The course aims at introducing students to the discipline of Linguistics. It deals with topics such as sounds of language, patterns of sound combination, basic morphology, syntax, semantics and the principles of language change.

LING 112 Structure of English Words
The goal of this course is to help students expand their vocabulary. It looks at the structure of English words with classical roots. It examines some of the common roots and the morphological rules that determine the combination of such roots, and rules of meaning change. Students are also introduced to the history of the English language.

LING 113 Introduction to the Nature of Language.
The course deals with some of the general characteristics of human language as a tool for communication. Topics covered include origins of language, functions of language, language and the brain, language in culture and society, and languages in Ghana.

LING 114 Language in African Society
The course aims at providing students with an overview of the complexity of the language situation in Africa and the social, political and historical context in which African languages have existed. Topics include language families, language policies, socio-cultural and political aspects of language.

LING 221 Phonetics
The course deals with the description, transcription and acoustic analysis of human speech sounds. It also provides students the opportunity to practice the production of speech sounds.Topics include: speech organs, airstream mechanisms, phonation types, stricture types and articulation, vowels and consonants, suprasegmentals, and acoustic phonetics.

LING 222 Introduction to Syntax
The goal of the course is to introduce students to the general principles that underlie how words are combined into phrases and sentences. The course deals with word classes, arrangement of words into phrases and sentences, and the different sentence types. Cross-linguistic examples will provide students with a global view of language features. Topics to be treated include: word classes, phrase structure, sentence structure, syntactic processes.

LING 223 Morphology
In this course, we will consider what morphology is, its place is in relation to other areas of linguistics such as phonology and syntax, and particular approaches to morphological analysis. The course will also examine interesting morphological phenomena found among the world’s languages. Topics to be discussed include the morpheme, morph, allomorph and the classification of morphemes according to position, distribution and function. We will also discuss such morphological processes as affixation, compounding, reduplication, and other derivational/word-formation processes.

LING 224 Languages in Ghana
This course provides an overview of the language situation in Ghana, within the context of the West African sub-region. It aims to give students a working knowledge of the genetic and typological groupings of languages spoken in Ghana. Issues of language development, language in development, and national language policy will also be examined.

LING 331 Introduction to Phonology (Prerequisite LING 221)
The course introduces students to how languages organise their sounds into larger structures. Data from wide-ranging languages will be used in problem solving sessions. Topics to be treated include: phonemes, distinctive features, phonological processes, and phonological rules.

LING 332 Syntax (Prerequisite LING 222)
In this course, we will be discussing some of the more recent developments in syntactic analysis. Students will be expected to know the different lexical and grammatical categories and their morphological and syntactic behaviours. They will be expected to demonstrate knowledge of phrase structure rules and the different types of clauses and clause combinations and be able to apply this knowledge to the analysis of simple problems in various languages.

LING 333 Phonetics and Phonology of a Ghanaian
Language (Prerequisite LING 221)
This is a set of courses each of which is designed to enable students to apply the principles of phonetics and phonology to the description of the sounds and sound patterns of a Ghanaian language. Topics include: segmental phonemes – vowels, consonants and their distribution, syllable structure, tone, and phonological processes.

LING 334 Morphology and Syntax of a Ghanaian
Language (Prerequisite LING 222 and 223)
This is a set of courses each dealing with a Ghanaian language (eg. Akan, Dagaari, Ga and Dangme, Ewe, Gurune) Some of the topics to be treated are: word classes, word formation, nominal phrase, verbal phrase, postpositional phrases, basic clause structure, and sentence structures – simple, coordinate, and embedded constructions.

LING 335 Phonetics and Phonology of English (Prerequisite LING 221)
The course covers the segmental phonemes of English, as well as the suprasegmental features of stress and intonation. Topics include: consonants, vowels, the syllable, word stress, tone groups, tonic stress on stressed syllable within tone group, and phonological processes.

LING 336 Morphology and Syntax of English (Prerequisite LING 222 and 223)
This course aims at introducing students to English word structure (morphology) and basic structures beyond the word (syntax). word classes and their morphological and distributional properties, word formation processes, inflection, derivation, phrase structure and basic clause patterns.

LING 341 Child Language Development
This course is designed to introduce students to theories that explain how and when children achieve proficiency in the language they are exposed to without receiving deliberate instruction in the rules of language. Students will be required to design and administer simple experiments to test children’s knowledge of aspects of the grammar of their language. Topics include: linguistics and language acquisition, phonological acquisition, morphological development and innovation, acquisition of syntax, syntactic and semantic development, cognition, environment and language learning.

