Historical and comparative linguistics Books

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Book SynopsisDid you know that an 'astronaut' is literally a 'star sailor,' that a thesaurus is, in fact, a 'treasure  trove' of words, and that someone who is 'sinister' is actually just 'left-handed'?    Have you ever wondered why English isn't considered a Romance language if 60% of our  words are Latin-derived?    Did Shakespeare really invent 1,700 words, and if not, why the heck do we say that he did?    Why is the English language stuffed with so many synonyms? Let's be real: English can seem pretty bonkers. And, well, sometimes it is. But through thorough thought and a pinch of curiosity, method can be found within the madness of our modern tongue-even within the disparate pronunciation of the words 'through,' 'thorough,' and 'thought.'     Derived from Germanic, Romance, Hellenic, Semitic, African and Native American languages, English contains multitudes. It has been (and continues to be) transformed by war and conquest, art and literature, science and technology, love and hate, wit and whim.     Useless Etymology takes readers on a time-traveling adventure to unlock the beauty, wonder, and absurdity within our everyday words, how they came to be, and the unexpected ways their origins weave a global, cross-cultural labyrinth of meaning. Filled with fun facts and delightful discoveries, this is an enlightening read for anyone who wants to know more about why the English language works the way that it does.

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Book SynopsisWhether we like it or not, the AI revolution is coming to education. In Brave New Words, Salman Khan, the visionary behind Khan Academy, explores how artificial intelligence and GPT technology will transform learning, offering a roadmap for teachers, parents, and students to navigate this exciting new world.

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Book SynopsisLyle Campbell presents an accessible, hands-on introduction to historical linguistics. The fourth edition has a lucid and engaging style, expert guidance and comprehensive coverage, making it ideal for students coming to historical linguistics for the first time.

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Book SynopsisThis dictionary is an invaluable reference for anyone with an interest in the earliest form of the English language (i.e. the form of English spoken from around 700 AD until 1100 AD). Includes listings from Old English to Modern English (over 5,500 entries) and from Modern English to Old English (over 3,900 entries), along with a grammar section, a list of place names in Old English, numbers and the calendar, and the likely pronunciation of Old English words.Table of ContentsPreface to 2nd edition Abbreviations used in this dictionary The Alphabet Pronunciation Relation to other languages Grammar Nouns Adjectives Adverbs Pronouns Interrogative pronouns: hwa ('who')/hwaet ('what') Hwaether ('which of two') Hwilc ('which') 'The'/'that' 'This' Strong verbs Weak verbs Preterite-present verbs i-mutation Bibliography Place names Britain Countries and Continents Cardinal numbers and the calendar AEnglisc - English English - AEnglisc

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Book SynopsisAn entertaining collection of strange, delightful and unexpectedly apt words from the origins of English, which illuminates the lives, beliefs and habits of our linguistic ancestors. 'A marvelous book' Neil Gaiman 'Wonderful' - Tom Holland 'A lovely, lovely read' - Lucy Mangan 'Splendid' - David Crystal 'Thorough, entertaining, and absolutely fascinating.' Paul Anthony Jones, Haggard Hawks In this beautiful little book, Hana Videen has gathered gems of words together to create a glorious trove and illuminate the lives, beliefs and habits of our linguistic ancestors. We discover a world where choking on a bit of bread might prove your guilt, where fiend-ship was as likely as friend-ship, and you might grow up to be a laughter-smith. These are the magical roots of our own language: you'll never see English in the same way again.Trade ReviewA wonderful book heaving with linguistic treasure, a joyfully clever exploration of early medieval life. -- Edward Brooke-Hitching author * The Madman's Library *Wonderful -- Tom HollandA lovely, lovely read * Lucy Mangan *Splendid -- David CrystalThorough, entertaining, and absolutely fascinating. -- Paul Anthony Jones * Haggard Hawks *Eminently giftable ... A book to be dipped in and out of for the riddles and enjoyable factoids -- James Marriott * The Times *Splendid ... It is the perfect way to be introduced to Old English. There is insight on every page, in a beautifully clear and down to-earth style, with lovely humorous asides. -- David CrystalA rich meditation on words, a thoughtful cultural history and a delicious box of delights to dip into during stolen moments. I loved this book-and learnt more from it than from any number of solemn language primers. Hana Videen has created a marvel. -- Nicola Griffith, author of 'Hild'A lively linguistic history * BBC History Magazine *Brilliant. So rich with detail. If you're at all interested in Old English you'll love it. -- History Today * Kate Wiles, senior editor *Thorough, entertaining, and absolutely fascinating. If you're interested in Old English (and for that matter, even if you're not!) it's an absolute treat. -- Paul Anthony Jones * Haggard Hawks *A wonderful book that blends linguistics with a survey of everyday life in early Medieval England. If you want to know why music was known as dream-craeft, what was meant by sawel-dreor - 'soul blood' - or the origins of our days of the week, then this is for you. It constitutes a veritable leornung-hus, or 'learning house'' -- Tom Holland * BBC History Magazine *Delightful ... [Videen's] etymological journeys [are] full of satisfying twists ... the book is released in time for Christmas wassailing, and would make a classy gift to the commonly word-drunk ... it's a pleasure just to be reminded of [early Medieval people's] world-craft. -- Steven Poole * Guardian *A treasure trove of forgotten words, their meanings and origins, written with insight and humour, and beautifully designed -- Marshall JuliusWritten in a conversational style that playfully uncovers the meaning of words and their cultural context, [Wordhord] will appeal to all lovers of language and ... serve as an excellent companion to students of Old English literature. Videen unlocks a treasure chest of ancient English ... the result is an accessible, erudite study -- Outstanding Academic Title of the Year * Choice *This book is a treasure trove... [Videen] is a stunning and gifted word detective and writes of her investigations with nimble prose.... At the end [of The Wordhord] you feel the way that you feel when you come to the end of a Sherlock Holmes tale. * Leaf by Leaf *

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Book SynopsisAlan Connor has had a column about words in the Guardian since 2011. His comedy writing includes Charlie Brooker's Wipe programmes and Have I Got News For You. His previous books have dealt with why we enjoy quiz questions and what life is like in different areas of the Shipping Forecast. His favourite kind of rain is a fine, misty Scottish smirr.

