FLE 261: Linguistics II (3)

Class meeting time: Thursday 8:40am 11:30am

Room: EF B-19
Martina Graanin Yksek
Office: EF B-07
Email: martina@metu.edu.tr
Office phone: 210 7530
Office hours: Thursday 1:30pm-2:30pm
and by appointment

Course assistant: Orhan Demir

Office: EF B-16A
Email: orhandemir6@gmail.com
Office phone: 210 3664
Office hours: Monday 2:00pm 3:00pm
and by appointment

FLE 261: LINGUISTICS II

SYLLABUS FALL 2016/2017
COURSE DESCRIPTION
In this course we will be performing a basic inquiry into the nature of human language. The science that
undertakes the inquiry is called Linguistics. We will investigate four sub-areas of formal linguistics:
phonetics, phonology, morphology and syntax. In each area, we will start by looking at linguistic data
(language as it is used by the native speakers). We will then perform linguistic (phonological,
morphological or syntactic) analysis on the data in order to discover the rules that underlie/generate the
surface complexity of the data. Thus, the class will require a level of abstract critical thinking (which will
often overlap with pure common sense). These activities combined will help us realize that language,
even though it is an extremely complex and intricate system, is law-governed in a way that makes it
effortless for humans to use.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
At the end of the semester, successful students will be able to work with (analyze) linguistic data. Given a
set of attested (possible) and unattested (impossible) language patterns, you will be able to make
generalizations over the data (see what the good examples have in common and what the bad
examples have in common). Moreover, you will be able to discover (formulate) possible rules/laws that,
when applied, derive (produce) all the attested examples and rule out all the unattested ones. This will
require (i) knowing enough of the linguistic theory, which will be presented in class, and (ii) applying
what you know in new situations.
CLASS REQUIREMENTS:
Experiment participation
Homework
Quizzes
Midterm(s)
Final exam

5%
20% (due *almost* every week)
20% (probably two during the course of the semester)
25%
30%

EXPERIMENT PARTICIPATION
As part of the course credit, you will be asked to participate in a linguistic experiment (fill several
questionnaires and participate in a short online data-collection session). This will earn you 5% of
the grade in the course.

FLE 261: Linguistics II (3)

Class meeting time: Thursday 8:40am 11:30am
Room: EF B-19
Martina Graanin Yksek
Office: EF B-07
Email: martina@metu.edu.tr
Office phone: 210 7530
Office hours: Thursday 1:30pm-2:30pm
and by appointment

Course assistant: Orhan Demir

Office: EF B-16A
Email: orhandemir6@gmail.com
Office phone: 210 3664
Office hours: Monday 2:00pm 3:00pm
and by appointment

HOMEWORK
Homework will consist of weekly problem sets. A typical HW assignment contains a set of
linguistic data that you need to analyze, using tools that we have devised in the class. The data
may come from a language you speak, from a language you dont speak, or even from a language
you have never even heard of. You will get a problem set almost every week, and you will be
expected to turn it in the next class session. After the assignments are corrected, you will be given
solutions and we will discuss the errors.
A note on plagiarism: The purpose of HW is to help you get used to performing linguistic
analysis. You are allowed to work on HW assignments in pairs/groups. However, once you have
collectively devised a solution to the problem, you need to write it up by yourself.
Your solution(s) to a HW assignment must reflect that you understand the matter at hand. If a
HW assignment is discovered that is identical or even just too similar to a PS of another student
(in your own or in a different section), both will be given zero points.
Plagiarism and the Internet: Sometimes, you might be able to find a solution to a HW
assignment on the Internet. If you do, make sure you (i) critically evaluate it, (ii) mention in
your HW that you have found the solution on the Internet, and (iii) cite the source. Not all
solutions found on the Internet are correct! Again, you need to show that you understand what it
going on. Copying and pasting text, tables, examples from the Internet without citing them will
disqualify your HW assignment (you will get zero points on it).
Finally, keep in mind that HW is the best preparation for the midterm and final exams.
QUIZZES
There will be several (most probably two) 15/20-minute quizzes during the semester. Altogether,
they carry 20% of the final grade (10% each). The quizzes will test the material we covered since
the last quiz/midterm/beginning of the semester. In other words, the quizzes will never test
material that has already been tested elsewhere (on a different quiz, or on a midterm).
MIDTERM/FINAL EXAMS
The midterm exam will cover the material between the beginning of the semester and the day of
the midterm, including the material tested on all the quizzes that you might have got during that
period. The final exam will cover all the material we went through during the semester, including
what was tested in all the quizzes and midterm(s).
ATTENDANCE
You can miss two course sessions without penalty. One extra absence will be tolerated, provided
you have a doctors report or some other form of written justification for the absence. If you miss
four classes, your final grade will be reduced by one letter grade (for example, a BA instead of
AA). Five or more absences will earn you a grade of NA, which does not grant you the right to
take a re-sit exam, and is ultimately turned into an FF, which means that you have to take the class
again.

