Linguistics

Linguistics
Main content
Linguistics
Linguistics, the systematic scientific study of human language and communication, is a broad field that investigates a range of questions regarding the remarkable fact that humans produce and use language. At Emory we take an interdisciplinary approach, looking at language in relation to cognition, culture, social identity, history, and philosophy. Our questions include: What enables humans to produce and understand sentences that they have never heard before? How do children learn? How do people use language in social contexts? How does our language reflect aspects of our identities? Why do languages change over time? How can we model our knowledge of language? The Program in Linguistics faculty are based in numerous departments across the college, representing the contemporary field of linguistics as it is situated at the intersection of the social sciences, STEM, and the humanities. The program directs a major in Linguistics, a minor in Linguistics, a joint major in Psychology & Linguistics and a joint major in Spanish & Linguistics, and coordinates a Linguistics Study Abroad Program in Amsterdam. We also facilitate academic discussion on language and linguistics on campus and sponsor events connected to linguistics, including an annual Undergraduate Linguistics Conference. Students are encouraged to check the program webpage at www.linguistics.emory.edu for updates on programs of study (majors and minor), courses, and events.
Visit the Program Website
Concentrations
Major in Spanish and Linguistics (BA)
Major in Linguistics (BA)
Major in Psychology and Linguistics (BA)
Minor in Linguistics
Faculty
Director
Marjorie Pak
Director of Undergraduate Studies
Robyn Clarke
Core
Jose Luis Boigues-Lopez
Erica R. Britt
Jinho Choi
Robyn Clarke
Roberto Franzosi
Seth Goss
Yun Jung Kim
Hiram Maxim
James Morey
Lynne Nygaard
Marjorie Pak
Susan Tamasi
Donald Tuten
Debra Vidali
Phillip Wolff
Associated
Yevgeny Agichtein
Cathryn Johnson
Hong Li
James Rilling
Mark Risjord
Hossein Samei
Devin Stewart
Dietrich Stout
Courses
LING 100-Level Courses
A historical examination of the various languages and dialects used in American society and the development of an American identity through language use and language policy.
Credit Hours
GER
SS
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
This course allows students to receive credit for study of a second language not taught at Emory while engaged in study or research abroad. Petitions for credit must be addressed to the Director of the Emory College Language Center. Repeatable for different languages and levels.
Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
The freshman seminar in linguistics introduces students to basic aspects in linguistics by focusing on specific themes and topics which vary according to the instructor.
Credit Hours
GER
FS
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
LING 200-Level Courses
An introduction to the systematic study of human language, surveying the fields of phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics, sociolinguistics, child language acquisition, and historical linguistics.
Credit Hours
GER
SS
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
ANT 203
This course focuses on the related areas of phonetics (the study of physical properties, both articulatory and acoustic, of the sounds of human language) and phonology (the study of the sound patterns of human languages and the nature of the knowledge that speakers have about the sound patterns of particular languages).
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
This course investigates word formation (morphology) and sentence structure (syntax) in the world's languages.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
LING 201 or LING_OX 201 or ANT 203 or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None
This course investigates word formation (morphology) and sentence structure (syntax) in the world's languages.
Credit Hours
GER
CW
Requisites
LING 201 or LING_OX 201 or ANT 203 or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None
The course focuses on the study of meaning in language, particularly from the perspectives of semantics (the study of how meaning is related to words and sentences) and pragmatics (the study of how meaning is realized during communication in specific contexts of use).
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
An overview of important elements of the Chinese language and its use. Students will gain an understanding of the history of the language, as well as the phonological, semantic, and syntactic structures of modern Chinese. Also examines cultural and social issues surrounding the Chinese language.
Credit Hours
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
CHN 230
This course introduces the development of Chinese language from proto Sino-Tibetan roots to modern standard Chinese, and presents the chronological changes in syntax and phonology. We will discuss key historical stages in Chinese developments, and analyze it from the view of linguistics aspects.
Credit Hours
GER
HAE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
CHN 232
EAS 232
This course introduces the development of Chinese language from proto Sino-Tibetan roots to modern standard Chinese, and presents the chronological changes in syntax and phonology. We will discuss key historical stages in Chinese developments, and analyze it from the view of linguistics aspects.
