The STUDIA UNIVERSITATIS BABEŞ-BOLYAI issue article summary

The summary of the selected article appears at the bottom of the page. In order to get back to the contents of the issue this article belongs to you have to access the link from the title. In order to see all the articles of the archive which have as author/co-author one of the authors mentioned below, you have to access the link from the author's name.

  
       
         
    STUDIA PHILOLOGIA - Issue no. 1 / 2013  
         
  Article:   FASCINATING, BUT UNANSWERED: A CHALLENGE FOR CONTEMPORARY LINGUISTS.

Authors:  . 		 
       
         
  Abstract:  Fascinating, but Unanswered: A Challenge for Contemporary Linguists. This paper aims at pointing out some difficulties and problems of descriptive linguistics under practical research situations. After briefly reviewing the history of descriptive linguistics, especially about synchronic and diachronic approaches in Section 1, Saussure’s treatment of “time duration” in synchronic linguistics is discussed in the following Section. In Section 3, the restriction of the scope of Saussure’s approach to linguistic research will be discussed, and Martinet’s functional view of diachronic phonology will be introduced. In the following Section, the issue of descriptive and explanatory approach is discussed on the basis of Martinet’s and Arisaka’s frameworks on phonology. Both linguists regarded explanation as important elements in phonological researches. Finally, the problem concerning the distinction between “synchrony” and “diachrony” in descriptive linguistics is mentioned, and the complicated issue of language change, which is still unanswered, will be revealed.

Keywords: descriptive linguistics, historical linguistics, diachronic phonology, language changes

  
         
     
         
         
      Back to previous page