Category: Linguistics

  • Up with Uptalking? How Language Marks Shifts in Generations

    “Recognize that nothing is new, everything is changing, and that we need to wake up to a new form of English that we ourselves may not share but that can be as creative, as poetic and as imaginative as any that we’ve had in our lifetime.” Seth Lerer, Distinguished Professor of Literature and Dean Emeritus […]

  • Building Linguistic Knowledge: What You Can Pick Up Just by Listening

    What does it mean to know a language? Knowing a language is a continuum. On one end, there’s explicit knowledge – knowing what words and phrases mean and using the language to communicate and talk to one another. On the other end, there’s implicit knowledge, which is typically where children begin and involves understanding what […]

  • Immersive Languages

    It’s a misuse of terms to say that we have a natural language; languages are arbitrary and conventions of peoples by institution. – François Rabelais Constructed languages, or conlangs, are popular features of many science fiction and fantasy tales. Examples include Barsoomian (Edgar Rice Burrough’s John Carter series), Elvish and Khuzdul (Tolkien’s Lord of the […]