The Neat Summary of Linguistics - uni-due.de

The Neat Summary of Linguistics

Table of Contents

Page

I Language in perspective

3

1 Introduction

3

2 On the origins of language

4

3 Characterising language

4

4 Structural notions in linguistics

4

4.1 Talking about language and linguistic data

6

5 The grammatical core

6

6 Linguistic levels

6

7 Areas of linguistics

7

II The levels of linguistics

8

1 Phonetics and phonology

8

1.1 Syllable structure

10

1.2 American phonetic transcription

10

1.3 Alphabets and sound systems

12

2 Morphology

13

3 Lexicology

13

4 Syntax

14

4.1 Phrase structure grammar

15

4.2 Deep and surface structure

15

4.3 Transformations

16

4.4 The standard theory

16

5 Semantics

17

6 Pragmatics

18

III Areas and applications

20

1 Sociolinguistics

20

2 Variety studies

20

3 Corpus linguistics

21

4 Language and gender

21

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5 Language acquisition

22

6 Language and the brain

23

7 Contrastive linguistics

23

8 Anthropological linguistics

24

IV Language change

25

1 Linguistic schools and language change

26

2 Language contact and language change

26

3 Language typology

27

V Linguistic theory

28

VI Review of linguistics

28

1 Basic distinctions and definitions

28

2 Linguistic levels

29

3 Areas of linguistics

31

VII A brief chronology of English

33

1 External history

33

1.1 The Germanic languages

33

1.2 The settlement of Britain

34

1.3 Chronological summary

36

2 Internal history

37

2.1 Periods in the development of English

37

2.2 Old English

37

2.3 Middle English

38

2.4 Early Modern English

40

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I Language in perspective

1 Introduction

The goal of linguistics is to provide valid analyses of language structure. Linguistic theory is concerned with establishing a coherent set of independent principles to explain phenomena in language.

There are no primitive languages. Each language is adapted for the community which speaks it, be this industrialised or not.

Onomatopoeia is not a major principle in language although symbols (icons) may be present on a more abstract level.

There is no such thing as correct language in any absolute sense. Language is neutral and should not be the object of value judgements. Lay people tend to confuse language and attitudes to those who use language.

Written language is secondary and derived from spoken language. Despite its status in western societies, written language is only of marginal interest to the linguist.

Linguistics is a science although the evidence for assumptions about the structure of language is never direct. Linguists are more concerned with designing valid and general models of linguistic structure rather with than searching for proof in any strictly empirical sense.

Language consists largely of rules which determine its use. There are, however, many exceptions. Native speakers can deal with a large amount of irregularity which is stored in the mental lexicon.

Knowledge of language refers to many abstract structures such as those of sentence types or systematic units such as phonemes or morphemes.

Language would appear to be ordered modularly, i.e. to consist of a set of subsystems, which are labelled `levels of language', such as phonology, morphology or syntax.

Most knowledge about language is unconscious and cannot be accessed directly. The task of the linguist is often to demonstrate the existence of this unconscious knowledge and to suggest methods of describing it.

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2 On the origins of language

There is long tradition of speculating about the origin of language. Most of this was and is unscientific as it does not apply stringent principles of historical continuity and interrelations.

Modern man has existed for about 200,000 years and after 50,000 BC language had developed all the structural properties which are characteristic of it today.

Language is an evolutionary phenomenon which is continually adapted to the communicative needs of its speakers.

The organs of speech are biologically secondary but their rise has led to a specialisation such as the great flexibility of the tongue or the relatively deep larynx which distinguishes humans from higher primates.

3 Characterising language

Linguists vary in their definitions of language. However, all agree that language is a system of vocal signs with an internal structure and used for the purposes of human communication. Language usually has a secondary function of carrying a social message.

The relationship between signs and what is symbolised is arbitrary but fixed by social convention. The system is stimulus-free and non-random. It shows a duality of structure in having building blocks (phonemes) and units consisting of these (words). A small number of building blocks permits a large number of meaningful units.

Languages vary greatly in their form and this has led some linguists to imagine that one's native language determines the way one thinks. This extreme opinion is rejected nowadays.

4 Structural notions in linguistics

Language can be viewed at one point in time -- synchronically -- or over a period of time -- diachronically.

diachrony (historical viewpoint) ------------------> time axis | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | synchronic `slices' (points in time)

(often the present as in `a synchronic study')

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There is a significant distinction between the act of uttering language -- parole/performance -- and the system of a language which can be seen as the abstract ability of the single speaker to speak his/her native language -- competence -- and/or the communal linguistic knowledge which defines a speech community -- langue.

Linguists distinguish carefully between the signifiant, the sign which describes/points to a signifi? and that which is signified/ designated outside of language.

`signifiant' word in language

`signifi?' object in world

[buk]

&

arbitrary relationship (set by social convention)

The linear ordering of elements is called a syntagm and the vertical array of possible elements for a slot is a paradigm.

syntagm ------------------>

| Bill

| built himself

| Mary

| bought

| Tom

| taught himself

paradigm paradigm

| a | the | some paradigm

| new | large | simple paradigm

| house | car | language paradigm

Linguistic levels can be classified according to which they are open, like the lexicon, and can take on new elements or closed, like phonetics and morphology, which cannot be expanded at will by speakers.

CHARACTERISTICS OF CLOSED CLASSES

?

small number of units

?

polyfunctional

?

acquired in early childhood

?

low or non-existent awareness for lay speakers

Elements which are common in all languages are unmarked. Those phenomena which occur frequently and which are both found often in language change and turn up early in language acquisition can be called natural.

The superfluous -- redundant -- elements of language may turn out to be useful in non-optimal communication situations such as speech in a loud surrounding or at a distance.

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