CHNS GU4019

History of Chinese Language: linguistics, dialects, writing systems, discussions

The evolution of the Chinese language. Topics include historical phonology, the Chinese script, the classical and literary languages, the standard language and major dialects, language and society, etc.

overview of Chinese linguistics in various aspects

I learned the basics of linguistics from the perspective of the Chinese language, as well as the history of the Chinese writing system, dialectical diversions, and tonal change.

About the history of Chinese language (how it changes over the time, how culture influences language, its grammatical, syntactic and semantic characteristics, and also Chinese dialects)

Concerning new knowledge, we learned about historical phonology, the Chinese script, the classical and literary languages, the standard language and major dialects, language and society, etc. In terms of skills, we learned how to conduct informational presentations on readings that spark discussion.

I'd recommend this course to those that have interest and some prior knowledge of how Chinese is spoken, as well as some basic knowledge of linguistics. I wouldn't recommend taking it with out that or else it will be a bit overwhelming (the readings are dense). 1 Columbia University: Arts & Sciences Fall 2021 Course: CHNSGU4019_001_2021_3-HISTORYOFCHINESELANGUAGE : CHNSGU4019_001_2021_3 - HISTORY OF CHINESE LANGUAGE Instructor: Zhirong Wang

An in-depth study of the History of Chinese since it's early beginnings as pictographs and it's evolution into how it's become the language it is today. Also a heavy emphasis on universally applicable linguistic theory and IPA.

This course was an insightful balance of linguistics using the languages of China as a case study as well as the equally important historical lessons on the people, moments, and places relevant to the study of the Chinese language. The course opens one's perspective to the unique linguistic diversity of China as well as the history of linguistic studies both within China and from abroad. Beyond this, discussions relevant to the modern language and present-day linguistic phenomena were similarly integral to the success of this course. In addition, the diversity of background in the student body of this course made for a particularly insightful experience, especially in open discussion.

History of the development of Chinese language's writing system, sound system, grammar, literature, dialects. Basic linguistics terminology for relevant linguistic features. Importance of certain historical documents in reconstructing earlier stages of Chinese.