LING 342 Conversational Studies
The course is designed to equip students with knowledge about the structure, content and method of analysis of conversation in human language. It will involve both theory and practice. Students may be involved in short project work on conversational analysis. Topics include: turn-taking, pre-sequence, adjacency pairs, and repair.

LING 343 Introduction to Translation Theory (Prerequisite LING 222 or 223)
This course is meant to give linguistic help to those wishing to translate between a Ghanaian language or a modern language and English. Literal and meaningful translations are contrasted; and meaning is distinguished into three major categories. Concepts are represented by lexemes, which can be analysed into features, related in sets, and combined with each other; they may have primary, secondary, and figurative senses; concepts may or may not be shared between cultures. Connotations of words and activities, differing from culture to culture; the social relations between sender and receiver; and the overall purpose of a communication, all need to be translated.

LING 344 Discourse Analysis
This course is designed to provide students with the opportunity to learn the tools for text analysis and evaluation. By the end of the course, students should be confident in analysing and evaluating a wide variety of written texts. Topics include: nature and scope of discourse analysis; thematic structure; information structure; cohesion; coherence; critical discourse analysis.

LING 345 Sociolinguistics
This course is designed to help students gain a) insight into the social dynamics of language use and b) understand certain basic concepts and issues in sociolinguistics. Topics include: definition and scope of sociolinguistics, linguistic varieties, speech communities/communities of practice, communicative competence, politeness and solidarity, bilingualism/multilingualism, language and gender, and language attitudes.

LING 346 Second Language Acquisition and Learning
The course examines theories of second language acquisition and learning and current issues in the field. Socio-cultural, cognitive and personality variables affecting second language learning will be examined. Topics include: creative construction, interlanguage hypothesis, cognitive dimension of second language acquisition, personality variables in second language acquisition and contexts of learning.

LING 347 Oral Literature
This course surveys various forms of oral literature in Africa, and discusses theories of composition and aesthetic formations. It will examine the dynamics of form, language, style, content and performance of verbal genres including: libation poetry, praise appellations, abuse poetry, dirge, narrative forms, proverbs, riddles, drum poetry, traditional song, and popular music. It also considers how such genres are perceived and evaluated in the contexts in which they occur, and how they have been adapted to deal with contemporary and emerging trends.

LING 348 Ethnography of Speaking
This course discusses social and cultural norms governing SPEAKING and communication in general, dwelling on Dell Hymes’ advocacy for the study of language beyond grammar. Topics discussed include: linguistic relativity, linguistic determinism, cultural attitudes to speaking, the power of the spoken word, secret languages, norms of speaking in various forums and verbal taboos.

LING 421 Phonological Theory (Prerequisite LING 331)
This course explores phonological issues from particular theoretical perspectives. Data from a variety of languages will be analysed. Topics to be treated include tonality, syllabification, phonological processes, autosegmental phonology, lexical phonology and optimality theory.

LING 422 Semantics (Prerequisite LING 222 and 223)
This course will introduce students to some of the basic concepts in the study of meaning in lan-guage and the ways in which meaning is conveyed. Issues in connection with word and sentence meaning as well as the relationship between sentence structure and meaning/interpretation will be explored. Some of the topics to be discussed are: semantic relations (such as synonymy, antonymy, polysemy and homophony); semantic relations involving sentences (such as paraphrase, entailment, and contradiction); structural ambiguity and thematic roles.

LING 423 Advanced syntax (Prerequisite LING 222)
This course is aimed at helping students to acquire advanced knowledge in syntactic analysis using data from a wide variety of languages and to prepare them for further work in any syntactic theory. Students may be introduced to any of the competing theories of syntax such as functional grammar, relational grammar, the principles and parameters framework and/or the minimalist programme.

LING 431 Syntax of a Ghanaian Language (Prerequisite LING 334)
This course aims at providing advanced knowledge of the syntactic structures of a particular Ghanaian language. Topics include serialisation and other multiverb constructions, complementa-tion, interrogative constructions, relative clauses, reflexivisation, grammaticalisation, and focus constructions.

LING 432 Semantics of a Ghanaian Language (Prerequisite LING 334)
Each of this set of courses concentrates on the semantics of aspect and aspectual constructions, including the relations between the semantics of the root and the semantics of the affix. Verb valency and semantic argument roles, the semantics of derived verbs, topicalization, focus and related phenomena may be considered.

