Checking date: 29/04/2022

Versión en español

Course: 2022/2023

General Linguistics
(13802)
Dual Bachelor in Journalism and Humanities Studies (2013 Study Plan) (Plan: 305 - Estudio: 282)


Coordinating teacher: PAVON LUCERO, MARIA VICTORIA

Department assigned to the subject: Humanities: Philosophy, Language, Literature Theory Department

Type: Basic Core
ECTS Credits: 6.0 ECTS

Course: 2º
Semester: 1º

Branch of knowledge: Arts and Humanities


Objectives
The student will be able to: 1. Know and understand the main properties of human language. 2. Know the basic principles of linguistic variation. 3. Understand how languages are classified. 4. Identify prejudicies about language, particular languages and their varieties. 5. Know the main linguistic theories developed in the last three centuries. 6. Know the different areas of linguistic analysis. 7. Analize linguistic data and be able to use them in a linguistic argumentation.
Skills and learning outcomes
Link to document

Description of contents: programme
1. Language as a human capacity. 1.1. The internal constitution of languages. 1.2. Characteristics of human language versus other animal communication systems. 2. Language and cognition 2.1. Language and brain. 2.2. The origins of language. 2.3. Language acquisition. 3. Interlinguistic variation. 3.1. Classification of languages. 3.2. Linguistic universals. 3.3. Ecology and linguistic sustainability. 3.4. Language and culture. Linguistic relativism. 4. Intralinguistic variation 4.1. Variation and change in languages. 4.2. Different types of intralinguistic varieties. 4.3. The concepts of language and dialect. 4.4. Contact between languages: pidgins and Creole languages. 5. Problems and methods in linguistic studies. 5.1. Linguistic studies from the nineteenth century to the present day. 5.2. Adequacy, argumentation and explanation in the study of languages. 6. Levels of linguistic analysis.
Learning activities and methodology
The course will consist of Master Classes in which the main theoretical topic of the subject will be presented, and Tutorial Classes where learning activities such as the following will be conducted: - Comments on the course Reading and related activities. - Group work on different theoretical aspects of the course and the presentation of the result. - Exercises to be solved individually. Moreover, students will be expected to conduct the following autonomous activities: to complete the reading assignments indicated in Master Classes, to participate in the preparation of the group work to be presented in Tutorial Classes, and to individually prepare the exercises prior to each tutorial session.
Assessment System
  • % end-of-term-examination 40
  • % of continuous assessment (assigments, laboratory, practicals...) 60
Calendar of Continuous assessment
Additional Bibliography
  • CRYSTAL, DAVID. The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language, 3ª ed.. Cambridge University Press. 2010
  • CRYSTAL, DAVID. A little Book of Language. Yale University Press. 2011
  • CRYSTAL, DAVID. The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language. Cambridge University Press. 2017 (3ª ed., 6ª reimp.)
  • GENETTI, CAROL (ED.). How languages work. An Introduction to Language and Linguistics. Cambridge University Press. 2014
  • GEOFFREY K. PULLUM. The Great Eskimo Vocabulary Hoax and Other Irreverent Essays on the Study of Language. Chicago, The University of Chicago Press. 1991
  • KRAMSCH, CLAIRE: . Language and Culture, . Oxford University Press, . 1998.
  • McGREGOR, WILLLIAM B.. Linguistics: An Introduction. Bloomsbury Academic. 2ª ed., 2015
  • ROWE, BRUCE M. y DIANE P. LEVINE. A Concise Introduction to Linguistics.. Pearson. 2006

The course syllabus may change due academic events or other reasons.