics
An introduction to the study of sounds in language. We will explore the articulation, acoustics, and perception of sounds (phonetics) as well as how sounds pattern and function in language (phonology). Students will learn the tools and techniques of phonological and phonetic analysis while becoming familiarized with the types of empirical phenomena these subfields aim to account for and explain. Topics include: articulatory and acoustic phonetics; phonemic and morphophonemic analysis; segmental and suprasegmental (stress, tone, and other prosodic) patterns; the role of morphology and syntax; perception, diachrony, and acquisition. Required for the linguistics major.
LING GU4120: Language Documentation & Field Methods (3.00 Points)
Instructor: Meredith Landman
Time: T Th 2:40pm – 3:55pm
Prerequisites: (LING3101) Introduction to Linguistics and (LING GU4376) Phonetics & Phonology (or concurrent enrollment).
This course provides training in linguistic fieldwork for language documentation and description. We will work with a speaker of a less-studied language to understand the language’s structure—its sounds, rules of word and sentence formation, ways of expressing meaning, and usage—and learn about its speakers and their culture. Students will learn hands-on linguistic fieldwork techniques and the art of writing linguistic descriptions. Fulfills: Language diversity theme or elective.
LING UN3993: Senior Thesis Seminar (3.00 Points)
Instructors: Nikita Bezruokov, Meredith Landman, John McWhorter
Time: W 4:10pm – 6:00pm
This is a year-long course that guides students through the process of writing a senior thesis in linguistics. Students should enroll in three points per semester. Required for the linguistics major.
LING UN3104: Indigenous Languages of North America (3.00 Points)
Instructor: William Foley
Prerequisites: None
Humans arrived in the Americas no earlier than 30 thousand years ago and perhaps as recently as 13 thousand years ago, yet since that time Native Americans have developed an incredible richness and diversity of cultures and languages, with well over a thousand distinct indigenous languages. In this course, we will focus on the indigenous languages of the United States and Canada. At the time of European contact in the sixteenth century, there were around 400 languages spoken across the territories of these two countries, yet today only around half of these are still spoken, and of these about 150 are only spoken by elders and in grave danger of not being passed onto younger generations. It is estimated that only around 20 or so indigenous languages in the United States and Canada have good prospects of being spoken natively into the twenty second century. In this course, we will survey the variety and diversity of indigenous languages and the cultural values tied to them in the pre-contact era, and then look into the causes of their current decline in use and what steps are being taken to reverse this and revitalize them, even languages which no longer have any first language speakers. We will investigate the amazing diversity in the basic structures of these languages and the meanings they can express, highlighting the difference between them and the more familiar patterns of English. We will study how they are used in indigenous contexts, both traditional and modern, to communicate valued sociocultural and aesthetic ends. Finally, we will explore three indigenous languages in greater depth, two from New York State, and appreciate some of the native oral traditions in the original languages. This course will be of interest to any undergraduate student curious about the prehistory and subsequent Native history and ethnography of North America. Fulfills: Linguistics elective; Global Core.
ENGL GU4901: History of English (3.00 Points)
Instructor: John McWhorter
Prerequisites: None
This course will cover the evolution of English from its origins as an alternate-reality version of German to the modern language, so infused with elements from Celtic, Scandinavian, French and Latin that serious proposals classify it as a variety of Norse, as not even descended from Old English at all, and even as a creole. We will cover the spread of the language throughout the world, including the evolution of American English from the seventeenth century through to our internet era. While the course will require no previous experience with linguistics, the focus will be on language rather than literature. Fulfills: Language in time theme or elective.
LING GU4903: Syntax (3.00 Points)
Instructor: Meredith Landman
Prerequisites: (LING3101) Introduction to Linguistics
An introduction to the study of sentence structure in the languages of the world. We will explore syntactic phenomena across a variety of languages, and students will learn how to conduct syntactic analysis and engage with the field’s key concepts, questions, and debates. Required for the linguistics major.
LING GU4023: Semantics (3.00 Points)
Instructor: Meredith Landman
Prerequisite: (LING3101) Introduction to Linguistics
An introduction to the study of meaning in language. We will explore how language encodes meaning (semantics) and how speakers use language to convey meaning (pragmatics). Throughout the semester, we will use formal tools from logic to study linguistic meaning. Fulfills: Language and meaning theme or elective.
LING GU4800: Language & Society (3.00 Points)
Instructor: John McWhorter
Prerequisites: None
How language structure and usage varies according to societal factors such as social history and socioeconomic factors, illustrated with study modules on language contact, language standardization and literacy, quantitative sociolinguistic theory, language allegiance, language and power. Fulfills: Language in context theme or elective.
LING UN3994: Senior Thesis Seminar (3.00 Points)
Instructors: Nikita Bezruokov, Meredith Landman, John McWhorter
This is a year-long course that guides students through the process of writing a senior thesis in linguistics. Students should enroll in three points per semester. Required for the linguistics major.