• A person who studies linguistics is known as a linguist.
1)Four principles of linguistic studies(P1)
• Exhaustiveness/adequacy （穷尽性）：use adequate samples in the study.
• b. Linguistics examines all the forms of language in general and seeks a scientific understanding of the ways in which it is organized to fulfill the needs it serves and the functions it performs in human life.
语言学学习应注意的方面：
1) 术语问题 2）语言学理论问题 3学习习惯问题
Chapter 1 Introduction
• I Linguistics
• 1. Definition of linguistics • 2. Linguistics and traditional grammar • 3. Use of studying linguistics • 4. Scope of linguistics
• The linguists should gather all the materials relevant to his investigation and give them an adequate explanation.
• If he leaves many facts undiscussed or unexplained, his study will not be regarded as exhaustive and his conclusions will not be accepted as scientific.
• Consistency （一致性）：keep the rules consistent in the study of a language. There should be no contradiction between different parts of the total statement.
• Economy （简洁性、经济性）：rule out the redundancy, make key part stand out in language description or language analysis. Other things being equal, a short statement or analysis is preferred to a longer or more complex one.
• Ⅲ Some major concepts in linguistics
•
1. Definition of Linguistics
• Linguistics is the scientific or systematic study of language (p.1).
• 语言学常被定义为一门关于语言的科学或对语言的科学研究。
• Objectivity（客观性）：describe a language as it is.
• A linguist should be as objective as possible in his description and analysis of data and cannot allow prejudice to influence his generalizations.
• II Language
• 1. Why Study Language? • 2. Definitions of language • 3. Origin of language • 4. Design Features of Language • 5. Functions of language
• 2. The difference between linguistics and traditional grammar (P2-3)
• Traditional grammar, as a pre-20th century language description and pre-linguistic product of research, was based upon earlier grammars of Latin or Greek (e.g. English had six cases because Latin had six cases) , and laid emphasis on correctness, literary excellence, the use of Latin models, and the priority of written language.
• 2) Two purposes (p.2)
• a. Linguistics studies the nature of language in order to establish a theory of language and describes languages in the light of the theory established.
A Course on Linguistics for Students of English Linguistics: A New Coursebook
《新编语言学教程》
The Goals for this Course
• To get a scientific view on language; • To understand some basic theories on linguistics; • To understand the applications of the linguistic theories, especially in the fields of language teaching & learning (SLA or TEFL), cross-cultural communication……; • To prepare for the future research work.