FLE 261: Linguistics II (3)

Class meeting time: Thursday 8:40am 11:30am
Room: EF B-19
Martina Graanin Yksek
Office: EF B-07
Email: martina@metu.edu.tr
Office phone: 210 7530
Office hours: Thursday 1:30pm-2:30pm
and by appointment

Course assistant: Orhan Demir

Office: EF B-16A
Email: orhandemir6@gmail.com
Office phone: 210 3664
Office hours: Monday 2:00pm 3:00pm
and by appointment

READINGS
For each week, you will be assigned the pages in the main textbooks that focus on the topic to be
discussed in class. You are required to read the assigned pages in advance - before coming to
class. This way you will be prepared for the topic, and it will be easier for you to follow the class
discussion.
IMPORTANT:
For each lesson, a handout will be provided in advance on the class website
(https://odtuclass.metu.edu.tr). You will be required to bring to class a printout of the
handout. Thus, you will not be required to take notes during lessons (unless you want to), but you
will be required to pay attention and contribute to class discussion with your questions and
comments. You are also required to do the assigned readings prior to coming to class.
CLASS MATERIALS
Main textbooks
Fromkin, V., R. Rodman and N. Hyams. 2014. An Introduction to Language (Tenth Edition). Wadsworth,
Cengage learning.
Mihalicek, V. and C. Wilson (eds.). 2011. Language Files: Materials for an Introduction to Language
and Linguistics. Columbus: The Ohio University Press.
Supplementary readings
Akmajian et al. 1995. Linguistics: An Introduction to Language and Communication. The MIT Press.
Fourth Edition.
Carnie, A. 2001. Syntax: A Generative Introduction. Cambridge: Blackwell.
Haegeman, L. 1994. Introduction to Government and Binding. Oxford: Blackwell.
Pinker, S. 1994. The Language Instinct. New York: Harper Collins.
Radford, A. 1997. Syntax: A Minimalist Introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
Oct. 6th

Introduction to the course

Oct. 13th

PHONETICS: Introduction to the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet). Introduction to

Articulatory phonetics: how sounds of human languages are produced. Vocal tract.
Consonants: Place of articulation (bilabial, labiodental, alveolar,), Manner of
articulation (stop, fricative, nasal, glide, liquid,), Voicing (voiced/voiceless).
READINGS:
FRH: 230-245 (ignoring pg. 238-239: Voiced and Voiceless sounds).
MW: 44-47.
3

FLE 261: Linguistics II (3)

Class meeting time: Thursday 8:40am 11:30am
Room: EF B-19
Martina Graanin Yksek
Office: EF B-07
Email: martina@metu.edu.tr
Office phone: 210 7530
Office hours: Thursday 1:30pm-2:30pm
and by appointment

Course assistant: Orhan Demir

Office: EF B-16A
Email: orhandemir6@gmail.com
Office phone: 210 3664
Office hours: Monday 2:00pm 3:00pm
and by appointment

Oct. 20th

Aspiration, Voice Onset Time (VOT).

Vowels: front, central, back; high, mid, low; tense, lax; rounded, unrounded, diphthongs.
Vowel system of English vs. vowel system of Turkish.
READINGS:
FRH: 246-250.

Oct. 27th

PHONOLOGY
What does a language do with the sounds that it has: how do the sounds pattern together?
Phonemes (contrastive sounds) vs. allophones (non-contrastive sounds): complementary
distribution, free variation. How to identify phonemes: minimal pairs. English vs. Hindi
(aspiration).
READINGS:
FRH: 266-278.
MW: 108-115.

Nov. 3rd

Phonological rules, basic format: Underlying representation (UR), structural

description, structural change. Distinctive features (redundancy), natural classes.
READINGS:
FRH: 278-284.
MW: 116-117.

Nov. 10th

Practice problem sets. Kinds of phonological rules: Assimilation, dissimilation, featurechanging rules, epenthesis (Turkish loan words), segment deletion.
READINGS:
FRH: 284-296, 304-308.
MW: 128-131.

Nov. 17th

QUIZ ON PHONETICS AND PHONOLOGY.

Syllable (onset, rime /nucleus, coda/). Rules that make reference to syllable (English stop
aspiration). Maximal Onset Principle.
READINGS:
FRH: 296-297 (Syllable structure).
MW: 103-105.

Nov. 24th

MORPHOLOGY
Intro: words, morphemes, lexicon, lexical information, bound and free morphemes,
open and closed classes. Prefixes, suffixes, infixes, circumfixes. Hierarchical
organization of words.
READINGS:
FRH: 76-87, 93-96.

FLE 261: Linguistics II (3)

Class meeting time: Thursday 8:40am 11:30am
Room: EF B-19
Martina Graanin Yksek
Office: EF B-07
Email: martina@metu.edu.tr
Office phone: 210 7530
Office hours: Thursday 1:30pm-2:30pm
and by appointment

Course assistant: Orhan Demir

Office: EF B-16A
Email: orhandemir6@gmail.com
Office phone: 210 3664
Office hours: Monday 2:00pm 3:00pm
and by appointment

Dec. 1st

Derivational morphology. Allomorphy. Inflectional morphology. Morphological

typology of languages.
READINGS:
FRH: 87-93.
MW: 165-169.

Dec. 3rd

MIDTERM EXAM. This is a

the date approaches.

Dec. 8th

Morphological processes other than affixation: alternation, suppletion, reduplication,

back-formation, compounding.
READINGS:
FRH: 96-103.
MW: 160-164.

Dec. 15th

SYNTAX
Syntactic structure: Constituency, Motherhood, Sisterhood, Dominance.
Trees. Root node, non-terminal nodes, terminal nodes.
READINGS:
MW: 211-221.

Dec. 22nd

Merge, head, projection, syntactic categories. Complements, specifiers. Noun phrases.

READINGS:
FRH: 129-145.

Dec. 29th

Quiz on Morphology and syntax.

Verb phrases. Headedness and head directionality (English vs. Turkish). Head of a
sentence: TP/IP: overt vs. null. Structural ambiguity.
READINGS:
FRH: 145-151.

Jan. 5th

Review for the final exam / loose ends.

Saturday,

not a Thursday. More on time and place as