Biography
- 1857 - 1913
- Geneva, Switzerland
- Linguistics, structuralism, semiotics
- Ferdinand de Saussure was a Swiss linguist and semiotician who is known for his contributions to the understanding of linguistics, structuralism, and semiotics. He was born in Geneva, Switzerland and later studied at the University of Leipzig and the University of Berlin. Saussure's work focused on the structure of language and its relationship to meaning, and he argued that the meaning of words and concepts is not inherent or absolute, but rather is determined by the relationships and contexts in which they are used. His ideas have had a significant impact on the fields of linguistics, structuralism, and semiotics.
Highlight
- Ferdinand de Saussure is known for his contributions to the understanding of linguistics, structuralism, and semiotics, and has argued that the meaning of words and concepts is not inherent or absolute, but rather is determined by the relationships and contexts in which they are used.
Books
- Course in General Linguistics - a major work by Saussure that outlines his ideas about the structure of language and its relationship to meaning.
- Saussure, F. de. (1959). Course in general linguistics (translated by Roy Harris). London: Routledge.
Concepts
- Structuralism - the idea that the structure of language and its relationship to meaning is the key to understanding human thought and culture.
- Semiotics - the study of the ways in which meaning is created and communicated through signs and symbols.
- Sign - a concept introduced by Saussure that refers to the relationship between a word or concept (the signifier) and the thing or idea it represents (the signified).
References
- Saussure, F. de. (1959). Course in general linguistics (translated by Roy Harris). London: Routledge.
- Ferdinand de Saussure. (n.d.). In Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved from https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/saussure/