Clik here to view.
“Suffix” or “Ending”—Clarifying the Terminology
A reader of my earlier post “Some Observations on Morphophonological Adaptation of English-derived Loanwords in Russian Slang” pointed out that my use of the term “suffix” for the plural marker in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Are We “At the Origin of Language Structure”?—Another Blooper-Riddled Article...
[Thanks to George Walkden for drawing my attention to the article discussed below and for a helpful discussion of some of its shortcomings.] A recent article in Science Daily describes the research...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Is “Huh?” a Universal Word?—And Why Is It Important?
[This post was originally published in November 2013] Last week I was contacted by the producers of the AirTalk radio based in Los Angeles and asked to discuss the article on the universality of “Huh?”...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Are the Black Jews Jewish?
[A recent discussion of the “Lost Tribes” prompted me to repost this piece below, originally published on GeoCurrents in July 2012] The South African University of KwaZulu-Natal has recently hosted a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Jews in India
[This post was originally published in July 2012] My previous post discussed African groups claiming Jewish descent; in this post we consider Jewish groups from India, home to five Jewish groups of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Is It Spanish Pronunciation “As It Is Meant To Be”?
[Thanks to David Benkof for bringing this issue to my attention and for the great discussion that ensued.] A recent New York Times article titled “Arizona News Anchor Is Drawn Into Debate on Her...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Slavs and Their Languages—Reconciling Genetics and Linguistic Findings
[Thanks to Martin Lewis for helpful discussions, for crafting the passages from our book cited below, and for excellent editorial comments on earlier drafts of this post.] A recent article by a team...
View ArticleClik here to view.
On “Passive Aggressive” and Other Wrong-Headed Advice of Strunk & White’s...
This post is prompted by a recent Facebook discussion about the “50 Years of Stupid Grammar Advice” article, published by Geoffrey K. Pullum in The Chronicle of Higher Education in April 2009. Although...
View ArticleClik here to view.
On the Basques, Their Genes, Their Language, and What They Mean for the...
On September 7, 2015, Michael Balter published an article in the Science Magazine discussing the recent research into the genetic heritage and language of the Basque people, particularly the study by a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
What Is a Synthetic Language?
The following is a question I have recently been asked by my former student and Facebook friend, David Benkof: “what’s a synthetic language? How synthetic is Hebrew? Esperanto? Latvian?” As noted in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Some Thoughts on Why Participles Express Urgency?
A recent LanguageLog post by Mark Liberman about a Doonesbury cartoon made me wonder about the import of different English verb forms. The first two and last two panels of the cartoon are reproduced...
View ArticleClik here to view.
On God, Politeness, and the T-V Distinction
This is another post inspired by a question from (and discussion with) David Benkof, who asks about the following “intriguing conundrum for the High Holidays”, when (religious) Jews are thinking “about...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Count Sollogub on the 1824 flood in St. Petersburg
[Note: the following is primarily for the benefit of the students in my current courses.] From the Memoirs of Count Vladimir Sollogub, on the 1824 flood in St. Petersburg [translation mine]: “And I...
View ArticleClik here to view.
“Taller Than I” or “Taller Than Me”?
This post is inspired by a question from my Facebook friend Ellen Jovin. She writes: “Dear native English speakers, tell me truly: Could you say “He is taller than I” and feel totally comfortable and...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Introducing Linguisticator, a Language Learning Blog
Having often complained about online articles that cover language-related matters very poorly, I find it a pleasure to find colleagues who run good language-themed blogs. One example is the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Meeting Darwin’s Last Challenge: Matching Genes, Languages, and Geography...
[Note: this is the first post of a three-part mini-series on this issue of genes, languages, and geography.] In The Origin of Species, Charles Darwin conjectured that “the cultural transmission and...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Meeting Darwin’s Last Challenge: Matching Genes, Languages, and Geography...
In the previous post, I began to analyze Svetlana Burlak’s critique of Longobardi et al. (2015), posted on Генофонд.рф website. As I pointed out, the idea that grammar is a better indicator of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Meeting Darwin’s Last Challenge: Matching Genes, Languages, and Geography...
In my previous posts (see here and here), I have analyzed Svetlana Burlak’s critique of Longobardi et al. (2015), posted on the Генофонд.рф website. The second critical response posted there is by...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Reconstructing the Lifestyles of Three Pre-Historic Amazonian Tribes
[Note: this post is aimed mostly at the students in my current class, “The Science of the Deep Human Past: Linguistics, Genetics and Archeology”, but comments from other readers are very welcome as...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Using Grammar to Identify Language Relatedness
[Note: This post is aimed mostly at my current students, but comments from other readers are welcome as well. It is in a way a “prequel” to the mini-series, starting here.] Most textbook that discuss...
View Article