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Book SynopsisA New Yorker Best Book of 2022 A Globe & Mail Book of the Year "A stimulating work on the politics of language." LA Review of Books As globalisation continues languages are disappearing faster than ever, leaving our planet’s linguistic diversity leaping towards extinction. The science of how languages are acquired is becoming more advanced and the internet is bringing us new ways of teaching the next generation, however it is increasingly challenging for minority languages to survive in the face of a handful of hegemonic ‘super-tongues’. In Speak Not, James Griffiths reports from the frontlines of the battle to preserve minority languages, from his native Wales, Hawaii and indigenous American nations, to southern China and Hong Kong. He explores the revival of the Welsh language as a blueprint for how to ensure new generations are not robbed of their linguistic heritage, outlines how loss of indigenous languages is the direct result of colonialism and globalisation and examines how technology is both hindering and aiding the fight to prevent linguistic extinction. Introducing readers to compelling characters and examining how indigenous communities are fighting for their languages, Griffiths ultimately explores how languages hang on, what happens when they don’t, and how indigenous tongues can be preserved and brought back from the brink.Trade ReviewThis history of endangered languages assesses the political causes of their precariousness. * The New Yorker *A welcome addition to critiques of empire and studies of language and politics. Part history, part memoir, part policy critique, the volume succeeds at telling a universal tale through particular stories, including characters who remind us that the languages we speak – and speak not – are the worlds in which we live, and that such worlds are worth fighting for. -- David Moscrop * The Globe & Mail *Speak Not is an astute, well-researched, and often scholarly meditation on the forces that drive marginal languages out of existence in favor of dominant metropolitan tongues ... [a] stimulating work on the politics of language. -- Oliver Farry * LA Review of Books *A lucid and timely account of languages under threat around the world… illuminating in the extreme. -- Kang Hyun-kyung * The Korea Times *Griffiths is spot on: the survival of many languages—and perhaps the identities that go with them—depends on politics. * Asian Review of Books *Speak Not teases out both differences and similarities between [Griffiths’] examples, be that in the racial dimension or level of state violence in their oppression, with both sensitivity and passion. * Buzz *As languages throughout the world continue to disappear at an alarming rate, James Griffiths' book could not be more relevant. Focusing mainly on the historical trajectories of Welsh, Hawaiian and Cantonese, Griffiths chronicles the contentious and often bloody struggles faced by these languages, weaving the strands of history, culture and linguistics into a fascinating and highly readable narrative. Languages die for many reasons, but the book's central message is that language demise is not merely the natural consequence of modernization and mass media, but is often the result of a calculated authoritarian strategy that sees a common language as a guarantor of political unity. Speak Not is not merely a lament at the loss of the planet's linguistic diversity, but is also a positive record of how the courage and perseverance of beleaguered language communities can preserve and even revive their native tongues. * David Moser, author of "A Billion Voices: China's Search for a Common Language" *Speak Not is a beautifully narrated and intensely smart global history of how languages are destroyed. From Hong Kong to Wales, Hawaii to South Africa, Griffiths artfully guides us through intimate stories of people fighting over decades, often in vain, to protect their linguistic heritage and identities, stories that, when taken together, reveal an oft-unexplored aspect of the "disasters wrought" by colonialism, nationalism, and global inequality. Yet within Griffiths powerful critique of language destruction is a story of hope: a glimpse into a world in which language revitalization is possible. * Dr. Gina Anne Tam, Trinity University, San Antonio, USA *This commendable undertaking adds to the literature highlighting the constitutive role that centuries of imperial rule have played in the modern world. ... Speak not ends with a powerful call to action. * International Affairs *Table of ContentsEPIGRAPH INTRODUCTION PART ONE: WELSH 1. Blue Books 2. Fire and Fury 3. Signs of Change 4. Bilingual Nation INTERLUDE: AFRI-CAN’T PART TWO: HAWAIIAN 5. The Princess Who Was Promised 6. Sandwiched Islands 7. I Mua Kamehameha 8. Ke Ea Hawaii 9. Road Closed Due to Desecration INTERLUDE: THE OLD, NEW TONGUE PART THREE: CANTONESE 10. Dialectics 11. A Chinese Alphabet 12. Common Tongue 13. ‘Cantonese Gives You Nasal Cancer’ 14. Sounds of Separatism 15. Language Plateau EPILOGUE AUTHOR’S NOTE NOTES BIBLIOGRAPHY INDEX

