Identifying Data 2023/24
Subject (*) Variation and Change in English Code 613505108
Study programme
Mestrado Universitario en Estudos Ingleses Avanzados e as súas Aplicacións (2019)
Descriptors Cycle Period Year Type Credits
Official Master's Degree 2nd four-month period
 First Optional 3
Language
English
Teaching method Hybrid
Prerequisites
Department Letras
Coordinador
E-mail
Lecturers
Puente Castelo, Luís Miguel
 E-mail
luis.pcastelo@udc.es
Web http://www.imaes.eu/?page_id=31
General description O obxectivo deste módulo é familiarizar ao estudantado cos principais aspectos e metodoloxías da investigación variacionista así como equipalos coas habilidades e ferramentas necesarias para identificar, analizar e interpretar casos particulares de variación ou cambio lingüístico aos diferentes niveis de análise (fonolóxico, morfosintáctico, léxico e semántico-pragmático).

Study programme competencies
Code Study programme competences
A1 E01 – Familiarity with the main research models in linguistic research.
A2 E02 – Familiarity with the main resources, tools and methodologies in linguistic research.
A6 E06 – Familiarity with studies on variation and linguistic change in the English-speaking domain.
B6 G01 –The capacity to delve into those concepts, principles, theories or models related with the different fields of English Studies is a necessary skill, as is the ability to solve specific problems in a particular field of study via appropriate methodology.
B7 G02 – Students must be capable of applying the knowledge acquired in the multidisciplinary and multifaceted area of English Studies
B8 G03 – An efficient use of new information technology and communication in English Studies is a necessary skill.
B9 G04 – Students must be able to publicly present their ideas, reports or experiences, as well as give informed opinions based on criteria, external norms or personal reflection. All of this implies having sufficient command of both oral and written academic and scientific language
B10 G05 – Skills related to research and the handling of new knowledge and information in the context of English Studies are to be acquired by students
B11 G06 – Students should be able to develop a critical sense in order to assess the relevance of both existing research in the fields of English Studies, and their own research.
B12 G07 –Linguistic competence (C2 level) in oral and written English must be developed and consolidated.
B13 G08 – Students should become progressively autonomous in the learning process, and in the search for appropriate resources and information, via the use of bibliographic and documentary sources related to English Studies.
B14 G09 – Students are expected to be able to carry out research projects of an academic nature in the different fields of English Studies
B15 G10 – The ability to present and defend a research project using adequate terminology and resources appropriate to the field of study is a skill which should be acquired.

Learning aims
Learning outcomes Study programme competences
To familiarise students with the major issues and methodologies of variationist research as well as to equip them with the necessary skills and tools to identify, analyse and interpret particular cases of variation and/or linguistic change at the different levels of analysis (phonological, morphosyntactic, lexical and semantico-pragmatic) AR1
AR2
AR6
 BR6
BR7
BR8
BR9
BR10
BR11
BR12
BR13
BR14
BR15

Contents
Topic Sub-topic
Introducing language variation and change: Linguistic variation as a condition for linguistic change. The idea of language change
The idea of language variation
Language classifications: typological, geographical, genealogical
Diachrony, synchrony, diatopy and diaphases in language.
Basic types of linguistic change Simplification and elaboration
Factors determining variation and change Internal and external factors.
Materials for the study of variation and change in English. The nature of the evidence and its limitations
Variation and change in the different linguistic components Phonology
Lexis
Semantics
Morphology
Syntax
An overview of approaches to the study of language variation and change Main approaches

Planning
Methodologies / tests Competencies Ordinary class hours Student’s personal work hours Total hours
Guest lecture / keynote speech A1 A6 B6 B7 B11 B12 5 0 5
Seminar A1 A6 B6 B7 B9 B11 B12 7 0 7
ICT practicals A1 A2 A6 B6 B7 B8 B9 B10 B11 B12 B13 0 2 2
Student portfolio A1 A2 A6 B6 B7 B8 B9 B10 B11 B12 B13 0 4 4
Case study A1 A2 A6 B6 B7 B8 B9 B10 B11 B12 B13 B14 B15 2 29 31
Document analysis A1 A6 B6 B7 B11 B12 0 24 24
 
Personalized attention 2 0 2
 
(*)The information in the planning table is for guidance only and does not take into account the heterogeneity of the students.

