1. Linguistics is the scientific study of human language, involving hypotheses about language that must be explicit, verifiable, and identify general laws of language. 2. Language has discrete elements like phonemes that combine to form words according to systematic rules, allowing for infinite sentences through recursion, unlike animal languages. 3. The study of linguistics examines both the abstract system of a language (langue) and how it is used in actual speech (parole), seeking to understand universal properties and differences between languages.

1. CL4 Language and Culture for Business Prof. Peter Cullen Module V B1 Linguistics www.cl4englishlistening.wordpress.com

4. What is “Language” and what is “Linguistics”? Grammar is practical : it defines the laws of communication. Linguistics aims at understanding the language we produce according to systematic laws which are as general as possible.

14. What is “Language” and what is “Linguistics”? Ferdinand de Saussure: (Course of General Linguistics – 1916) Still the conceptual basis for modern linguistics. Synchronous and Diachrnonous language Associative and syntagmatic relationships Langue et parole Parole: the linguistic execution produced by an individual. It is an individual act. Concrete. Langue: the total structure and content of the language. It predates and outlives the individual. It is collective, social, and abstract.