Introduction to Linguistics Ms. Suha Jawabreh Lecture # 1

Outline 1. Course Syllabus, Policies and Expectations 2. Required Textbook and Assessment Criteria 3. Course Outline 4. What is Linguistics? 5. Language vs Linguistics

Course Policies and Expectations - Students are expected to attend all classes. Class attendance will be a part of the final evaluation. - Students are expected to arrive for class on time. Any student who arrives late will not be given additional time to complete quizzes, exams, or class assignments. - Students are expected to submit all assignments on time. Late submissions will not be accepted. -Students are expected to come to class having read and completed all assignments. -Students are expected to participate in class discussions.

Required Textbook & Assessment Criteria Required Textbook: Reading material compiled by the instructor from relevant articles and chapters. Assessment Criteria -Midterm Exams: 40% -Homework and quizzes: 10% -Final Exam: 50%

Course Outline 1. Phonetics 2. Phonology 3. Word-formation processes 4. Morphology 5. Syntax 6. Semantics 7. Pragmatics

What is Linguistics? -Linguistics is the scientific study of language. - This statement raises two questions: 1. What do we mean by scientific? 2. What do mean by language?

- Linguistics is a science ; therefore, a linguist is a scientist. - A linguist studies language in much the same way as a scientist studies physics or chemistry. - It means that a linguist observes language use, form a hypothesis, test this hypothesis, and refine it. - This hypothesis may eventually become a theory.

Example: - A hypothesis: “ Adjectives always precede nouns in English” - Example from English to support the hypothesis: - A good man

- However, we find examples from English where adjectives do NOT precede nouns. - Examples: a. The man is good. b. Mission impossible.

-Carrying out a detailed examination of the position of adjectives in English we find out that: 1. Adjectives can be attributive. ( They can occur before a noun) 2. Adjectives can be predicative ( They can occur after a noun following a verb) 3. A few adjectives used in fixed phrases immediately follow the noun they modify.

What is Language ? - Language is a set of signals by which we communicate. - However, animals have a communication system. -How do human languages differ from animal communication?

- Human Languages are: 1. Flexible 2. Complex 3. Precise 4. Productive 5. Can be expressed in writing 6. Arbitrary and systematic at the same time