The study of language, especially in a philosophical manner and as a science; the investigation of the laws of human speech, the relation of different tongues to one another, and historical development of languages; linguistic science
Philology is the study of words, especially the history and development of the words in a particular language or group of languages. + philologist philologists phi·lolo·gist He is a philologist, specialising in American poetry. the study of words and of the way words and languages develop linguistics (philologia, from , from phil- ( PHILANDER) + logos )