Linguistics

Linguistics is the general study of language. It addresses features that all languages have in common, the ways in which languages may differ from one another, and the ways in which languages change over time. The undergraduate major in Linguistics introduces students to sounds and their patterns (phonetics and phonology), word structure (morphology), sentence structure (syntax), meaning (semantics), how languages evolve over time (comparative and historical linguistics), the relation of language and cognition (e.g. psycholinguistics), and how language is used in society (sociolinguistics).

Declaring the Major

To declare the Linguistics major, students must first complete Linguistics 100 with a grade of "C" or better and then submit the Petition to Declare a Major. Most students who petition for the Linguistics major do so in their junior year.

Honors Program

With the approval of the major advisor, a student with a grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 or higher, both overall and in the major, may apply for admission to the honors program. This consists of 2-4 units of LINGUIS H195A and LINGUIS H195B units per semester for at least two semesters. Under the direction of a faculty member, students carry out an approved program of independent study in which they attain a reasonable mastery of an appropriate linguistic topic. As evidence of this work, students must submit an acceptable thesis summarizing critically the material they have covered and are invited to give a brief synopsis of their research at the undergraduate honors colloquium held in early May each year.

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