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Bridging Theory and Practice

Explore the complexities of language, where rigorous scientific analysis meets humanistic inquiry, and contribute to research that shapes our evolving understanding of language.

What is Linguistics?
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Interdisciplinary Collaboration

Work alongside peers from various fields including but not limited to Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Philosophy, and Computer Science to explore the multifaceted nature of language and its applications.

Our Research
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Exploring Language's Complexity

Our curriculum invites you to investigate the structure, evolution, and nuances of language, equipping you with the tools to understand and articulate its complexities.

Our Curriculum
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Center for Language Sciences

The Center for Language Sciences (CLS) brings together faculty, postdocs, and graduate students who conduct research on any aspect of human language as a vehicle for active interdisciplinary work.

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Major & Minor

We offer degrees in Linguistics as well as many research opportunities for undergraduates

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Graduate Studies

Learn about our cross-disciplinary PhD program and our three Master's programs. 

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Research

Our research investigates the structure, complexity and diversity of human languages.

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Feature Story

CAREER awards recognize promising junior faculty

Four Rochester scientists have received prestigious NSF CAREER awards, presented to early-career faculty members for research and education initiatives.

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Upcoming Colloquia

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Why Linguistics?

Linguistics workshop

Linguistics training provides students with skills that are important in a rapidly changing society. They learn how to use analytic and theoretical tools, work in collaborative environments, and collect, document, and organize complex research data on human language. They also gain a deep appreciation and understanding of the value of a culturally and linguistically diverse environment.

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Recent News

C.M. Downey joins the Linguistics Department as our newest tenure track faculty member

August 28, 2024

Join us in welcoming our newest tenure track faculty member to the department, C.M. Downey.

Nadine Grimm jointly appointed as James P. Wilmot Assistant Professor

August 23, 2024

Nadine Grimm, an assistant professor of linguistics, has been jointly appointed as the James P. ...

Joyce McDonough jointly appointed as Richard L. Turner Professor

January 31, 2023

Joyce McDonough, a professor of linguistics, has been jointly appointed as the Richard L. Turne ...

Professor Nadine Grimm receives 2023 Bloomfield Award from LSA

October 11, 2022

Professor Nadine Grimm has been awarded the 2023 Bloomfield Award from the Lingu ...

"A grammar of Gyeli" by Nadine Grimm, assistant professor of linguistics

June 3, 2021

This grammar offers a grammatical description of the Ngòló variety of Gyeli, an endangered ...

A new publication by Nadine Grimm, assistant professor of linguistics, will soon be available

December 16, 2020

"A grammar of Gyeli" is a grammatical description of the Ngòló variety of Gyeli, an endang ...

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Fall 2024 Featured Course

LING 215/415
Languages of Africa

african-learning

Instructor: Assistant Professor Nadine Grimm
Day, time: Tuesdays/Thursdays, 2:00pm - 3:15pm

About 2,000 of the world’s 7,000 languages are spoken in Africa. The diversity that characterizes these languages is exceptional, but little known to non-specialists. In this course, we will learn about the languages of Africa: the diversity of their linguistic structures (including famous features that are found nowhere else, e.g. click consonants), their history and the history of their speakers (from ca 10,000 BP to the (post-) colonial period), and their cultural contexts, among other topics.

We will explore the wealth and diversity of African cultures through the lens of language. This course also incorporates a variety of other disciplines such as anthropology, sociology, history, archaeology, human genetics, as well as the arts, to bring to light the variety of institutions, norms, and social practices produced by African societies which have historically been excluded from dominant cultural narratives. The focus will be on the role played by language in these institutions, norms and practices, and their representation.

This course has no prerequisites, and is open to anyone with an interest in African languages or the African continent.

Fall 2024 Featured Course

LING 226/426
Morphology

linguistic-text

Instructor: Visiting Assistant Professor Mary Moroney
Day, time: Mondays/Wednesdays, 2:00pm-3:15pm

The course examines the structure and definition of the linguistic unit 'word'' its typology and the relationship of the morphological component to other levels in the grammar. The course includes an introduction to analytical techniques with emphasis placed on an examination of data from a range of languages. The building blocks of words will be analyzed and topics such as affixation, reduplication and inflectional and derivational morphology will be covered. We will examine the properties of words and how they fit into the larger structure of linguistic knowledge, including the relationship between words and syntactic structure (ex., phrases and sentences) and the relationship between words and phonological structure (ex., phonological rules and prosodic structure).

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Center for Language Sciences

The Center for Language Sciences (CLS) is an organization at the University of Rochester that brings together faculty, postdocs, and graduate students who conduct research on any aspect of human language as a vehicle for active interdisciplinary work.

CLS fosters research and activities that reach across a very broad group of disciplines covering a wide research focus and range of interests. It's a continually evolving organization with a history of serving as a platform for training students and postdocs in interdisciplinary research and enhancing collaborations among members.

Learn More About CLS

Want more information about the Department of Linguistics? Contact us.