Course Catalogue

Name Studies ENGLANG4044

  • Academic Session: 2026-27
  • School: School of Critical Studies
  • Credits: 20
  • Level: Level 4 (SCQF level 10)
  • Typically Offered: Either Semester 1 or Semester 2
  • Available to Visiting Students: Yes
  • Collaborative Online International Learning: No
  • Curriculum For Life: No

Short Description

What's your name? The names of people and of places encode a huge amount of historical, linguistic and social information, much of it unavailable from other sources. In this course we study the origins, development and uses of names, focusing particularly on Scotland and England.

Timetable

1x1hr lecture; 1x1hr seminar per week over 10 weeks.

 

This is one of the Honours options in English Language and Linguistics and may not run every year. The options that are running this session are available on MyCampus.

Requirements of Entry

Available to all students fulfilling requirements for Honours entry into English Language and Linguistics, and by arrangement to visiting students or students of other Honours programmes who qualify under the University's 25% regulation.

Excluded Courses

None

Co-requisites

None

Assessment

The standard assessments for this course are: 

■ Portfolio of online technical exercises - 50% 

■ Coursework essay (2500 words) - 50% 

 

If required, for instance where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, the following alternatives are available: 

■ There are no alternatives to the assessments, but flexible deadlines can be offered as reasonable adjustment (Students should follow the usual process for extensions).

 

Further reasonable adjustments may be provided where necessary. Students are encouraged to consult with the course convenor.  

Main Assessment In: April/May

Course Aims

This course aims to:

■ provide an opportunity to develop the skills to investigate the origins and development of names of places and of people in Scotland and England;

■ familiarise students with the main types and structures of place-names, given names and surnames;

■ enable students to carry out an in-depth analysis of a selected group of names.

Intended Learning Outcomes of Course

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

■ describe the characteristic structures of different types of personal names and place-names;

■ outline diachronically the main languages that have contributed to the personal names and place-names of Scotland and England;

■ evaluate different sources of evidence for the study of names.

Minimum Requirement for Award of Credits

No exceptions