In computing, syntax is the rules that indicate the proper sequences of the elements of a programming language.
The word syntax comes from the Latin term syntaxis , which in turn derives from a Greek word that translates into Spanish as "coordinate." It is the branch of grammar that offers guidelines created to know how to join and relate words in order to create sentences and express concepts in a coherent way . In computing , syntax is understood as the group of rules that mark the correct sequences of the elements of a programming language .
As a subdiscipline within the field of linguistics , syntax focuses on the study of the precepts that govern the combination of constituents and the emergence of units higher than these , as is the case with syntagms and sentences.
Function of syntax
Specifically, specialists in this field clearly establish that the main function of syntax is to study the combination of words as well as the position in which they are located within a given sentence. In other words, it informs us of the specific order that they must have in a sentence for it to be correctly written.
Thus, for example, one of the most important rules established by this linguistic discipline that concerns us within Spanish is that any preposition must always go before a complement, regardless of the type it is.
As far as the combination of words is concerned, one of the golden rules established by the syntax in Spanish is that they must coincide in both gender and number. This means that we have to say, for example, los perros or las gatas and not los perros or la gatas.
A rule that can also be extrapolated to the verb forms. Specifically, and since these do not have gender, they must coincide in number. A clear example of this is the following sentence: «Los niños fueron del colegio». In this case, we see how the subject and the cited verb coincide in number. What would be incorrect is to write «Los niños fui del colegio».
Syntax determines how words can be combined to make a coherent expression.
Structuralism
According to the North American philologist and linguist Leonard Bloomfield ( 1887 – 1949 ), syntax is characterized by the study of free forms made up entirely of free forms. This notion is described as structuralist .
The smallest ways in which a larger structure can be analyzed are its syntactic constituents , a word or sequence of terms that works together as a unit integrated into the hierarchical structure of the sentence.
The current paradigm of science refers to generative grammar, which emphasizes the approach of syntax as a primitive and fundamental constituent of natural language .
Analysis of syntax
On the other hand, it is worth noting that the syntactic analysis of a structure involves the identification of the conjugated verb within the sentence, in order to distinguish between the subject phrase and the predicate phrase . To do this, once the verb is recognized, the question is asked who performs that action. The answer constitutes the subject, while the rest is the predicate.
Throughout history there have been many important linguists who have left their deep mark on the field of syntax. This would be the case, for example, of the Englishman Michael Alexander Halliday who carried out various works on syntax and its communicative function.