SEMESTER AT SEA COURSE SYLLABUS University of Virginia, Academic Sponsor Voyage: Spring 2015 Discipline: Anthropology Course Title: ANTH 2430: Languages of the World Division: Lower Faculty Name: Caleb Everett Pre-requisites: N/a COURSE DESCRIPTION Language is a universal feature of human cultures and one of the primary distinguishing characteristics of our species. Current estimates suggest that there are over 7100 languages. How do these languages differ? What makes each of them unique? What features do they share with each other? In this course we will address such questions while learning some of the contemporary methods through which linguists study and contrast languages. These methods include some basic transcription and acoustic analysis techniques, as well as some common forms of grammatical analysis. Our acquaintance with such methods will enable us to better understand the primary ways in which the sound systems and grammars of human languages vary. Students will be able to apply such techniques, both in the classroom and in the field, in order to gain a deeper appreciation of the languages encountered during the voyage. In addition, we will also address one of the major questions that linguists, anthropologists, and other researchers are currently grappling with: where and how did human language originate? COURSE OBJECTIVES Put simply, students will learn a lot about how languages vary, and about how human language works. This course will be structured so that students can better appreciate what they are hearing around them as they visit different countries. That is, they will understand how human speech varies in terms of it sounds, the ways in which words can be formed, and the ways in which sentences can be formed. They will see that languages vary tremendously, but that an understanding of basic linguistic principles can help them make sense of that variety. In addition, they will learn that differences across languages impact human cognition. REQUIRED TEXTBOOK AUTHOR: Language, Culture, and Society: An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology TITLE: Zdenek Salzmann, James Stanlaw, and Nobuko Adachi PUBLISHER: Westview Press ISBN #: 978-0-8133-4540-6 DATE/EDITION: 2012, 5 th edition 1
TOPICAL OUTLINE OF COURSE Depart Ensenada- January 7 B1- January 10: Lecture: Introducing language. How many languages are there? How do they vary? Modern myths regarding language. B2-January 12: Lecture: A look at the major language families that will be encountered on our voyage. An overview of basic linguistic methods. Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 1 Hilo: January 14 Trip to the University of Hawaii at Hilo B3- January 15: Lecture: Introducing the sounds of human languages and the international phonetic alphabet. In-class lab: Understanding the structure of the IPA, and the sounds of Hawaiian Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 2 B4-January 17: Lecture: An overview of the articulation of consonants Discussion: Recap of field experience in Hawaii HW assignment: Basic transcription practice Study Day: January 20 B5-January 21: Lecture: An overview of the articulation of vowels In-class lab: Analyzing sounds acoustically via PRAAT Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 3 B6- January 23: Lecture: An examination of other sounds, and the extent of variation in human sounds. Discussion: A look at new evidence that human sounds around the world are impacted by geographic factors. Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 3 (cont.) B7-January 24: Lecture: The structure of words: Morphology Port preparation: A look at Japanese word structure Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 4 Yokohama: January 26-27 2
In-Transit: January 28 Kobe: January 29-31 B8- February 2: Lecture: The structure of sentences: Syntax Discussion: Recap of field notes from Japan Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 4 (cont.) Shanghai: February 3-4 In-Transit: February 5-6 Hong Kong:7-8 B9- February 10: Lecture: Variation in nonverbal communication around the world Port preparation: Typological features common to Sino-Tibetan languages Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 5 Ho Chi Minh: February 11-16 B10- February 18: Lecture: The development and evolution of language, in the context of the evolution of our species Discussion: Recap of field notes from Vietnam Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 6 Singapore: Febrary 19-20 Study Day: February 21 B11-February 23: Lecture: Language acquisition. Humans and multilingualism Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 7 Rangoon: February 24-March 1 B12-March 3: Lecture: Linguistic influences on nonlinguistic cognition: The cases of numerical thought, spatial orientation, and color discrimination. Discussion: In-class experiments on language and cognition. Reading: Everett 2013, Language and Cognition article B13- March 5: Lecture: Linguistic influences on nonlinguistic cognition: The cases of numerical thought, spatial orientation, and color discrimination. (cont.) Discussion: Recap of field notes from Burma Port preparation: The languages of India Cochin: March 6-11 B14-March 13: Mid-term exam 3
