NOTE: The following Honors Major in Linguistics requirements apply to students who first enrolled at OSU before AU22. Students who first enrolled at OSU in AU22 or later should click here to see the requirements that apply to them.
Honors Advisor
Andrea Sims, sims.120@osu.edu
314 Oxley Hall, 1712 Neil Ave.
Office Hours
See office hours listed here.
Coursework (at least 33 credits, excluding prerequisites)
Honors students majoring in linguistics are expected to follow a course of study which is more challenging than the regular major, including a 34 credit-hour requirement, an area-depth requirement consisting of a sequence of two (typically) upper-level courses in one subject area, and a required research seminar. While a BA thesis is not required for the Linguistics major, this course of study is appropriate preparation to write a BA thesis in Linguistics and/or to go on to graduate school.
1. Prerequisite Course Work (9 credits)
These courses do not count toward the minimum number of hours required in the major. Only the introductory course must be completed before starting the major.
1. Introduction to Linguistics: Ling 2000H (preferred) or 2000
2. Language Requirement. One of the following:
- 3 credit hours of advanced world language course beyond the GE requirement (taught in the language)
- 3 credit hours at any level in a second, not closely related language (taught in the language), with permission
- Field Methods: Ling 4550 or 5551
- 3 credit hours at the 4000-level or above on the linguistic structure of a non-English language or language family (e.g. East European 5627, Korean 5380, Sanskrit 5902, Spanish 4430), with permission
3. Analytic Requirement (3 credits). One of the following:
- Language and Formal Reasoning: Ling 2001
- Analyzing the Sounds of Language: Ling 2051, 2051H
- Introduction to Symbolic Logic: Philosophy 2500
- Introduction to Discrete Mathematics: Mathematics 2366
- Elementary Statistics: Statistics 1350
- Introduction to the Practice of Statistics: Statistics 1450
- Data Analysis in Psychology: Psychology 2220, 2220H
2. Major Core Courses (18 credits)
1. Core Courses. Four courses chosen from the following, and taken in any order:
- Phonetics: Ling 4100
- Syntax: Ling 4200
- Phonology: Ling 4300
- Morphology: Ling 4350
- Linguistic Meaning: Ling 4400
2. Elective Core Courses. Choose one course each from two different areas:
- Historical Linguistics: Ling 3901 or 5901
- Sociolinguistics: Ling 3601, 3602, 3602H, 3603, or 5601
- Psycholinguistics: Ling 3701, 3701H, 5701, or 5702
- Field Methods: Ling 4550 or 5551 (may not be used concurrently to satisfy the language prerequisite)
3. Undergraduate Research Seminar: Ling 4780 (3 credits)
This course should be taken at least one year before graduation and at least one Core Course (Ling 4100, 4200, 4300, 4350, 4400) must be completed prior to taking it.
4. Two-course Sequence (6 credits)
Other sequences can be selected with approval from the linguistics honors advisor. These courses cannot be used to concurrently satisfy other requirements of the major.
- Computational Linguistics: Ling 5801, 5802
- Psycholinguistics (two of these): Ling 3701H (or 3701), 5701, 5702
- Sociolinguistics: Linguistics 5601, 5602
- Field Methods (two of these): Ling 4550, 5551, 5552
- Historical Linguistics: 3901, 5901
- Phonetics: Linguistics 5101, 5102
- Phonology: Linguistics 5301, 5302
- Semantics and Syntax: Ling 5401, 5201
- Semantics and Pragmatics (two of these: Ling 5401, 5402, 5451
- Syntax and Morphology (two of these): Linguistics 5201, 5202, 5351
5. Major Elective Courses (6 credits)
Any two Linguistics courses at the 2000-level or above that are not used to satisfy other requirements of the major. Courses on linguistic topics offered by other departments at the 2000-level or above may also be counted as electives with permission.
Up to 3 credit hours of independent study (Ling 3191, 4998, 4998H, 4999, 4999H) may be counted towards the elective requirement.
Possible electives are listed below by subarea of linguistics. Electives need not be from the same subarea. See the complete listing and description of linguistics courses.
Historical Linguistics and Language Contact
- Language Evolution and Language Change: 3901
- Language Endangerment and Language Death: 3902
- Languages in Contact: 5651
- Introduction to Historical Linguistics: 5901
- Topics in Indo-Iranian Linguistics: 5906
Sociolinguistics and Anthropological Linguistics
- Language, Sex and Gender in American Culture: 2367.01, 2367.01H
- Language, Race & Ethnicity in the U.S.: 3601
- Languages and Social Identity in the U.S.: 3602, 3602H
- Language across Cultures: 3603
- Introduction to Sociolinguistics: 5601
- Introduction to Quantitative Sociolinguistics: 5602
- Sociolinguistic Field Methods: 5603
Psycholinguistics and Cognitive Science
- Language and the Mind: 3701, 3701H
- Introduction to Cognitive Science: 5612 (also as Psych 5612, Philos 5830, CSE 5531)
- Psycholinguistics I: 5701
- Cognitive Models of Language: 5702
- Eye Tracking Methods for Psycholinguistics: 5703
- Proseminar in Cognitive Science: 5891 (also as CSE 5891, ISE 5891, Philos 5891, Psych 5891)
Computational Linguistics
- Codes and Codebreaking: 3801
- Language and Computers: 3802, 3802H
- Ethics of Language Technology: 3803
- Technical Tools for Linguists: 5050
- Cognitive Models of Language: 5702
- Computational Linguistics I: 5801
- Computational Linguistics II: 5802
- Computational Semantics: 5803
Language Description and Field Methods
- Introduction to American Indigenous Languages: 3501
- Klingon, Elvish, Dothraki: The Linguistics of Constructed Languages: 3502
- Introduction to Linguistic Field Methods: 4550
- Language Description: 5500
- Field Methods I: 5551
- Field Methods II: 5552
- Topics in Indo-Iranian Linguistics: 5906
Formal Logic and Quantitative Methods
- Language and Formal Reasoning: 2001
- Analyzing the Sounds of Language: 2051, 2051H
- Linguistics and the Scientific Method: 4052
- Technical Tools for Linguists: 5050
- Quantitative Methods: 5051
- Introduction to Quantitative Sociolinguistics: 5602
Research and Experiential Learning
- Internship in Linguistics: 3191
- Undergraduate Research Seminar: 4780
- Undergraduate Research (non-thesis): 4998, 4998H
- Undergraduate Thesis Research: 4999, 4999H
- Training in Informal Science Outreach: 5700
Phonetics
- Phonetics: 4100
- Phonetic Theory: 5101
- Laboratory Phonology: 5102
Syntax
- Syntax: 4200
- Syntactic Theory I: 5201
- Syntactic Theory II: 5202
Phonology
- Phonology: 4300
- Phonological Theory I: 5301
- Topics in Advanced Phonology: 5302
Morphology
- Words and Meanings: 3401
- Morphology: 4350
- Morphological Theory: 5351
Semantics and Pragmatics
- Language and Advertising: 2367.02
- Words and Meanings: 3401
- Linguistic Meaning: 4400
- Semantic Theory I: 5401
- Semantic Theory II: 5402
- Formal Pragmatics: 5451