18th century

The People Who Became Words: A Guide to Eponyms

From 'boycott' to 'sandwich', our language is full of words that were once people's names. This fascinating guide to eponyms…

2 weeks ago

The Copiale Cipher: A Society’s Secret Rituals

For over 250 years, the Copiale Cipher baffled historians with its mix of abstract symbols and Roman letters. When linguists…

2 weeks ago

Jefferson’s Wheel Cipher: A Mechanical Verb

Thomas Jefferson's wheel cipher was more than just a spy gadget; it was a physical algorithm, a "mechanical verb" that…

2 weeks ago

The First Language Ban: The Story of the Acadian Expulsion

The Acadian Expulsion of 1755 was far more than a military maneuver; it was one of North America's first major…

2 weeks ago

The Birth of a Creole: The Case of Haitian Creole

How is a new language born? We trace the fascinating genesis of Haitian Creole, showing how elements of French vocabulary…

2 weeks ago

Why is ‘You Guys’ a Pronoun Now?

Ever wonder how 'you guys' became the go-to way to address a group, even a group of women? This phrase…

3 weeks ago

The Mechanical Mouth: A History of Speech Synthesis

From the bellows-powered talking heads of the 18th century to the neural networks that voice our smart assistants, the quest…

3 weeks ago

Waking a Sleeping Language: The Myaamia Story

What happens when a language’s last fluent speaker passes away? For the Myaamia people, this was not an ending but…

3 weeks ago

The Dutch Door: Japan’s Hidden Language Bridge

For over two centuries, Japan was sealed from the world. Yet, on the tiny island of Dejima, a single language—Dutch—became…

3 weeks ago

Russenorsk: The Lost Arctic Pidgin

For 150 years, Russian fishermen and Norwegian merchants in the Arctic communicated in a unique pidgin language: Russenorsk. This fascinating…

3 weeks ago

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