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Book SynopsisA History of the Chinese Language provides a comprehensive introduction to the historical development of the Chinese language from its Proto-Sino-Tibetan roots in prehistoric times to Modern Standard Chinese. Taking a highly accessible and balanced approach, it presents a chronological survey of the various stages of the Chinese language, covering key aspects such as phonology, syntax, and semantics.The second edition presents a revised and updated version that reflects recent scholarship in Chinese historical linguistics and new developments in related disciplines. Features include: Coverage of the major historical stages in Chinese language development, such as Old Chinese, Middle Chinese, Early Modern Chinese, and Modern Standard Chinese. Treatment of core linguistic aspects of the Chinese language, including phonological changes, grammatical development, lexical evolution, vernacular writing, the Chinese writing system, and Chinese dialects. Inclusion of authentic Chinese texts throughout the book, presented within a rigorous framework of linguistic analysis to help students to build up critical and evaluative skills and acquire valuable cultural knowledge. Integration of materials from different disciplines, such as archaeology, genetics, history, and sociolinguistics, to highlight the cultural and social background of each period of the language. Written by a highly experienced instructor, A History of the Chinese Language will be an essential resource for students of Chinese language and linguistics and for anyone interested in the history and culture of China.Trade ReviewOne of the most thorough works on the history and evolution of the Chinese language, Dong’s History of the Chinese Language is a must for anyone studying any form of the language. Covering a range of topics in historical and contemporary linguistics, Dong deftly explains even the most complex linguistic theory in readily accessible ways and has something for anyone from a seasoned linguist to a casual learner.-- Dr. Justin Winslett, The University of SheffieldThis 2nd edition preserves the previous edition’s success in condensing the vast landscape of the historical development of Chinese languages into a brief, but comprehensive single volume. Reflecting on recent scholarship and new developments in the field, it carefully synthesizes Chinese linguistic facts, non-controversial research accomplishments, and fundamental facts about the history of the Chinese language, woven together with captivating stories and legends. It lays a solid foundation for readers and equips them for further exploration of the field, while proving to be a fascinating, engaging, and absorbing read in itself.-- Song Jiang, Associate Professor, The University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, USATable of ContentsTable of contentsPreface to the second editionList of tablesList of figuresList of syntax labelsChapter 1 Overview1.1 What is Chinese historical linguistics?1.2 Terminological clarification1.3 Periodization of the Chinese languageChapter 2 Prehistory 2.1 Establishing linguistic genetic relationships 2.2 The Sino-Tibetan languages 2.3 How old is the Sino-Tibetan language family?2.4 Linguistic properties of Proto-Sino-TibetanChapter 3 Old Chinese: The Elegant Speech3.1 Evidence of sound change3.2 Syllable structure of Chinese3.3 Rhyme groups of Old Chinese3.4 Initials of Old Chinese3.5 Consonant clusters3.6 Methodology of Old Chinese reconstruction 3.7 Tones in Old Chinese3.8 A reconstructed system of Old ChineseChapter 4 Middle Chinese: The Poetic Language4.1 The rhyme dictionary Qièyùn4.2 The fǎnqiè method4.3 Structure of the Guǎngyùn4.4 Rhyme tables4.5 The linking method for analyzing the Guǎngyùn4.6 The comparative reconstruction method4.7 The notion of děng ("division, grade") 4.8 A reconstructed system of Middle ChineseChapter 5 Old Mandarin of Yuan Dynasty Dramas5.1 The rhyme book Zhōngyuán Yīnyùn5.2 Categories of initials and finals in Old Mandarin5.3 Reconstruction of Old Mandarin initials and finals5.4 Tonal developmentChapter 6 Classical Chinese Grammar6.1 What is Classical Chinese?6.2 Morphology 6.3 Word classes 6.4 Basic word order 6.5 Special grammatical constructions Chapter 7 Vernacular Writing7.1 Diglossia7.2 Sources of vernacular writing7.3 Morphological developments7.4 Word classes in the vernacular 7.5 Word order in the post-classical era7.6 Syntactic changes Chapter 8 Lexical and Semantic Changes8.1 Extension 8.2 Narrowing8.3 Shifting of word meaning8.4 Substitution of lexical items8.5 Mixed changes 8.6 Euphemism and taboos in lexical changes 8.7 Loanwords and calques8.8 Clues to meaning change in Chinese charactersChapter 9 Formation of Modern Standard Chinese9.1 Origin of the national language9.2 The modern phonology system9.3 Morphological properties9.4 Word classes and cross-category flexibility9.5 Typical word order 9.6 Aspect markers 9.7 Current uses of special grammatical constructions9.8 Changes in the modern lexicon Chapter 10 Modern Chinese Dialects10.1 Formation of Chinese dialects10.2 Classification of Chinese dialects10.3 Mandarin dialects10.4 The Wu dialects10.5 The Xiang dialects 10.6 The Gan dialects10.7 The Kejia dialects10.8 The Yue dialects10.9 The Min dialects10.10 Influences of the national language on dialectsChapter 11 The Chinese Writing System11.1 Origin of Chinese characters11.2 Development of the writing system11.3 Six types of characters in the liùshū system11.4 Characters in vernacular writing and dialects11.5 Simplification of Chinese characters11.6 Debates about the nature of Chinese writingReferencesAppendix I: Major Chronological Divisions of Chinese HistoryAppendix II: Articulatory Phonetics and IPAAppendix III: Chinese Pīnyīn Pronunciation GuideAppendix IV: Correspondence Charts of Pīnyīn and IPA SymbolsIndex

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Book SynopsisFrom one of the country?s leading Latinists, this reader is the perfect complement to any Latin program, and the first collection of entirely authentic classical Latin texts that beginning students, from the very first day of their introduction to Latin, can read and enjoy. Beginning with simple graffiti,Scribblers, Sculptors, and Scribesmoves toward longer inscriptions and literary texts as students progress. Designed to accompany the bestsellingWheelock?scurriculum, its 40 chapters are linked with the 40 chapters ofWheelock?s Latin, but the book?s readings and design features make it suitable for use alongside any introductory college or high-school Latin textbook. Packed with hundreds of actual Latin inscriptions, proverbs, and texts, this outstanding textbook also includes dozens of photos and illustrations, maps, discussion and comprehension questions, grammar capsules, a Latin?English vocabulary section, a summary of forms, and much more.

