LINGUISTICS
AND
TRANSFORMATIONAL-GENERATIVE GRAMMAR
To understand what is the transformational-generative grammar is necesarily talk about it relation with the linguistics. So to do this is important what is linguistics and what do the linguistics study.
Every normal human being can speak at least one language fluently. Every normal infant is born with the ability to learn a language and usually does so before entering school. This is really quite remarkable, yet most speakers of a language do not stop to analyze what they are doing when they talk. Such inquiry into the actual workings of language is the basis of linguistics, which is the scientific study of language. A distinction may be drawn between theoretical linguistics and applied linguistics. Theoretical linguistics covers the various types and theories of language analysis. Applied linguistics, on the other hand, refers to the use of linguistic principles and insights in such areas as language teaching, the preparation of dictionaries, speech therapy, teaching the deaf, and helping government planners develop language policies.
Linguistics covers a wide range of topics: phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, grammar, semantics, and historical linguistics (language change and classification).
Phonetics are concerned with the production,physical nature and perception of speech sounds.
Phonology studies the abstract sound system of languages, rather than actual pshysical articulation of speech sounds (phonetics). Morphology is the study of how words are formed. Syntax covers how words--along with their endings, prefixes, and internal changes--combine into phrases and sentences. Semantics is concerned with the meanings of words, word particles, and sentences.
The Linguistics are also related to other areas as sociology, psychology, and computer science. Sociolinguistics is concerned with the social aspects of language usage; for example, how different dialects and language styles reflect the background of the speaker and his position in society. Topics in psycholinguistics include language processes and the brain; the acquisition of languages by children; aphasia, a condition in which the loss of speech occurs; and perception of speech. Computational linguistics includes the use of computers to quickly translate languages as well as the design of machines to recognize and produce human-sounding speech.
Historical linguistics focuses on language change and how languages are related. The tools of
analysis developed by historical linguists enabled scholars to begin classifying the world's
languages into related families and branches.