LING 433 Syntax of English (Prerequisite LING 221 or 333 )
This course provides students the opportunity to appreciate some of the advanced issues in the syntax of English. Informed by advances in various theoretical approaches to the structure of English beyond the word-level, the course examines topics such as grammatical relations, complementation, transitivity, relative clause formation, reflexivisation, interrogatives, and identificational and existential constructions.

LING 434 Semantics of English (Prerequisite LING 221 or 333)
In this course, the basic semantic unit, the proposition, is analysed into a central predicate plus various participants roles and circumstances, which may be negated. Propositions may be linked in parallel, in sequence, or with embedding. Other topics include information units, topic, focus, presupposed information, expression of a sender’s attitude, second-language varieties of standard English.

LING 435 Language in Business
In the fast changing world of the workplace, effective communication has become an essential tool for successful career practice. The idea of this course is to guide students to appreciate the relevant connection between language analysis and the world of work. Topics covered in the course include business writing skills, word building strategies, effective use of words, presentation skills, cross-cultural business communication.

LING 436 Language and Politics
The course deals with the interface between language and the negotiation and maintenance of power relations in traditional and contemporary society. Topics include the grammar/linguistics and stylistics of power negotiation, language and colonial dominations, linguistic determinism, free speech, language and political persuasion, language and governance, as well as language and the resistance of dominant ideology.

LING 437 Pidgin and Creole Languages
The course will cover various pidgins and creoles of the world, including Haiti, Jamaica, Came-roon, Sierra Leone, Ghana & Nigeria. It examines theories of their origin, their socio-cultural significance and their use in the modern world. Their linguistic features will be compared with those of other languages. Topics include: theories of origins, pidginization, creolization, and structure.

LING 438 Language Planning and Development
The course looks at the orientations and processes of language planning and its relation to the socio-economic development of a nation. Ghana’s language situation and the type of language policy options available and their consequences will be discussed. The topics include: the language planning process, orientations, underlying ideologies, language planning and socio-economic development, and Ghana’s language situation.

LING 439 Advanced Theory of Translation
The course deals with the basic unit of communication, the proposition, which is analysed into a central predicate with various participants, as well as circumstances. Propositions may be combined in embedded, parallel, and sequential relationships. As regards textual presentation, attention is paid to cohesion with various genres, and especially to prominence within information structure. The course also examines the assumed cooperation between source author and translator and target receiver, in relations to coherence and readability.

LING 441 Psycholinguistics
In this course, students will gain insight into the relationship between language behaviour and the psychological processes that seem to underlie it. The course will consider the neuropsychological foundations of language and the psychological perspectives on language processing. Topics include: language and the brain, bilingualism, psychological aspects of bilingualism, producing and understanding utterances, and aphasia.

LING 442 Pragmatics
The course is designed to study the gap between word/sentence meaning and utterance meaning. It considers the variation, style, and interpretation of language use and strategies of communica-tion. Topics to be studied include: truth versus non-truth conditional meaning, role of context in utterance production and interpretation, implicit and explicit language use, presupposition, speech acts, politeness, and relevance.

LING 443 Language and Law
The course examines notions of meaning and usage that are exploited in the legal field. Its main focus is on language as a tool for understanding legal matters. As part of the course, a number of actual legal cases that illustrate the various linguistic notions of ambiguity, vagueness, metaphor, etc. will be examined. Topics include: features and structures of legal language, notions of status, states and acts, relevance of Speech Act Theory in hearsay, contract formation, language crimes.

LING 444 Language and Gender
The course will provide a historical overview of language and gender research and. examine female and male communication and genres in various cultures. The linguistic means by which women and men are portrayed will be critically analysed in order to understand the process of gender (re)construction in society. Topics include: gender construction and identity, notion of femininity and masculinity, female and male genres in society, female and male communication strategies and gender in naming and representation.

LING 445 Linguistics and Language Teaching
The course will discuss the relevance of insights from linguistics research to the development of methods of language teaching. Methods such as the Audio-lingual, Communicative, and Total Physical Response will be treated. The teaching of reading and spelling will also be covered.

LING 446 Language and Literacy
The course is designed to introduce students to issues of literacy and their relevance for national development. Literacy will be studied from both theoretical and practical perspectives. Topics to be covered include types of literacy, approaches and techniques of literacy practices, language of instruction, literacy and development, adult literacy in Ghana.

LING 447 Current Topics in Linguistics
This course is designed to provide students the opportunity to be introduced to some of the topical issues in Linguistics, as and when the need arises.