Introduction to Language Science

Teacher(s)

Hambye Philippe; Simon Anne-Catherine;

Language

French

Prerequisites

None

Main themes

• Human language as compared to other communication systems ;
• Levels of linguistic analysis (phonetics-phonology, morphology, lexis, syntax and pragmatics);
• Language universals and the variety of languages

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :
1	This introductory course aims at explaining the functioning of language, that is the conditions under which human speech activity takes place, the way it is structured and governed. By the end of the course, students will be able to use the specific metalanguage of linguistics in a way to describe any language and explain its internal as well as external functioning (units and structures; historical, social and geographical variation). On the other hand, students will have developed the ability to analyze and interpret simple linguistics problems.

Content

The course will successively address the following themes:

• Undertstanding the functioning of language
• The diverse forms of language (natural languages and other communication systems)
• From "words" to morphological and lexical units
• From "sounds" to phonological units
• Syntactic units
• From the language faculty to the variety of languages
• Pragmatics or how to interpret language

Teaching methods

Lectures (face-to-face, co-modality or distance) and questions / answers sessions (using Wooclap).
Individual training by students using the website "Parole&Langue": https://sites.uclouvain.be/paroleetlangue/web/
Tutoring: 4 tutoring sessions (participation optional, only upon registration) to prepare for the exam.

Evaluation methods

Formative evaluation during the quadrimester (mock test).
Written exam during the June and September session (multiple choice questions).
Scores below 50% will not be rounded up to the next unit for the final score (e.g. a score of 19.5/40 will not be rounded up to 10/20).

Online resources

Moodle web site (Documents and Links ; Forums)
https://moodle.uclouvain.be/course/view.php?id=2190

Bibliography

Voir syllabus.

Teaching materials

• Hambye, P. et A.C. Simon. 2020. Introduction aux sciences du langage (syllabus du cours LFIAL1530), Louvain-la-Neuve: DUC. (Disponible à la DUC)

Faculty or entity

FIAL