LING 1101 - The Wonder of Language: an intro to Linguistics

Language makes us human. Language allows humans to accumulate knowledge and transmit knowledge from one generation to the next and to communicate from one part of the world to the other. Language enables us to think, to analyse and to reflect. Different languages allow us to view the world in different ways. Language is much more than communication. Linguistics is the study of human language, its nature, its origins and its uses. This course will give students an overview of the field of modern linguistics and basic skills in linguistic analysis. The Wonder of Language develops understandings of the various subsystems of language including phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics and the lexicon. It also investigates how languages are learned and how they change over time. As language is involved in a large number of human activities, linguistics contributes to many other fields of inquiry, including anthropology, psychology, philosophy, law and the natural sciences.