Explore 149 Linguistics Collections - Atlas Obscura
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The community's welcome sign.
linguistics

Millennial Aboriginal Australians Have Developed Their Own Language

Spoken by Warlpiri under 35, it emerged from code-switching in one remote community.
Evan Nicole Brown October 11, 2018
linguistics

How the English Failed to Stamp Out the Scots Language

Against all odds, 28 percent of Scottish people still use it.
Dan Nosowitz September 28, 2018
A pitched sea battle during the Anglo-Dutch Wars.
restaurants

The Warlike Origins of 'Going Dutch'

The term for splitting the bill has its roots in a bitter international rivalry.
Anne Ewbank September 25, 2018
food

This Language Is Only Used When Collecting Nuts in New Guinea

Pandanus talk is believed to shoo away spirits and keep the harvest from harm.
Angela Chen July 19, 2018
A deaf girl using Nicaraguan Sign Language at the Esquelitas de Bluefields, Managua, Nicaragua, 1999.
language

How Deaf Children in Nicaragua Created a New Language

It happened on the playground.
Shoshi Parks July 13, 2018
The plaque.
New Orleans, Louisiana

'Birthplace of Dixie' Plaque

The South's nickname was supposedly born at a former bank in New Orleans' French Quarter.
Taipei, Taiwan

Rixing Type Foundry

Taiwan's last Chinese character letterpress preserves the dying art of Chinese character mold making.
Singlish is the result of the country's English, Chinese, Malaysian, and Indian influences.
linguistics

The Government Campaign to Get Rid of Singapore's Unofficial Language

Singlish, a creole, is spoken all over the country, but politicians want citizens to "speak good English."
Dan Nosowitz June 26, 2018
Women of Jad tribe spinning wool in Dunda village, Uttarakhand, India.*
language

How to Count Every Language in India

There are at least 780.
Sunaina Kumar June 22, 2018
Jagannath Temple.
Puri, India

Jagannath Temple

This 11th-century temple gave rise to the word "juggernaut," as well as some mysteries that defy scientific explanation.
Trevin Garcia analyzes an interview.
immigration

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
linguistics

Where the 'No Ending a Sentence With a Preposition' Rule Comes From

It all goes back to 17th-century England and a fusspot named John Dryden.
Dan Nosowitz June 12, 2018
Cherry pie <em>à la mode</em>.
restaurants

'À La Mode' Is a Lonely Survivor of a French Culinary Code

In America, à la Nesselrode and à la Maryland are à la gone.
Anne Ewbank April 24, 2018
That's one cracked nut.
food

Why Are Bananas, Nuts, and Crackers the Only Foods That Say 'Crazy'?

An investigation into how three snacks became associated with madness.
Dan Nosowitz April 13, 2018
music

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
The line in the sand.
San Antonio, Texas

Alamo Line in the Sand

Legend has it the commander of the defenders drew a fateful line in the dirt with his sword just before the final battle.
Welp.
sacred spaces

The Long Linguistic Journey to 'Dagnabbit'

This piece of pseudo-profanity is what's known as a taboo deformation—a word we say when we don't want to say the word.
Dan Nosowitz March 14, 2018
Thousands of years ago, Aboriginal people followed water sources across the country, bringing their languages with them.
news

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