Discovery Dispatch
Germans bemoan the “idiot’s apostrophe”, and research on using AI to communicate with dolphins wins the $100,000 Dolittle Prize
Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Daniel W. Hieber, Ph.D.
Hi! I'm Danny! 👋🏼 I am a linguist. 🗣️ I work to document and revitalize endangered languages, while studying the crosslinguistic patterns we see across the world’s languages.
Discovery Dispatch
Why do people use double negatives? And what’s the difference between a pidgin vs. a creole?
Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
World of Words
Why English needs “y’all”
Why doesn’t English just have a plural “you” like other languages?
World of Words
A singularly unique word: The many histories of ‘one’ from Proto-Indo-European to Modern English
There are over thirty English words that derive from the Proto-Indo-European word for ‘one’. This is the story of how they came to be, and what that story teaches us about how language works.
Discovery Dispatch
Inside the fiercest debate in linguistics—Universal Grammar. Plus, why your brain can process short text messages so quickly.
Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Discovery Dispatch
Linguists unlock the grammar of music in language, and runes show that Elfdalian is its own language
Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Discovery Dispatch
Critics hate the new French dictionary, and linguists discover the universal language of pain
We’re also making progress on talking to aliens, and a new book on Proto-Indo-European is on its way. Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Discovery Dispatch
The writing on a recently-discovered tablet has linguists baffled, and GPT passes the Turing Test
Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Discovery Dispatch
When did humans develop language? + How whistle languages work
When language evolved, how whistled languages work, and what alien languages might be like. Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Discovery Dispatch
Bonobos combine their vocalizations the way humans combine words—a trait once thought unique to humans
Bonobos challenge the uniqueness of human language, penguins learn etymology, and China adopts a new gender-neutral pronoun. Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Discovery Dispatch
The sad passing of Kanzi, penguin etymology, and what “fixin’ to” / “finna” mean
Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
World of Words
The etymology of “penguin”
Where does the word “penguin” come from? French, Welsh, or Latin?