Current Linguistics
Gestures can counteract subtle stereotypes introduced by language
This week I discuss the growth of science communication in linguistics, plus how simple gestures can counteract subtle linguistic biases.
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.
Newsletter
The etymology of "guacamole"
Where do the words “avocado” and “guacamole” come from?
Current Linguistics
Babies can learn multiple languages from birth—and they’ll slow the onset of dementia if they do
Babies can learn multiple languages from birth—and they’ll slow the onset of dementia if they do. Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Newsletter
The linguistics of Trump’s official English policy
Trump issued an executive order making English the official language of the U.S.—sort of. Here’s what that order does, and what language in the U.S. looks like today.
Current Linguistics
gen z loves lowercase, but they’re losing their southern drawl
gen z loves lowercase, but they’re losing their southern drawl. meanwhile trump makes english the official language (sort of).
Current Linguistics
1,000 subscribers! 🎉 And did Proto-Indo-European have SOV word order?
The Linguistic Discovery newsletter just reached 1,000 subscribers! 🎉 And linguist Danny L. Bate suggests that Proto-Indo-European didn’t have Subject-Object-Verb word order after all.
Current Linguistics
Is AI changing language? Plus new evidence for a “language protein”
A recent article argues that AI is wrecking language, and new research has found a "language protein". Here's what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Newsletter
Hawaiian only has 8 consonants—What happens when it borrows words with other sounds?
The Hawaiian language only has 8 consonants. So how does it deal with sounds in words borrowed from other languages?
Newsletter
The etymology of "love"
The etymology of the word "love" and all its related words in English.
Current Linguistics
The quest for the first Indo-Europeans, and whales communicating like humans
New DNA evidence emerges in the hunt for the first speakers of Indo-European, and researchers discover that whalesong shares a property of human language never before found in the animal kingdom.
Current Linguistics
Honest aliens and yet another attempt at Proto-Australian
An analysis of the linguistics of The Three-Body Problem, and new research claiming to reconstruct Proto-Australian.
Newsletter
What alien languages can teach us about human language: The linguistics of The Three-Body Problem
Imagine if every word you thought could be heard by everyone around you. In this world, thinking would be the same as communicating. What would language—and society—be like?