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Book SynopsisEssential study guides for the future linguist. Language Change is an introduction to how English has developed, grown and changed through history. It is suitable for students at advanced level and beyond. Written with input from the Cambridge English Corpus, it explores the nature, origins and process of language change, as well as the attitudes towards it. Furthermore, it looks at the policies and politics behind encouraging or halting change. Using activities to help explain analysis methods, this book guides students through major modern issues and concepts. It summarises key concerns and modern findings, while providing inspiration for language investigations and non-examined assessments (NEAs) with research suggestions.Table of ContentsSeries introduction; How to use this book; Topic introduction; 1. The nature of language change; 2. The origins of English; 3. Processes of language change; 4. Attitudes to language change; 5. Global change; Ideas and answers; Transciprtion key and IPA chart; References; Glossary; Index; Acknowledgements.

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Book SynopsisHow does English work? What are the different elements? How do they all fit together?The fourth edition of this popular textbook takes the reader on a step-by-step journey through the various levels of language, covering all the linguistic frameworks in a single volume. Beginning with words as the building blocks of language, Ballard investigates their internal structure before moving on to larger and larger units, from phrases to sentences and beyond. The sound system of English is also explored in detail, from individual segments to connected speech. Lastly, some broader perspectives are offered, looking at regional, global and historical variation in English. Fully revised and refreshed, this edition includes an engaging new chapter exploring how the frameworks of the language have changed over time, from Old English to the present day, provides a selection of exercises at the end of every chapter allowing readers to consolidate and deTrade Review“This fourth edition retains the remarkably clear exposition and coverage of all the linguistic nuts and bolts a student needs to know. In addition, complementing the current chapter on present-day variation, there is a new extensive and richly illustrated chapter on the development of English. All this, coupled with new exercises and prompts to enhance the learning experience, cements Ballard’s book as the English language textbook of choice.” -- Jonathan Culpeper, University of Lancaster, UK.“Over the years, The Frameworks of English has developed into a veritable linguistic treasure trove. Kim Ballard strikes a nice balance between breadth of coverage and level of detail, making this book an essential tool for introductory courses.” -- Cristiano Broccias, University of Genoa, Italy.Table of ContentsPART I: INTRODUCTION 1. Introduction PART II: LEXICAL FRAMEWORKS 2. Word Classes 3. Word Formation PART III: GRAMMATICAL FRAMEWORKS 4. Inflections 5. Phrases 6. Clauses 7. Sentences PART IV: DISCOURSE FRAMEWORKS 8. Beyond Sentences PART V: PHONOLOGICAL FRAMEWORKS 9. Phonetics and Phonemes 10. Segmental Phonology 11. Suprasegmental Phonology PART VI: BROADER PERSPECTIVES 12. Variation in Present-day English 13. Historical English Phonetic and Other Symbols Glossary

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Book SynopsisThis book brings together 12 previously unpublished language profiles based on the original Language Assessment, Remediation and Screening Procedure (LARSP). The languages featured are: Bangla, Croatian, Colombian Spanish, Inuktitut, Norwegian, Portuguese, Russian, Slovak, Slovenian, Swahili, Tamil and Turkish. Some of these languages are included as they are likely to be encountered as home languages of clients by speech-language therapists and pathologists working in the UK, the US, Australia and elsewhere. Others are included because they are languages found where speech-language pathology services are provided, but where no grammatical profile already exists. The collection will be an invaluable resource book for speech-language pathologists who wish to analyse and assess the grammatical abilities of their clients who speak one of these languages. This new collection complements previous books in this series on the same theme and together they cover 34 languages of the world.Trade ReviewLARSP is the gift that keeps on giving for those who want to perform linguistically informed language assessments. The third installment is a welcome addition to the already existing LARSP versions, covering languages from Russian to Swahili with a truly global reach, representing different continents, and including mother tongues from different linguistic branches. * Ferenc Bunta, The University of Houston, USA *This unique book forms a significant contribution to the literature and will be appreciated by a wide readership. It is a valuable resource to clinicians, researchers and students in the field of language development and disorders. It covers various languages and children with diverse linguistic profiles. The book provides much-needed information for clinical assessment and diagnosis. * Sari Kunnari, University of Oulu, Finland *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Martin J. Ball, Paul Fletcher and David Crystal Chapter 1. Ingeborg Sophie Ribu, Hanne Gram Simonsen, Morten Aase Løver, Bror-Magnus Sviland Strand and Kristian Emil Kristoffersen: N-LARSP: A Developmental Language Profile for Norwegian Chapter 2. N. Gabriela Moffatt and Nicole Müller: Developing a Linguistic Profile for Russian Chapter 3. Svetlana Kapalková and Daniela Slančová: Language Assessment, Remediation, and Screening Procedure for Slovak-speaking Children Chapter 4. Vesna Mildner, Vesna Stojanovik and Diana Tomić: Croatian LARSP Chapter 5. Darija Skubic, Ana Praprotnik, Tamara Sevšek and Martina Ozbič, with Jerneja Novšak Brce and Damjana Kogovšek: Slovenian LARSP Chapter 6. Ana Castro, Carolina Marques and Catarina Dôro: LARSP-PE: A Developmental Language Profile for European Portuguese-speaking children Chapter 7. Maryluz Camargo-Mendoza, Ana Isabel Codesido-García and Elena Garayzábal- Heinze: CS-LARSP: Colombian Spanish Morphosyntactic Development Profile Chapter 8. Asifa Sultana, Stephanie Stokes, Thomas Klee & Paul Fletcher: Towards a Micro-profile of Bangla Verb Inflection Chapter 9. Özlem Cangökçe Yaşar and Seyhun Topbaş: Adapting LARSP to Turkish: TR-LARSP Part II Chapter 10. R. Lalitha Raja: T-LARSP: A Grammatical Profile for Tamil Chapter 11. Kamil Ud Deen: The Assessment of the Acquisition of Swahili: Towards the S-LARSP Chapter 12. Shanley E. M. Allen, Catherine B. Dench and Kerry Isakson: InuLARSP: An Adaptation of the Language Assessment, Remediation, and Screening Procedure for Inuktitut

