Have you ever wondered how a single "mother" language can give rise to many different "daughter" languages? How do closely related languages come to be so different? What unique mix of historical events, social relationships, and language acquisition processes produces each variety? This course takes the Romance language family as a case study in language change within a well-documented language family, examining the major linguistic changes that occurred within the last 2500 years from every-day spoken Latin to the Modern Romance languages. We also consider micro-variations among both well-known and understudied Romance varieties with the aim of finding explanations involving both internal and external forces of change. No prior knowledge of Latin or a Romance language is necessary. For students in either a French Specialist or Major Programs wishing to count this course toward program requirements, must complete written work in French.