Editing Functional linguistics (section)

==Functional analysis==
Since the earliest work of the Prague School, language was conceived as a ''functional system'', where term ''system'' references back to De Saussure structuralist approach.<ref name="Daneš_1987" /> The term function seems to have been introduced by [[Vilém Mathesius]], possibly influenced from works in sociology.<ref name="Daneš_1987"/><ref name="Hladký2003">Hladký, Josef (ed.) 2003. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=tWg9AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA60 Language and Function: To the memory of Jan Firbas]'', pp.60–61</ref> Functional analysis is the examination of how linguistic elements function on different layers of linguistic structure, and how the levels interact with each other. Functions exist on all levels of grammar, even in phonology, where the [[phoneme]] has the function of distinguishing between lexical material.
* Syntactic functions: (e.g. [[Subject (grammar)|Subject]] and [[Object (grammar)|Object]]), defining different perspectives in the presentation of a linguistic expression.
* Semantic functions: ([[Agent (linguistics)|Agent]], [[Patient (linguistics)|Patient]], [[Recipient (linguistics)|Recipient]], etc.), describing the role of participants in states of affairs or actions expressed.
* Pragmatic functions: ([[Topic–comment|Theme and Rheme]], [[Topic (linguistics)|Topic]] and [[Focus (linguistics)|Focus]], [[Predicate (grammar)|Predicate]]), defining the informational status of constituents, determined by the pragmatic context of the verbal interaction.