Synchronous linguistics looks at a language right now, as if taking a photograph of it. It studies how the language works at one moment, its grammar, sounds, vocabulary, and how people use it today.
Diachronic linguistics looks at a language over time, like watching a video. It studies how the language has changed, how old words disappeared, new words were added, and how sounds or grammar evolved over centuries.
Synchronous Linguistics (Language at One Moment)
Synchronous linguistics studies a language as it exists right now.
It is like taking a snapshot of the language at a single point in time.
The focus is on current grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and usage.
Examples
Studying how Modern English forms questions today (e.g., Do you like it?).
Observing how Urdu speakers currently use loanwords like mobile, scene, issue.
Analyzing how people today say gonna or wanna in English, or informal Urdu expressions like matlab ke, aisa na karo.
Key Question
How does the language work at present?
Other Name
Descriptive linguistics
Diachronic Linguistics (Language Across Time)
Diachronic linguistics studies how a language changes over history.
It is like watching a timeline or video of the language evolving.
The focus is on sound changes, word changes, and grammatical changes across centuries.
Examples
Tracing how English changed from Old English → Middle English → Modern English
Old English “cyning” became Modern English “king.”
Seeing how Urdu adopted Persian and Arabic vocabulary over time
Old forms like ma’rūf becoming less common, replaced by simpler synonyms.
Studying how Urdu pronunciation shifted over decades (e.g., z, j, zh sounds merging for many speakers).
Key Question
How has the language changed over time?
Other Name
Historical linguistics