Credit Hours
GER
HAWE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
CHN 232W
EAS 232W
This course examines aspects of Japanese language from a linguistic perspective. It will introduce basic concepts in linguistics such as phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics, using examples from Japanese language. It aims to provide opportunities to deepen the understanding of the Japanese language as well as to deepen the understanding of world languages by examining Japanese. This course should be of interest to students who are learning Japanese and are interested in the structural aspect of the language and to those who are interested in broadening their knowledge of different languages.
Credit Hours
GER
SS
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
JPN 234
This course examines the manners and contexts in which the Chinese writing systems interface with other languages and cultures (Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese) and the cultural identities that the Chinese orthographic symbols come to represent at both personal and social levels in and beyond Asia.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
CHN 235
EAS 235
Study of language in context, focusing on relations between language and culture, thought, social identity, and political process.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
ANT 240
Explores language diversity around the world. Students learn about language families and historical relationships, linguistic typology and language universals, sound and structural features of languages, writing systems, language endangerment and field methods.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
This course is an introduction to the major historical decipherments of ancient writing systems, including Egyptian hieroglyphics, Babylonian cuneiform, Linear B, and Maya hieroglyphs. It includes the examination of scripts that have yet to be deciphered.
Credit Hours
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
MESAS 245
This course is an introduction to the major historical decipherments of ancient writing systems, including Egyptian hieroglyphics, Babylonian cuneiform, Linear B, and Maya hieroglyphs. It includes the examination of scripts that have yet to be deciphered.
Credit Hours
GER
HAW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
MESAS 245W
Course focuses on the introductory level of a particular issue or topic in the study of language, linguistics, and communication. May be repeated when topic varies.
Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
Course focuses on the introductory level of a particular issue or topic in the study of language, linguistics, and communication. May be repeated when topic varies.
Credit Hours
1 - 5
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
LING 300-Level Courses
Foundational course for the major and the minor that focuses on the description and production of the sounds of Spanish while also introducing students to the study of linguistic variation.
Credit Hours
GER
IC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 303
Foundational course for the major and the minor that introduces students to the field of Hispanic linguistics, including phonetics, phonology, morphology, pragmatics, and linguistic variation in the Spanish-speaking world.
Credit Hours
GER
IC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 304
This course examines the relationship between brain mechanisms and language behavior. Topics include aphasia and language disorders, aphasia in the deaf, critical periods in children, and gender differences in brain organization.
Credit Hours
GER
SNT
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
PSYC 309
Instruction and practice in the correct pronunciation of standard French, including work in transcription using the International Phonetic Alphabet.
Credit Hours
GER
IC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
FREN 311
The role of language in human cognition, communication, and social interaction as well as in animal, nonverbal and computer communication.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
PSYC 314
Language acquisition in young children. Identifying speech sounds, determining meaning, and comprehending the rules of syntax.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
PSYC 316
Psycholinguistics addresses how language might be realized as a component within the general cognitive system, drawing on linguistics, psychology, neuroscience and computer science. We will study how language is comprehended, produced, acquired, and represented, in a rigorous, hypothesis-driven way.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
PSYC 317
This course is an introduction to the field of second language acquisition (SLA), which seeks to understand the linguistic, psychological and social processes that underlie the learning and use of second language(s).
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
A course dealing with the history and structure of Judaic languages such as Hebrew, Yiddish, Judeo-Arabic, and Ladino.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
MESAS 326
JS 326
Introduction to the mass media in modern societies, including the political economy of the media and media representations of gender, race, class, and nation state.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SOC 327
Linguists agree that languages change; they do not agree about how such change occurs. This course views that linguistic systems cannot be completely understood from a purely synchronic perspective. The course surveys types of change, which can affect the linguistic systems, using data from various languages.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
This course will focus on the analysis of syntactic and semantic structures, ontologies and taxonomies, distributional semantics and discourse, as well as their applications in computational linguistics. Assignments will include advanced programming implementations.
Credit Hours
GER
MQR
Requisites
This course requires CS 171 or CS 171Z or CS_OX 171 or equivalent transfer credit as a prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
CS 329
Cross-cultural examination of how language reflects, maintains, and constructs gender identities. Topics include differences in male/female speech, the grammatical encoding of gender and childhood language socialization.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
WGS 333
ANT 325
Examines the intersection of language, culture, and society in modern China. Investigates the linguistic construction of social identities based on gender, ethnicity, age, power relation, and other factors, and ideologies that shape language use in China and in the global Chinese diaspora.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
CHN 335
EAS 335
This course presents different methodologies for the study of topics related to the Spanish language and Hispanic cultures, with a particular focus on discourse analysis techniques. Students will design and complete their own research project on a topic of their preference.
