Linguistics Courses in Detail

LIN 01: SOUND CHANGES IN ENGLISH - A VERY SHORT HISTORY OF THE LANGUAGE
Tutor: Gillian Brown
Day and time: Tuesday 10.00 - 11.00
Terms: Autumn.
Number of places: 15
We begin with a general account of why and how languages change over time and go on to consider how we identify 'families' among European languages, and then the early history of English. After a brief phonetic description of southern English (RP) consonants and vowels, we focus on major sound changes which a) gave rise to modern RP pronunciation, b) increased the divergence of English accents in Britain and overseas, and c) affected sound-spelling relations. Throughout the course, we comment on major grammatical and vocabulary changes as well. Finally, we discuss some ongoing 20-21st century changes and their impact on personal identity and social attitudes.
Note: 9 weeks only starts 7th October.

LIN 02: SOUND CHANGES IN ENGLISH - A VERY SHORT HISTORY OF THE LANGUAGE (SPRING TERM)
Tutor: Gillian Brown
Day and time: Tuesday 10.00 - 11.00
Terms: Spring.
Number of places: 15
A repeat of LIN 01.

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