Portuguese and Linguistics, MA (Hons)

Course summary

One of the world's ten most widely spoken languages, Portuguese is estimated to have around 260 million speakers. From Brazil to Mozambique, the many countries where it is spoken have fascinatingly rich and varied cultures. This flexible programme gives you the opportunity to study Portuguese while developing your social scientific understanding of language. Beginners are very welcome. Portuguese and Linguistics make an excellent joint honours choice by combining the study of:

• a modern language in its global cultural context

• the expression and creation of meaning

Linguistics courses of particular relevance to language students cover:

• the speech sounds of the world's languages

• variation in the languages of the world

• the structure and history of world languages

PortugueseOur programme is for learners with varying amounts of experience of Portuguese, including those who are just starting out; many of our graduates started as complete beginners in the language.Study at Edinburgh and you will have the opportunity to develop advanced spoken and written skills in Portuguese while gaining the broad cultural education valued by graduate employers. As well as intensive language training, you will be immersed in an extraordinary range of literature, film, music and arts from Portugal, Brazil and Portuguese-speaking (lusophone) Africa, explored in its historical context.You will spend Year 3 in a country where Portuguese is spoken. LinguisticsLinguistics examines how language works, describing how sounds, words, sentences and conversations combine to express and create meaning. You will also study:

• the uses of language in everyday life

• the ways in which it varies across society and evolves over time

• how it is mastered by children

As you progress through the programme, you will have the opportunity to plan and test scientific hypotheses about linguistic phenomena using specialist linguistics and phonetics equipment. Why EdinburghAs a world-leading festival city, Edinburgh is a fantastic place to study a global language in its cultural context.Studying over four years gives you the blend of specialist skills and Intercultural Competence needed for a range of careers around the globe.In Years 1 and 2, as well as your core subjects, you will choose option courses from a broad list of disciplines. You will then specialise as you progress through your honours years.We are unique in Scotland in offering students a full academic year abroad within the four-year honours programme, regardless of whether you spend the year studying or working.

---