Book Review – Linguistics: An Introduction by Prof William B. McGregor

Linguistics: An Introduction by Prof William B. McGregor

Publication Date: 15th January, 2009.

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Reviews

“At last – an introduction to the study of language that is neither theory-neutral nor generative, but one that is cognitivist and functional. It highlights the links of linguistics with psychology, neuroscience and biological evolutionary theory. In addition it is engaging, pedagogically well thought through, lucidly written and nicely presented. The perfect book for beginners!” – Dr Eva Eppler, Senior Lecturer in English Language & Linguistics, Roehampton University, UK

‘’William McGregor’s new textbook is an excellent introduction to linguistics. It is clear, precise and readable, comprehensible and comprehensive, and it is eminently usable as both a core course text as well as a reference work. It also does not neglect the extensions and applications of linguistics in the real world. This book is likely to become the benchmark for linguistics texts in the next few years.’’ Peter Stockwell, Professor of Literary Linguistics, University of Nottingham, UK

“In this introductory text McGregor offers a clear and well-constructed account of core concepts, leading students to explore linguistic diversity with an impressive range of languages and examples, particularly in the later chapters of the book. A reflective student or independent reader with a fascination for the subject will find a wealth of material relevant to basic puzzles about language and more than ample guidance for further study.” – Dr Michael Lumsden, Department of Modern Languages, The University of Hull

“William McGregor has produced a textbook which unfolds the study of language in a refreshing and lively way, positions the subject in relation to adjacent disciplines, and gives the beginning student a general view of the complexity and diversity of the world’s languages.” Dr David Cram, University of Oxford, UK

About the Author

William McGregor has produced a fresh and contemporary introductory textbook for all students of linguistics and language studies.

‘’William McGregor’s new textbook is an excellent introduction to linguistics. It is clear, precise and readable, comprehensible and comprehensive, and it is eminently usable as both a core course text as well as a reference work. It also does not neglect the extensions and applications of linguistics in the real world. This book is likely to become the benchmark for linguistics texts in the next few years.’’
Peter Stockwell, Professor of Literary Linguistics,University of Nottingham, UK

“At last – an introduction to the study of language that is neither theory-neutral nor generative, but one that is cognitivist and functional. It highlights the links of linguistics with psychology, neuroscience and biological evolutionary theory. In addition it is engaging, pedagogically well thought through, lucidly written and nicely presented. The perfect book for beginners!” –
Dr Eva Eppler, Senior Lecturer in English Language & Linguistics, Roehampton University, UK

Content Review

This textbook has been designed for and is based around taught courses. It is integrally pedagogic. It features Summary Boxes, Full Chapter Summaries, Key Terms, Issues for Further Thought, Study Questions and Further Reading.

It includes examples from languages other than English, including those from the Scandinavian and Australasian regions. It has been extensively student tested and is supported by a Companion Website that features multiple choice questions, sound clips and multimedia.

Description
Linguistics is a fresh and contemporary introductory textbook for all students of linguistics and language studies. It is firmly based around taught courses and caters to student needs: it addresses all the topics that a student will need in their initial and subsequent study of language.

With key terms, further reading, questions at the end of each chapter, exercises and key paragraphs in stand-out boxes, this is a firmly pedagogic text that takes difficult concepts and explains them in an easy to understand way. Examples are taken from a range of languages across the world. Global in its scope and comprehensive in its coverage, this is the textbook of choice for linguistics students.

Contents

1. Introduction
I. Language: System and Structure
2. Sounds of Language: Phonetics and Phonology
3. Structures of Words: Morphology
4. Lexicon
5. Structure of Sentences: Syntax
6. Meaning: Semantics and Pragmatics
II. Language: A Human Phenomenon
7. Sociolinguistics: Language in its Social Context
8. Psycholinguistics: Language, the Mind, and the Brain
9. Language Acquisition
10. Language in its Biological Context
III. Language: Uniformity and Diversity
11. Unity and Diversity in Language Structure
12. Language Change
13. Languages of the World

PB ISBN 978 1 8470 6367 0 Price: £21.99
HB ISBN 978 1 8470 6366 3 Price: £80.00