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Linguistics (LING) Courses

Academic Unit: Linguistics, Institute of

LING 1701 - Language and Society [DSJ]
(4 cr; Student Option; offered Every Fall & Spring)
Role of language in human social interaction; linguistic indicators of social status and attitudes; language and sex roles; linguistic ecology; language planning for multilingual communities; implications for education and public policy.
LING 1705W - World Englishes: The Linguistics of English-based varieties around the globe [SOCS WI GP]
(4 cr; Student Option; offered Periodic Fall & Spring)
In this course, we will explore the linguistic questions that arise concerning the many varieties of English that are spoken around the globe. Our overarching concern will be what we can learn about humans and the human mind by studying the variation found across English varieties. Our investigation will focus on three primary threads of linguistic research: methods of data collection and analysis, tools of formal grammatical analysis, and critical analysis of sociopolitical contexts of language use. By approaching the global landscape of Englishes and English-based creoles in this way, we will tackle a number of questions, including: Who is a native speaker? What is a standard? What value judgments do people ascribe to different varieties of English? What sorts of (linguistic and extra-linguistic) relationships exist between different varieties of English and their speakers? What role does English play in an increasingly globalized world? How has its role changed over time and from place to place? Through this course, students will gain an understanding of how English is situated in the global linguistic landscape, an ability to critically read linguistics articles and other media relating to language use, experience in analyzing linguistic data to understand patterns and variation, and an ability to communicate their findings and analyses effectively.
LING 1800 - Topics in Linguistics (Topics course)
(1 cr [max 4]; Student Option; offered Periodic Fall & Spring; may be repeated for 20 credits; may be repeated 5 times)
Topics vary. See Class Schedule.
LING 1801 - The Human Mind & Human Languages
(3 cr; Student Option; offered Every Fall)
Our planet hosts around 7000 human languages. What do diverse languages across the world have in common and where exactly do they differ? What do these underlying similarities and differences between languages teach us about the human mind? How do linguistic knowledge and behavior differ across speakers of different languages and dialects of the same language, influenced by environmental and social variables such as class, ethnicity, and social identity? These big-picture questions will guide this course. One school of thought argues that all human beings are genetically born with the ability to learn and use complex patterns in language, and thus languages share many universal properties. Another school of thought believes in the concept of ?embodied cognition,? or the idea that human language cannot express things that the human mind cannot experience. In this course, we directly study both schools of thought and various topics that highlight the vital mind and language connection. Topics of study will include: - What role do language and cognition play in the development of thoughts? - What are speech and language disorders in the brain? - Why are color naming systems so diverse across languages? - What are dialect continuums and isoglosses and how do they represent language variation across communities? - What role does human memory play in efficiently computing the different orders of words and sentences in languages? - Why are children so good at learning so many complexities of language, while adults are much slower? - What aspects of the mind and language connection are being modeled in Artificial Intelligence? - How are researchers using linguistics methodology to study other systems like music, dance, primate communication? - How can linguistics and cognitive science be used to fight real world problems, such as misinformation? These and other topics will lead us into many modern day innovations. One example of that is ChatGPT, which was trained on 911 bi
LING 1913 - What's in a Word?
(3 cr; A-F only; offered Every Fall)
This course is a guided tour through the vocabulary of English, one of the largest and most varied in any of the world's languages. Among the questions it will address are: Why does English have so many (and so many different kinds of) words? Where did these words come from? Why do they mean what they mean? How are they put together? What do they tell us about history, social organization, culture and human psychology? One practical advantage of learning the answers to these and other questions is that it helps in vocabulary building and in demystifying specialized and technical terminology. The course is also a portal into linguistics, the study of the nature of language.