Methodologies
Methodologies Description
Guest lecture / keynote speech Students will be given examples from different languages so that they may think about any phenomena observable at first sight
Seminar Students will conduct interactive exercise in class
ICT practicals Use of different platforms, dataases, tee-banks, corpora and other electronic tools for linguistic research that are good bases for empirical studies
Student portfolio Mixed tasks to be solved either in class or at home
Case study A 1,500-word paper on a topic having to do with the subject and its oral presentation.
Document analysis Critical reading of recommended sources

Personalized attention
Methodologies
Case study
Description
Students will receive persional attention either at the teachers' offices or via e-mail.

Assessment
Methodologies Competencies Description Qualification
Student portfolio A1 A2 A6 B6 B7 B8 B9 B10 B11 B12 B13 Exercises, either in-class or home assignments to be submitted via the teaching platform. 45
Case study A1 A2 A6 B6 B7 B8 B9 B10 B11 B12 B13 B14 B15 Paper (1,500 words, excluding references) and oral presentation. 50
Seminar A1 A6 B6 B7 B9 B11 B12 Active participation in class 5
 
Assessment comments

Students are expected to complete all assignments and readings suggested by the lecturer(s), and to come to the sessions prepared to discuss them. Students must visit the eLearning platform for the course regularly. Students are expected to check their university email on a regular basis: announcements and last-minute changes will be notified via email. 

  • Passing the subject

In order to pass this module,students must obtain at least a mark of 50 (out of 100) in items 2 and 3.

  • Second opportunity:

Students will have to repeat only those parts (exercise(s) and paper) in which they did not reach a pass in the first opportunity.  In the second opportunity the case study will be submitted as a written essay (between 2,000-3,000 words, excluding references).

  • Students officially exempt from class attendance:

Students officially exempt from class attendance (dispensa académica) will have to hand in all course exercises (50%) and submit an essay on a case study (2,000 words excluding references).

  • Linguistic correctness and academic misconduct.

All exercises and tests will be done in English. Overall correctness in language and in the use of formal conventions is indispensable. Therefore, grammatical and orthographic mistakes will be penalised.

Academic misconduct (including cheating, plagiarism, collusion or fabrication of results) will not be tolerated and will be penalised, according to the Regulamento Disciplinar do Estudantado da UdC,
articles 10.3.f and 11.4.b, with a Qualification of Fail (Suspenso) for both
opportunities in the Course.

Sources of information
Basic

Aitchison, Jean.1981. Language Change: Progress or Decay? London: Fontana Paperbacks.

Barber, Charles.2000. The English Language: A Historical Introduction . Cambridge:Cambridge University Press.

Bergs,Alexander, Brinton, Laurel J. (eds.). 2012. English Historical Linguistics.An International Handbook . Berlin: Walter de Gruyter.

Blake, Norman(ed.). 1992 . The Cambridge history of the English language. Vol.2: 1066-1476 .Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Brinton,Laurel J. (ed.). 2017. English HistoricalLinguistics. Approaches and Perspectives . Cambridge: Cambridge UniversityPress.

Brinton, Laurel J. & Leslie K. Arnovick. 2011. The English Language. A Linguistic History . 2nd edn. Oxford: OxfordUniversity PressBurchfield,Robert (ed). 1994

Burnley, David.2000. The History of the English Language: A Source Book . London:Longman.

Burridge, Kate & Alexander Bergs. 2017. Understanding Language Change . London: RoutledgeCable, Thomas.2002.

Campbell, Lyle. 1999/2004. Historical Linguistics. An Introduction . Cambridge, Ma: The MIT Press.

Chambers, Jack,Peter Trudgill & Natalie Schilling-Estes (eds.). 2004. The Handbook ofLanguage Variation and Change . London: Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Chen, Matthew A.1975. "Sound Change: Actuation and Implementation, Language, 51/2: 255-281.

Coates, Jennifer. 2004. Women, Men, and Language: A Sociolinguistic Account ofGender Differences in Language . London: Pearson Longman.

Conde-Silvestre, Camilo.2016. A ‘third-wave’ historical sociolinguistic approach to late Middle Englishcorrespondence: Evidence. from the Stonor Letters. InRussi, Cinzia (ed.) Current Trends in Historical Sociolinguistics . Berlin: Walter de Gruyter (46-66)

Coupland, Nikolas. 2007. Language Variation and Identity . Cambridge: CambridgeUniversity Press.

Fairclough, Norman. 2001. Language and Power . London: Longman.

