Lexicology. Lesson 1. The Object of Lexicology

1.
THE OBJECT OF
LEXICOLOGY
• Lexicology is the part of linguistics which deals with the
vocabulary and characteristic features of words and
word-groups.
• The term lexicology first appeared in the 1820s and it is
composed of two Greek morphemes: lexis – “word” and
logos – “science”. Thus the literal meaning of the term
lexicology is “the science of the word”. It’s basic task is
the study and systematic description of vocabulary in
respect to its origin, development and its current of
vocabulary in respect to its origin, development and its
current use. Lexicology is concerned with words, variable
word-groups, phraseological units and morphemes
which make up words.
• Distinction is made between general
lexicology and special lexicology. General
lexicology is a part of general linguistics. It is
concerned with the study of vocabulary
irrespective of the specific features of any
particular language. Special lexicology is the
lexicology of a particular language (English,
German, French, etc.). It devotes its attention
to the description of the characteristic
peculiarities in the vocabulary of a given
language.
• There are two principal approaches in linguistic
science to the study of language material: the
synchronic (Gr.syn – “together, with”, chronos –
“time”) and the diachronic (Gr. Dia – “through”)
approach. With regard to special lexicology the
synchronic approach is concerned with the
vocabulary of a language as it exists at a given period
of time. Descriptive lexicology deals with the
vocabulary and vocabulary units of a particular
language at a certain time. The diachronic approach
in terms of special lexicology deals with the
vocabulary and vocabulary units of a particular
language at a certain time.
• The diachronic approach in terms of special
lexicology deals with the changes and the
development of vocabulary in the course of time.
• Historical lexicology deals with the evolution of
the vocabulary units of a language as the time
goes by. Comparative lexicology studies closely
relative languages from the point of view of their
identity and differentiation, while contrastive
lexicology attempts to find out similarities and
differences in both related and non-related
languages.
1.2 The Connection of Lexicology with
Other Branches of Linguistics
• Lexicology is closely connected with
other branches of linguistics: general
linguistics, the history of the
language, phonetics, stylistics,
grammar, sociolinguistics, and some
others.
• The importance of the connection between
lexicology and phonetics consists in the facts that a
word is an association of a given group of sounds
with a given meaning, so that man is one word and
map is another. Phonemes have no meaning of their
own but they serve to distinguish between
meanings. Distinction between the words may be
based upon stress: the word import is recognized as
a noun and distinguished from the verb im’port due
to the position of stress. Stress also distinguishes
compounds from otherwise homonymous word-
groups: ‘blackberry-‘black ‘berry.
• There is also a close relationship between lexicology
and stylistics which studies many problems created in
lexicology. These are the problems of meaning,
connotations, synonymy, functions and styles of
languages and some other issues.
• Lexicology is also connected with grammar, which is
concerned with the various means of expressing
grammatical relations between words as well. The
grammatical form and function of the word affect its
lexical meaning. A well-known example is the verb go
when in the continuous tenses, followed by to and an
infinitive serves to express an action in the near and
immediate future, or an intention of future action.
• Lexicology is linked with the history of a
language since the latter investigates the
changes and the development of the
vocabulary of a language. Lexicology is bound
up with sociolinguistics which investigates the
extra-linguistic or social causes of the changes
in the vocabulary of a language. The intense
development of science and technology, which
is a social, i.e. an extra-linguistic factor, has
lately given birth to a great number of new
words, e.g.: CD-ROM, e-mail, SMS, pager, etc.
1.3 The Main Lexicological Problems
• Modern English lexicology aims at giving a

systematic description of the word-stock
of Modern English. Thus, it investigates
the problems of word-structure and word-
formation in Modern English, the semantic
structure of English words. The laws
governing the replenishment of the
vocabulary with new vocabulary units.
• Modern English Lexicology studies the relations
between various layers of the English vocabulary and
the specific laws that govern its development at the
present time and also the source and growth of the
English vocabulary, the changes it has undergone in
its history.
• The branch of lexicology specializing in word-groups
which are characterized by stability of structure and
transferred meaning is called phraseology.
• A section dealing with lexicography – the science and
art of compiling dictionaries – is also traditionally
included in the course of lexicology.
1.4 The Theoretical and Practical Value of
English Lexicology
• The importance of English lexicology is based on the
fact that at present it is the world’s most widely used
language. Over 309 million people speak English as
their first language in the United States of America, the
United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, Canada, New
Zealand, South Africa, etc. It is used extensively as a
second language and as an official language throughout
the world, especially in Commonwealth countries and
in many international organizations. It’s a “global
language”, the lingua franca of the modern era.
• While English is not an official language in most
countries, it is currently the language most often
taught as a second language around the world. It is,
the official language for aerial and maritime
communications, as well as one of the official
languages of the European Union, the United Nations,
and most international athletic organizations,
including the International Olympic Committee.
• Books, magazines, and newspapers written in English
are available in many countries around the world.
English is also the most commonly used language in
the sciences.
• Lexicology in applied linguistics, namely of
lexicography, standardization of terminology,
literary criticism and especially of foreign
language teaching. In training a would-be
teacher of languages lexicology helps to
stimulate a systematic approach to the facts of
vocabulary and an organized comparison of
the foreign and native language. New words
are better remembered if they are given not at
random but organized in thematic groups,
word-families, synonymic series, etc.
• Lexicology helps students to master the
literary standards of word usage.
Lexicology plays a prominent part in the
general linguistic training of every
philologist by summing up the
knowledge acquired during all his years
at a foreign language faculty.

Lexicology. Lesson 1. The Object of Lexicology

Uploaded by

Document Informationclick to expand document information

Copyright:

Available Formats

Lexicology. Lesson 1. The Object of Lexicology

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Lexicology. Lesson 1. The Object of Lexicology

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

1.

• Modern English lexicology aims at giving a

You might also like