LING 052. Historical and Comparative Linguistics

This course is an introduction to the study of linguistic change. Why are languages the way they are, and how did they get that way? How do neighboring languages affect each other? How does variation in language arise, and how does it steer the future of a language? What can language tell us about prehistoric human cultures and migrations? Why do we say dog in English, Hund in German, and chien in French, and how are they related? What’s the deal with singular they? We’ll explore various traditional and innovative models of language change to understand how and why changes occur. We’ll draw from a wide range of languages to explore changes at all levels of the grammar (phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, lexicon) and the various factors that can contribute to linguistic change. We will learn how it is possible to reconstruct linguistic systems that we have no direct record of, and consider what it means for languages to diverge and converge. The topics of language shift, language endangerment and death, and language contact will also be addressed.

Prerequisite: LING 045 or permission of the instructor.
Social sciences.
1 credit.
Fall 2024. Gasser.
Catalog chapter: Linguistics
Department website: http://www.swarthmore.edu/linguistics

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