SELCS

Introduction to Linguistics and the Scandinavian Languages


Course code: SCAN1102.
Course unit value: 0.5.
Assessment: one unseen three-hour written examination (70%); and one 2-3 000 word essay (30%).
Tutor: Dr Tom Lundskær-Nielsen.

It is essential for students following language courses at university level to have a grasp of basic linguistic terminology and concepts. This course focus mainly on language as a set of formal, interdependent sub-systems, such as phonetics/phonology (sound production and sound systems), grammar in the sense of morphology (word-formation and word classes) and syntax (phrases, clauses, sentences and word order), as well as on broader aspects of language as a special communication system. This will initially be illustrated with the help of English and the knowledge thus gained will then at each stage be applied to the mainland Scandinavian languages (Danish, Norwegian and Swedish).

A brief historical background, charting the main stages in the development of English and the mainland Scandinavian languages from Common Germanic to the present, will also be provided.

By the end of the course, students should thus have a sound knowledge of basic phonetics and grammar and be able to apply this chiefly to their chosen mainland Scandinavian language. They will also have an overview of the basic phonetic and grammatical data in the two other mainland Scandinavian languages and of the key stages in the historical development of English and the Scandinavian languages.

Preparatory reading and set texts:

  • R.L. Trask, Language: The Basics, 2nd ed. (Routledge, 1999 or later).
  • L. Vikør, The Nordic Languages, 2nd ed. (Novus Press, 1995 or later).
  • T. Lundskær-Nielsen, M. Barnes & A. Lindskog, Introduction to Scandinavian Phonetics (Alfabeta, 2005).

Some handouts will be provided and other reading materials will be recommended at the start of the course.