Can Mathematics Inspire Linguistic Insights?

[vikingofsixth]

Hello math forum,

I am an undergraduate linguistic student who has absolutely no foundations in mathematics due to a variety of factors during my earlier years. My studies in philosophy and especially linguistics has brought me back to mathematics in a wild search for something that seems hard to articulate.

I was turned away from mathematics because I believed it to be tedious computation. Personal reading of Russell has started to change my mind combined with studies in formal logic. All in all I am looking to explore math as a language hoping to find inspiration that could lead to further revelations in linguistics.

Due to personal move to another state I have a bit of gap year before I continue my college education and have plenty of time to explore new fields of knowledge. I am working to rebuild the basics of math up to calculus over the next several months but basic textbooks are very dry, though necessary, experiences.

I would love to read some actual literature on math that I might be able to digest without having a very technical knowledge yet. Anything from essays to actual books that could help influence my perception on math would be wonderful.

Thanks and enjoy the winter holidays!

 

[MarneMath]

At times like these, I tend to recommend "What is Mathematics" by Courant https://www.amazon.com/dp/0195105192/?tag=pfamazon01-20 . It may be beyond your level, but it's an easy enough read and will introduce you to a great deal of mathematics.

 

[vikingofsixth]

I plan on having a look on the recommendation! I would love to get more academically involved in computational linguistics once I get back into university. Until then I will be working to build a strong foundation in mathematics to complement my linguistic education.