Linguistics

What is Linguistics? Who is a linguist? What is linguistics? What is its relationship with language?

We shall begin by defining linguistics. It is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics is
scientific in the sense that the study of language must be subjected to the scientific processes of
observation, data collection, formulation of hypothesis, analysis of data and formulation of theory
based on the structure of the language. When we talk about language, we mean the human
language, in contrast to other forms of communication such as animal communication. An individual
who engages in such a rigorous and tasking procedure of language study is called a ‘linguist’.
Linguists are professionals or language specialists who are equipped to analyze any language,
regardless of whether they speak the language or not. They can collect data on languages that do
not have written forms and propose letters of the alphabet (orthography) for such languages. This
exercise forms the foundation for writing in languages. Through this process, linguists help to
develop languages, and thus ensure their continuous use. They also help to revive languages through
language documentation and other forms of development. What a medical doctor does to human
body is similar to what a linguist does to human language. For example, if a speaker says (æks)
instead of (æsk) ‘ask’, a linguist will first observe the instances or situations in which the speaker
uses either form, note, and classify the problem. H/she will identify and elaborate the kind of
relationships between the two forms. Thereafter, he or she develops a hypothesis, and tests the
hypothesis. The hypothesis has to be confirmed by subjecting the data to further tests. Then, the
conclusions are integrated with the previous concepts. Linguists are also involved in other aspects of
language development such as language planning, standardization, and language policies.

The term, ‘linguistics’ came into use in the 19th century. Linguistics has its origins in the
philosophical studies of language beginning with the Greeks, Romans, on to European languages,
Indian before reaching the United States of America. Linguistics evolved as a science in phases. In
the first phase of its growth, focus was on prescriptive grammar based on logic. The second phase of
its growth was characterized by the study of language from a philological perspective. In the third
phase, focus was on historical and comparative grammar. The focus for modern linguistics as the
discipline grew in Europe and America was on the development of linguistic theories.

Language

There are many definitions of language based on different schools of thought. It has been defined as
‘a system of vocal auditory communication using conventional signs composed of arbitrary
patterned sound units and assembled according to a set of rules, interacting with the experience of
its users’ (Bolinger 1968:12). Sapir (1921:8) defines language as a purely human and non-instinctive
method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires by means of voluntarily produced sounds.
Both definitions refer to the arbitrary nature of the symbols representing sounds in language. The
reference is arbitrary and conventional because each language expresses ideas using different
words; for example ‘house’ is house in English, ile in Yoruba, uf k in Ibibio/Efik, ulo in Igbo, and gída
in Hausa. Language is the use of a shared set of signs or symbols within a society to interact and
express their feelings, ideas and emotions. Every society has a way of communicating through
words, writing or through making signs as in sign language or even through iconic ways of
communication such as the colours of a traffic light which each convey a message or the blast of a
siren when there is fire outbreak or danger. Language is also a system by which sounds, signs and
gestures are used to communicate meaning. For humans, a system of speech sounds or signs which
constitute linguistic knowledge of both speaker and addressee convey and receive information. For
animals like bees, chimpanzees, parrots, dolphins which are known to ‘communicate’ through
sounds and signals, it is stimulus-based and is quite limited in comparison with human system of
communication. Human communication is innate-based and is what we use to generate an infinite
number of messages. That humans have the capacity to generate new sentences according to
certain rules in a language is evidence that human language is biologically endowed faculty
specifically for humans. Every human society has a language, a shared set of symbols, which they use
in communication.

Language and Linguistics

Language is the object of study for linguistics, and linguists study the structure of language
empirically at all levels namely, phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax and semantics. The
linguistic study of language in relation to other disciplines such as philosophy, psychology,
communication, sociology etc has expanded its scope. In addition, researchers in the fields of
language development, teaching, and publishing have developed a field of applied linguistics
through linguistic study.

Micro-Linguistics

Micro-linguistics covers the basic components or constituents of a language. This is also referred to
as theoretical linguistics. Theoretical linguists study the structural aspects of language under the
broad label of grammar. Grammar is further divided into form and meaning. Under form is
phonetics, phonology, morphology, and syntax while under meaning is semantics. These are
introduced briefly here but will be discussed in more detail in subsequent units of this course.

Macro-linguistics

Macro-linguistics refers to aspects of linguistic study which involve the application of the findings of
theoretical linguistics to the analysis of language in use. It is also called Applied Linguistics, because it
involves the application of linguistics in relation to other disciplines. The sub-fields that come under
this label include: sociolinguistics, historical linguistics, mathematical linguistics, ethno-linguistics,
psycholinguistics, computational linguistics, and clinical linguistics. They are introduced briefly here,
but will be discussed in more detail in subsequent units of this course.

Aim and Relevance of Linguistics

Linguistics takes as data all human languages. According to Saussure (1991: 6-7), the aims of
linguistics are as follows: • To describe all known languages and record their history. This
involves tracing the history of language families and, as far as possible, reconstructing the
parent language of each family•
To determine the forces operating permanently and universally in all languages, and to
formulate general laws which account for all particular linguistic phenomena historically
attested; • To delimit and define linguistics itself. As noted earlier, linguistics itself has close
relations with several other disciplines through provision of data vice versa. Sometimes, the
line of demarcation is not so clear. For example, anthropology is a discipline which studies
humans, and it utilizes linguistic facts as part of its data on humans, hence anthropological
linguistics. Language is a social phenomenon, and sociology as the study of social behaviour
utilizes linguistic facts, hence sociolinguistics. The relevance of linguistics lies in the fact that
language, its object of study, is a very important factor in the lives of individuals and
societies. As a result, linguistic enquiries are of interest to several disciplines that study
humans and their societies