Linguistics courses for Spring 2024

IDS2291. Language Birth, Language Death. This course explores the origins and characteristics of real and constructed languages (conlangs), such as Esperanto, Na’vi’ and Heptapod B. It also examines the factors leading to language loss and language death, the reasons why we should care, and how language specialists and activists attempt to bring dying languages back to life. (Honors course.)

LIN3041. Introduction to Linguistics I. This course examines what is language and introduces phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics, and sociolinguistics.

LIN3042. Introduction to Linguistics II. Pre-requisite: LIN 3041. This course continues what is language, focusing on differences between human language and animal communication, first and second language acquisition, psycholinguistics, neurolinguistics, and computational linguistics.

LIN4512. Introduction to Syntax. Pre-requisite: LIN 3041. This course examines the structure of sentences. It approaches syntax from the perspective of generative grammar and focuses on central topics in syntactic theory (Phrase Structure, X’-schema, Theta Theory, Case, Movement, and Binding Theory)

LIN4600. Sociolinguistics. Pre-requisite: LIN 3041. This course explores language in its social context. It focuses on the study of language as a means of communication and expression of identity, as the identity of the speaker and the speech community define the choice of the language.

LIN 4930. Special Topics: Second Language Acquisition. This course introduces students to key constructs, theories, and scholarship within the field of second language acquisition (SLA). Topics include the role of input and output in SLA and how individual differences affect language processing.

LIN 4930. Special Topics: Language Contact. This course is an introduction to the field of language contact. Topics include theories of language contact, methods, contact-induced change at different linguistic levels, endangered languages, pidgins, creoles, and mixed languages. The course covers a wide range of language pairs and contact situations across the world. (instructor permission needed)

LIN 4930. Special Topics: Psycholinguistics: Lexical Processing. This course examines the relationship between language and cognition in individuals who speak and understand more than one language, focusing on psycholinguistic research carried out in a variety of second languages (e.g., Spanish, Dutch, English, Italian). Topics include issues and concepts in psycholinguistics, models of language processing, and experimental tasks. (instructor permission needed)