Linguistics Major | Linguistics Minor
General Distribution Requirement
All linguistics courses count toward the general distribution requirement in social science except for LING 236, LING 309, LING 311, LING 435, LING 436, LING 437, and LING 488, which count toward humanities.
General Education Requirements
Courses that meet the general education requirements in writing, quantitative thinking, internationalism and U.S. identities and differences will be posted on the Registrar's web page in advance of registration for each semester.
Additional information regarding the general distribution requirement and the general education requirements can be found in the graduation requirements section of this catalog.
Honors Program
The linguistics department participates in the honors program. Eligibility requirements, application procedures and specific project expectations for the department are available from either the department office or the Academic Programs and Advising Office.
Topics Courses
LING 194, LING 294, LING 394, LING 494
Past offerings include: Time and Space in Language; The Human Voice; Southeast Asian Linguistic Typology; Computational Methods in Linguistics. To be announced at registration.
Independent Study
The department offers independent study options in the form independent projects, internships, preceptorships and Honors independent projects. For more information contact the department and review the Curriculum section of the catalog.
Linguistics Major
Major Requirements
- Required courses:
LING 100 - Introduction to Linguistics
LING 104 - Sounds of the World's Languages
LING 200 - Syntax
LING 205 - Phonology
LING 300 - Linguistic Analysis
- Language courses: Any two language courses beyond the college-wide four-semester graduation requirement.
- One course in an outside discipline as it relates to language, to be chosen from the list below or determined in consultation with a departmental faculty member.
CHIN 452 - Translating Chinese: Theory and Practice
COMP 123 - Core Concepts in Computer Science
COMP 484 - Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
JAPA 335 - Analyzing Japanese Language
JAPA 488 - Translating Japanese Literature: Theory and Practice
SPAN 309 - Introduction to Hispanic Linguistics
SPAN 332 - Spanish in the United States
SPAN 373 - Translation: Theory/Practice
SPAN 376 - Spanish Dialectology
PHIL 111 - Introduction to Symbolic Logic
PHIL 311 - Philosophy of Language
PSYC 180 - Brain, Mind, and Behavior
PSYC 242 - Cognitive Psychology
PSYC 378 - Psychology of Language - Two departmental elective courses chosen from the following list.
LING 175 - Sociolinguistics
LING 194 - Topics Course
LING 201 - Historical Linguistics
LING 206 - Endangered/Minority Languages
LING 225 - 100 Words for Snow: Language and Nature
LING 280 - Topics in Linguistic Anthropology
LING 294 - Topics Course
LING 394 - Topics Course
LING 494 - Topics Course - Capstone course: LING 401 - Field Methods
Linguistics Minor
Minor Requirements
The minor in linguistics consists of five courses, with the following stipulations:
- LING 100 - Introduction to Linguistics is required
- Only one course from an approved study away program will be considered.
- Only one course taken at Macalester may be from outside of the department. (This does not count the course taken while on study away.)