Fasold, Ralph W.& Schiffrin, Deborah (eds).1989. LanguageChange and Variation , Washington DC: Georgetown Univ. Press.

Fischer, Olga. 2007. Morphosyntactic Change .Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Gumperz, John J.1976. “Social Network and Language Shift", Working Paper 46, Berkeley (Language Behaviour ResearchLaboratory).

Hickey, Raymon.2003 (ed.). Motives for Language Change . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Hock, Hans Henrich & Brian D. Joseph. 1996. Language History, Language Change and Language Relationship. An Introduction to Historical and Comparative Linguistics . Berlin & New York: Mouton deGruyter.

Hogg, Richard & David Denison (eds.). 2006. AHistory of the English Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Holmes, Janet.2008. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics . London: Longman.

Joseph, Brian D. & Richard D. Janda (eds.). 2003. The Handbook of Historical Linguistics . Oxford: Blackwell.

Jucker, Andreas H. & Irma Taavitsainen. 2013. English Historical Pragmatics .Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.

Jucker, Andreas H. & Irma Taavitsainen (eds.). 2010. Historical Pragmatics . Berlin & New York: De Gruyter.

Kay, Christian & Kathryn Allan. 2015. English Historical Semantics . Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.

King, Robert Desmond.1969. Historical linguistics and Generative Grammar. Prentice Hall.

Krishnamurti, Bh. 1978. “Areal and Lexical Diffusion of Sound Change", Language , 54, 1-20.

Kytö, Merja & Päivi Pahta (eds.). 2016. The Cambridge Handbook of English Historical Linguistics . Cambridge: CambridgeUniversity Press.

Kytö, Merja,John Scahill & Harumi Tanabe (eds). 2010. Language Change and Variationfrom old English to Late Modern English: A Festschrift for Minoji Akimoto .Berlin: Peter Lang.

Labov,William. 1994. P rinciples of LinguisticChange. Volume 1: Internal Factors . Oxford: UK & Cambridge USA:Blackwell.

Labov, William. 2001. Principles of LinguisticChange. Volume 2: External Factors . Oxford: UK & Cambridge USA: Blackwell.

Lass, Roger. 1997. Historical Linguistics and Language Change . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Los, Bettelou. 2015. A Historical Syntax of English . Edinburgh: EdinburghUniversity Press.

McMahon, April. 1994. Understanding LanguageChange . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Minkova,Donka. 2013. A Historical Phonology of English . Edinburgh: EdinburghUniversity Press.

Nevalainen, Terttu & Helena Raumolin-Brunberg. 2003. Historical Sociolinguistics . London: Longman.

Ringe, Don. 2021. A Historical Morphology of English . Edinburgh: EdinburghUniversity Press.

Samuels, Michael L. 1972. Linguistic Evolution,with Special Reference to English . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Schendl, Herbert. 2001. Historical Linguistics .Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Trask, Robert Lawrence. 1994. Language Change . London & New York: Routledge.

Trask, Robert Lawrence. 1996. HistoricalLinguistics . London: Arnold.

Traugott, Elizabeth C. & Richard B. Dasher. 2002. Regularityin Semantic Change . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Complementary


Recommendations
Subjects that it is recommended to have taken before

Subjects that are recommended to be taken simultaneously

Subjects that continue the syllabus

Other comments
  • Measures in favour of diversity

The subject could be adapted for students requiring the adoption of specific measures in favour of diversity, according to the instructions of the Unidade de Atención á Diversidade (https://www.udc.es/cufie/ADI/), with which you can contact during the periods established by this Unit. You can also count with the advice from the ADI tutor (pat.filoloxia@udc.gal).

  • Measures in favour of equality

In accordance with the various regulations governing university teaching, it is necessary to incorporate a gender perspective into this subject. This includes, among other measures, the use of non-sexist language, bibliographies that are inclusive from a gender perspective, and encouraging participation from all students in class, regardless of their gender.

We will pay particular attention to identifying and addressing sexist prejudices and attitudes. We will actively work towards the modification of this environment and the promotion of values of respect and equality.

Our efforts will focus on detecting cases of gender discrimination and implementing appropriate actions to rectify such cases.


(*)The teaching guide is the document in which the URV publishes the information about all its courses. It is a public document and cannot be modified. Only in exceptional cases can it be revised by the competent agent or duly revised so that it is in line with current legislation.