Course Description
Linguistics 1: Introduction to Study of Language, LING 1
Summary, for general undergraduates, of what is known about human language; unique nature of human language, its structure, its universality, and its diversity; language in its social and cultural setting; language in relation to other aspects of human inquiry and knowledge.
Key Information
Credit: 5 quarter units /
3.33 semester units credit
UC Los Angeles, Linguistics
Course Credit:
Upon successful completion, all online courses offered through cross-enrollment provide UC unit credit. Some courses are approved for GE, major preparation and/or, major credit or can be used as a substitute for a course at your campus.If "unit credit" is listed by your campus, consult your department, academic adviser or Student Affairs division to inquire about the petition process for more than unit credit for the course.
UC Berkeley:
Unit Credit
UC Davis:
Unit Credit
UC Irvine:
Unit Credit
UC Los Angeles:
General Education: Life Sci, nonlab and Philosophical and Ling Analysis
UC Merced:
Course Equivalence: UC Merced COGS 005 (Introduction to Language and Linguistics)
UC Riverside:
General Education: LING elective units
UC San Diego:
General Education: Revelle - one course toward Social Science; TMC 1 course toward lower division disciplinary breadth if noncontiguous to major; Sixth - 1 course towards Social Analysis; Warren - May be counted depending on major/PofC/AS; Muir: 1 course in a Social Sciences theme in "Language and Communication".
UC San Francisco:
Unit Credit
UC Santa Barbara:
Course Equivalence: Likely equivalent to LING 20 after petition
General Education: Area E automatically upon completion
UC Santa Cruz:
General Education: SI
Course Fees
none
More About The Course
Our lives are full of language. From birth through adolescence, and onward to adulthood, almost every waking moment of human life involves the use of language. We speak to other people, and listen to them in conversations, on the radio, in movies, online, and in just about every other kind of interaction people are involved in. We even use language when we talk to ourselves, without opening our mouths! This effortless and automatic use of language can make it appear simple and obvious. However, the central role that language plays in all human activities and cultures suggests that it is far from a simple creation. In fact, language is marvelously intricate and adaptable. This course is an introduction to the scientific study of language, a unique product of the human mind.
In this course, we investigate language by asking the question, “What do you know when you know a language?” We answer that question by investigating several topics of central interest in modern linguistics, such as how language is instantiated in the brain, the relation between language and thought, how children acquire language, what features all languages share, and the ways in which languages differ, among others. As we explore these different areas of linguistic study, students will come see that their own linguistic knowledge is of considerable complexity and depth.
Students in this course will gain a basic understanding of the components of language, how they work together, and how we deploy our knowledge of language in daily life. Most importantly, students will come out of the course with the intellectual tools necessary to critically evaluate claims about language in the popular media. Finally, students will also gain an appreciation of the amazing capacity for language that all humans share.
This course fulfills UCLA General Education requirements in the Arts and Humanities--Philosophical and Linguistic Analysis and Foundations of Scientific Inquiry--Life Sciences categories.
This course features high-quality, documentary-style video lectures produced by the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television and Life Sciences Core Media.
Course Creator
W.H. Torrence
Harold Torrence is an associate professor in the UCLA Linguistics Department. He researches the morphology (word structure) and syntax (sentence structure) of languages in West Africa and Mesoamerica, where he travels to conduct fieldwork. Professor Torrence received his BA and BS from the University of Georgia and his Ph.D. at UCLA. Before coming to UCLA, he worked at the University of Kansas.
Professor Torrence is interested in variation across languages. In his work, he tries to understand the properties that all languages have and to develop a clearer picture of the ways that languages differ from each other. The nearly 7000 living languages of the world present a vast array of apparent differences. In all of this complexity, are there universal principles or “laws of language” that determine how all human languages work? If so, what exactly are these principles and how can we figure out what they are? Professor Torrence’s work on understudied languages brings in fresh data to help solve some of the many questions that human language presents.
Harold Torrence is an associate professor in the UCLA Linguistics Department. He researches the morphology (word structure) and syntax (sentence structure) of languages in West Africa and Mesoamerica, where he travels to conduct fieldwork. Professor Torrence received his BA and BS from the University of Georgia and his Ph.D. at UCLA. Before coming to UCLA, he worked at the University of ...Harold Torrence is an associate professor in the UCLA Linguistics Department. He researches the morphology (word structure) and syntax (sentence structure) of languages in West Africa and Mesoamerica, where he travels to conduct fieldwork. Professor Torrence received his BA and BS from the University of Georgia and his Ph.D. at UCLA. Before coming to UCLA, he worked at the University of Kansas.
Professor Torrence is interested in variation across languages. In his work, he tries to understand the properties that all languages have and to develop a clearer picture of the ways that languages differ from each other. The nearly 7000 living languages of the world present a vast array of apparent differences. In all of this complexity, are there universal principles or “laws of language” that determine how all human languages work? If so, what exactly are these principles and how can we figure out what they are? Professor Torrence’s work on understudied languages brings in fresh data to help solve some of the many questions that human language presents.
