Branches of Linguistics

Prof. K.T.Khader
2022
 Branches of Linguistics

A full understanding of the branches of •

linguistics can be represented by the following
figure borrowed from the famous linguist Jean
:Aitchison
•
D
Branches of Linguistics
 Branches of linguistics
Theoretical Linguistics Computational Linguistics Anthropological Linguistics

Linguistics
Socio-linguistics Phonology, Psycholinguistics
morphology, syntax,
semantics, pragmatics

Neurolinguistics Applied Linguistics Historical linguistics

 Psycholinguistics
This branch deals with the relationship •
between language and the mind, focusing
mainly on how language is learnt, stored and
.occasionally lost
 PSYCHOLINGUISTICS

What is
psycholinguistics?
Psycholinguistics is the study of the relationship between
language and the mind with special attention being paid to the
way language is acquired, stored, and occasionally lost.

Psycholinguistics

relationship
Language Mind
The relationship between language and mind •
.has two aspects, acquisition and performance
What we acquire is the ability to perform, that •
is, to use language with appropriateness, and
performance is essential to complete and
.successful acquisition
 What does it study ?
1. How Children Learn Language
2. The development of speech production
3. The development of speech comprehension
4. The relationship of speech production, speech
5. comprehension, and thought
6. Parents and Baby Talk
7. Imitation, rule learning, and correction
8. Learning abstract words
9. Memory and logic in language learning
 Language Acquisition

Language acquisition is the process whereby children

.achieve a fluent control of their native language

We can say that a child of five has, without any obvious

difficulty, learnt to control a language that no mature linguist can
.fully explain
Two Main Theories of •
Language Acquisition
 Two main theories
for language
acquisition

Behaviourism Mentalism
 The Behavioral Approach
Fully formulated by B.F.Skinner in “Verbal Behavior •
.” in 1957

Behaviorism claims that language learning in •

children can be accounted for is very much the same
way as we can account for a dog learning to stand on
.its hind legs to beg for a biscuit

Learning comes with: training, stimulation, imitation, •

.reward and repetition
 The Mentalist approach
Strongly backed by Chomsky and his mentalist followers, •
.who attacked the behavioral approach

According to research, all children of all nationalities, •

irrespective of race, class, or intelligence learn language in
regular steps:
- Babbling
- One-word utterance
- Two-word utterance
Until their speech is distinguishable from the adult norms •
.of their community
 :In other words

Mentalism argues that just as human children are genetically •

programmed to walk when they reach a certain stage of
development, they are programmed to talk. (Innate ability to
acquire language)

Language is as natural a part in the development of human •

beings as the growth of the body. Having the right environment,
i.e. exposure to speech, the child learns the language
automatically. The child is a potential speaker, not a miniature
one; thus, given the right environment, he’ll be able to acquire
.the language and develop it
Perhaps we can say that the difference •
between Mentalism and Behaviorism lies in
the following; behaviorists believe that
knowledge of the language and the capacity of
learning it comes with experience and practice,
whereas the mentalists believe that knowledge
is already there in the brain since birth, but it’s
activated with experience
 Behavioral Rationalistic
- Language is a result of - Language is a form of
experience specific condition
- Language is a stimulus - Language is an innate –
response process born process
- Language is a conditioned - Language is not behavior
behavior like others
- Children learn language - Children learn language
by imitation by application
- Language learning is - Language is rules based
practice based - Language is analytic ,
- Language learning is generative and creative
mechanical
 THEORIES OF LANGUAGE
.Noam Chomsky claims that language is innate•

B. F. Skinner claims that language is learnt ; it is •

. basically a stimulus-response mechanism
 LINGUISTIC COMPETENCE
vs. PERFORMANCE
Linguistic competence refers to having the •
.necessary knowledge to produce language

”i.e. “what one knows •

Linguistic performance refers to the way we •

.use this knowledge when producing language
LANGUAGE AND THE BRAIN
Left Hemisphere •
The left brain is the logical brain responsible •
for words, logic, numbers, analysis, lists,
linearity and sequence. It controls the right side
.of your body
Right Hemisphere •
The right brain is the creative brain and is responsible for rhythm,
spatial awareness, color, imagination, daydreaming, holistic
.awareness and dimension. It controls the left side of your body
 Aphasia

Aphasia | əˈfeɪziə | əˈfeɪʒə •

 ‫سة‬َ ‫لح ْب‬99‫ ا‬: Aphasia
‫لدماغ‬99‫صيبا‬99‫سببأ ًذىي‬99‫اما ب‬9‫ه‬9‫ف‬9‫هما وإ‬999‫ة ف‬9‫للغ‬99‫لا‬99‫ستعما‬9‫لقدرة علىا‬99‫نا‬9‫قدا‬9‫ف‬