LING 3001 - Introduction to Linguistics [SOCS]
(4 cr; Student Option; offered Every Fall, Spring & Summer)
Equivalent courses: LING 5001, LING 3001H
The ability to acquire and use language is a biological trait of the human species. This capacity for language manifests itself as thousands of particular languages spoken around the world in communities large and small. But what is language? What does it mean for a human to ?know? a particular language? How do children acquire this knowledge? How do we use language to communicate? These are some of the important questions addressed by the field of linguistics, the scientific study of the human capacity for language in its physiological, cognitive, historical, and social manifestations. This course introduces some of the essential findings of linguistics: first and foremost, that all varieties of all languages are intricately structured at multiple distinct but related levels. Second, that this intricate structure can be described in terms that are not only precise, but which apply to all human languages. We will work to replicate some of these findings by deploying simple analytical methods on data from a variety of languages. These methods allow us to answer questions about the different structural components of language: phonology (how do speech sounds pattern?), morphology (what are possible words and how are they built?), and syntax (what is the hierarchical structure underlying sequences of words?). In all instances these methods require that we pay attention to basic notions of semantics, from which more complex conceptions of meaning will emerge. Having characterized language as an intricately-structured system of knowledge, we will then possess the tools to ask a number of additional questions about language and cognition. How does such complex knowledge play into the actual task of sentence production or comprehension? What do we know about the neural implementation of this knowledge in human brains? How does child language acquisition proceed, and what makes it so much more robust than language acquisition later in life? Do animals have languages of
LING 3001H - Honors: Introduction to Linguistics [SOCS]
(4 cr; Prereq-Honors student or instr consent; A-F only; offered Every Spring)
Equivalent courses: was LING 3011 until 05-SEP-00, LING 5001, LING 3001
Scientific study of human language. Methods, questions, findings, and perspectives of modern linguistics. Components of the language system (phonetics/phonology, syntax, semantics/pragmatics); language acquisition; language and social variables; language and cognition; language change; language processing; language and public policy.
LING 3052V - Honors: Thesis [WI]
(3 cr; A-F only; offered Every Spring)
Equivalent courses: was LING 3052H until 22-JAN-08, was LING 3052 until 05-SEP-00
Supervised research, writing, and revision for honors thesis begun in LING 3093 or through work with the individual advisor. Completion of LING 3093 or instructor permission is required.
LING 3093 - Directed Studies Honors Thesis
(3 cr; Prereq-Linguistics honors candidate, instr consent.; A-F only; offered Every Fall & Spring)
Equivalent courses: was LING 3051H until 06-SEP-22, was LING 3051 until 05-SEP-00
Supervised planning and research for thesis under direction of Linguistics advisor. Students enrolling in this directed study/research course will complete the University's common Directed Study/Research contract with the faculty mentor/evaluator. The Faculty member will ensure academic standards are upheld, including: - the work proposed is at the appropriate level for the course, academic in nature, and the student will be involved intellectually in the project. - the project scope is reasonable for one semester and the number of credits specified (42 hours of work per credit) - the faculty mentor is qualified to serve in this role - assessment of student learning and grading criteria are clear and appropriate - the student will be working in a respectful, inclusive environment
LING 3101W - Languages of the World [WI]
(3 cr; Prereq-3001 or 3001H or 5001 or instr consent; Student Option; offered Every Fall)
Equivalent courses: was LING 3101 until 05-SEP-00
Survey of language families of the world. Classifying languages genetically/typologically. Historical relationships among languages.
LING 3601 - Historical Linguistics
(3 cr; Prereq-3001 or instr consent; Student Option; offered Every Spring)
Equivalent courses: was LING 5601 until 02-SEP-03, was LING 5601 until 07-SEP-99, LING 5601
Historical change in phonology, syntax, semantics, and lexicon. Linguistic reconstruction. Genetic relationship among languages.
LING 3900 - Topics in Linguistics (Topics course)
(3 cr; Student Option; offered Periodic Fall & Spring; may be repeated for 15 credits; may be repeated 5 times)
Topics vary. See Class Schedule.
LING 4201 - Syntax I
(3 cr; Prereq-3001 or 3001H or 5001 or instr consent; Student Option; offered Every Spring)
Equivalent courses: LING 5201 (starting 20-JAN-09)
How words are organized into phrases/sentences. Basic units of a sentence. How these units are structured. How languages may be the same, or different, in syntax.
LING 4202 - Syntax II
(3 cr; Prereq-4201 or 5201; Student Option; offered Every Fall)
Equivalent courses: LING 5202 (starting 18-JAN-11)
Syntactic theory. Principles and Parameters (P&P) approach to grammar. Focuses on Minimalist Program (MP).
