SPA4007 : Spanish and Romance word analysis
- Offered for Year: 2024/25
- Module Leader(s): Professor Ian MacKenzie
- Owning School: Modern Languages
- Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus
Semesters
Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.
| Semester 2 Credit Value: | 20 |
| ECTS Credits: | 10.0 |
| European Credit Transfer System | |
Aims
To explore how Spanish grew out of proto-Romance (late spoken Latin), by considering (i) the sound changes that have affected the vocabulary and (ii) the associated restructuring of the language’s morphology. A comparative perspective will be adopted, enabling students to see how other Romance languages, such as French, Catalan or Italian, have taken different historical trajectories, having started from the same baseline.
Outline Of Syllabus
Topics include:
1. Changes affecting consonants
2. Changes affecting vowels
3. Creation of the modern Spanish noun system
4. Development of “radical changing verbs”
5. Where the modern pronouns come from
6. Development of verb tenses
7. Changes in inflectional morphology
8. Syntactic changes
Teaching Methods
Teaching Activities
| Category | Activity | Number | Length | Student Hours | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 22 | 1:00 | 22:00 | Present-in-Person |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Small group teaching | 11 | 1:00 | 11:00 | Present-in-Person |
| Guided Independent Study | Independent study | 1 | 167:00 | 167:00 | Non-contact hours |
| Total | 200:00 |
Jointly Taught With
| Code | Title |
|---|---|
| SPA8017 | Spanish Linguistics III: Sound Change and Morphological Change |
Teaching Rationale And Relationship
Lectures and small group teaching will provide hands-on learning support to deliver core technical and conceptual elements of the syllabus. Independent study will develop research skills, data retrieval and analysis, and organizational capabilities.
Assessment Methods
The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners
Exams
| Description | Length | Semester | When Set | Percentage | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Written Examination | 50 | 2 | M | 30 | In-class assessment (multiple-choice). |
| Written Examination | 120 | 2 | A | 70 | N/A |
Assessment Rationale And Relationship
The written exams will test students’ practical ability to analyse and solve problems while under time pressure. They will also test their ability to present an argument in a clear and rational way.
Reading Lists
Timetable
- Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
- SPA4007's Timetable