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Second Lecture

. Linguistics : the scientific study of human language


.Scientific means that it is an organized methods that deals with facts

Language: the systematic way of relating the symbols to things and


concepts symbolized and such a system in common to all peoples of the
.world

:The Distinction Between the Linguist and the Polyglots


Linguist: is a scientist who investigates human language in all its facets,
.its structure, its use, its history, its place in society

.Polyglot: is the one who speaks many languages. He can not analyze it

 Most linguists should know more than one language. So, he can
.investigate
 The Linguist can be a polyglot but the polyglot can not be a linguist
because he knows how to use the language but not to investigate the
.language

A bird's-eye view of the field


Theoretical Linguistics is concerned (or deals) with the form and
structure of linguistic knowledge of the speakers' possess of the native
.language
. it is the mental representation of the linguistic knowledge

:Theory of Grammar
It is called Competence. It is the linguistic knowledge that the speaker
has in his mind about his language.( Competence is something already in
(the mind

.(Performance: is the production or comprehension of the speech or(sign


 theoretical linguistics deals with the theory of GRAMMAR which
.deals with competence and performance
Performance = speaking

Theoretical Linguistics is limited to the Theory of GRAMMAR. BUT *


the Linguistics is not limited to the theoretical linguistics. Linguistics
studies something abstract. Linguistics includes a large number of
.subfields

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Applied Linguistics: it is interested in language planning , literacy
.bilingualism and second language acquisition
-1
subfields) ‫)تعداد الـ‬
.it is used to refer to the 2nd language acquisition -2

.Theoretical Linguistics is concerned with the 2nd language teaching


:There are other subfields under the applied linguistics
Psycholinguistics is the branch of linguistics that is concerned with the
.Performance

Historical Linguistics: it studies the development of the language, why


.and how it is changed. It is the guide to the theory of language

Descriptive Linguistics: it provides the analysis of the grammars of a


.particular languages
:Comparative Linguistics
it is developed in the 20th century. It is used to compare two languages or
.more
When we learn a language, we always study the standard one of the )
(speech community

In the 19th century: the comparative linguistics is concerned with studying


only the similarities to relate the languages together and to establish the
families of them. For example, the Italian and the French languages come
.out from the same mother language, which is Latin
. It is a little bit historical
Nowadays: the comparative linguistics is concerned with studying the
differences between two languages or more and give them to the 2nd
. language acquisition
It focuses on the differences in the structure of creating correct -1
.sentences and to correct utterances
For example, the adjective in English language must precede the
noun, while in Arabic language it follows the noun. Also, the verb in
English comes after the subject. In contrast, the verb in Arabic precedes
the subject. In addition, both sounds /p/ and /b/ occur in the English
Language but do not in Arabic. Most of the 2nd L learners of English mix
.between the two sounds and that affects the meaning
.Such information are given to the 2L acquisition
studying Similarities to give Universalities and tells us something -2
.about the nature of the language to make it more useful
 When we study the similarities between languages, we are talking
.about the nature of the languages, which refers to the universal

2
For example, when one says
(‫)انظر إلى الباب‬
or says (look at the door), the listener will look at the door. It means that
all languages have sth is called door and it is mental or part of our
linguistic knowledge(competence) which is a human characteristic which
is the brain. In other words, all languages have the same referent or object
.which is this symbol (door) over there
Also, the concept of some words symbolizes certain ideas in our brain
like when someone says
-love ‫حب‬
We will smile , but we someone says
‫ كره‬Hate
We will frown
All of us have a brain. Inside the brain , we have the tool that **
. differentiate a language from other languages
:History of Linguistics
The interest in the nature of human language appears to have arisen
.when the human species evolved in the history
BCE The Egyptian surgeons were concerned with clinical 1700*
questions. They only emphasized the practical side. They had made some
operations in the brains of some patients who can not use the language
.correctly
Like the stoke which makes a person loses a part of using or
.understanding the language
Then, Aristotle and Plato talked about the language from philosophic *
.and rhetorical points of view. They made some issues of linguistics
Roman and Greek talked about grammar and discussed the sounds of *
the language and the structures of words and sentences. This interest
continued through the medieval period and the renaissance in an
.unbroken thread to the present period
Panini was the first one who did some descriptions of the language so *
close to the description of the language these days because he did it in
.details. He studied the Sanskrit Language
19th century the major efforts of the linguists of the nineteenth *
century were devoted to a. historical
.b. and comparative studies
:Ferdinand de Saussure ***
.He is Swiss linguist -1
He focuses on paying attention to the structural -2
.principles
He has an influence on the 20th century. All American -3
and European linguists followed the descriptive. Linguists turned to

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descriptive synchronic studies of the language and to the development of
.empirical methods for their analysis
.He makes differences between many terms -4
He has no books but his students collect his lectures -5
.and put them together in a book
He makes a distinction between historical and-6
descriptive linguistics
 Historical Linguistics = Diachronic
 Descriptive Linguistics = Synchronic  Studying a group in a
.given time
Synchronic: is investigate the way people speak in a given speech **
community at a given time. So, we can say "the language in that time
"..…is
Diachronic: the study of the developments of the languages through **
.time

:European American
Edward
.He is concerned with the culture of language is society
( anthropology )

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