229 Items Tagged

Language

Trevin Garcia analyzes an interview.

A New Accent Is Developing in Southwest Kansas

The diverse young people of the town of Liberal are coming up with their own way to talk.

Cara Giaimo June 15, 2018

Soda jerks served sundaes and malts in white caps and jackets.

The Lost Lingo of New York City’s Soda Jerks

Anyone for a "glob"?

Natasha Frost June 1, 2018

Permanently Closed

Twentynine Palms, California

The Love Signs of Twentynine Palms

In California, colorful roadside signs remind us all that love transcends borders.

The cover of the Voyager Golden Record. Two of these are currently hurtling through space aboard probes, ready to be found by aliens.

space exploration

Aliens Might Never Appreciate How Cool Voyager's Golden Record Is

If they find it, they may just be confused.

Cara Giaimo June 1, 2018

Inscription above the entrance to the courthouse.

Old Perry County Courthouse

The nearly 200-year-old building displays a perplexing grammatical error.

Istanbul, Turkey

Viking Runes at Hagia Sophia

A small etching on the white marble parapet was written in runic script by a Viking mercenary.

Chinese Community Bulletin Board

Seattle, Washington

Chinese Community Bulletin Board

In the absence of a Chinese-language newspaper, for years the community posted daily updates on this simple bulletin board.

Allen Ginsberg chants in London. Although his reading displays many of the technical attributes of "Poet Voice," it generally doesn't come across that way to listeners.

An Algorithmic Investigation of the Highfalutin 'Poet Voice'

New research suggests that the affected reading style consists of a particular set of attributes.

Cara Giaimo May 1, 2018

A Reprise for a 19th-Century Language Based on Music

A French music teacher spent more than three decades creating Solresol. After he died in 1862, it was largely forgotten.

Jacquelyn Thayer April 12, 2018

Thomas Edison and his early phonograph, circa 1877.

Thomas Edison Was an Early Adopter of the Word ‘Bug’

In an 1878 letter, he uses the term to refer to a technological glitch.

Sarah Laskow March 16, 2018

Thousands of years ago, Aboriginal people followed water sources across the country, bringing their languages with them.

Climate Change May Have Helped Spread a Language Family Across Australia

When food and water were in short supply, people moved, taking their languages with them.

Natasha Frost March 13, 2018

The North Atlantic right whale has predictable movement patterns, and sometimes swims close to shore, which can help researchers study it.

How Whale Calls Change Over Time

They start out babbling, and get a lot more eloquent. Sound familiar?

Jessica Leigh Hester February 27, 2018

Researchers studying language in northern Peninsular Malaysia discovered a new language.

Found: An Unknown Language Spoken in a Single Malaysian Village

It has no words for ownership and lots of ways to talk about sharing.

Vittoria Traverso February 6, 2018

A young man bursting out into laughter.

Do We Code-Switch Our Laughter?

Laughing is not only contagious, but also contextual.

Christina Ayele Djossa January 26, 2018

Adriano Celentano performing in 1970.

The Deep Roots of an Italian Song That Sounds Like English—But Is Just Nonsense

In 1972, fascination with American culture spurred an Italian showman to revive a medieval comic tradition.

Vittoria Traverso March 31, 2023

Menu translations often go awry.

Why Menu Translations Go Terribly Wrong

Toward a grand unified theory of hilarious and odd foreign-language menus.

Emily Monaco January 24, 2018

France's language police want "le smartphone" eradicated from the spoken and written word.

France's Ongoing Quest to Crush English Loanwords

Saying "adieu" to "le smartphone."

Natasha Frost January 15, 2018

This Viking comb had the word "comb" inscribed on it.

Found: A Viking Comb That Says 'Comb'

It is helping researchers understand runic inscriptions, so maybe we should all start labeling our stuff.

Vittoria Traverso January 15, 2018