Fundamentals of Linguistics

Module: General Linguistics
This course is part of a degree programme that aims to provide linguistic and metalinguistic skills in at least two foreign languages besides Italian. In this respect, the course aims to raise students' awareness of the different levels of linguistic analysis (phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics and pragmatics), starting from the knowledge and skills they acquired in their previous studies in relation to their mother-tongue and to other languages. It also aims to illustrate the concepts of diachronic, diatopic and diastratic variations of a language. Moreover, students will acquire the terminology needed to describe and conceptualise the various phenomena related to the functioning of a language.
Module: Italian Linguistics
The goal of this course is to give students an introduction to the Italian language, focusing on its evolution, and more specifically on its developments from the second half of the 20th century to the present. Moreover, the course is designed to provide a sociolinguistic overview of the current varieties of Italian (standard and neo-standard Italian, dialects, special languages, bureaucratic Italian, youth languages, Italian spoken outside of Italy, Italian spoken by foreigners, languages of the media etc.). This will equip students with a theoretical framework for concepts that will be further examined during other courses (linguistic courses, but not only) included in the three-year programme.

Module: General Linguistics
By the end of the course, students are expected to recognise the different levels of linguistic analysis and adopt the main interpretative categories developed by the major schools of thought in linguistics. In addition, students should be able to use the specialised terminology of general linguistics.
Module: Italian Linguistics
By the end of the course, students will be familiar with the basic structures of the Italian language, the most important turning points in its development and its current range of varieties, being fully aware of its richness. The exam is designed to test this knowledge and to ascertain if students have achieved the ultimate goal of the course, which is to provide future language experts with both professional linguistic skills and cultural awareness. This is also in line with the overarching objective of the degree programme.