Linguistics is a major that gives students insight into one of the most intriguing aspects of human knowledge and behavior. Majoring in linguistics means that you will learn about many aspects of human language, including sounds (phonetics, phonology), words (morphology), sentences (syntax), and meaning (semantics). At Tulane, we look at how languages change over time (historical linguistics); how language varies from situation to situation, group to group, and place to place (sociolinguistics, dialectology); how people use language in context (pragmatics, discourse analysis); how to model aspects of language (computational linguistics); how people acquire or learn language (language acquisition); and how people process language (psycholinguistics, brain and language).
The array of courses offered by the Program allows linguistics majors to master the basics of the discipline. Linguistics majors develop valuable intellectual skills in analytical reasoning and critical thinking, lucid communication, and the use of research methodologies.
Career opportunities for linguistics majors are: publishing, computer industry, foreign language education, advertising, national security, translating/interpreting, speech and language pathology.
The major in linguistics consists of ten courses selected from the lists below. The student should take at least one course in each of the following areas: phonology, morphosyntax, language history, and language and thought.
Phonology:
| Course ID | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH 3630 | Linguistic Phonetics | 3 |
| ANTH 3640 | Phonology | 3 |
| FREN 3140 | French Phonetics | 3 |
| SPAN 4260 | Span Phonetic/Phonolgy | 3 |
| THEA 3090 | Stage Speech I | 3 |
| THEA 4090 | Stage Speech II | 3 |
Morphosyntax:
| Course ID | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH 3590 | Introduction To Syntax | 3 |
| ANTH 3650 | Morphology | 3 |
| CMPS 1500 | Intro to Computer Science I | 4 |
| CMPS 1600 | Intro to Computer Science II | 4 |
| CMPS 2200 | Intro to Algorithms | 3 |
| CMPS 4620 | Artificial Intelligence | 3 |
| PHIL 1210 | Elementary Symbolic Logic | 3 |
| PHIL 3040 | Mathematical Logic | 3 |
| PHIL 6060 | Advanced Symbolic Logic | 3 |
| RUSS 3250 | Advanced Russian Grammar | 3 |
Language History:
| Course ID | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH 3300 | History of Writing | 3,4 |
| ANTH 3310 | Historical Linguistics | 3,4 |
| ANTH 3440 | Dialectology | 3 |
| EDUC 3220 | Linguistics for English Language Learning | 3 |
| ENLS 4050 | History of the Language | 3 |
| FREN 4210 | History of French Language | 3 |
| SPAN 4270 | Iberoamer Dialectology | 3 |
| SPAN 6510 | Hist of the Span Lang | 3 |
Language and Thought:
| Course ID | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH 3290 | The Nature of Language | 3 |
| ANTH 3400 | Language and Culture | 3 |
| ANTH 3660 | Discourse Analysis | 3,4 |
| ANTH 3670 | Language & Acquisition | 3 |
| ANTH 3680 | Language and Power | 3 |
| ANTH 3690 | Language and Gender | 3,4 |
| ANTH 6400 | Language and Culture | 3 |
| LING 4110 | Brain and Language | 3 |
| LING 4720 | Translation Studies Theory | 3 |
| PHIL 3800 | Language and Thought | 3,4 |
| PHIL 6180 | Mental Representation | 3,4 |
Students majoring in linguistics who elect to graduate with a B.S. degree must have credit for two mathematics courses:
- one calculus course, MATH 1210 Calculus I (4 c.h.) or equivalent; and
- one statistics course MATH 1230 Stats For Scientists (4 c.h.), or a higher level class in statistics.
In addition to courses listed here in cooperating departments, students may elect to take language courses to broaden their linguistic base. Students may count up to 9 credit hours of courses in a language other than English toward the major. No language courses taken to fulfill the college proficiency requirement may be counted toward the major.