The sudden or gradual loss of language due to age or

stroke. So it’s the inability to speak , perceive or
.process language
We all can experience aphasia when we cant remember a
specific word or when we say " put that in the fridge" and
we mean the oven. Such slips are commonplace and are
made by all users of language when they are tired , tense
.or getting old
 Aphasia
It is an impairment of lg.,affecting the •
production or comprehension of speech and
the ability to read or write. Aphasia is always
due to injury to the brain – most commonly
from a stroke , particularly in older individuals
. But brain injuries resulting in aphasia may
also arise from head trauma from brain
. tumors , or from infections
Aphasia can be so severe as to make •
communication with the patient almost
impossible ,or it can be very mild . It may
affect mainly a single aspect of lg. use , such as
the ability to retrieve the names of objects , or
to put the words together into sentences , or
. the ability to read
 Two Types of Aphasia
Broca’s(expressive) aphasia : which is traced to •
damage in Broca's region. It results in the loss of ability to
.plan the motor sequences for the production of speech
Wernicke’s aphasia : that results from damage to Wernicke's •
area in the left hemisphere . Wernicke's aphasia suffer from
receptive disorders. They don’t have problems in speaking but
they tend to produce unintelligible speech and they have
severe problems in comprehending stress and in selecting the
.right word
 SOCIOLINGUISTICS

What is sociolinguistics?
Sociolinguistics is the study of the ways people use language with
special attention being paid to variation within a language.

Sociolinguistics

relationshi
Language Society
p
 Sociolinguistics
This branch of linguistics concentrates on
.language in society
It tries to examine how and why people use
language as they interact with other members of
.their society
 ?So, what is Sociolinguistics

It is the study of the ways people use language, paying

close attention to the variation within language.
Broadly speaking, it is the study of language as a part
of our culture and society. Some other expressions
that have been used to describe this study are:
.’‘Sociology of language’ and ‘Social linguistics
There is a deep relationship between society and
language. It is within a certain society that man
acquires and uses language, taking in mind the
geographical and cultural aspects, the context of
.the situation, the listener and many other things
 ?What does a Sociolinguist study

Sociolinguists study the use of language with its 

.variation, development, change and standardization

They also study how and why certain persons use 

language as they interact with different members of the
society, so they study how, when, why and what
.variations of language occur in a society

.They also study bilingual and multilingual communities 

 ?What is the Variation in Language

Variation in language occurs in many things to show us

that language is not only used for communication
means but it can also communicate our opinions of
.others and ourselves as well

So variety in language is used by the speakers of the

language itself. This could be in dialects, accents,
.registers, styles and other variations
In considering any spoken communication,
therefore, a student will notice that a speaker's
language reveals information on his sex,
approximate age, regional and perhaps ethnic
.origins, education and attitude to his listeners
Sociolinguists examine language use, its •
variation and development, change and
.standardization, its regional and class dialects
 ?What does sociolinguistics study
:Dialect‫لهجة‬
A dialect is a form of the language that is spoken in a
particular part of the country or by a particular group
.of people
It is different enough to be considered a separate entity but
.not different enough to be considered a separate language

.E.g. : Palestinian dialect, Iraqi dialect, Egyptian etc

 Dialect
Dialect is a form of a language that •
is spoken in a particular part of a country or by
a particular group of people and
that contains some words, grammar,
or pronunciations (= the ways in which words
are said) that are different from the forms used
.in other parts or by other groups
There are many different forms of standard •
English: for example, standard British English,
standard American English etc. The standard
dialects of the language are used by
governments, in the media, in schools and for
.international communication
The standard dialect of a language can be •
spoken with different accents
Examples of dialect forms in British English •
:are
I ain’t going to school today. (standard •
form: I’m not going to school today.)
She don’t understand. (standard form: She •
.doesn’t understand)
 TYPES OF DIALECTS
Regional Dialect •
A regional dialect is a distinct form of •
a language spoken in a particular geographical
.area. It is also known as a regiolect or topolect

If the form of speech transmitted from a parent •

to a child is a distinct regional dialect, that
.dialect is said to be the child's vernacular
 Social dialect

In sociolinguistics, a sociolect or social •
dialect is a variety of language (a register)
used by a socioeconomic class, a profession,
an age group or other social group such as the
.working-class dialects in England
 Dialect vs. Accent
An accent is also specific to a region. In •
English, there might be an American, British,
or Australian accent. An accent is an inflection
.that occurs with word pronunciation
A dialect is entirely different words or ways of •
communicating altogether. Dialect goes
.beyond mere pronunciation
 :Examples of Accent

An American might pronounce the word, •

.“hello,” by speaking the “h” sound
A Brit might pronounce the word, “hello,” •
.without speaking the “h” sound
This is still the same word, just spoken with a •
.different accent
 :Examples of Dialect

”.A Northern American might say, “hello •

”.A Southern American might say, “howdy •
This is an example of the differences in •
.dialect
 ‫‪I don’t‬‬
‫‪want‬‬

‫ما أبغى‬ ‫ال‬

‫ما ب ّدي‬ ‫أريد‬
‫مش عاوز بديش‬
A regional dialect is a distinct form of a
language spoken in a particular geographical
.area
A social dialect is a variety of language associated
with a social group such as a socioeconomic class,
.an ethnic group, an age group
A style
is a set of linguistic variants with specific social
meanings. In this context, social meanings can
include group membership, personal attributes,
or beliefs. Variation can occur syntactically,
.lexically, and phonologically
 Register
The term register refers to specific lexical and
grammatical choices as made by speakers
depending on the situational context, the
participants of a conversation and the function of
the language in the discourse
 -: DIGLOSSIA ‫ازدواج لغوي‬
Diglossia is a term used to refer to a
situation whereby two distinct varieties of
the same language coexist side by side in
.the community
Each is utilized for functions that are different
.from the functions of the other
One is employed in one set of circumstances, the
.other in a totally different set
THANK YOU •