What is linguistics?

Linguistics is the scientific study of how human language works and what this tells us about the human mind.

We all use language all the time, but we don't think about how amazing this capacity is -- that is, until we try to learn another language. Children born in Russia or Japan learn to speak their native language effortlessly. So why is it so hard for us to learn Russian or Japanese, or English for that matter, as adults?

We can speak our native languages because our minds contain a system of grammatical rules that we aren't conscious of. Not the rules you learn in school like "Don't split infinitives," but the rules you don't even know you know. For example, if you learn a new word "vit," in the plural "vits," you'll pronounce the plural ending like [s]. But if you learn a new word "wug," in the plural "wugs," you'll pronounce the plural ending like [z].

You probably didn't know that rule existed. You probably never even noticed that in words like "dogs" and "cats" the plural ending sounds different. But you find yourself using the rules correctly automatically�like you use all the other rules for constructing and pronouncing words and sentences.

How do we learn these rules? What do they look like?

Linguistics examines these questions in many different areas:

Phonology

Have you ever wondered why people have foreign accents -- why it's so difficult to learn to pronounce a second language like a native? In phonology, you'll learn about how the sound systems of different languages are structured. And you'll find out just why the plural ending sounds different in "dogs" and "cats."

Syntax

Have you ever wondered why a sentence like "Old English teachers are cranky" has two different meanings? Does the teacher teach Old English, or is the teacher old? Have you ever noticed that you can use a contraction in a sentence like "I wonder who he's meeting," but not "I wonder who he's?" In syntax you'll study the rules that explain the construction of sentences in English and other languages.

Semantics

You can make a ship sink and sink a ship, but even though you can make your friend laugh, you can't laugh your friend. Semantics is the study of meaning, which looks at issues like these. Semantics differs from syntax because a sentence like "Colorless green ideas sleep furiously" has perfect English syntax, but is meaningless: the problem involves only the semantic component of the grammar.

Language Acquisition

One of the central questions in linguistics is how children learn all of those unconscious rules. Since no one consciously realizes that the plural endings sound different, no one teaches a child that rule; but all English-speaking children can apply it correctly from a young age. The study of language acquisition investigates this kind of question.

Psycholinguistics and Neurolinguistics

Both children and adults speak and understand language quickly and effortlessly. But researchers have so far been unable to make even the most advanced computers match this performance. Psycholinguistics and neurolinguistics investigate what structures in the brain are responsible for these abilities. These questions are explored in experiments on reading, listening, and speaking that use a range of tools from personal computers to the most advanced brain imaging technologies.

Historical Linguistics

Historical linguistics is the study of how language changes over time. Grammars may change from generation to generation in the course of the history of a language; if they didn't, we would still speak Old English. This happens because children construct a slightly different grammar from their parents' generation; therefore, the study of language change is tightly linked to the study of language acquisition.

Research Opportunities

The department welcomes undergraduate participation in faculty research. Students can become involved in a wide range of activities including computer programming and experimental projects in language acquisition, psycholinguistics and neurolinguistics. Students may assist with conducting experiments and learn about experimental design and analysis. Undergraduates have worked alongside faculty and graduate students on language acquisition projects at the Center for Young Children, the child-care facility on campus, and in research projects at the Cognitive Neuroscience of Language Laboratory.

In general, students join faculty research through the Undergraduate Research Assistant Program (URAP), which requires volunteering 4 to 6 hours per week. Participation will be noted on your academic transcript. Paid research assistant positions are sometimes available through the department's grant-supported research projects.

This kind of research experience is especially valuable for students planning to go to graduate school. The participation can also lead to a departmental honors project for linguistics majors.

Where can you go after graduation ...

Our students have gone on to some of the most prestigious graduate programs in linguistics and cognitive science, such as MIT, Stanford, Cornell and the University of Pennsylvania. Students who combine linguistics with computer science have been hired in high-tech jobs including Internet companies. Students who combine linguistics with the study of a language have gone on to teach languages and work as translators. Many of our students have studied linguistics just for their own interest and have gone on to successful careers in unrelated subjects, including being admitted to prestigious law and medical schools.

For more information about studying linguistics at Maryland, please see the Undergraduate Linguistics Advising FAQ.

For an admissions application or more information about the University of Maryland, please contact:

Office of Undergraduate Admissions
University of Maryland
Mitchell Building
College Park, MD 20742
1-800-422-5867
http://www.uga.umd.edu