LING 4302W - Phonology I [WI]
(3 cr; Prereq-3001 or 3001H or 5001 or instr consent; Student Option; offered Every Spring)
Equivalent courses: LING 5302 (starting 20-JAN-09)
How sounds are organized/patterned in human languages. Foundation in phonological theory/problem-solving for advanced work in phonology and other fields in linguistics. Analyzing data, presenting written solutions.
LING 4303 - Phonology II
(3 cr; Prereq-Ling 4302W; Student Option; offered Every Fall)
Equivalent courses: LING 5303 (starting 18-JAN-11)
Continues work of LING 4302W with emphasis on critical reading of current phonological literature. Phonological phenomena in the context of new developments in the field. Optimality Theory and the phonology-morphology interface.
LING 4901W - Capstone Seminar in Linguistics [WI]
(3 cr; Prereq-Ling major, [jr or sr]; S-N only; offered Every Fall & Spring)
Equivalent courses: was LING 4901 until 05-SEP-00
Revision/expansion of a paper completed for a linguistics course.
LING 5001 - Introduction to Linguistics
(4 cr; Student Option; offered Every Fall, Spring & Summer)
Equivalent courses: LING 3001H, LING 3001
Scientific study of human language. Methods, questions, findings, and perspectives of modern linguistics. Components of the language system (phonetics/phonology, syntax, semantics/pragmatics); language acquisition; language and social variables; language and cognition; language change; language processing; language and public policy; language and cognition.
LING 5105 - Field Methods in Linguistics I
(4 cr; Prereq-[[4201 or 5201], [4302W or 5302]] or instr consent; Student Option; offered Every Fall)
Equivalent courses: LING 8105 (starting 20-JAN-15)
Techniques for obtaining/analyzing linguistic data from unfamiliar languages through direct interaction with native speaker.
LING 5106 - Field Methods in Linguistics II
(4 cr; Prereq-[5105, grad major] or instr consent; Student Option; offered Every Spring)
Techniques for obtaining/analyzing linguistic data from unfamiliar languages through direct interaction with a native speaker.
LING 5201 - Syntactic Theory I
(3 cr; Prereq-Ling 5001 and graduate student or honors student, or instructor consent; Student Option; offered Every Fall)
Equivalent courses: LING 4201 (starting 20-JAN-09)
Concepts/issues in current syntactic theory.
LING 5202 - Syntactic Theory II
(3 cr; Prereq-5201 or instructor consent. LING 5201 is directed towards honors students and graduate students.; Student Option; offered Every Spring)
Equivalent courses: LING 4202 (starting 06-SEP-11)
Modern syntactic theory. Syntactic phenomena in various languages. Syntactic argumentation, development of constraints on grammar formalisms.
LING 5205 - Semantics
(3 cr; Prereq-[4201 or 5201] or instr consent; Student Option; offered Every Fall & Spring)
Analysis of sentence meaning. Semantic properties. Relations such as analyticity, entailment, quantification, and genericity. Philosophical background, formal techniques of semantic analysis, how sentence meaning depends on word meaning, syntax, and context. The role of semantics in grammatical theory.
LING 5206 - Linguistic Pragmatics
(3 cr; Prereq-[4201 or 5201] or instr consent; Student Option; offered Every Spring)
Analysis of linguistic phenomena in relation to beliefs and intentions of language users; speech act theory, conversational implicature, presupposition, information structure, relevance theory, discourse coherence.
LING 5207 - Advanced Semantics
(3 cr; Prereq-LING 5205 - Semantics I; Student Option; offered Every Spring)
In this course, we will explore some semi-advanced to advanced topics in the field of natural language semantics. Broadly construed, natural language semanticists study how human beings process complexity in meaning in language, with the building blocks being how small units of meaning compose together to form larger and larger units, all of which are produced and understood in milliseconds. Building on the fundamental foundations of semantic theory learnt in Semantics, Advanced Semantics is geared towards providing expansive knowledge on several vital topics that current vibrant research in the field is concerned with. The array of topics include quantifier scope, definiteness and indefiniteness, plurals and mass/count nouns, attitude predicates and attitude ascription, event semantics, tense and aspect, modality and conditionals, questions, focus and alternative semantics, and imperatives. As we make our way through the critical last few decades of formal semantics through these vast and diverse topics, we will balance empirical coverage and formalism with development of intuition and methodology.
