Linguistic analysis, with emphasis on languages of east, southeast, south, and central Asia. Includes phonetics, phonemics, morphology, syntax, historical reconstruction, linguistic typology, comparative grammar. Survey of major languages and language families of Asia. Diverse Asian languages as subjects of linguistic analysis. Prior knowledge of linguistics not required. Recommended: two years of any Asian language.
Students will learn how to view language from a scientific and analytic perspective, and in doing so will master basic linguistic terminology, concepts, and techniques. In addition, students will gain an appreciation of the linguistic features of the languages of Asia, and how these languages have interacted and changed over time.
Student learning goals
General method of instruction
Lectures, readings, and problem sets.
No prior knowledge of linguistics is required. Students should feel comfortable with the basic grammar and pronunciation of at least one Asian language. The course is NOT recommended for linguistics majors, since much of the class will be devoted to introducing basic concepts in syntax, morphology, phonology, and other areas of linguistics.
Class assignments and grading
Most assignments will be problem sets through which students will apply concepts introduced in class to concrete problems involving real language data.
Homework, quizzes, and tests.