Mom’s voice boosts language-center development in preemies’ brains
Also this week: Smart dogs have a humanlike knack for naming new objects + Birds all over the world use the same sound to warn of threats + The Language-Lover’s Lexipedia
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China lays claim to Austronesian languages
Also this week: The Linguistics of a Showgirl: How Taylor Swift’s accent has changed over time + We will soon be able to talk with other species—but which one will be first?
What’s in a name?: Eponymous etymology
A sneak peek at Jess Zafarris’ new book, “Useless etymology: Word origins for curious minds”
Could Neanderthals handle language variation?
Also this week: Jane Goodall dies at 91 + Merriam-Webster adds 5,000 words to the dictionary
Where does the alphabet come from? And why does English use it so strangely?
A new book takes us on a linguistic odyssey through the history of the alphabet
Analysis of a century’s worth of political speeches challenges our understanding of how language changes
Also this week: Bilingualism is reworking this language’s rainbow + How speaking in a second language directly affects your moral judgement
How a deaf quarterback invented the huddle + Linguists explain the life of slang
Also this week: The world’s oldest written languages, and a cool new book on etymology. Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Your cryptogram is lying to you—/t/ isn’t the most frequent consonant in English
What are the most frequent sounds across languages (and why)?
Birdsong exhibits a hidden feature of human language
Also this week: Bilingualism is possible for people with a rare genetic condition that normally limits speech + Talk Like a Pirate Day is coming up! 🏴☠️ Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
New DNA data reveals the origins of the Slavic peoples
Also this week: How our DNA holds the history of our language + The Cambridge dictionary adds 6,000 new words—and not everybody’s happy about it. Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Pumpkin Spice Linguistics
What the words “pumpkin spice” teach us about language change and indigenous history
Learning a second language can teach you to distinguish colors you don’t have in your first language
Also this week: Gesture may have been the origin of language + A new mind-reading AI can turn imagined speech into words. Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Current Linguistics
An experiment with the Aboriginal language Murrinhpatha suggests language influences perception
Also this week: Why all languages have words for ‘this’ and ‘that’ + Antarctic leopard seal ‘songs’ are surprisingly similar to nursey rhymes. Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Current Linguistics
Researchers uncover the origins of the Uralic language family
Also this week: Today is National Navajo Code Talkers Day! And the K-pop band is making Korean Sign Language famous
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Revitalizing a dormant language from 80-year-old manuscripts
How archival manuscripts are helping revitalize the Chitimacha language of Louisiana
Current Linguistics
A mysterious pre-Islamic script from Oman has been deciphered, while AI helps historians complete damaged Latin texts
Also this week: Does your native language affect how you feel pain? And did language evolve because of tools or baby talk? Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
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What to do when someone corrects your pronunciation
Some strategies for educating people about linguistics
Current Linguistics
The last native speaker of Caddo dies at age 95
Also this week: The long-lost Chinese typewriter that changed modern computing, plus why AI doesn’t work in bars. Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
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How are new languages created? The linguistics of “The Iron Dreamers”, Part 4
Pidgins, creoles, and mixed languages
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Are some languages more complex than others? The linguistics of “The Iron Dreamers”, Part 3
Do languages get simpler over time? Could they get more complex?
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Are we stuck with the same grammar for life? The linguistics of “The Iron Dreamers”, Part 2
How does your grammar change over the course of your lifetime?
Newsletter
Why do languages change? The linguistics of “The Iron Dreamers”, Part 1
Could a language stay frozen in time?
Current Linguistics
Who are better programmers—language nerds or math geeks? Can we identify extroverts by the language they use? Did the Huns speak a Yeniseian language?
Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.
Current Linguistics
Multilinguals may be more likely to take a vaccine if they read about it in English: Words shape how we process feelings and make decisions
Plus, can AI decode dead languages? And how do linguists reconstruct dead languages without AI? Here’s what happened this week in language and linguistics.