language and thought

The Case for Compounding

Behold the German word Donaudampfschifffahrtsgesellschaftskapitän. Far from being a chaotic jumble of letters, this linguistic titan is a masterclass in…

1 month ago

Loanwords vs. Calques

Ever wondered why your French friend says "email" but calls a skyscraper a "gratte-ciel"? Languages borrow from each other in…

1 month ago

The Speech of Second Selves

When a shaman or ritualist speaks in a 'spirit language', it isn't random babbling but a fascinating sociolinguistic performance. Even…

1 month ago

The Grammar of a Menu: How Wording Whets the Appetite

Ever wonder why "Grandma's slow-cooked apple pie" sounds more appealing than just "apple pie"? The secret lies in menu engineering,…

1 month ago

The Two ‘Haves’ of Irish: Possession as a State

Unlike English, the Irish language doesn't have a single verb for "to have." Instead, to say "I have a book",…

1 month ago

Logograms vs. Ideograms: There’s a Difference

Is Chinese a language of "idea-pictures"? Not quite. This common misconception confuses ideograms, which are language-independent symbols for concepts, with…

1 month ago

The Speech of Sleep: Is Somniloquy a Language?

Ever wondered if the mumbles and groans of a sleep-talker are just random noise? We take a linguistic deep dive…

1 month ago

Your Brain’s Internal Fact-Checker

When you hear a false statement like "The sky is green", your brain reacts in milliseconds, long before you consciously…

1 month ago

The Syntax of Silence in Japanese

In Japanese communication, silence is rarely an empty space. This post delves into the "grammar" of 沈黙 (chinmoku), exploring how…

1 month ago

The One-Word Language Myth: Yaghan

The viral myth claims *mamihlapinatapai* is an untranslatable Yaghan word for a romantic, unspoken look. The truth, however, is far…

1 month ago

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