Linguistic description
Descriptive Linguistics ( also descriptivism ) in the broader sense (descriptive linguistics) is a synonym for modern linguistics ( linguistics ), which illustrates that modern linguistics - in contrast to the practices of most scholars and linguists in earlier centuries - individual languages , language systems and language change judgmental describes and analyzes. The term is therefore tautological insofar as all modern sciences are descriptive rather than prescriptive, ie impose any regulations and standards.
Diachronic and historical aspects are often not considered in the descriptive linguistics. The exact description of the data (observation adequacy ) in the descriptive linguistics meted much more space than possible explanations for the phenomena described.
In a narrower sense, the descriptive linguistics is attributed to the American structuralism in the tradition of L. Bloomfield.
Essential elements
Linguistic descriptions mainly contain:
- Descriptions of the phonology of the language,
- Descriptions or statement of orthography of the language,
- Descriptions of the morphology of words,
- Descriptions of the syntax of sentences,
- Descriptions of lexical derivations,
- Dictionaries with at least the important items,
- Some of the original texts.
Relationship to and development of prescriptive language descriptions
Prescriptive writings on language use are now rejected by scholars largely unscientific, but they are very popular in the general population and even become best-sellers, such as The dative is the genitive case of his death (see language decay and onion fish).
Until very recently, however, have issued ( grammars and dictionaries) and linguists ( normative ) Language Guides and normative manuals, especially in German-speaking countries. Even the most recent editions of German Dictionaries are still mainly prescriptive and describe only a few deviations of the actual spoken language of the taught in school Language ( Standard German ). More specifically, the linguistics was for centuries mainly from prescriptive language descriptions. English dictionaries are largely descriptive for quite some time, although these still contain warnings about less prestigious or non-standard linguistic forms.
Modern normatively oriented work that is still considered to be scientific to be understood in the sense of Applied Linguistics, but such work in academia take only a small area. Especially in relation to normative conclusions prevail here some very controversial views. For example, is always hotly debated the extent to which linguistic criticism ever be a subject of linguistic research and can be operated by linguists and should, because they either readily be incorporated with a valuable standard of the use of language or often at the same time also represents social criticism. Prescriptive work is - largely not addressed in academic research and teaching, but mostly created by economic or private sector - with a few exceptions, such as language development tests, measured on a determined development standards that define the language development of a child.
Examples of a comparison of prescriptive and descriptive works from the same areas are approximately as follows: