The critical principle demanded an examination, for instance, of the contribution of different periods, thus to some extent embarking on historical linguistics.
Ferdinand de SaussureA linguistic system is a series of differences of sound combined with a series of differences of ideas...
Ferdinand de SaussureIn the lives of individuals and societies, language is a factor of greater importance than any other. For the study of language to remain solely the business of a handful of specialists would be a quite unacceptable state of affairs.
Ferdinand de Saussure