Glossematics

Key takeaways

Glossematics belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Glossematics to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Glossematics from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

In linguistics, glossematics is a structuralist theory proposed by Louis Hjelmslev and Hans Jørgen Uldall. It defines the glosseme as the most basic unit of language. Hjelmslev and Uldall eventually went separate ways with their respective approaches. Hjelmslev's theory, most notably, is an early mathematical methodology for the analysis of language which was subsequently incorporated into the analytical foundation of current models of functional–structural grammar such as Danish Functional Grammar, Functional Discourse Grammar and Systemic Functional Linguistics. Hjelmslev's theory likewise remains fundamental for modern semiotics.

Meaning Glossematics defines the glosseme as the smallest irreducible unit of both the content and expression planes of language; in the expression plane, the glosseme is nearly identical to the phoneme. In the content plane, it is the smallest unit of meaning which underlies a concept. A ewe, for example, consists of the taxemes sheep and female which may eventually be divided into even smaller units – glossemes – of meaning. The analysis is gradually expanded to the study of functions, more commonly known as dependencies, between elements on the level of discourse (which is called process), and between meaning and form in the linguistic system. The term glosseme was coined by Louis Hjelmslev and Hans Jørgen Uldall in the 1930s. It derives from the Greek word glossa (meaning here 'language') and the -eme suffix. A similar idea was used by Leonard Bloomfield in describing his system of basic linguistic units, tagmemes, although glossematics is more far-reaching in each direction.

Hjelmslev's theory of language Glossematics is an expansion of Saussure's concept of language as a dual system of meaning and form. This is in contrast to a contemporary American tendency of placing semantics outside the core of linguistics. Hjelmslev was also influenced by the Prague Linguistic Circle to the extent that he considered full texts as the material for analysis rather than ‘utterances' as was commonplace in American structuralism. Diverging from both American and European linguists, though, Hjelmslev considered language not as a social fact but as a computational system which underlies all sciences. The ultimate goal of the linguist is to gain a more perfect understanding of the whole through a thorough study of the structure of the constituent parts. To the greatest extent possible, glossematics seeks to construct a non-historical, non-sociological and non-psychological model based on language-specific principles and minimal reliance on factors external to the system. The linguist's task, analysing texts or corpora of different languages, aims to establish a universal model of the inner workings of language by comparing the underlying meta-structures of a given language to others. Rather than separate fields of study, Hjelmslev regarded phonology, morphology, syntax, lexicology and semantics as part of the same apparatus.

Linguistics must then see its main task in establishing a science of the expression and a science of the content on an internal and functional basis… [it must become a discipline] whose science of the expression is not phonetics and whose science of the content is not semantics. Such a science would be an algebra of language. By ‘phonetics' and ‘semantics' Hjelmslev means unorganised sound and meaning. Instead, a linguist must study expression and content, the systematised organisation of form and meaning of a given language which is to be deduced from the research material. As manifested by subsequent models of structural grammar, but also to an extent by generative grammar, units of a given level are collected into inventories (e.g. word classes, phrase types, etc.). Glossematics is then meant to become a device which can correctly predict all grammatical sentences of any language." Hjelmslev's idea later came to be associated with Noam Chomsky who used a modification of it made by his PhD supervisor Zellig Harris. Hjelmslev's influence extends to semiotics and to the systemic and Danish grammatical models of functional linguistics.

Formalism versus functionalism Glossematics earned the nickname formalism or formal linguistics after the publication of Hjelmslev's Prolegomena to a Theory of Language (Danish original published in 1943 with subsequent English and French translations). Some members of the Prague School disagreed with Hjelmslev's use of the word function in his meaning 'dependency' or 'link' in a chain of dependencies which is distant from the Praguian concept of the functions of language. Glossematics is a proper structuralist model in that it examines the interaction of the content level and the expression level. Nonetheless, the formalist epithet can be considered appropriate from different perspectives. For one, Hjelmslev considered linguistics as a formal science. For another, his approach to phonology was based on criteria of distribution, alternatives and other structural features of the system in a rejection of psychological definitions of the phoneme and definitions based on phonetic substance. He also believed that general linguistics should be the study of language as an autonomous system disregarding extralinguistic factors.

See also The Copenhagen School of Linguistics Formal logic Phonology Structural linguistics Theory of language

Notes

References Hjelmslev, Louis (1928). Principes de grammaire générale. Copenhague: Bianco Lundo. Hjelmslev, Louis (1935/37). Catégorie des cas (2 volumes). Acta Jutlandica VII, IX. Hjelmslev, Louis (1953[1943]). Prolegomena to a Theory of Language. Baltimore: Indiana University Publications in Anthropology and Linguistics (IJAL Memoir, 7) (2nd OD (slightly rev.): Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1961. Dt.: Hjelmslev 1974. Hjelmslev, Louis (1975). Résumé of a Theory of Language. Travaux du Cercle linguistique de Copenhague, vol. XVI. Copenhague: Nordisk Sprog- og Kulturforlag. Siertsema, Bertha. 1965. A study of glossematics. Critical Survey of its fundamental concepts (2nd rev. edition). Den Haag: Martinus Nijhoff. Rasmussen, Michael. 1992. Hjelmslev sprogteori. Glossematikken i videnskabshistorisk, videnskabsteoretisk og erkendelsesteoretisk perspektiv. Odense: Odense Universitetsforlag Badir, Sémir. 2000. Hjelmslev. Paris: Les Belles Lettres. Derrida, Jacques. "Of Grammatology" Johns Hopkins University Press, 1974.

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Glossematics

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Glossematics claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Glossematics before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Glossematics ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Glossematics

In research: Glossematics appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Glossematics in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Glossematics is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Linguistic morphology, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Glossematics outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

How to study Glossematics in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Glossematics means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Glossematics out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Glossematics in simple terms?

In linguistics, glossematics is a structuralist theory proposed by Louis Hjelmslev and Hans Jørgen Uldall. It defines the glosseme as the most basic unit of language.

Why does Glossematics matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Glossematics?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Glossematics.