Courses
| Course ID | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH 3290 | The Nature of Language | 3 |
| ANTH 3300 | History of Writing | 3 |
| ANTH 3310 | Historical Linguistics | 3 |
| ANTH 3400 | Language and Culture | 3 |
| ANTH 3420 | Semantics: Linguistic Approaches to Meaning | 3 |
| ANTH 3440 | Dialectology | 3 |
| ANTH 3441 | Lexicography | 3 |
| ANTH 3535 | Native American Language and Linguistics | 3 |
| ANTH 3590 | Introduction To Syntax | 3 |
| ANTH 3630 | Linguistic Phonetics | 3 |
| ANTH 3640 | Phonology | 3 |
| ANTH 3650 | Morphology | 3 |
| ANTH 3660 | Discourse Analysis | 3 |
| ANTH 3670 | Language & Acquisition | 3 |
| ANTH 3680 | Language and Power | 3 |
| ANTH 3690 | Language and Gender | 3 |
| ANTH 3780 | Language Death | 3 |
| ANTH 4930 | Languages of Louisiana | 3 |
| ANTH 6400 | Language and Culture | 3 |
| ANTH 6415 | Pidgins and Creoles | 3 |
| ANTH 6420 | Linguistic Field Methods | 3 |
| ANTH 6700 | Spoken Nahuatl | 3 |
| ANTH 6720 | Spoken Yoruba | 3 |
| ANTH 6800 | Spoken Yucatecan Maya | 3 |
| ANTH 6810 | Introduction to Maya Hieroglyphs | 3 |
| ANTH 6840 | Beginning Kaqchikel (Maya) Language | 3,4 |
| ANTH 6845 | Beginning K'iche' Language | 3 |
| ANTH 6850 | Intermediate K'iche' Language | 3 |
| ANTH 6855 | Advanced K'iche' Language | 3 |
| ANTH 6860 | Introduction to K’iche’ Culture | 3 |
| ANTH 6870 | Kaqchikel Maya Culture | 3 |
| ANTH 7290 | Linguistic Analysis | 3 |
| ANTH 7310 | Prehistory of Languages | 3 |
| ANTH 7340 | Dialectology | 3 |
| ANTH 7400 | Language & Culture | 3 |
| ANTH 7441 | Lexicography: Dictionaries | 3 |
| ANTH 7535 | Native American Language and Linguistics | 3 |
| ANTH 7570 | Intermediate Kaqchikel Language | 3 |
| ANTH 7580 | Advanced Kaqchikel Language | 3 |
| ANTH 7590 | Syntactic Theory | 3 |
| ANTH 7630 | Linguistic Phonetics | 3 |
| ANTH 7640 | Phonology | 3 |
| ANTH 7650 | Morphology | 3 |
| ANTH 7660 | Discourse Analysis | 3 |
| ANTH 7670 | Language & Acquisition | 3 |
| ANTH 7680 | Language and Power | 3 |
| ANTH 7690 | Language and Gender | 3 |
| ANTH 7780 | Language Death | 3 |
| ANTH 7930 | Languages of Louisiana | 3 |
| LING 3000 | Tunica La's Sleeping Language | 3 |
| LING 3010 | Semantics | 3 |
| LING 3700 | Second Language Acquisition | 3 |
| LING 3890 | Service Learning | 1 |
| LING 4110 | Brain and Language | 3 |
| LING 6720 | Translation Studies Theory | 3 |
Courses Offered by Other Departments
| Course ID | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ASLS 1010 | American Sign Language I | 4 |
| ASLS 1020 | American Sign Language II | 4 |
| ASLS 2030 | American Sign Language III | 4 |
| ASLS 3050 | Introduction to Interpreting ASL to English to ASL | 3 |
| ASTC 1010 | Beginning Chinese I | 4 |
| ASTC 1020 | Beginning Chinese II | 4 |
| ASTC 2030 | Intermediate Chinese I | 4 |
| ASTC 2040 | Intermediate Chinese II | 4 |
| ASTC 3050 | Adv Chinese Language I | 4 |
| ASTC 3051 | Heritage Chinese | 4 |
| ASTC 3060 | Adv Chinese Language II | 4 |
| ASTC 3065 | Issues in Contemporary China | 4 |
| ASTC 3070 | Business Chinese | 3 |
| ASTC 4070 | Adv Chinese Read & Write | 3 |
| ASTC 4080 | Chinese Media Literacy | 3 |
| ASTC 4360 | Special Topics in Chinese Lang | 3 |
| ASTJ 1010 | Beginning Japanese I | 4 |
| ASTJ 1020 | Beginning Japanese II | 4 |
| ASTJ 2030 | Intermediate Japanese I | 4 |
| ASTJ 2040 | Intermediate Japanese II | 4 |
| ASTJ 3050 | Advanced Japanese Speaking I | 3 |
| ASTJ 3051 | Advanced Japanese Speaking II | 3 |
| ASTJ 3060 | Advanced Japanese Reading II | 3 |
| ASTJ 4060 | Advanced Japanese Comp & Pres | 3 |
| ASTJ 4070 | Adv Jap Comp & Pres II | 3 |
| FREN 1010 | Elementary French I | 4 |
| FREN 1020 | Elementary French II | 4 |
| FREN 2030 | Intermediate French | 4 |
| FREN 2130 | Intermediate French Conversation | 2 |
| FREN 3060 | Business French | 3 |
| FREN 3140 | French Phonetics | 3 |
| FREN 3150 | Advanced French Through Media I | 3 |
| FREN 3160 | Advanced French Through Media II | 3 |