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Book SynopsisWhy are spectacularly successful movies called blockbusters? Why does putting your best foot forward mean you hope to make a good impression? Why is rowdy and prankish behavior called horseplay and what does it have to do with the rarity of horses? Word Nerds Unite! shares 200 fascinating word meanings for fans of Wordle, Scrabble, and other word games.You''ve probably used words or phrases like these without giving them a second thought. But you''ll be surprised and interested to discover the fascinating and sometimes curious origins to these fun sayings!In Word Nerds Unite! you''ll find: 200 quirky, interesting words, phrases, and colloquial terms Backstory for these colorful sayings still used today How some of our favorite expressions have evolved through the years You''ll discover such fascinating word and phrase origins for: handwriting on the wall play for keeps

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE EASTERN EYE AWARD FOR NON-FICTION''A brilliantly enlightening book''Michael Rosen''A kaleidoscopic portrait of the UK''Irish Times''I cannot recommend it highly enough''Priscilla Morris, author of Black ButterfliesOUR NAMES OUR SO MUNDANE WE HARDLY NOTICE THEM. Yet behind each one lie countless stories: of belonging and persecution, colonialism and resistance, cultural inheritance and conflicted identity. In this intimate exploration of British multiculturalism, Sheela Banerjee traces the personal histories of friends and family through their names. Spanning centuries and continents - from west London to India, 1960s Jamaica to pre-Revolutionary Russia - What''s in a Name? is a remarkable ode to friendship and a vital celebration of Britain''s diverse history.

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Book SynopsisFound in Translation: The Unexpected Origins of Place Names unravels the tangled threads of history and etymology to uncover the strange, intriguing and enlightening stories that have shaped the names of countries and places around the world.Starting in the world's second largest country, Canada, whose name means 'the village', renowned travel writer, Duncan Madden takes us on a spellbinding tour through the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia and Oceania, visiting the weird and wonderful along the way. Learn about the Land Protected by Fire , otherwise known as Azerbaijan; drop by Hippopotamus, or Mali; and sail to the Land of Frizzy-Haired Men in Papua New Guinea.Found in Translation will entertain and inspire the culturally curious - armchair explorers and avid travellers, historians, linguists and lovers of language - painting a new perspective on the names, histories and origins of the places we live in and travel to. Visiting more than sixty countries across all six continents, Found in Translation includes the stories of Canada, USA, Mexico, Costa Rica, Cuba, Brazil, Argentina, Iceland, Ireland, UK, Germany, Russia, Italy, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Iraq, India, China, Thailand, Korea, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and many more...The foreword, written by bestselling author, explorer and photographer, Levison Wood, sets the context for this revelatory work that is part travelogue, history book and etymological reference.

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Book SynopsisWhen and why did ''thou'' disappear from Standard English? Would a Victorian Cockney have said ''observation'' or ''hobservation''? Was Jane Austen making a mistake when she wrote ''Jenny and James are walked to Charmonth this afternoon''?This superbly well-informed - and also wonderfully entertaining - history of the English language answers all these questions, showing how the many strands of English (Standard English, dialect and slang among them) developed to create the richly-varied language of today.