LING 5302 - Phonological Theory I
(3 cr; Prereq-5001 or honors student or instructor consent. LING 5302 is directed towards honors students and graduate students.; Student Option; offered Every Fall)
Equivalent courses: LING 4302W (starting 20-JAN-09)
How sounds are organized/patterned in human languages. Phonological theory/problem-solving for advanced work in in linguistics. Analyzing data. Presenting written solutions to problem sets.
LING 5303 - Phonological Theory II
(3 cr; Prereq-5302 or instr consent. LING 5303 is directed towards honors and graduate students.; Student Option; offered Every Spring)
Equivalent courses: LING 4303 (starting 17-JAN-12)
Phonology of human languages. Reading papers in the literature. Doing research in phonology.
LING 5461 - Conversation Analysis
(3 cr; Prereq-3001 or 3001H or 5001 or instr consent; Student Option; offered Periodic Fall)
Equivalent courses: COMM 5461 (inactive, starting 03-SEP-02, was LING 5461 until 03-SEP-02, was SPCH 5461 until 07-SEP-99)
Discourse processes. Application of concepts through conversation analysis.
LING 5462 - Field Research in Spoken Language
(3 cr; Prereq-3001 or 3001H or 5001 or instr consent; Student Option; offered Periodic Spring)
Equivalent courses: COMM 5462 (inactive, starting 03-SEP-02, was LING 5462 until 03-SEP-02, was SPCH 5462 until 07-SEP-99)
Transcribing/analyzing talk and movement related to talk. Applying concepts to recorded conversations.
LING 5601 - Historical Linguistics
(3 cr; Prereq-3001 or 3011H or 5001; Student Option; offered Every Spring)
Equivalent courses: LING 3601 (starting 07-SEP-99, was LING 5601 until 02-SEP-03, was LING 5601 until 07-SEP-99)
Historical change in phonology, syntax, semantics, and lexicon. Linguistic reconstruction. Genetic relationship among languages.
LING 5801 - Introduction to Computational Linguistics
(3 cr; Prereq-[4201 or 5201] or programming experience or instr consent; Student Option; offered Spring Odd Year)
Methods/issues in computer understanding of natural language. Programming languages, their linguistic applications. Lab projects.
LING 5900 - Topics in Linguistics (Topics course)
(3 cr; Student Option; offered Periodic Fall & Spring; may be repeated for 9 credits; may be repeated 3 times)
Topics vary. See Class Schedule.
LING 5993 - Directed Study
(1 cr [max 3]; Student Option; offered Every Fall, Spring & Summer; may be repeated for 10 credits; may be repeated 10 times)
Directed study for Linguistics. Prereq instr consent, dept consent, college consent.
LING 8005 - Research Paper Workshop
(3 cr; Prereq-[5105, 5202, 5205, [4302W or 5302]] or [instr consent, grad ling major]; S-N or Audit; offered Every Spring; may be repeated for 12 credits; may be repeated 4 times)
Workshop on research methodology/writing in linguistics.
LING 8105 - Field Methods in Linguistics I
(4 cr; Student Option; offered Every Fall)
Equivalent courses: LING 5105 (starting 20-JAN-15)
This course focuses on a core methodological tool in linguistics: working directly with native speakers of a language in order to gather information about that language. To gain practice and understanding in this broad methodological technique, we discuss practical fieldwork concerns, including: approaches to organization and record-keeping; techniques and pitfalls for conducting interviews; developing a good working relationship with native speaker consultants; ethical issues; and the relation between linguistic theory and language data. Each year, the course will tackle these issues in the context of a particular language of focus, working directly with a native speaker of that language in order to gain an understanding of the basic grammatical structure of the language. Students will learn to conduct interviews with the language consultant in class and will practice these techniques on their own as they pursue individual research projects through weekly interviews conducted outside of class. The course relies on knowledge of linguistic theory that students bring from syntax (LING 4201 or 5201) and phonology (LING 4302 or 5302) courses, but does not require any background knowledge of the language that we will investigate. Prerequisites: LING 5001, LING 5201, LING 5302 and be an enrolled graduate student in the Linguistics program; or instructor consent
LING 8106 - Field Methods in Linguistics II
(4 cr; Prereq-8105 (taken in same academic yr); Student Option; offered Every Spring; may be repeated for 8 credits; may be repeated 2 times)
Continued analysis through work with a native speaker of language begun in 8105. Greater emphasis on analysis of recorded texts of various kinds. Some grammars of the language/contents compared with field notes from previous semester.
