The Oxbridge Linguistics Reading List

Studying Linguistics at university can be extremely rewarding, because it encompasses so many different subjects, and offers the chance to study topics which could be considered part of both the sciences and humanities. However, it can be really difficult to know where to start when preparing to make an application to study Linguistics at university, because it’s not really a subject that’s readily available or taught in schools beyond something like English Language. This reading list offers a few suggestions which might help you to pin down what it is that you’re really interested in if you know you love linguistics, as well as familiarising yourself with some of the main questions and subjects studied as part of a university degree course.

Remember: Linguistics involves a lot of different subject areas, so this list will provide a few examples of those subject areas with descriptions of what they might cover, and a couple of suggested readings for the topic. Most of these texts are introductory and cover a large number of different things, and are the kinds of books you should expect to come into contact with in the first year of a Linguistics degree. Don’t feel as though you need to read everything, but instead focus on what sounds most interesting to you so that you can put together an application that proves your genuine passion for the subject! 

General Linguistics

Think: foundational ideas and thinkers in linguistics, sometimes included as a general introductory module for undergraduate degrees. 

• Key Ideas in Linguistics and the Philosophy of Language by Siobhan Chapman and Christopher Routledge 

• Key Thinkers in Linguistics and the Philosophy of Language by Siobhan Chapman and Christopher Routledge 

Phonetics/Phonology

Think: the study of the sounds of language, and how we make them, as well as the underlying structure of the meanings of those sounds. Involves some biology – including the structure of the larynx and how vowels are mapped across the tongue – and some really cool insights into the International Phonetic Alphabet, the characters used to write pronunciations across all languages and dialects. Who knew the structure of a syllable could be so interesting? 

• A Course in Phonetics by Peter Ladefoged and Keith Johnson

• Acoustic and Auditory Phonetics by Keith Johnson

Sociolinguistics 

Think: how language, identity, and society interact. Covers things like regional and geographical variation, variation over time, and variation according to different facets of identity like class, gender, sexuality, race, and so on. 

• An Introduction to Sociolinguistics by Suzanne Romaine 

• Sociolinguistic Variation by David Britain 

Top Tip for anyone interested in Sociolinguistics: do some research on William Labov’s 1966 Department Store study. It’s a classic and will definitely come up as part of an undergraduate degree, both for the ways in which it influenced how sociolinguistic studies are carried out, and also for the things it has taught us not to do! 

Morphology 

Think: the structure of words and the building blocks that make them. You’ll study a wide range of language structures, like English (where morphology mainly concerns things like prefixes and suffixes) or French (which has, like many other languages, a complicated set of rules when it comes to the morphology of its verbs) or, even languages which can express, using a singular word, what we might need to use a sentence for in English! 

• What is Morphology? by Mark Aronoff and Kirsten Fudeman

• Introducing Morphology by Maggie Tallerman 

Syntax 

Think: like morphology, but instead of words, the focus is on the structure of sentences. Consider the following sentence: ‘The horse raced past the garden fell’. It might sound like it’s gibberish or written incorrectly, but it’s actually syntactically sound: studying Syntax will help you figure out how to pick apart sentences like this (which are known as ‘Garden Path’ sentences) and how syntactical structures tend to form in different languages. 

• Understanding Syntax by Maggie Tallerman 

• Analyzing Grammar: An Introduction by Paul R. Kroeger

Top Tip for anyone interested in Morphology or Syntax: check out the UK Linguistics Olympiad puzzles online, which often include challenging morphological or syntactical mysteries to solve! 

Semantics/Pragmatics 

Think: the study of meaning and meaning in context. Have you ever asked someone ‘Can you pass the salt?’ and received the response ‘I don’t know, can I?’ when all you wanted was to put some salt on your dinner? Studying semantics and pragmatics looks into interactions like this one and thinks about literal meaning versus meanings in context! 

• Semantics: An Introduction to Meaning in Language by Ronnie Cann 

• Logic and Conversation by H. P. Grice

• Meaning: A Slim Guide to Semantics by Paul Elbourne 

Psycholinguistics 

Think: the study of language and the mind. Covers topics like how and why babies acquire language in the way that they do, as well as how certain medical disorders can affect language and the brain, like aphasia. 

• Fundamentals of Psycholinguistics by Eva M. Fernández and Helen Smith Cairns 

• Language in Mind: An Introduction to Psycholinguistics by Julie Sedivy

If you’re thinking about preparing an application to study Linguistics at university, don’t hesitate to book in a consultation with us so that we can provide further tailored support, or check out our dedicated Linguistics page.

One helpful thing to remember is that Linguistics tends to come in different shapes and sizes at different universities. For example, at Oxford, you can study Linguistics as part of a Joint Honours degree, meaning you can study it alongside Philosophy and Psychology, or alongside a language. (This could be an option to consider if you're interested in the linguistic history of a language that you study, for example, as there will be opportunity to combine the two!) At Cambridge, you can study Linguistics on its own. Make sure you do your research around different universities and what they offer, and find the course that you like the most! 

Happy reading, and please do get in touch – we’d love to help!

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