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Book SynopsisThis new edition of Greek: A History of the Language and its Speakers reveals the trajectory of the Greek language from the Mycenaean period of the second millennium BC to the current day.Trade Review"Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; general readers." (Choice, 1 February 2011) "…one of Horrocks' greatest achievements is the skill with which he demonstrates the special value of the history of Greek, thinking about the Greek language in terms of breadth and depth that are unusual among linguists working on Greek." (Bryn Mawr Classical Review, 9 May 2011)Table of ContentsPreface to the First Edition xii Preface to the Second Edition xv IPA Chart xvii The Greek Alphabet xviii Introduction: The Scope and Purpose of This Book 1 Part I Ancient Greek: From Mycenae to the Roman Empire 7 1 The Ancient Greek Dialects 9 1.1 The Coming of the ‘Greeks’ to Greece 9 1.2 The Earliest Records: Mycenaean Greek 10 1.3 Greek Dialect Relations and the Place of Mycenaean 13 1.4 Some Examples 24 1.4.1 Some basic dialect characteristics 24 1.4.2 West Greek 28 (a) Laconian 28 (b) Cretan 29 (c) Elean 30 (d) Phocian 31 1.4.3 Aeolic 32 (a) Boeotian 32 (b) Thessalian 33 (c) Lesbian 34 1.4.4 East Greek 36 (a) Arcadian 36 (b) Ionic 37 (c) Attic 40 2 Classical Greek: Official and Literary ‘Standards’ 43 2.1 Introduction 43 2.2 The Language of Homer and its Influence 44 2.2.1 Ionian epic 44 2.2.2 Ionian elegy and iambus 49 2.2.3 Personal lyric 50 2.2.4 Choral lyric 53 2.2.5 Athenian drama 56 2.3 Official and Literary Ionic 60 3 The Rise of Attic 67 3.1 Attic as a Literary Standard 67 3.2 ‘Great Attic’ as an Administrative Language 73 4 Greek in the Hellenistic World 79 4.1 Introduction 79 4.2 The Koine as an Extension of Great Attic 80 4.3 The Impact and Status of the Koine 83 4.4 The Fate of the Ancient Greek Dialects 84 4.4.1 Introduction 84 4.4.2 Koineization: the case of Boeotian 84 4.4.3 Doric koines: Tsakonian 87 4.5 The Koine in the Hellenistic Kingdoms 88 4.6 The Koine as an Official Language 89 4.6.1 Introduction 89 4.6.2 Macedonian Koine: the development of infinitival constructions 90 4.6.3 The articular infinitive 94 4.7 Language and Literature in the Hellenistic World: The Koine as a Literary Dialect 96 4.7.1 Introduction 96 4.7.2 Historiography: Polybius 97 4.7.3 The Koine as the language of technical prose 98 4.7.4 Reaction against the Koine: Hellenistic poetry 98 4.7.5 Reaction against the Koine: Asianism and Atticism 99 4.7.6 Popular literature: romances 100 4.7.7 Drama: the ‘new’ Attic comedy and the mime 101 4.7.8 Jewish literature: the Septuagint 106 4.8 Clitic Pronouns and the Shift Towards VS Word Order 108 4.9 Analogical Pressure on the Strong Aorist Paradigm 109 4.10 The Spoken Koine: Regional Diversity 110 4.10.1 Introduction 110 4.10.2 Egypt 111 4.10.3 Asia Minor 113 4.11 Private Inscriptions and Papyri: Some Major Trends 114 4.11.1 Introduction: datives, future periphrases, the nom-acc plural of consonant-stems 114 4.11.2 Phonological developments 117 4.11.3 Other morphological developments: partial merger of the 1st and 3rd declensions 120 4.12 Conclusion 122 5 Greek in the Roman Empire 124 5.1 Roman Domination 124 5.2 The Fate of Greek 125 5.3 The Impact of Bilingualism: Greek and Latin in Contact 126 5.4 Roman Attitudes to Greek Culture 132 5.5 Atticism and the Second Sophistic 133 5.6 Atticist Grammars and Lexica: Aelius Aristides 137 5.7 The Official Koine in the Roman Republican Period 141 5.8 Past-Tense Morphology 143 5.9 Official Writing of the Roman Imperial Period 144 5.10 ‘Colloquial’ Literature 146 5.10.1 Epictetus 146 5.10.2 The New Testament 147 5.11 Later Christian Literature: Stylistic Levels 152 5.11.1 The Apostolic Fathers 152 5.11.2 The impact of Atticism 155 5.11.3 Callinicus and Theodoret 156 6 Spoken Koine in the Roman Period 160 6.1 Introduction 160 6.2 Summary of the Principal Developments in the Vowel System 160 6.3 Some Illustrative Examples 163 6.3.1 Athenian Attic 163 6.3.2 Egyptian Koine 165 6.4 The Development of the Consonant System 170 6.5 Some Egyptian Texts 172 6.5.1 Letter 1: clitic pronouns and word order, control verbs with i{na ['ina]-complements 172 6.5.2 Letter 2: ‘short’ 2nd-declension forms, the merger of aorist and perfect 174 6.5.3 Letter 3: the decline of 3rd-declension participles 178 6.5.4 Letter 4: the decline of the dative 183 6.6 Conclusion 187 Part II Byzantium: From Constantine I to Mehmet the Conqueror 189 7 Historical Prelude 191 7.1 The Later Roman Empire 191 7.2 The Age of Transition: Ioustinianós and the Arab Conquests 194 7.3 The Middle Byzantine Period: Iconoclasm, Renaissance and Decline 197 7.4 The Late Byzantine Period: Stabilization, Defeat and Fall 200 8 Greek in the Byzantine Empire: The Major Issues 207 8.1 Introduction 207 8.2 Greek and Other Languages in the Early Byzantine Period 207 8.3 The Prestige of Greek 210 8.4 Greek in the Later Empire 212 8.4.1 Introduction 212 8.4.2 Byzantine Atticism 213 8.4.3 The first experiments with the vernacular 214 8.4.4 The vernacular literature of the 14th and 15th centuries 216 8.4.5 The romances 217 8.4.6 Other vernacular material 219 8.5 ‘The Koine’ in Byzantium 220 8.5.1 The inheritance from antiquity 220 8.5.2 Academic and ecclesiastical Greek 220 8.5.3 Official and administrative Greek 221 8.5.4 Practical writing in the middle period 222 8.5.5 Chronicles 222 8.5.6 Christian exegetical literature and hagiography 225 8.5.7 A new written standard in the later empire 226 8.6 The Balkan Sprachbund: Future Formations 227 8.7 Conclusion 229 9 Byzantine Belles Lettres 231 9.1 Introduction 231 9.2 The Early Period: Prokópios (First Half of the 6th Century) 231 9.3 The Middle Period: Michaél Psellós (1018–1078 or 1096) 233 9.4 The Modal Imperfect 237 9.5 The Late Period: Anna Komnené (1083–c.1153) 238 9.6 After the Fall: Michaél Kritóboulos (15th Century) 240 9.7 Conclusion 242 10 The Written Koine in Byzantium 244 10.1 Introduction 244 10.2 Chronicles in the Early and Middle Periods 245 10.2.1 Malálas (c.491–c.578): generics 245 10.2.2 Theophánes the Confessor (c.760–818) 251 10.3 Hagiography and Exegetical Works 253 10.3.1 Ioánnes Móschos (c.550–619) 253 10.3.2 St Germanós (c.640–733) 256 10.4 Paraenetic Literature of the Middle Period 258 10.4.1 Konstantínos VII Porphyrogénnetos (905–59) 258 10.4.2 Kekauménos (11th century) 262 10.5 The Metaphrases of the Palaiologan Period 264 10.6 Academic Greek in the Late Period: Máximos Planoúdes (c.1255–c.1305) 268 10.7 Official Greek of the Later Empire 270 10.8 Conclusion 271 11 Spoken Greek in the Byzantine Empire: The Principal Developments 273 11.1 Introduction 273 11.2 The Completion of Sound Changes Beginning in Antiquity 274 11.3 Grammatical Consequences of Aphaeresis 277 11.4 Old and New Patterns of Subordination: Clitic Pronouns and VSO Order 277 11.5 Dialect Diversity in Medieval Greek 281 11.6 Later Phonetic and Phonological Developments 281 11.7 Nominal Morphology and Syntax 284 11.7.1 The dative case, prepositional phrases 284 11.7.2 Feminine nouns of the 1st declension: paradigm standardization 285 11.7.3 Masculine nouns of the 1st declension: paradigm standardization 286 11.7.4 Interplay between the 1st and 3rd declensions: imparisyllabic paradigms 286 11.7.5 Neuters 288 11.7.6 The definite article 289 11.7.7 Adjectives 289 11.7.8 Pronouns 292 (a) Indefinite pronouns 292 (b) Interrogative pronouns 293 (c) Relative pronouns 293 (d) Demonstrative pronouns 295 (e) Personal pronouns 296 11.8 Verb Morphology and Syntax 296 11.8.1 The infinitive 296 11.8.2 Participles 297 11.8.3 Futures and conditionals, pluperfects and perfects 298 11.8.4 The spread of k-aorists: the aorist passive 302 11.8.5 Imperfective stem formation 303 (a) The fate of the -mi [-mi] verbs 303 (b) Nasal suffixes 305 (c) The suffixes -avzw [-'azo]/-ivzw [-'izo] 307 (d) The suffix -euvw [-'evo] and its influence: verbs in -ptw [-pto] 312 (e) The contract verbs 313 11.8.6 Personal endings 316 (a) Indicative and subjunctive 317 (b) Past-tense morphology: active and aorist middle/ passive; the augment 318 (c) The active paradigm: present tense 319 (d) The middle/passive paradigm: present tense 320 (e) The middle/passive paradigm: the imperfect 320 11.9 Conclusion 323 12 Texts in the ‘Vernacular’ 325 12.1 The Early and Middle Periods 325 12.1.1 Introduction 325 12.1.2 The Protobulgarian inscriptions 325 12.1.3 Acclamations: origins of the ‘political’ verse form 327 12.2 Vernacular Literature of the 12th Century 333 12.2.1 The epic of Digenés Akrítes 333 12.2.2 Ptochopródromos 337 12.3 The 14th and 15th Centuries: The Palaiologan Court and Frankish Rule 342 12.3.1 The original romances of the Palaiologan period 342 12.3.2 Greek–Romance contact: perfects/pluperfects, negative polarity, clitics 345 12.3.3 The Chronicle of the Morea 349 12.3.4 The translated romances 357 12.4 The First Dialect Literature: Cyprus and Crete 360 12.4.1 Introduction 360 12.4.2 Early dialect literature in Cyprus: Machairás’ chronicle 362 12.4.3 Early vernacular literature in Crete 366 12.5 Conclusion 368 Part III Modern Greek: From the Ottoman Empire to the European Union 371 13 Ottoman Rule and the War of Independence 373 13.1 The Early Years 373 13.2 Ottoman Decline 374 13.3 Revolution and Independence 377 14 Spoken Greek in the Ottoman Period 379 14.1 The Impact of Turkish 379 14.2 The Spoken Dialects of Modern Greek 381 14.2.1 Introduction: diversification, and the basis for a modern spoken standard 381 14.2.2 Local vernaculars in the central region; Sofianós’ grammar and the educated standard 384 14.2.3 Greek in the west: the South Italian dialects 388 14.2.4 Greek in the south and south-east: the Dodecanese, Cyprus and Crete 391 14.2.5 Greek in the east: Pontus and Cappadocia 398 14.2.6 The northern dialects 404 14.3 Popular Culture in the Turkish Period: The Folk Songs 406 15 Written Greek in the Turkish Period 413 15.1 Continuity 413 15.2 The Impact of the Enlightenment 419 15.3 Contemporary ‘Demotic’ 423 15.4 The Roots of the ‘Language Question’ 426 16 The History of the Modern Greek State 428 16.1 Irredentism: Triumph and Disaster 428 16.2 Dictatorship and War 431 16.3 Recovery, the Colonels and the Restoration of Democracy 433 17 The ‘Language Question’ and its Resolution 438 17.1 Koraís 438 17.2 The Roots of Demoticism: Solomós and the Ionian Islands 442 17.3 The Rise of Katharévousa 445 17.4 Reaction: Psycháris and the Demoticist Programme 446 17.5 The Progress of Demoticism 454 17.6 The 20th Century: Crisis and Resolution 456 17.7 Standard Modern Greek 462 17.8 A Range of Styles 466 Bibliography 471 Index 493

