Meet Ў: The Letter Only Found in Belarusian
Discover the "Short U" (Ў), a unique Cyrillic character found exclusively in the Belarusian alphabet. We explore the linguistics behind its playful "w" sound, its role in creating the melodic…
Unlocking the Universe of Languages
Discover the "Short U" (Ў), a unique Cyrillic character found exclusively in the Belarusian alphabet. We explore the linguistics behind its playful "w" sound, its role in creating the melodic…
While modern English relies on the Latin alphabet, our language was originally written in the angular, 33-character runic system known as the Futhorc. This article explores the linguistic ingenuity of…
Separated by the Aras River and two centuries of divergent history, the Azerbaijani language exists in a unique sociolinguistic split: one language spoken by millions but written in two completely…
In the 20th century, Azerbaijani speakers were forced to change their official alphabet three times—from Perso-Arabic to Latin, to Cyrillic, and back to Latin. This article explores the political maneuvers…
While most assume the Latin alphabet evolved directly from Greek, the true story features a vital middleman: the Etruscans. This post explores the linguistic detective story of how an ancient…
Confused why "Peking" became "Beijing", or why "Quran" is sometimes spelled "Koran"? It all comes down to the linguistic battle between Transliteration (mapping letters) and Transcription (mapping sounds). This post…
Explore the fascinating linguistic history of pangrams, from the ubiquitous "Quick Brown Fox" to the brain-twisting quest for the perfect 26-letter sentence. This post dives into the constraints of language,…
The invention of writing wasn't just about drawing pictures; it required a massive cognitive leap known as the Rebus Principle. This article explores how ancient scribes discovered that a picture…
Travel back to 405 AD to discover how the monk Mesrop Mashtots engineered the 39-letter Armenian alphabet to save a nation from assimilation. We explore the linguistic genius behind the…
While the Coptic script appears remarkably similar to Greek, it hides a linguistic secret: seven unique letters borrowed from the ancient Demotic script. This article explores how these "surviving" characters…
The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is the gold standard for writing down sounds, but its origins are surprisingly humble. Discover the story of Paul Passy and the 19th-century language teachers…
Discover the Romanized Popular Alphabet (RPA), the ingenious writing system for the Hmong language. In this linguistic deep-dive, you'll learn how the final consonant of a word isn't pronounced, but…
Before there was Russian, Polish, or Bulgarian, there was their common literary ancestor: Old Church Slavonic. Discover the story of the language crafted by two missionary brothers, Saints Cyril and…
With only eight consonants and five vowels, the Hawaiian alphabet is a perfect example of the phonemic principle, where each letter consistently corresponds to a single sound. This elegant simplicity,…
Alphabetical order feels as natural as breathing, but this rigid system is a historical accident that silently shapes how we find and interpret knowledge. From dictionaries that separate 'apple' from…
Did you know the Cyrillic alphabet wasn't invented by a man named Cyril, or even by a Russian? The script used by over 250 million people was born from a…
Ever wondered why Polish sounds and looks so different from its Slavic cousins like Russian or Czech? From its unique nasal vowels—a precious relic of ancient Proto-Slavic—to a complex spelling…
Ever wondered how Russian, Polish, and Croatian can be so different yet so similar? We journey back 1500 years to the marshlands of Eastern Europe to uncover the story of…
Why do Polish and Russian look so different despite both being Slavic languages? The answer lies not just in linguistics, but in a fascinating 9th-century story of two saints, competing…
What if the letter 'S' looked like a hiss or 'P' was shaped by the lips? We delve into the Pasilalinic-sympathetic Alphabet, a 19th-century utopian project to create a universal…