Postgraduate Course: Origins and Evolution of Language (LASC11112)
Course Outline
| School | School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | A survey of the main issues in the evolution and origins of the human language faculty and of actual human languages. |
| Course description |
The course sets out a basis of relevant facts accumulated from a range of disciplines within and outwith Linguistics, including animal behaviour, evolutionary theory, computer modelling, genetics, language acquisition, paleontology, archaeology.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2015/16, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 27,
Feedback/Feedforward Hours 2,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
167 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
One 3000 word assignment
Assignment Deadline: Thursday 3rd December 2015, 12 noon
Maximum word limit: 3000 words
Assignment Return Date: 15th January 2016 |
| Feedback |
Tutorials: they involve ensuring the concepts explained in the lectures are well understood. The last lecture will explain what is expected from the essays and essay answers (structure and content wise).
Comments provided on submitted assessments |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- speak and write informedly and responsibly about the origins of language
- know how to keep track of fresh developments in the field, and be able to put such developments in perspective
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Reading List
Croft, W. (2013) Evolution: Language use and the evolution of languages. In K. Smith and P. Binder (eds.) The Language Phenomenon. Springer.
De Boer, B. (2000). Self organization in vowel systems. Journal of Phonetics, 28, 441-465.
Dediu, D. & Levinson, S. (2014). The time frame of the emergence of modern language end its implications. In D. Dor, C. Knight & J. Lewis (eds.) The social origins of language. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 184-195.
Dor, D. (2014) The instruction of imagination: language and its evolution as a communication technology. In In D. Dor, C. Knight & J. Lewis (eds.) The social origins of language. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 105-128.
Fitch, W.T. (2010) The Evolution of Language. Cambridge University Press (main source of readings; we will read chapters 1,2,4,7,8,9,12,13,14)
Haiman, J. (1994). Ritualization and the Development of Language. In W. Pagliuca, (Ed.) Perspectives on Grammaticalization (pp. 1-28). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Heine, B., and Kuteva, T. (2002). On the Evolution of Grammatical Forms, Chapter 18 of A. Wray (Ed.), The Transition to Language. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Hurford, J.R. (2014). Origins of Language: A Slim Guide. Oxford: Oxford University Press. (Chapters 1, 2 and 4.)
Jackendoff, R. (2002). Foundations of language: Brain, meaning, grammar, evolution. Oxford: OUP.
McMahon, A. & McMahon, R. (2013). Evolutionary Linguistics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. (Chatpers 1 and 9.)
Tennie, C., Call, J. & Tomasello, M. (2009). Ratcheting up the ratchet: on the evolution of cumulative culture. Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society B. 364, 2405-2415. DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2009.0052. http://www.eva.mpg.de/psycho/pdf/Publications_2009_PDF/Tennie_Call_Tomasello_2009.pdf
Tomasello, M., & Carpenter, M. (2007). Shared intentionality. Developmental Science, 10, 121-125. http://www.eva.mpg.de/psycho/staff/carpenter/pdf/Tomasello-Carpenter2007-shared-intentionality.pdf
Wynne, C. D. L. (2001). Animal Cognition: the mental lives of animals. Houndmills: Palgrave. |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Additional Class Delivery Information |
Attend all lectures as scheduled and one weekly tutorial. |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Kenneth Smith
Tel: (0131 6)50 3956
Email: |
Course secretary | Miss Toni Noble
Tel: (0131 6)51 3188
Email: |
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