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Subfield · Arts and Humanities

Language and Linguistics research

Language and Linguistics is a subfield of Arts and Humanities. Science Explorer counts 452k research works in it since 1950. 17.3% of them reached the world's top 10% most cited for their field and year.

In short: structured system of communication.

Research works
452k
fractional, since 1950
In the world top 10%
78k
per year above
Top-10% rate
17.3%
share of its works in the world top 10%
Topics
20
Growth, 2013–17 → 2018–22
+38%
the tick is no change

What is Language and Linguistics research about, and what is growing?

By the world's output in 2019–23, its most used keywords are Linguistics, Pragmatics, Language Teaching, Language Contact, Lexicography, Sociolinguistics. Gaining share since 2009–13: Language Education, Qualitative Research, Language Acquisition, Discourse Analysis, oral epics. Losing share: Globalization, Translation, Translator Competence, Corpus Linguistics.

▲ gaining share of this field◆ holding its share▼ losing share

Size is the world's fractional works in 2019–23 in the topics tagged with each word; colour compares the word's share of this field with 2009–13. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Linguistics30k▲ 1.64×5 topics
  2. Pragmatics29k▲ 1.25×4 topics
  3. Language Teaching24k◆ 0.92×3 topics
  4. Language Contact23k▲ 1.30×4 topics
  5. Lexicography22k▼ 0.84×4 topics
  6. Sociolinguistics19k◆ 1.13×3 topics
  7. Second Language Acquisition19k◆ 0.98×2 topics
  8. Bilingualism17k◆ 1.10×3 topics
  9. Corpus Linguistics17k▼ 0.71×2 topics
  10. Morphology17k◆ 1.10×3 topics
  11. Discourse Analysis16k▲ 2.8×2 topics
  12. Corrective Feedback16k◆ 0.93×1 topic
  13. L2 Motivation16k◆ 0.93×1 topic
  14. Language Acquisition14k▲ 3.3×2 topics
  15. Cultural History13k◆ 0.92×4 topics
  16. Etymology13k▲ 1.31×2 topics
  17. Historical Phonology13k▲ 1.31×2 topics
  18. Language Learning12k◆ 0.99×3 topics
  19. Syntax12k◆ 1.11×2 topics
  20. Globalization12k▼ 0.63×2 topics
  21. Language Variation12k◆ 1.02×2 topics
  22. Phraseology12k◆ 1.02×2 topics
  23. Translation12k▼ 0.63×1 topic
  24. Translator Competence12k▼ 0.63×1 topic
  25. Language Evolution12k▼ 0.83×2 topics
  26. Dictionaries10k▼ 0.77×2 topics
  27. Language10k▼ 0.77×2 topics
  28. Language Education9,799▲ 18×1 topic
  29. Qualitative Research9,799▲ 18×1 topic
  30. Conversation Analysis8,555◆ 0.94×1 topic
  31. Interactional Linguistics8,555◆ 0.94×1 topic
  32. Anglicisms7,306▲ 1.36×1 topic
  33. Linguistic Borrowing7,306▲ 1.36×1 topic
  34. Turkic6,632▲ 2.0×1 topic
  35. oral epics6,632▲ 2.0×1 topic
  36. Indo-European6,184◆ 0.95×1 topic
  37. Proto-Indo-European6,184◆ 0.95×1 topic
  38. Communication Practices6,110▲ 1.17×1 topic
  39. Text Linguistics6,110▲ 1.17×1 topic
  40. Historical Linguistics5,963◆ 0.88×2 topics

Which countries lead Language and Linguistics research?

On research quality in 2022–2025, the United States, China and the United Kingdom rank highest in Language and Linguistics. By volume, Indonesia and the United States publish the most (12k and 7.1k works in 2022–2025).

By research quality, 2022–2025

  1. 1 United States · #1 all time 21.1% top 10% · 7.1k works
  2. 2 China · #4 all time 21.1% top 10% · 5.8k works
  3. 3 United Kingdom · #2 all time 24.7% top 10% · 2.8k works
  4. 4 Germany · #3 all time 15.1% top 10% · 5.7k works
  5. 5 Spain · #6 all time 16.5% top 10% · 4.5k works
  6. 6 Hong Kong · #9 all time 42.1% top 10% · 565 works
  7. 7 Indonesia · #15 all time 12.1% top 10% · 12k works
  8. 8 Australia · #7 all time 32.3% top 10% · 843 works
  9. 9 Türkiye · #21 all time 14.3% top 10% · 4.4k works
  10. 10 France · #10 all time 8.0% top 10% · 4.6k works

The track on each row is that row’s top-10% rate. The ranking itself is the composite score, which the rate is only one part of.

Of 67 countries ranked in Language and Linguistics. Composite of field-normalised excellence (50%), output (30%) and citations (20%); the bracket is the all-time rank.

