Courses

The following general descriptions are from the University of Hawai‘i Catalog. For current course offerings, please see our Fall 2023 Course Schedule and Course Description.

Jump to:

 

 

 

American Sign Language Courses

    • 101 Elementary American Sign Language I  (3)
      Development of basic receptive and expressive conversational skills in American Sign Language; linguistic structure introduced inductively through mix of lectures and discussion; includes discussion of history and culture of Deaf community in the U.S. HSL
    • 102 Elementary American Sign Language II  (3)
      Continued development of basic receptive and expressive conversational skills in American Sign Language; linguistic structure introduced inductively through mix of lectures and discussion; includes discussion of history and culture of Deaf community in the U.S. Pre: ASL 101 (or equivalent). HSL
    • 201 Intermediate American Sign Language I  (3)
      Continued development of receptive and expressive conversational skills in American Sign Language; linguistic structure introduced inductively through mix of lectures and discussion; includes discussion of history and culture of Deaf community in the U.S. Pre: ASL 102 (or equivalent). HSL
    • 202 Intermediate American Sign Language II  (3)
      Continued development of receptive and expressive conversational skills in American Sign Language; linguistic structure introduced inductively through mix of lectures and discussion; includes discussion of history and culture of Deaf community in the U.S. Pre: ASL 201 (or equivalent). HSL
    • 301 Advanced American Sign Language I  (3)
      Development of advanced receptive and expressive conversational skills, preparation and presentation of lectures and of story-telling in ASL will be covered.  Structural points are introduced inductively.   Pre: ASL 202 (or equivalent). HSL
    • 302 Advanced American Sign Language II  (3)
      Continued development of advanced receptive and expressive conversational skills in American Sign Language (ASL). In addition to advanced conversational skills, ASL literature and poetry will be introduced.  Structural points are introduced inductively.  Pre: ASL 301 (or equivalent). HSL

Linguistics Courses

    • 100 Language in Hawai‘i and the Pacific (3)
      Introduction to the study of language and languagerelated issues, with a focus on Hawai‘i and the Pacific. DS
    • 102 Introduction to the Study of Language (3)
      Non-formal introduction to language, emphasizing the everyday use of language, its relevance to contemporary issues in society, and local language issues. Content studied through lecture, readings, and writing; emphasis
      on writing as a grading criterion. DS
    • 103 Language and Symbolic Reasoning (3)
      Introduction to language as a formal symbolic system and to the techniques of analysis and reasoning that reveal its workings.
    • 105 Language Endangerment, Globalization and Indigenous Peoples (3)
      Focus on language endangerment and globalization.  Students are introduced to case studies on language endangerment from around the world and throughout history.  Offered through the distance-learning Unit Master program. FG
    • 120 Language as a Window to the Mind (3)
      Introduction to language-related phenomena, which gives insight into the organization of the human mind. Combines lecture, discussion and group projects.
    • 150 (Alpha) Language in Hawai’i and the Pacific (3)
      Introduction to the study of language and language-related issues, with a focus on Hawai’i and the Pacific.  (B) unit mastery; (C) lecture discussion. DS
    • 201 Language Documentation for Non-Linguists (2)
      Provides training in the fundamentals of language documentation and conservation for non-linguists.  Repeatable two times. CR/NC only. Pre: Proficiency in a lesser studied language and consent.
    • 215 Bad Words (3)
      An examination of the link between language and society through the use of perception of taboo words.  DS

Return to top.

    • 320 General Linguistics (3)
      Introduction to the formal analysis of language, focusing on phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, historical linguistics, language acquisition, and related topics. DS
    • 331 Computer Applications (3)
      Background; uses for machine translation, dictionary programs, speech synthesis, grammar modeling, etc. Pre: LING 320 (or concurrent) or consent.
    • 344 Languages of the World (3)
      Survey of major language families; typological classification and language universals; writing systems, “contact” languages. Variety of grammatical structures illustrated by selected languages. Pre: 320 or consent. DS
    • 346 The Philippine Language Family (3)
      Introduction; phonological and grammatical systems; historical developments; emphasis on Filipino, Cebuano and Ilokano. Pre: grade of B or better in 102 or 320 and experience with a Philippine language, or consent. DH
    • 347 Pidgin and Creole Languages (3)
      Nature, history, structure, and geographic distribution of pidgin and creoles. Pre: 102 or consent. (Alt. years) (Cross-listed as IS 347)

Return to top.