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Book SynopsisA labourer, journalist and a professor who lived through four successive periods of German political history from the German Empire, through the Weimar Republic and the Nazi state through to the German Democratic Republic Victor Klemperer is regarded as one of the most vivid witnesses to a tumultuous century of European history. First published in 1957, The Language of the Third Reich arose from Klemperer''s conviction that the language of the Third Reich helped to create its culture. As Klemperer writes: ''It isn''t only Nazi actions that have to vanish, but also the Nazi cast of mind, the typical Nazi way of thinking, and its breeding ground: the language of Nazism.''Trade ReviewIt is obscene, in a sense, to relate Klemperer's situation to any subsequent intellectual enquiry conducted unmolested by tyranny. But studies of language - whether social, political or aesthetic - owe him a debt. They implicitly gesture towards his act of witness, and towards others like it. * Times Higher Educational *This book is an honest narrative of hope and oppression, touching in places and well written, in an accessible translation. -- M. Aaij * CHOICE *This book is a breathtaking balancing act, by turns horrifying and heroic, saddening and sardonic [...] of major historical importance and grippingly well-written -- Philip Riley, Book Review for The International Journal of Applied LinguisticsThis important, stimulating and necessary book should be required reading for all who want to understand what politicians are doing to us today ... it is full of anecdotes and details that illustrate the effect of the changes in language ... This is a vital book. -- Eric Hester, Catholic Times, April 2007On the basis of his painstaking ethical-linguistic examinations, Klemperer is one of the most valuable witnesses to the methods of totalitarian mental corruption. The lasting message of this book is one of constant vigilance: wherever the machinery of atrocity is in motion, the misuse of language will be supporting it. -- TImes Higher Educational, 17 June 10Equal parts linguistic analysis and survivor’s memoir, Victor Klemperer’s The Language of The Third Reich (LTI) is noteworthy for its insight, intelligence, clarity, and even caustic humor … LTI is also a book that, given its author’s travails, is remarkably absent of bitterness. Though a victim, Klemperer does not write as a victim but rather as a once-captive though now-distant (even with the space of one year) observer to a language simultaneously terrifying and spellbinding. A Dresden Jew who had lived through the dark night of the Third Reich, Klemperer writes about his oppression with cool subjectivity. Yet in his cool subjectivity, Klemperer does not leave Nazism unscathed. * Rhetoric & Public Affairs *Table of ContentsHeroism (Instead of an Introduction) \ 1. LTI \ 2. Prelude \3. Distinguishing Feature: Poverty \ 4. Partenau \ 5. From the Diary of theFirst Year \ 6. The First Three Words of the Nazi Language \ 7. Aufziehen \ 8. Ten Years of Fascism \ 9.Fanatical \ 10. Autocthonous Writing \ 11. Blurring Boundaries \ 12.Punctuation \ 13. Names \ 14. Kohlenklau\ 15. Knif \ 16. On a Single Working Day \ 17. 'System' and 'Organisation' \ 18. I Believe In Him \ 19. Personal Announcementsas an LTI Revision Book \ 20. What Remains? \ 21. German Roots \ 22. A Sunny Weltanschauung (Chance Discoveries WhileReading) \ 23. If Two People Do the Same Thing... \ 24. Café Europa \ 25. TheStar \ 26. The Jewish War \ 27. The Jewish Spectacles \ 28. The Language of theVictor \ 29. Zion \ 30. The Curse of the Superlative \ 31. From the GreatMovement Forward... \ 32. Boxing \ 33. Gefolgschaft \ 34. The One Syllable \ 35.Running Hot and Cold \ 36. Putting the Theory to the Test \ ''Cos of Certain Expressions' (AnAfterword) \ Index.