Credit Hours
GER
IC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 337
This course explores the sociolinguistic, cognitive, and cultural dimensions of bilingualism and multilingualism as they relate to Japan. Students will gain familiarity with the linguistic landscape of Japan and learn theoretical tools from the field of bilingualism to analyze linguistic diversity.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
JPN 338
This course introduces the critical role of the Korean language in culture and society, focusing on how language reflects, reinforces, and shapes the cultural values, standards, and structure of society.Topics include language policies/contacts, dialects, gender differences, and honorifics. Korean literacy or knowledge of Korean alphabet is necessary.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
KRN 339
This course studies relations between language and society, relations between language and sociocultural context. Topics may include: language variation; multilingualism; verbal interaction; discourse analysis; ethnography of communication; sociolinguistics of Spanish.
Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
ANT 340
This course studies relations between language and society, relations between language and sociocultural context. Topics may include: language variation; multilingualism; verbal interaction; discourse analysis; ethnography of communication; sociolinguistics of Spanish.
Credit Hours
1 - 5
GER
HSCW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
ANT 340W
In-depth study of the relationship between language and culture by examining anthropological approaches to the study of language. You will learn how language both reflects and creates thought, culture and power relationships. You will also learn basic ethnographic methodology through a research project.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
ANT 341
This course introduces and examines language attitudes, (the perceptions, beliefs, & stereotypes), that are commonly attached to language and language use. We investigate where such attitudes come from, how they are disseminated throughout a society, and how they affect linguistic choices.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
This course introduces students to studies in intercultural communication and professional discourses. Students examine their host cities and internship offices as field sites. They will observe, analyze, and question language use and cultural norms, as well as professional expectations.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
The course reviews sociolinguistic concepts including the study of linguistic, social, cultural, political, & historical aspects of bilingualism/multilingualism. Specific attention is given to linguistic variation, verbal interaction, code-switching/mixing, language attitudes & politics of language.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
African American Language explores present-day features of AAL, its history and ongoing trajectory, its origins and diverging from Mainstream American English, as well as AAL as an artistic expression and issues related to education, the justice system, and linguistic profiling and discrimination.
Credit Hours
GER
ETHN
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
AAS 347
ANT 347
We examine the language around health and health care as a type of intercultural discourse, including communication between doctors and patients, between health care providers, and discussions of health in the media. We also examine language as a diagnostic tool.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
HLTH 379
Structure and history of the English language.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
ENG 360
American English from the colonial period to the present; the sources of its vocabulary, the characteristics of its dialects, and the linguistic distinctiveness of its literature.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
Introduction to the Old English language and readings of representative prose and poetry.
Credit Hours
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
ENG 300
Introduction to the Old English language and readings of representative prose and poetry.
Credit Hours
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
ENG 300W
Representative works of Middle English literature from 1100 to 1500, exclusive of Chaucer.
Credit Hours
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
ENG 303
Representative works of Middle English literature from 1100 to 1500, exclusive of Chaucer.
Credit Hours
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
ENG 303W
An exploration of advertising, including its historical development, its role in consumer society, and its rhetorical and linguistic aspects.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SOC 383
Investigation of a particular issue or topic in the study of language, linguistics, and communication. May be repeated when topic varies. Topics may include: the Romance languages; intercultural communication; words and the world; language and human nature.
Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
Investigation of a particular issue or topic in the study of language, linguistics, and communication. May be repeated when topic varies. Topics may include: the Romance languages; intercultural communication; words and the world; language and human nature.
Credit Hours
1 - 5
GER
HSCW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
LING 400-Level Courses
In this course, students think critically about fundamental questions in linguistics, including: Is language a product of how the mind works or a product of social interaction? What are the sources of linguistic structure? Is language innate in humans? Various perspectives are compared & contrasted.
Credit Hours
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
In this course, students think critically about fundamental questions in linguistics, including: Is language a product of how the mind works or a product of social interaction? What are the sources of linguistic structure? Is language innate in humans? Various perspectives are compared & contrasted.
