Syntax of the World's Languages
Syllabus, Master's level, 5LN140
- Code
- 5LN140
- Education cycle
- Second cycle
- Main field(s) of study and in-depth level
- General Linguistics A1N
- Grading system
- Fail (U), Pass (G), Pass with distinction (VG)
- Finalised by
- The Department Board, 26 January 2016
- Responsible department
- Department of Linguistics and Philology
General provisions
The course is given as an independent course.
Entry requirements
Fulfilment of the requirements for a Bachelor's degree with a language subject as the main field of study, or Linguistics C.
Learning outcomes
The aim of the course is to give a comprehensive overview of a selection of the major syntactic patterns in the languages of the world.
On completion of this course, to be given the grade Pass, the student should at least be able:
- to account for how a selection of the major syntactic constructions are realised cross-linguistically;
- to relate this knowledge to the corresponding structures found in Swedish and English;
- to account for how these syntactic constructions are described and discussed in linguistic literature;
- to account for how the theoretical knowledge of the syntactic constructions treated should be applied in the analysis of empirical language data.
Content
The course provides a comprehensive overview of a selection of syntactic patterns as an illustration of their typical characteristics in the languages of the world. Some examples of syntactic constructions which could be treated on the course are: word class systems (typical characteristics for the main word classes; how universal are the word classes noun, verb, adjective and adverb) and clause combining (coordination, subordination, clause chains, serial verb constructions). Analysis and discussion of the treated syntactic constructions will illustrate how syntactic patterns in Swedish and English are similar or different from the patterns which are common in the languages of the world.
Instruction
The instruction consists of lectures, workshops/tutorials and exams. Students' self-study is a crucial part of this course.
Assessment
The students will be assessed through a combination of different forms of assessment, which can be oral or written. Assessment can occur during scheduled meetings (e g within the framework of regular teaching), or be in the form of take home exams or essays. There will be instructions of this at the beginning of the course.