Linguistics is the scientific study of the function and structure of language, and is concerned with language as a general aspect of human knowledge and behavior. The department offers three major tracks-Applied Linguistics; Language, Society, and Communication; and Language and Cognition. Two honors programs are also available. In addition, the department offers a joint major and a minor.

The Department of Linguistics offers courses in the following languages: American Sign Language, Arabic, Chinese, German, Greek (Modern), Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Russian, and Ukrainian.