Linguistics textbook

[Shackleford]

I'm looking for a good introductory linguistics textbook. Unfortunately, I'm not able to squeeze a class into my physics degree. Thanks for any recommendations.

[honestrosewater]

If you are studying on your own, Linguistics by Fromkin et al. (http://books.google.com/books?id=DObARq3r9MoC) will give you plenty of guidance and practice. The authors have their biases and favorite theories, and the book is from 2001, so you will want to browse other books and journals for a broader and updated perspective, but this will do a lot to help you develop the tools to branch out.

Anything by Stephen Anderson (http://bloch.ling.yale.edu/), Peter Ladefoge (http://www.linguistics.ucla.edu/people/ladefoge/), or Otto Jespersen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Jespersen) is worth checking out. Anderson's exposition is exceptionally clear, thorough, and fair. Ladefoge is the man for phonetics. Jespersen is a fierce, fierce thinker (reminds me of Aristotle and Frege) and understands language like no one else I've read. James McCawley (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_D._McCawley) seemed cool from the little I read of his.

[Shackleford]

Great. Thanks for the recommendation. I'll check half and amazon.

Do you know if this is a good book, too?

http://product.half.ebay.com/Language_W0QQtgZinfoQQprZ57203635

[honestrosewater]

Do you know if this is a good book, too?

http://product.half.ebay.com/Language_W0QQtgZinfoQQprZ57203635Nope. I've never seen it and couldn't find any excerpts.

What do you want to get out of the book? Do you want to do research in linguistics? Do you want a better understanding of language? Do you want some interesting ideas or problems to think about?

[Shackleford]

Nope. I've never seen it and couldn't find any excerpts.

What do you want to get out of the book? Do you want to do research in linguistics? Do you want a better understanding of language? Do you want some interesting ideas or problems to think about?

Well, it's more for intellectual curiosity. I read the first few pages of the Fromkin book online, and I'm probably going to go that route. It describes itself as being a theoretical linguistics book, which coincidentally appeals to me the most.

[honestrosewater]

Cool. Come back if you have questions. I still have that book.

If you want to hear some interesting things about language, try to get your hands on Jespersen's Philosophy of Grammar (http://books.google.com/books?id=1WcXVIgc2bUC). It is not an introduction or an easy read (its being a century old doesn't help). But it is full of jewels.

[Feezik]

Cool. Come back if you have questions. I still have that book.

If you want to hear some interesting things about language, try to get your hands on Jespersen's Philosophy of Grammar (http://books.google.com/books?id=1WcXVIgc2bUC). It is not an introduction or an easy read (its being a century old doesn't help). But it is full of jewels.
Thank you, you share.
I want download and read it in home, can I download it ?

[Feezik]

Sorry I don't see the book must buy before downloadd

[changeseeker]

The std intro text at Stanford and other top linguistic programs is by O'Grady, Archibald, Aronoff and Rees-Miller, Contemporary Linguistics: An Introduction.