A Concise Introduction to Linguistics

This student-friendly and well-balanced overview of the field of introductory linguistics pays special attention to linguistic anthropology and reveals the main contributions of linguistics to the study of human communication and how issues of culture are relevant. Its workbook format contains well-constructed exercises in every chapter that allow students to practice key concepts.

Concise Introduction to Linguistics, A, 2/e

Bruce M. Rowe and Diane P. Levine (Both of Los Angeles Pierce College)

This student-friendly and well-balanced overview of the field of introductory linguistics pays special attention to linguistic anthropology, reveals the main contributions of linguistics to the study of human communication, and explores how issues of culture are relevant to the field

Its workbook format contains well-constructed exercises in every chapter that allow students to test their understanding of key concepts.

Highlights of This New Edition:

• Expanded discussion of grammaticality and grammaticality judgments (Chapter 5). The discussion focuses on the subconscious knowledge of the fluent speakers of a language to determine whether or not an utterance is grammatical (well-formed) or ungrammatical (ill-formed).
• Expanded and updated discussion of lexical categories (Chapters 4 and 5). Included is a discussion of the traditional parts of speech and the lexical categories used by contemporary linguistics.
• More information about the process of language acquisition after four years of age (Chapter 8). The discussion of first-language acquisition has been expanded to include information on older children.
• A new section on the question of whether or not English should be the official language of the United States (Chapter 7).
• Clear description of the differences between the IPA and the APA (Chapter 2).
• New boxed materials include:

Miscommunication Based on Cultural Differences (Chapter 1) introduces the concept of culture shock and ethnocentrism.

Etic and Emic (Chapter 3)

The Acquisition of Syntax in Children Five to Ten Years Old (Chapter 8)