4) Units of Language. Language Levels

Language levels. The grammatical system of the English language, like of other Indo-European languages, is very complicated. It consists of smaller subdivisions, which are called systems too. In grammar they are morphological and syntactic ones.

In syntax we discriminate between the systems of simple and composite sentences, etc. Prof. V. V. Plotkin suggests the terms ‘morosystem’ implying the grammatical system of the language as a whole and ‘subsystem’ and ‘microsystem’ with reference to minor system.

Thus, the systemic character of grammar is beyond doubt. The phonological structure of language is also systemic. The question of the systemic character of vocabulary (word-stock) remains open. But of all lingual aspects grammar is, no doubt, most systemic since it is responsible for the very organization of the informative content of utterance.

Language in general and grammar in particular are materialized in structure. Language structure is represented by a level stratification of its units. This structure is of hierarchical character. Graphically the level stratification of language can be depicted by following table (scheme):

Supra-proposemic

Text, texteme, dicteme

The highest communicative unit

Promosemic (the level of major syntax)

Proposeme (sentence)

Communicative unit

Phrasemic (the level of minor syntax)

Phraseme (word-group)

Polynominative unit

Word level (lexemic)

Lexeme (word)

Monominative unit

Morphological (morphemic)

Morpheme

The smallest meaning full unit

Phonological (phonemic)

Phoneme

Distinctive unit

Level

The nature of the unrepresenting level

Language unit

Units of language. Units of language are divided into meaningless and meaningful. Examples of the first kind: phonemes, syllable Meaningful are morpheme, word and others. The latter are called – language signs. They have both planes: that of content and that of expression. They are signemes.

As to the way of expressing lingual units are divided into segmental and supra-segmental. Segmental units consists of phonemes and form phonetic strings of various status (morphemes, syllables). Supra-segmental units do not exist by themselves, they are realized together with segmental units and express different modificational meanings which are reflected on the strings of segmental units. Supra-segmental units are intonation contours, streets, pauses and the like.

Segmental units form a hierarchy of levels. The lowest level is phonemic. It is formed by phonemes, which are not language signs, because they are purely differential (distinctive) units.Units of all the higher levels are meaningful. They are language signs (signemes).

5) The Branches of linguistics

1. General linguistic generally describes the concepts and categories of a particular language or among all language. It also provides analyzed theory of the language.

Descriptive linguistic describes or gives the data to confirm or refute the theory of particular language explained generally.

2. Micro linguistic is narrower view. It is concerned internal view of language itself (structure of language systems) without related to other sciences and without related how to apply it in daily life. Some fields of micro linguistic:

a. Phonetics, the study of the physical properties of sounds of human language

b. Phonology, the study of sounds as discrete, abstract elements in the speaker's mind that distinguish meaning

c. Morphology, the study of internal structures of words and how they can be modified

d. Syntax, the study of how words combine to form grammatical sentences

e. Semantics, the study of the meaning of words (lexical semantics) and fixed word combinations (phraseology), and how these combine to form the meanings of sentences

f. Pragmatics, the study of how utterances are used (literally, figuratively, or otherwise) in communicative acts

g. Discourse analysis, the analysis of language use in texts (spoken, written, or signed)

h. Applied linguistic is the branch of linguistic that is most concerned with application of the concepts in everyday life, including language-teaching.

3. Macro linguistic is broadest view of language. It is concerned external view of language itself with related to other sciences and how to apply it in daily life. Some fields of micro linguistic:

a. Stylistics, the study of linguistic factors that place a discourse in context.

b. Developmental linguistics, the study of the development of linguistic ability in an individual, particularly the acquisition of language in childhood.

c. Historical linguistics or Diachronic linguistics, the study of language change.

d. Language geography, the study of the spatial patterns of languages.

e. Evolutionary linguistics, the study of the origin and subsequent development of language.

f. Psycholinguistics, the study of the cognitive processes and representations underlying language use.

g. Sociolinguistics, the study of social patterns and norms of linguistic variability.

h. Clinical linguistics, the application of linguistic theory to the area of Speech-Language Pathology.

i. Neurolinguistics, the study of the brain networks that underlie grammar and communication.

j. Biolinguistics, the study of natural as well as human-taught communication systems in animals compared to human language.

Computational linguistics, the study of computational implementations of linguistic structures.