3 Credits
Students must also register for 1 discussion session.

This course is a general introduction to the study of human language,
both as an object of study in its own right and as a fundamental
component of human cognition and socialization. Focusing on several
languages (and various English dialects), the course examines
aspects of linguistic sounds and sound patterns (phonetics and
phonology), word structure and meaning (morphology and lexical
semantics), sentence structure and meaning (syntax and sentence
semantics), language in context (pragmatics and sociolinguistics),
language acquisition, language chance (historical linguistics), and
language policy. By the end of the course you should be acquainted
with the basics of linguistic analysis, be aware of the fundamental
similarities and differences among all human languages, and have an
informed perspective on issues of language that have an impact on our
society.