    • 410 Articulatory Phonetics (3)
      Intensive training in recognition, reproduction, and recording of human speech sounds; preparation for field work with unrecorded languages and for clinical work in speech pathology. DH
    • 412 Psycholinguistics (3)
      The mental processes involved in producing, understanding, and acquiring language. Students will conduct a small psycholinguistic experiment. Pre: one of LING 102, LING 320 or PSY 100; or consent. Open to non-majors. DS
    • 414 Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology (3)
      Introduction to ethnographic study of speech and language. Pre: ANTH 152 or consent. (Once a year) (Cross-listed as ANTH 414 and IS 414) DS
    • 415 Language and Gender (3)
      The role of language in the construction of gender and in the maintenance of the gender order. Field projects explore hypotheses about the interaction of language and gender. No previous knowledge of linguistics required. (Cross listed as ANTH 413) DS
    • 416 Language as a Public Concern (3)
      How does language serve as a proxy for larger social questions? This course focuses on four main themes: language revitalization, discrimination on the basis of accent, gender miscommunication, and the English Only Movement. Pre: 102, 320; or consent. DS
    • 417Language Revitalization (3)
      Provides training relevant to the study and revitalization of heritage languages and endangered languages.  Pre: 320 or equivalent
    • 420 Morphology (3)
      Theory of word structure; analysis of a variety of morphological types. Pre: 320 (or concurrent) or consent. DH
    • 421 Introduction to Phonological Analysis (3)
      Phonological analysis and theory. Pre: 410. DH
    • 422 Introduction to Grammatical Analysis (3)
      Syntactic analysis and grammatical theory. Pre: 320 or consent. DH
    • 423 Cognitive Linguistics (3)
      Conceptual systems and language from a cognitive science perspective. Linguistic evidence on conceptual structure, reasoning, categorization, and understanding. Pre: LING 102, LING 320, ICS 111, or PSY 100; or consent. Open to non-majors.
    • 430 Animal Communication (3)
      Investigates animal communication from the perspective of modern linguistics. Dispels common misconceptions about “talking animals” and shows how the cognitive, biological, and environmental needs and opportunities of animals determine what and how they communicate. Pre: 102 or consent. DS
    • 431 Computational Modeling (3)
      Hands-on introduction to modeling language. Focuses on connectionism, relations between language, perception, and motor control. Requires no programming experience. Pre: LING 102, LING 320, ICS 111, or PSY 100; or consent. Open to non-majors.
    • 441 Meaning (3)
      Theories of how literal and figurative language encode meaning and processes of meaning, encoding and decoding. Pre: LING 102, LING 320, ICS 111, or PSY 100; or consent. Open to non-majors.
    • 445 Polynesian Language Family (3)
      Introduction to the language family of Hawaiian, Samoan, Tahitian, Tongan, etc.; models of migration and settlement and linguistic evidence; subgrouping and reconstruction of Proto-Polynesian; linguistic characteristics of present-day languages; language endangerment and conservation in Polynesia. Pre: 320 with a grade of B or better, or consent. DS
    • 451 Induction of Linguistic Structure (3)
      Phonological and grammatical structures of a previously uncodified language are determined by linguistic analysis of data obtained from speakers of the language. Pre: 102 or 320, or consent. DH
    • 470 Children’s Speech (3)
      Individual strategies, baby talk, language socialization, language variation including multilingualism. Relation of cognitive to language development. Pre: 320. DS
    • 499 Directed Research (V)
      Cr/NC only. Pre: consent of instructor. Maximum credits: 3.

Return to top.

    • 500 Master’s Plan B/C Studies (1)
      Enrollment for degree completion. Pre: Master’s Plan B or C candidate and consent.

Return to top.

