Overview

Linguistics 2 offers young linguists an opportunity to delve further into a variety of topics introduced in Ling 1, along with a few new areas of study and application of linguistic principles to new languages.  As in Ling 1, there is a balance between modules investigating the structure of language and others that describe how language is used.

There are five class meetings per week: three lectures and two tutorials. Some modules are taught in a combined class consisting of Linguistics 2 and 3 students, while other modules are specific to Linguistics 2. Please see the main timetable for times and venues.

The modules to be taught in 2020 are listed below:

Syntax

Lecturer: Mark de Vos

This module builds on the Language Structures module in first year, and explores the following topics:

• constituent structure
• the lexicon
• clause structure and argument structure
• finite and non-finite clauses
• English phrase structure and X-bar Theory
• tense, aspect and modality
• verb agreement and missing subjects
• noun phrases, pronouns and anaphors
• English complementation

African Linguistics

Lecturer: Ron Simango

The goal of this module is to develop further the students’ knowledge of some key concepts in formal linguistics and to provide students with an opportunity to explore the links between the core subfields of linguistics – phonology, morphology, and syntax – as reflected in African languages.

This module will cover the following topics:

• Major characteristics of Bantu languages
• Bantu morphology
• Noun classes and agreement systems
• Phonology-morphology interface
• Phonology-syntax interface
• Morphology-syntax interface 

Sociolinguistics

Lecturer: Kelly Kilian

This module covers some of the following topics:

• sociolinguistic concepts
• research procedures (dialectology, variation studies)
• variation based on age, class, social network and ethnicity
• language attitudes
• linguistics / sociolinguistics
• diglossia
• codeswitching
• pidgins and creoles

Systemic Functional Linguistics

Lecturers: Ian Siebörger and Ralph Adendorff

This module teaches a deeper investigation of the grammatical aspects of the Systemic Functional model of language, introduced in first year.  In particular it includes:

• an introduction to the Systemic Functional model of context
• more detailed analyses of the Ideational, Interpersonal and Textual metafunctions
• clauses and clause structure
• grammatical metaphor
• spoken and written language
• disciplinarity
• Appraisal
• real-world applications of Systemic Functional Linguistics

Linguistics and Community

Various lecturers

This module will be an opportunity for students to make connections between linguistic knowledge and insights gained through serving in the Makhanda community at a local school.

This module aims to:

• sensitize students to linguistic issues in the Makhanda community
• give students an opportunity to apply their linguistic knowledge in real-world contexts
• explore the linguistic dimensions of those contexts and understand how the linguistic and the social intersect
• develop students’ responsibility and leadership abilities
• equip students with knowledge and skills needed for civic engagement

For more information about Linguistics 2, please contact Mbali Jiyane.

Last Modified: Wed, 04 Nov 2020 17:52:14 SAST