Pronunciation

The Danish ‘Stød’: The Sound That Changes Meaning

Unlike the singing pitch accents of Sweden and Norway, Danish is defined by the *stød*—a glottal catch or "creaky voice"…

5 days ago

Aitken’s Law: The Unique Sound of Scots

Explore the fascinating mechanics of Aitken’s Law, the phonological rule that gives Scots its distinctive, choppy rhythm and sets it…

5 days ago

Paralinguistics: Meaning Beyond Words

Words provide the data, but paralinguistics provide the manual on how to interpret them. This article explores how volume, pitch,…

6 days ago

Mouth Music: Celtic Rhythm and Puirt à beul

Discover the infectious energy of Puirt à beul, the Scottish Gaelic tradition of "mouth music." This article explores how native…

6 days ago

Gvprtskvni! Survival Strategies for Georgian Consonant Clusters

Discover the "Mount Everest" of linguistics: the Georgian word *gvprtskvni*, which features a staggering eight consonants in a row. This…

6 days ago

The Sound of the Throat: Pharyngeal Consonants

English speakers tend to speak from the front of their mouths, but Semitic languages like Arabic and Hebrew utilize the…

1 week ago

Shadowing: The Secret to Native Pronunciation

Shadowing is a powerful language learning technique that moves beyond "listen and repeat" by forcing you to speak simultaneously with…

1 week ago

Syllable vs. Mora: The Timing of Japanese Poetry

While English speakers measure rhythm in variable syllables, Japanese relies on the steady, metronomic "mora." Understanding this crucial timing difference…

1 week ago

The Chart That Mapped Our Vowels

The vowel trapezoid chart is a familiar sight to any linguistics student, but its simple shape hides a fascinating story…

2 months ago

A Study in ‘H’: The London Docklands Story

Ever wonder why some people say ''ouse' instead of 'house'? In the 1970s, sociolinguist Peter Trudgill conducted a groundbreaking study…

2 months ago

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