ENG 315: The English Language:
Historical and Analytical

Welcome to the most recent version of the ENG 315 website. It's still evolving. Let me know what additions would be helpful (and which are not). Here are two important notes:

Many of the materials are created by saving word-processed documents in html format. As a result, some files may display oddly. Please report broken links or poorly formatted pages to David Sprunger.

The website is updated as we move through the semester. Some of the assignment links may still point to last year's projects. If you find links that are no longer up-to-date, please report them to David Sprunger.

Syllabus
1. Fall 2006 syllabus in html (better for on-line consultation)
2. Fall 2006 syllabus in .pdf (better for printing out)
Reaction Paper Assignments
1. A note on the iconic grades used in evaluating the Reaction Papers
2. Reaction 1
3. Reaction 2
4. Reaction 3
5. Reaction 4
6. Reaction 5
  - Rhetorical use of lists
  - Taboo language survey (in .pdf format)
Essay Assignments
1. General style sheet
2. Project #1: DUE 10/17
  (Etymology) OR Research Proposal.
  - Ylvisaker resources for Project #1
  - Selected on-line resources for Essay #1
3. Project #2: DUE 11/4
  Onamstics: Analysis of your Name OR Update and bibliography for research project
  1. Some Ylvisaker resources for name projects
  2. Some on-line resources for name projects
4. Project #3: DUE 11/29 (note: date changed by popular demand)
  Modern Usage OR Research Conference/Outlines
  1. Some Ylvisaker resources for Usage Projects
  2. Some on-line resources for usage projects
5. Project #4: DUE 12/4
  Grammar Portfolios OR Research Papers
Examination Previews
Ten Sentences: Grammar in Context
1. Selecting and transcribing the ten sentences
2. Ten Sentences in IPA
3. Prepositional Phrases
4. Verbals
5. Adjectives and Adverbs
6. Pronouns
7. Sentence Patterns
8. Punctuation activity
9. Main Verb Phrases
10. Kernel Sentences & Phrase-Structure Trees
11. Imitation Activity
12. Grammar Portfolio: Putting It All Together
  - Assignment Overview
  - Extra Copies of Style Matrix
Lecture Outlines & Resources
1. Five Useful Principles
2. Language and Language Origins
  - Thinking about inventing your own language? What components must all languages share? Which are optional? The Language Construction Kit
  - Must a language be vocal? Read this essay for one view.
  - Did a gene mutation lead to speech? A new theory of language origin.
  - Global distribution of English
3. Indo-European Languages
  - Overview of Indo-European families
  - Some Indo-European cognates
  - Centum language chart
  - Satem language chart
  - Learn more about reconstructing IE culture from its hypothetical vocabulary
  - All about Tocharian
4. English amidst the Germanic languages
  - animated Grimm's Law
5. Phonology & Phonetics
  - IPA (simplified) chart
  - IPA (complete) chart
  - interactive IPA site
  - Hear all the sounds in English read by people with differing accents
6. Sound Changes
  - Some practice with sound change
7. Morphology and Semantics
8. Old English
  - Old English historical overview
  - tremendous Old English resources from the University of Virginia
9. Middle English
10. Renaissance (or Early Modern) English
  - New attitudes toward English
  - Morphology/Syntax
  - Great Vowel Shift--a dynamic website
  - Test your knowledge of the King James version of the Bible
11. The Ascertainment Movement
  - Lowth vs. Priestly
  - Other eighteenth-century developments
  - Selections from Lowth and Priestly
    - Lowth's preface
    - Priestly's preface
  - Ascertainment Task: Collect an example of some public "error"
12. American English
  - Overview
  - American - British English Comparisons
  - http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/~golder/dialect/index.html" American Dialect Survey
  - American urban slang dictionary
13. English as a World Language
  - Pidgin vs. Creole languages
  - Discussion questions
General resources for studying linguistics
Fun with language!

Learn a new word: OED Word a Day! Have a new word sent to you each day.

Created and maintained by David Sprunger. Last updated on 13 Sept. 2006.

Concordia College

ENG 315: The English Language: Historical and Analytical

ENG 315: The English Language:
Historical and Analytical