Study Day: March 14 B15-March 16: Lecture: How languages change over time Discussion: Recap of field notes from India Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 8 Port Louis: March 18 B16- March 19: Lecture: Varieties of languages dialects, styles, idiolects Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 9 Study Day: March 21 B17-March 22: Lecture: Gender and language Discussion: What are the ways that you do gender with your language Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 9 (cont.) B18- March 24: Lecture: Variations in communication practice across speech communities Port preparation: The languages of Cape Town Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 10 Cape Town: March 25-30 B19-April 1: Lecture: Language ideology across nationalities and classes Discussion: Recap of field notes from South Africa Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 13 Walvis Bay: April 2-06 B20-April 8: Lecture: Nonverbal forms of language: Signed languages Study day: April 10 B21- April 11: Lecture: Nonverbal forms of language: Writing systems Reading: Handout on writing systems B22-April 13: Lecture: Nonverbal forms of language: Writing systems Cracking the Maya Code Study day: April 14 4
B23: April 16: Linguistics in a globalized world Reading: Salzmann et al. Chapter 14 Casablanca: April 18-22 B24: April 23 Lecture: Weaving it all together, a recap of what we have learned Discussion: A look at the highlights of our linguistic fieldwork April 24: Global Lens Exams and Study Day B25: Final exam April 29: Arrive in Southampton 5
FIELD WORK Field lab attendance is mandatory for all students enrolled in this course. Please do not book individual travel plans or a Semester at Sea sponsored trip on the day of your field lab. FIELD LAB (At least 20 percent of the contact hours for each course, to be led by the instructor.) The field lab for this course is in Hawaii. We will travel to the UH at Hilo campus, where we will visit the linguistics program. We will listen to a lecture by an expert on the Hawaiian language, and also be given the opportunity to interact with native Hawaiian speakers. Students will transcribe native Hawaiian to the best of their abilities, focusing on some of the aspects of the language discussed prior to our arrival in Hawaii. They will also learn about the efforts at UH to preserve the Hawaiian language. Our field lab experience will contribute substantively to our subsequent discussions of language documentation, language death, as well as to our discussions of linguistic structure. FIELD ASSIGNMENTS Your participation in the field lab component will include the taking of field notes and transcription of Hawaiian, as described prior to the field lab. These filed notes will be turned in the class day following the field lab. The bulk of your field lab grade is for a phonetics assignment, due on A7. This assignment will incorporate what you learned about Hawaiian during the field lab, as well as some other basic phonetic principles acquired in class. METHODS OF EVALUATION / GRADING RUBRIC Classroom lecture and exercises form a crucial component of the course, and so participation and attendance impact the student s grade. Students engagement in classroom exercises will be the primary aspect of their participation grade. The bulk of the course grade will come from three components: A lab assignment incorporating the field lab experience, a mid-term exam, and a final exam. The course grade is constituted in the following manner: Classroom participation and completion of in-class exercises 10% Field lab 20% Mid-term exam 35% Final (non-cumulative) exam 35% RESERVE LIBRARY LIST AUTHOR: Ladefoged, Peter and Ian Maddieson TITLE: The Sounds of the World s Languages PUBLISHER: Blackwell ISBN #: 978-0-631-19815-4 DATE/EDITION: 1996 6
ELECTRONIC COURSE MATERIALS AUTHOR: Everett, Caleb ARTICLE/CHAPTER TITLE: Independent cross-cultural data reveal linguistic effects on basic numerical cognition JOURNAL/BOOK TITLE: Language and Cognition VOLUME: 5 DATE: 2013 PAGES: 99-104 ADDITIONAL RESOURCES N/a HONOR CODE Semester at Sea students enroll in an academic program administered by the University of Virginia, and thus bind themselves to the University s honor code. The code prohibits all acts of lying, cheating, and stealing. Please consult the Voyager s Handbook for further explanation of what constitutes an honor offense. Each written assignment for this course must be pledged by the student as follows: On my honor as a student, I pledge that I have neither given nor received aid on this assignment. The pledge must be signed, or, in the case of an electronic file, signed [signed]. 7