| FREN 3170 | French Pop Culture | 3 |
| FREN 4050 | Teaching French | 3 |
| FREN 4060 | Professional French | 3 |
| FREN 4080 | French Around the World | 3 |
| FREN 4100 | French In Louisiana | 3 |
| FREN 4110 | Field Research on French in Louisiana | 3 |
| FREN 4160 | Translation Theory & Practice | 3 |
| FREN 4210 | History of French Language | 3 |
| FREN 6070 | Survey of French Linguistics | 3 |
| FREN 6085 | Pidgins and Creoles | 3 |
| FREN 6110 | Field Research on French in Louisiana | 3 |
| FREN 6160 | Translation Theory and Practice | 3 |
| FREN 6210 | History of French Language | 3 |
| FREN 6910 | Independent Study FREN Ling | 1-3 |
| GERM 1010 | Elementary German I | 4 |
| GERM 1020 | Elementary German II | 4 |
| GERM 1120 | Elem German Grammar Revw | 4 |
| GERM 1470 | German For Beginners | 1-4 |
| GERM 2030 | Intermediate German | 4 |
| GERM 2040 | Intermed German II | 4 |
| GERM 3050 | Adv Grammar & Composition | 3 |
| GERM 3360 | Translatn:Theory & Pract | 3 |
| GERM 4250 | Adv Comp Convr Phonetics | 3 |
| GERM 7130 | Old High German | 3 |
| GREK 1010 | Elementary Greek | 4 |
| GREK 1020 | Intermediate Greek | 4 |
| HACR 1010 | Elementary Haitian Creole I | 4 |
| HACR 1020 | Elementary Hatian Creole II | 4 |
| HACR 2030 | Intermediate Haitian Creole | 4 |
| HBRW 1010 | Elementary Hebrew I | 4 |
| HBRW 1020 | Elementary Hebrew II | 4 |
| HBRW 1100 | Readings In Hebrew | 1 |
| HBRW 2030 | Intermediate Hebrew I | 4 |
| HBRW 2130 | Intermediate Hebrew II | 3 |
| HBRW 2140 | Reading In Hebrew | 1 |
| HBRW 2230 | Biblical Hebrew I | 3 |
| HBRW 3100 | Advanced Hebrew I | 3 |
| HBRW 3110 | Advanced Hebrew II | 3 |
| HBRW 3230 | Biblical Hebrew II | 3 |
| ITAL 1010 | Elementary Italian I | 4 |
| ITAL 1020 | Elementary Italian II | 4 |
| ITAL 1030 | Elem Ital For Romnc Lang I | 4 |
| ITAL 1040 | Elem Ital Romnc Lang II | 4 |
| ITAL 1050 | Experiencing Rome: Conversational Language and Culture | 3 |
| ITAL 2030 | Intermediate Italian | 4 |
| ITAL 2040 | Intermed Ital Romnc Lang | 4 |
| ITAL 3130 | Advanced Convers & Comp | 3 |
| ITAL 3200 | Italian for business | 3 |
| LATN 1010 | Elementary Latin | 4 |
| LATN 1020 | Intermediate Latin | 4 |
| MATH 1110 | Probability & Statistics I | 3 |
| MATH 1210 | Calculus I | 4 |
| MATH 1230 | Stats For Scientists | 4 |
| PHIL 1210 | Elementary Symbolic Logic | 3 |
| PHIL 3110 | Contempora European Philosophy | 3 |
| PHIL 3430 | Semantics of Nat. Langu. | 3 |
| PHIL 3800 | Language and Thought | 3 |
| PHIL 6060 | Advanced Symbolic Logic | 3 |
| PHIL 6180 | Mental Representation | 3 |
| PHIL 6620 | Philosophical Logic | 3 |
| PORT 1120 | Intensive Portuguese | 4 |
| PORT 2030 | Intermediate Portuguese | 4 |
| PORT 2050 | Immersive Intermedia Portugues | 4 |
| PORT 3040 | Grammar & Writing - Portuguese | 3 |
| PORT 3050 | Immersive Grammar & Writing | 3 |
| RUSS 1010 | Elementary Russian I | 4 |
| RUSS 1020 | Elementary Russian II | 4 |
| RUSS 2030 | Intermediate Russian | 4 |
| RUSS 2040 | Intermediate Russian II | 4 |
| SOCI 3030 | Intro To Research Design | 3 |
| SOCI 3040 | Social Statistics | 3 |
| SPAN 1010 | Introductory Spanish I | 4 |
| SPAN 1020 | Elements of Spanish II | 4 |
| SPAN 1120 | Intensive Intro Spanish | 4 |
| SPAN 2030 | Elements of Spanish III | 4 |
| SPAN 2040 | Span Convers. & Comp | 3 |
| SPAN 3040 | Spanish Grammar and Writing | 3 |
| SPAN 3050 | Spanish Gram & Writ Business | 3 |
| SPAN 3060 | Span Gram & Writ Medical Prof | 3 |
| SPAN 3080 | Spanish Grammar and Writing for the Legal Professions | 3 |
| SPAN 4260 | Span Phonetic/Phonolgy | 3 |
| SPAN 4270 | Iberoamer Dialectology | 3 |
| SPAN 6010 | Method Tchg Span & Port | 3 |
| SPAN 6060 | Hispanic Bilingualism | 3 |
| SPAN 6510 | Hist of the Span Lang | 3 |
| SWHL 1010 | Swahili I | 3 |
| SWHL 1020 | Swahili II | 3 |
| SWHL 2030 | Swahili III | 3 |
| THEA 3090 | Stage Speech I | 3 |
| YRBA 1010 | Elementary Yoruba I | 4 |
| YRBA 1020 | Elementary Yoruba II | 4 |