Credit Hours
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
This course incorporates a general theoretical frame in linguistics, with a specific focus in discourse analysis and pragmatics, and applies it to electronic communications. Students will develop an intercultural research project by analyzing digital texts in a systematic way
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 405
This course incorporates a general theoretical frame in linguistics, with a specific focus in discourse analysis and pragmatics, and applies it to electronic communications. Students will develop an intercultural research project by analyzing digital texts in a systematic way
Credit Hours
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 405W
This course examines the history of the Spanish language in terms of both its structural and sociocultural/political development. Students develop research projects based on questions arising in the course.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 406
This course focuses on the dynamic interaction between language, society, and identity in the contemporary Spanish-speaking word. Students develop research projects based on questions arising in the course.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 407
Part of the Iberian Studies Summer Program, this course explores how and why language varies in Spain and how variation and multilingualism relate to competing identities and ideologies. Students conduct surveys, interviews, conversation analyses, and work collaboratively on research projects.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 408
This course examines how narratives about the body, health, medicine, and well-being are constructed, naturalized, and circulated in Latin America.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 409
HLTH 469
LACS 409
Upper-level research seminar on topics of Hispanic linguistics and communication, such as history of the language, bilingualism, or translation. Students may take multiple SPAN 410 courses provided that they focus on different topics.
Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 410
Upper-level research seminar with a strong writing component on topics of Hispanic linguistics and communication, such as history of the language, bilingualism, or translation. Students may take multiple SPAN 410W courses provided that they focus on different topics.
Credit Hours
1 - 5
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 410W
This course presents the history and multiple theories of translation, as well as basic methods/techniques and problems of translating between English and Spanish. A portion of class time will be devoted to translation practice and the comparison of multiple translations of a single text.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 411
This course presents the history and multiple theories of translation, as well as basic methods/techniques and problems of translating between English and Spanish. A portion of class time will be devoted to translation practice and the comparison of multiple translations of a single text.
Credit Hours
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 411W
This course provides a descriptive and critical overview of the linguistic practices of different Spanish-speaking communities in the United States, as well as a methodology for the study of these practices. Special attention is given to the relationship between language and society.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 413
This course provides a descriptive and critical overview of the linguistic practices of different Spanish-speaking communities in the United States, as well as a methodology for the study of these practices. Special attention is given to the relationship between language and society.
Credit Hours
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SPAN 413W
Arabic dialects have been spoken continuously from Mauritania in the west to Iraq in the east. This course combines a broad introduction to the field with concrete experience working with Arabic dialects, exploring the historical development of the dialects and their relationship to Literary Arabic.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
ARAB 425R
Students investigate an understudied language by conducting a series of interviews with a native speaker. You'll practice hands-on field methods: elicitation, recording, transcription, analysis, IRB protocol, etc. At the end of the semester we'll present our findings to a larger audience.
Credit Hours
GER
None
Requisites
LING 201 or ANT 203 or LING_OX 201 or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisites.
Cross-Listed
None
An interdisciplinary exploration of digital tools for analyzing and visualizing data in the humanities and social sciences.
Credit Hours
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SOC 446
QTM 446
An interdisciplinary exploration of digital tools for analyzing and visualizing data in the humanities and social sciences.
Credit Hours
GER
HSCW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
SOC 446W
QTM 446W
Investigation of a particular issue or topic in the study of language, linguistics, and communication on an advanced level. May be repeated when topic varies.
Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
Investigation of a particular issue or topic in the study of language, linguistics, and communication on an advanced level. May be repeated when topic varies.
Credit Hours
1 - 5
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
Enrollment limited to linguistics majors invited to participate in the Linguistics Honors Program.
Credit Hours
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
Enrollment limited to linguistics majors invited to participate in the Linguistics Honors Program.
Credit Hours
1 - 8
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
Students conduct directed or supervised research in support of a faculty member's
research project or agenda. Permission of the department and a supervising faculty
member is required.
Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
Students study, read, and write on a topic under the direction or supervision of a faculty
member. Permission of the department and a supervising faculty member is required.
Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None
Students conduct independent research in support of their own research agenda or
question with guidance from a faculty member. Permission of the department and a
supervising faculty member is required.
Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None