The curriculum of philological faculties of universities and pedagogical institutes contains a course on general linguistics, or, as it is also called, the history of linguistic teachings, designed to highlight the main stages of the formation and development of Russian and world linguistic thought: from antiquity and the Middle Ages to the current state of science. Strange as it may seem now, when there is generally a good selection of specialized literature, the courses and anthologies written several decades ago by V. A. Zvegintsev and F. M. Berezin, and even earlier by V. Thomsen and Y. V. Loi, are still widely used. Modern science and the tools of development in the field of linguistics that have received a new impetus need to be rethought from new, more appropriate positions, taking into account new trends, literature, and views. V. M. Alpatov's book, published in the second edition of the series "Languages of Russian Culture" (Moscow, 1999; 1st ed.-Moscow, 1998), is intended to solve these problems. It is worth noting first of all the harmonious concept of the textbook by V. M. Alpatov, which highlighted the main directions of linguistic thought in the XVI-XX centuries, and gave a qualified analysis and assessment of the activities of outstanding linguists. As the author writes in the Preface to his work, he sought to "consider the history of linguistics somewhat more broadly" than it has traditionally developed, "mentioning the most important concrete positive results obtained by the science of language in the course of its development" (p.9). Fundamental in linguistics, as in other exact sciences, is the question of traditions, which opens the book V. M. Alpatov. It is impossible to understand the development of science without understanding the "civilizational space" and its philosophical impact on people. The scientist notes five main linguistic traditions that later determined the general course of scientific thought in this area: Indian, Ancient, Chines ... Read more