Politics

Paralipsis: The Rhetoric of Mentioning by Ignoring

Paralipsis is the ancient rhetorical art of emphasizing a subject by significantly pretending to pass over it—exemplified by phrases like,…

2 days ago

Euro-English: The New Dialect of Brussels

English is the undisputed lingua franca of the European Union, but without the UK to police the grammar, it is…

2 days ago

When Scots Was King: A Royal History

Trace the rise and fall of the Scots language, from its golden age as the official tongue of kings and…

2 days ago

Relay Translation: When Languages Don’t Touch

When direct translation between two languages isn't possible, the world relies on a "pivot" language to bridge the gap. This…

3 days ago

The Dragoman: Polyglot Diplomats of the Ottoman Empire

Explore the fascinating history of the Dragoman, the polyglot intermediaries who held the keys to communication between the Ottoman Empire…

3 days ago

Wampum Belts: Diplomacy Woven in Beads

Long before the invention of the computer, the Haudenosaunee Confederacy utilized a binary system of white and purple shells to…

6 days ago

The Treaty That Had Two Meanings

New Zealand's founding document, the 1840 Treaty of Waitangi, exists in two languages—but it tells two different stories. A crucial…

2 months ago

The Telegram That Named a Country

The name "Pakistan" is famously an acronym for the homelands of Punjab, Afghania, Kashmir, and Sindh. But a fascinating, debated…

2 months ago

When Did We Agree on Place Names?

Ever wondered why Bombay became Mumbai, or why The Netherlands is no longer called Holland? The names on our maps…

2 months ago

Language, Purity, and Power

This post explores the often-overlooked link between linguistic purism and exclusionary politics. We move beyond simple vocabulary debates to investigate…

3 months ago

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