Phonology (The Sounds of Language)

ENGL 5339, Spring 2025

Tuesday/Thursday 12:30–1:50
				Face to face CRN: 68583
				Online CRN: 68584
				Dr. Aaron Braver

No prior linguistics courses required.

Why is "blik" a possible word of English, but not "bnik"? Why can we have [tl] in the middle of a word (e.g., "butler"), but not at the start or the end? (And how come some languages, like the modern Aztec language Nahuatl, are perfectly content with [tl]-final words?)

This course provides an overview of the field of phonology—how languages organize, represent, and manipulate their sounds. We will begin by discussing the sounds of the world's languages and their articulatory, acoustic, and distributional properties. We will examine why some sounds are allowed in certain parts of a word but not others, and how sounds change based on their surroundings.

Linguists and non-linguists alike are welcome to join this course.

What have previous students said about the course?

  • "Dr. Braver was an exceptionally student-focused instructor. In crafting the material for the course, it was obvious that he considered and incorporated a variety of teaching strategies to accommodate a diverse group of learning styles. He shared his expertise in a way that allowed me to soak in even the most abstract concepts of phonology.”
  • “Everything was perfect; I like the handouts dr. Braver makes, and his way of teaching is fantastic.”
  • "Dr. Braver is... very understanding of students’ needs and interests. The logical and consequential organization of assignments helps consolidating topics and allows you to move to the final project with the tools you need."

Want to know more?