Winter Session

LIN 101: Human Language

Undergraduate 3 credits

DEC: F SBC: SBS; SNW

An introduction to the fundamental areas and concepts of modern linguistics. Sounds and their structure, word structure, and sentence structure are discussed. Other topics may include historical linguistics (how languages change over time), dialects, writing systems, language and the brain, and psycholinguistics (especially the question of how children acquire a language).

LIN 110: The Anatomy of English Words

Undergraduate 3 credits

DEC: F SBC: SBS

An introduction to the analysis of complex words in English, especially those based on Latin and Greek models that comprise the majority of the vocabulary in the written language. Students will be introduced to Latin and Greek roots and the processes by which complex words are built by affixing material to these roots and modifying their structure. Students will acquire general analytical tools that will allow them to understand complex words that they may not have previously encountered. The course will introduce students to principles of linguistic morphology that extend beyond English to all human languages.

LIN 200: Language in the United States

Undergraduate 3 credits

DEC: K SBC: DIV; SBS; USA

Survey of the languages and language-related issues in the United States. Topics include Native American languages; immigrant languages; dialectal variations (e.g., Black English); the domains in which these languages were and are used; maintenance and loss of minority languages; language contact and its effects; the use of Spanish; language attitudes and politics is including bilingual education; and official language movements. Particular attention is paid to the evolution of American English from colonial times to its present world-wide status; the use and impact of Spanish; language attitudes and politics including bilingual education; and official language movements.

LIN 330: Language Acquisition

Undergraduate 3 credits

SBC: ESI; SBS+; STEM+

Introduction to the field of language acquisition. Topics include cognitive processes, role of innate ability and environment, developmental stages, individual variation, universal tendencies, interaction of language and cognition, bilingualism, similarities and differences between first- and second-language acquisition, and language disorders.

LIN 405: Writing in Linguistics

Undergraduate 2 credits

SBC: ESI; WRTD

Majors in linguistics refine their skills in writing for the discipline by critiquing successive revisions of previously written work. Formerly offered as LIN 300. Not for credit in addition to LIN 300.

LIN 530: Intro to General Linguistics

Graduate 3 credits

An introduction to modern theoretical and applied linguistics, including phonology, morphology, syntax, language acquisition, historical linguistics, and sociolinguistics. Prerequisite: Enrollment in TESOL or LIN program or permission of instructor