FERDINAND SAUSSURE HIS MAIN CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE STUDIES OF LINGUISTIC.

Ferdinand de Saussure (Geneva, Switzerland, November 26, 1857 - ibid, February 22, 1913), a Swiss linguist, considered the father of linguistic and structural grammar.

Contributions to linguistics

The main contributions of Saussure were published in his book Course in General Linguistics, in which he postulated (made​​) a series of dichotomies. The underlying theoretical approach became known as European structuralism and had followers throughout the twentieth century who developed ideas introduced by Saussure with some added later theorists.

• The structuralist theory of language:

• The dichotomies of language: language and speech:

• The linguistic sign: signifier and signified:

• The dichotomy: synchrony and diachronic:

• The dichotomy internal linguistic and linguistic external:

The various elements offer among themselves a relation of solidarity forming a structure

This is a homogeneous, purely psychic phenomena, and of passive adoption by the community.

The signifier and the signified are part of the structure of the sign.

Signifier: Is the material form which takes the sign, it is not always is linguistic, it can be an image.

Signified: It is the mental image (the concept it represents), which varies according to culture.

The linguistic may be synchronously or diachronic versus time.

The internal Linguistic is scientific and focuses on the study of systems.

The external Linguistic focuses on the context where the language lives, is interested in language as a social institution.