Master 2024/2025

Comparative Linguistics

Type: Compulsory course (Linguistic Theory and Language Description)

Area of studies: Fundamental and Applied Linguistics

Delivered by: School of Linguistics

Where: Faculty of Humanities

When: 1 year, 3 module

Mode of studies: offline

Open to: students of one campus

Instructors: George Starostin

Master’s programme: Linguistic Theory and Language Description

Language: English

ECTS credits: 3

Course Syllabus

Abstract

The course gives a brief practical overview of the classical comparative method and explains how it is complemented today by advances in computational phylogenetic studies. It includes both theoretical lectures and elements of practical analysis of linguistic data, with a significant focus on the most cutting-edge and occasionally controversial aspects of the discipline, such as the dating of linguistic divergence and long-range linguistic relationship. Theoretical problems are illustrated using material taken from both familiar language families, such as Indo-European, and those that will be less familiar to students, e.g. language families of Southeast Asia and Africa.