Sociolinguistics

The French R: An Aristocratic Sound?

The guttural French "R" is one of the most iconic sounds in the world, but it's a surprisingly recent development.…

1 week ago

The Social Meaning of H-Dropping

H-dropping, the act of saying "'ouse" instead of "house", is far more than a simple pronunciation quirk. This feature of…

1 week ago

The Australian Kriol Language

** Did you know Australia's largest Indigenous language, by number of speakers, is an English-based creole? Move beyond pidgins to…

1 week ago

The Hyperforeignism Trap

Ever wondered why some people say "mojito" with a French 'zh' sound or put on a fake accent for "foyer"?…

1 week ago

Endangered Slavic Languages You Can Help Save

Beyond the major Slavic languages like Russian and Polish lie hidden linguistic gems on the brink of extinction. Discover the…

1 week ago

Why South Slavic Languages Are Drifting Apart

Once considered a single language called Serbo-Croatian, the languages of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, and Montenegro are now actively drifting apart.…

1 week ago

Can Slavic Speakers Understand Each Other?

Can a Pole successfully order a beer in Slovakia? We explore the fascinating world of Slavic mutual intelligibility, testing the…

1 week ago

Cyrillic vs Latin: The Great Slavic Alphabet Divide

Why do Polish and Russian look so different despite both being Slavic languages? The answer lies not just in linguistics,…

1 week ago

The Honorifics Maze: -san, -chan, -kun, and -sama

Calling your boss 'Tanaka-chan' could get you fired. In Japan, the small suffix you add to a name isn't just…

1 week ago

How to Use ‘Desu’ and ‘Masu’ (And When to Drop Them)

The polite endings '-desu' and '-masu' are keystones of beginner Japanese, but true fluency comes from knowing when to drop…

1 week ago

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