    • 611 Acoustic and Auditory Phonetics (3)
      Principles of acoustics and audition as they relate to speech sounds, use of computer-based analysis tools to investigate acoustic properties of speech. Pre: 421 or consent.
    • 617 Language Revitalization (3)
      Provides training relevant to the study and revitalization of heritage languages and endangered languages.  Pre: 320 or equivalent
    • 618 Data Science for Linguistic Research (2)
      Introduction to data science for linguistic research.  Repeatable one time.  Pre: 421 or 422 or consent
    • 619 Practical Exercises in Data Sciences for Linguistic Research (1)
      Exercises in data science for linguistic research.  Repeatable one time.  Pre: 421 or 422 or consent
    • 621 Phonology (3)
      Phonological theory and problems of analysis. Pre: 421 or consent. (Offered Fall Semesters only)
    • 622 Grammar (3)
      Grammatical theory and problems of analysis. Pre: 422 or consent.
    • 623 Semantics and Pragmatics (3)
      Ways in which the interpretation of sentences in natural language depends upon the literal meaning of propositions and their logical (semantic) and conversational (pragmatic) inferences. Pre: 422 or consent.
    • 630 Field Methods (3)
      Work with native speakers of lesser-known languages to develop techniques for data collection, and analysis. Pre: 421 and 422 and one of 621 or 622, or consent. Repeatable unlimited times.
    • 631 Language Data Processing (3)
      Preparation of language data for computer processing; use ready-made programs; write simple language processing programs using SNOBOL4. Applications to student’s research. Pre: 421 and 422, or consent.
    • 632 Laboratory Research and Quantitative Methods (3)
      Laboratory methods for research in linguistics. Introduction to hardware, software, research designs, and basic analysis techniques commonly used in laboratory-based research. Combines lecture, laboratory work, and discussion. Repeatable two times. Pre: graduate standing.
    • 635 Linguistics of Sign Languages (3)
      Universals and uniqueness in the phonological, morphological, and syntactic structures of sign languages, taught inductively with emphasis on hands-on analysis.  Opportunities also exist for skills development in American or Ho Chi Mihn City sign languages.  Pre: 320 or consent
    • 636 Hawai’i Sign Language Linguistics: Documentation, Conservation, and Revitalization of HSL (3)
      Descriptive information on the phonological, morphological, and syntactic structures and lexicon of Hawai’i Sign Language (HSL); language skills development in HSL; and guided research related to the documentation, conservation, and revitalization of HSL.  Pre: 320 or consent
    • 640(Alpha) Topics in Linguistics (3)
      History of the discipline, schools of linguistic thought, current issues, etc. (E) English linguistics; (F) phonology and phonetics; (G) general; (H) history of the discipline; (S) sociolinguistics; (X) syntax; (Y) psycholinguistics. Pre: consent of the instructor. Repeatable one time.
    • 645 The Comparative Method (3)
      Introduction to historical-comparative linguistics, attention to both Indo-European and languages with few or no written records. Pre: 421 and 422, or consent.
    • 646 The Comparative Method (3)
      Continuation of 645. Pre: 645.
    • 670 Developmental Linguistics (3)
      Survey of the literature in language acquisition; emphasis on relation to linguistic theory. Pre: 421 and 422, or consent.
    • 680 Introduction to Language Documentation (3)
      Covers history, method, and theory behind language documentation, and the role of language endangerment in the field. Discussion on skills required to undertake documentation; topics may vary depending on the emphases of the instructor. Pre: 320 or consent.
    • 699 Directed Research (V)
      Cr/NC only. Repeatable unlimited times. Pre: graduate standing and consent of instructor. Maximum credits: 6.

Return to top.

    • 700 Thesis Research (V) Repeatable up to 12 credits.
    • 710 Techniques of Language Documentation (3)
      Students learn to conduct best-practice digital language documentation projects, from equipment purchase to data collection to data annotation to archiving and presentation. Pre: 680 or consent.
    • 720 Language Typology (3)
      Language typology deals with how and why the elements of language interact and function. Students acquire a broad overview of this grammatical make-up of languages in general and understanding of Functional-Typological linguistics. Graduate students only. Pre: 320 and 422 or consent. (Alt. years)
    • 730 Advanced Laboratory Research (3)
      Advanced laboratory methods for research in linguistics. Specialized and/or advanced uses of hardware, software, research designs and analysis techniques. Specific topic varies: check with department. Combines lecture, laboratory work, and discussion. Repeatable two times. Pre: LING 632 or consent.
    • 750(Alpha) Seminar (3)
      Reporting and discussion of current research in linguistics. (E) ethnolinguistics; (F) phonology and phonetics; (G) general; (M) semantics; (Q) language acquisition; (R) written language; (S) sociolinguistics; (X) syntax; (Y) psycholinguistics. Pre: consent of instructor. Repeatable unlimited times.
    • 770 Areal Linguistics (3)
      Structures of languages of various areas of the world; diffusion. Pre: consent. Repeatable unlimited times.
    • 799 Apprenticeship in Teaching Linguistics (V)
      Experience-based introduction to college-level teaching; doctoral students serve as student teachers to professors; responsibilities include supervised teaching and participation in planning and evaluation. Repeatable one time. Pre: admission to doctoral program and consent.
    • 800 Dissertation Research (V) Maximum credits: 12.

Return to top.

Last updated January 2019.