All countries ranked in Language and Linguistics

By volume, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Indonesia 12k works
  2. 2 United States 7.1k works
  3. 3 China 5.8k works
  4. 4 Germany 5.7k works
  5. 5 France 4.6k works
  6. 6 Spain 4.5k works
  7. 7 Brazil 4.4k works
  8. 8 Türkiye 4.4k works
  9. 9 Russia 3.8k works
  10. 10 United Kingdom 2.8k works

How concentrated that is

The same countries as shares of everything the list above accounts for. A node where two countries do two thirds of the work and one spread evenly across twelve read alike as a ranking and not at all alike here.

Indonesia: 21.9%United States: 12.9%China: 10.6%Germany: 10.3%6 others listed: 44.3%22%largest
Indonesia12k · 21.9%United States7,099 · 12.9%China5,838 · 10.6%Germany5,689 · 10.3%6 others listed24k · 44.3%

Shares of the rows listed above, not of the whole node.

Which institutions lead Language and Linguistics research?

Hong Kong Polytechnic University (Hong Kong) ranks first in Language and Linguistics on research quality in 2022–2025, followed by University College London and University of Hong Kong.

By research quality, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Hong Kong Polytechnic University Hong Kong · Hong Kong · #39 all time 45.1% top 10% · 140 works
  2. 2 University College London United Kingdom · London · #1 all time 33.7% top 10% · 173 works
  3. 3 University of Hong Kong Hong Kong · Pok Fu Lam · #12 all time 43.0% top 10% · 104 works
  4. 4 Chinese University of Hong Kong Hong Kong · Hong Kong · #40 all time 44.5% top 10% · 100 works
  5. 5 Education University of Hong Kong Hong Kong · Tai Po · #25 all time 57.1% top 10% · 76 works
  6. 6 University of Auckland New Zealand · Auckland · #6 all time 52.9% top 10% · 78 works
  7. 7 University of Oxford United Kingdom · Oxford · #10 all time 20.1% top 10% · 193 works
  8. 8 Nakhchivan State University Azerbaijan · Nakhichivan 33.1% top 10% · 126 works
  9. 9 Universitat de Barcelona Spain · Barcelona · #52 all time 25.7% top 10% · 169 works
  10. 10 University of the Basque Country Spain · Leioa · #29 all time 22.2% top 10% · 211 works

The track on each row is that row’s top-10% rate. The ranking itself is the composite score, which the rate is only one part of.

Of 303 institutions above the floor of 40 fractional works in Language and Linguistics.

Top 100 Language and Linguistics institutions

By volume, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Universidad Complutense de MadridSpain 308 works
  2. 2 Adam Mickiewicz University in PoznańPoland 280 works
  3. 3 Indonesia University of EducationIndonesia 279 works
  4. 4 Weatherford CollegeUnited States 269 works
  5. 5 State University of MedanIndonesia 268 works
  6. 6 Jagiellonian UniversityPoland 254 works
  7. 7 State University of MakassarIndonesia 251 works
  8. 8 University of WarsawPoland 240 works
  9. 9 University of HelsinkiFinland 235 works
  10. 10 Universidad de GranadaSpain 218 works

Who are the leading researchers in Language and Linguistics?

Among the most productive authors in Language and Linguistics, Noam Chomsky, Teun A. van Dijk and Roman Jakobson rank highest on the composite score.

  1. 1 Noam Chomsky United States · #7 worldwide 3.7k citations · 239 works
  2. 2 Teun A. van Dijk Spain · #680 worldwide 2.5k citations · 107 works
  3. 3 Roman Jakobson United States · #1,107 worldwide 708 citations · 148 works
  4. 4 Ken Hyland United Kingdom · #1,163 worldwide 1.7k citations · 101 works
  5. 5 W. V. Quine United States · #1,177 worldwide 1.1k citations · 105 works
  6. 6 Joshua A. Fishman United States · #1,693 worldwide 1.1k citations · 125 works
  7. 7 Geoffrey Leech United Kingdom · #1,726 worldwide 1.8k citations · 80 works
  8. 8 Umberto Eco Italy · #1,841 worldwide 462 citations · 145 works
  9. 9 Claude Lévi‐Strauss France · #1,861 worldwide 460 citations · 136 works
  10. 10 Willem J. M. Levelt Germany · #1,937 worldwide 1.6k citations · 87 works

Re-ranked on the composite score from the 4,310 highest-output authors in Language and Linguistics. Identities come from OpenAlex author disambiguation, which occasionally merges or splits people.

Top 100 Language and Linguistics researchers

Where is Language and Linguistics research done?

The largest centres of Language and Linguistics research in 2022–2025 are Moscow (Russia), Paris (France), Medan (Indonesia) and Jakarta (Indonesia). Among places with at least 20 works in it, it is an unusually large share of all research in Postojna, Ljubljana and Nakhchivan.

