Linguistics

The First-Contact Linguist: The Ethical Tightrope of Studying a Previously Uncontacted People’s Language

What are the ethical responsibilities of a linguist who is the first outsider to document a language from a previously…

5 months ago

Speaking in Tones: The Art and Science of Politeness in Japanese (Keigo)

Beyond "konnichiwa" lies Keigo, a complex system of Japanese politeness that goes far beyond simple pleasantries. This linguistic art form…

5 months ago

The Ghost in the Machine: How Linguists Teach Computers to Understand Ambiguity

Ever wonder how your phone knows you mean the band Queen, not a monarch? This post explores the linguistic challenge…

5 months ago

The Descent of the Larynx: How a Quirky Evolutionary Shift Gave Humans the Power of Speech

Human speech is a miracle of evolution, but it comes at a steep price. Our ability to form a rich…

5 months ago

The Ainu Language: A Linguistic Island in Japan

On the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido, a language isolate with no known relatives is fighting for survival. The Ainu…

5 months ago

Freudian Slips or Brain Glitches? What Slips of the Tongue Reveal About How We Organize Language

When you accidentally say "a lack of pies" instead of "a pack of lies," what's really happening? While Freud saw…

5 months ago

The World in a Different Order: How Subject-Object-Verb Languages Challenge Our Linguistic Assumptions

For most English speakers, "The dog chased the cat" is the only logical way to say it. But what if…

5 months ago

Your Own Words Will Betray You: How Forensic Linguistics Solves Crimes

Every time you write or speak, you leave behind a unique linguistic fingerprint. Explore the fascinating world of forensic linguistics,…

5 months ago

The Grammar of the Bees: Do Animals Truly Have Language?

We marvel at the honeybee's 'waggle dance' and the intricate alarm calls of prairie dogs, but do these complex systems…

5 months ago

The Fight for Purity: Inside the Académie Française and the Quest to Protect the French Language

For nearly 400 years, the forty "immortals" of the Académie Française have stood as the official guardians of the French…

5 months ago

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