Overview
Anthropology 354: Language and Culture is a three-credit course that investigates topics found in the field of linguistic anthropology and linguistics—one of four subfields of anthropology. (The other three subfields are cultural anthropology, biological anthropology, and archaeology.) Culture cannot be studied without language, but linguistic anthropology provides much more to anthropology than the means to study culture. It covers the entire scope of humans and languages, from the biological basis of language to the role of language in culture, and describes the major techniques and methods used by linguistic anthropologists to study languages in cultures all over the world.
Outline
ANTH 354 is divided into the following 13 units:
- Unit 1: Linguistic Anthropology and Linguistics—Overview, Definitions, and Approaches
- Unit 2: The Nature of Communication
- Unit 3: Origins of Human Language
- Unit 4: Language, Culture, and Thought
- Unit 5: Phonetics
- Unit 6: Phonology
- Unit 7: Words and Sentences
- Unit 8: Nonverbal Communication
- Unit 9: Writing and Signing
- Unit 10: Semantics, Pragmatics, and Discourse Analysis
- Unit 11: Sociolinguistics and Linguistic Anthropology
- Unit 12: Language Acquisition
- Unit 13: Historical Linguistics and Language Change
Evaluation
To receive credit for ANTH 354, you must complete all quizzes and essays. You must achieve a minimum of 50 percent on the final examination and a minimum composite course grade of D (50 percent).
| Activity | Weight |
| Quiz 1 | 10% |
| Essay 1 | 25% |
| Quiz 2 | 10% |
| Quiz 3 | 10% |
| Essay 2 | 25% |
| Final Exam | 20% |
| Total | 100% |
The final examination for this course must be requested in advance and written under the supervision of an AU-approved exam invigilator. Invigilators include either ProctorU or an approved in-person invigilation centre that can accommodate online exams. Students are responsible for payment of any invigilation fees. Information on exam request deadlines, invigilators, and other exam-related questions, can be found at the Exams and grades section of the Calendar.
To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University鈥檚 online Calendar.
Materials
Digital course materials
Links to the following course materials will be made available in the course:
Rowe, Bruce M., and Diane P. Levine. 2023. A Concise Introduction to Linguistics. 6th edition. New York: Routledge.
Other Materials
All other course materials are available online, including additional required readings, a Course Information manual, and a Study Guide.