Largest cities, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Moscow Russia 1.5k works
  2. 2 Paris France 1.4k works
  3. 3 Medan Indonesia 991 works
  4. 4 Jakarta Indonesia 928 works
  5. 5 Beijing China 906 works
  6. 6 Bandung Indonesia 861 works
  7. 7 Madrid Spain 856 works
  8. 8 Ankara Türkiye 820 works
  9. 9 Yogyakarta Indonesia 728 works
  10. 10 São Paulo Brazil 680 works

Where it is the local speciality

  1. PostojnaSI · 52.5 works42×
  2. Ljubljana49.6 works37×
  3. NakhchivanAZ · 127.2 works22×
  4. Baden bei WienAT · 22.1 works22×
  5. DolinskRU · 25.5 works22×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient: how much more of its research is in Language and Linguistics than the world average.

See Language and Linguistics on the map

Language and Linguistics research by country

The best places for Language and Linguistics research inside each country, with that country's researchers and world standing.

Where is the best place to study Language and Linguistics?

Among universities, judged by research, Ca' Foscari University of Venice, Moscow State Institute of International Relations and Nakhchivan State University score highest, combining excellence, specialisation, size, growth and international reach. Research strength is one signal when choosing where to study; it does not measure teaching.

0%20%40%60%mean 21.89%fractional works in this node (log) →share in the world top 10% →Ca' Foscari University of Venice: 213, 9.9%Moscow State Institute of International Relations: 180, 8.8%Nakhchivan State University: 126, 33.1%Universitas Mahasaraswati Denpasar: 150, 8.8%Education University of Hong Kong: 76, 57.1%Guangdong University of Foreign Studies: 152, 20.3%Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań: 280, 14.7%University of Macau: 88, 44.3%Moscow State Linguistic University: 114, 4.5%Kyiv National Linguistic University: 60, 17.4%Nakhchivan State Uni…Ca' Foscari Universi…Moscow State Institu…Universitas Mahasara…
above the meannear itbelow it

One dot per university in the table below. The upper left is the interesting corner: small places doing unusually strong work.

#UniversityScoreTop 10%SpecialisationWorksGrowth
1 Ca' Foscari University of VeniceItaly 62.09.9%9.8×213 +266.7%
2 Moscow State Institute of International RelationsRussia 59.08.8%11.5×180 +295.6%
3 Nakhchivan State UniversityAzerbaijan 58.033.1%22.7×126 —
4 Universitas Mahasaraswati DenpasarIndonesia 56.68.8%11.2×150 +797.6%
5 Education University of Hong KongHong Kong 54.957.1%5.8×76 +9.4%
6 Guangdong University of Foreign StudiesChina 53.020.3%16.1×152 +19.5%
7 Adam Mickiewicz University in PoznańPoland 52.814.7%7.6×280 +57.0%
8 University of MacauMacau 52.144.3%3.0×88 +120.5%
9 Moscow State Linguistic UniversityRussia 51.74.5%29.0×114 +804.0%
10 Kyiv National Linguistic UniversityUkraine 51.017.4%40.4×60 +1909.1%

Universities only. Score blends excellence (30%), specialisation (25%), size (20%), growth (15%) and international reach (10%), 2015–2022; growth compares 2010–14 with 2015–19.

Is Language and Linguistics research growing?

Output in 2018–2022 was 38% higher than in 2013–2017, peaking in 2023. The fastest-growing topics are Linguistics and Language Analysis, Linguistics and Language Studies and Linguistic Education and Pedagogy.

19801990200020102020
grewheldshrank

The same series as a ribbon — one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.

Which topics inside it are moving

Growth and decline on one axis around a shared zero. Two lists side by side hide the thing that matters: whether the growth dwarfs the decline, or the other way round.

  1. Linguistics and Language Analysis+4509%
  2. Linguistics and Language Studies+283%
  3. Linguistic Education and Pedagogy+197%
  4. Linguistic research and analysis+175%
  5. Linguistics, Language Diversity, and Identity+142%
  6. Language, Linguistics, Cultural Analysis+139%
  7. Translation Studies and Practices-3%
← shrinkingno changegrowing →

Growth in output from 2005–09 to 2015–19. Every topic is a page of its own.

What does Language and Linguistics include?

EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning: 64k fractional worksTranslation Studies and Practices: 50k fractional worksLanguage, Discourse, Communication Strategies: 34k fractional worksLinguistics and language evolution: 29k fractional worksLexicography and Languag…28kLexicography and Language Studies: 28k fractional worksSyntax, Semantics, Linguistic Variation: 28k fractional worksHistorical Linguistics and Language Studies: 25k fractional worksLinguistics, Language Diversity, and Identity: 24k fractional worksLinguistic research and analysis: 24k fractional worksSpanish Linguistics and Language Studies: 23k fractional worksLinguistics and Cultural Studies: 19k fractional workslinguistics and terminology studies: 18k fractional works

Area is fractional works in that topic. Every name below is a page of its own.