LING 8200 - Topics in Syntax and Semantics (Topics course)
(3 cr; Prereq-5202, 5205 or instr consent; Student Option; offered Periodic Fall; may be repeated for 9 credits; may be repeated 3 times)
Syntax and semantics of natural language, with particular emphasis on the interface between the two.
LING 8210 - Seminar in Syntax
(3 cr; Prereq-5202, 5205 or instr consent; Student Option; offered Periodic Fall; may be repeated for 9 credits; may be repeated 3 times)
Current issues in syntactic theory. Topics vary.
LING 8300 - Topics in Phonetics and Phonology (Topics course)
(3 cr; Prereq-5303 or instr consent; Student Option; offered Periodic Fall; may be repeated for 9 credits; may be repeated 3 times)
N/A
LING 8333 - FTE: Master's
(1 cr; Prereq-Master's student, adviser and DGS consent; No Grade Associated; offered Every Fall, Spring & Summer; 6 academic progress units; 6 financial aid progress units)
(No description)
LING 8444 - FTE: Doctoral
(1 cr; Prereq-Doctoral student, adviser and DGS consent; No Grade Associated; offered Every Fall, Spring & Summer; 6 academic progress units; 6 financial aid progress units)
(No description)
LING 8500 - Topics in Second Language Acquisition (Topics course)
(3 cr; Prereq-5001, 5505; Student Option; offered Periodic Fall & Spring; may be repeated for 9 credits; may be repeated 3 times)
tbd
LING 8666 - Doctoral Pre-Thesis Credits
(1 cr [max 6]; Prereq-Doctoral student who has not passed prelim oral; no required consent for 1st/2nd registrations, up to 12 combined cr; dept consent for 3rd/4th registrations, up to 24 combined cr; doctoral student admitted before summer 2007 may register up to four times, up to 60 combined cr; No Grade Associated; offered Every Fall, Spring & Summer; may be repeated for 12 credits; may be repeated 2 times)
TBD
LING 8777 - Thesis Credits: Master's
(1 cr [max 18]; Prereq-Max 18 cr per semester or summer; 10 cr total required [Plan A only]; No Grade Associated; offered Every Fall, Spring & Summer; may be repeated for 50 credits; may be repeated 10 times)
(No description)
LING 8888 - Thesis Credit: Doctoral
(1 cr [max 24]; Prereq-Max 18 cr per semester or summer; 24 cr required; No Grade Associated; offered Every Fall, Spring & Summer; may be repeated for 100 credits; may be repeated 10 times)
(No description)
LING 8888W - Thesis Credit Dissertation Seminar
(1 cr [max 3]; Prereq-Doctoral student who has passed oral prelims; No Grade Associated; offered Every Fall & Spring; may be repeated for 24 credits; may be repeated 24 times)
A means for students to make progress on the dissertation in a structured setting. Brings together students writing on related topics. Credits are applied to doctoral thesis credits. Contact instructor for description.
LING 8900 - Seminar: Topics in Linguistics (Topics course)
(3 cr; Prereq-instr consent; Student Option; offered Every Fall & Spring; may be repeated for 9 credits; may be repeated 3 times)
Topics vary. See Class Schedule.
LING 8921 - Seminar in Language and Cognition
(3 cr; Prereq-instr consent; Student Option; offered Every Fall; may be repeated for 6 credits; may be repeated 2 times)
Equivalent courses: was LING 8920 until 17-JAN-17
Language-related issues in cognitive science from a linguistic perspective. Serves as elective for cognitive science minor, but only for linguistics nonmajors.
LING 8991 - Independent Study
(1 cr [max 4]; Prereq-instr consent; Student Option; offered Every Fall & Spring; may be repeated for 15 credits; may be repeated 15 times)
Independent Study

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