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Book Synopsis'MAGIC' JO BRAND'HAPPIFYING' STEPHEN FRY'SUSIE DENT IS A NATIONAL TREASURE' RICHARD OSMANWhether it's the distress of a bad haircut (AGE-OTORI) or longing for the food someone else is eating (GROAKING), the pleasure found in other people's happiness (CONFELICITY) or the shock of jumping into icy water (CURGLAFF), there are real words to pinpoint exactly how you feel and Susie Dent, Queen of Countdown's Dictionary Corner and lexicographer extraordinaire, is going to help you find them. Here are 1001 terms everyone needs, whether it's the best kind of hug (CWTCH), the relief found in swearing (LALOCHEZIA), or the ability to endure till the end (PERTOLERANCE). It's time to rediscover the lost positives of language (and be more GORM); find out how a stork gave us the word for the love between parent and child, and who the first MAVERICK was. Packed with unexpected stories and unforgettable words, on a mission to describe the indescribable, this life-enhancing book will deepen your vocabulary as much as it extends it. Welcome to the first truly human dictionary, as idiosyncratic and unusual as you are.

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Book SynopsisRewriting Language explores how literary texts can promote more inclusive language use.

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Book SynopsisIn Pop Goes the Weasel, Albert Jack explores the strange and fascinating histories behind the nursery rhymes we thought we knew, showing that their real meanings are far from innocent.Who were Mary Quite Contrary and Georgie Porgie? How could Hey Diddle Diddle offer an essential astronomy lesson? And if Ring a Ring a Roses isn''t about catching the plague, then what is it really about? This ingenious book delves into the hidden meanings of the nursery rhymes and songs we all know so well and discovers all kinds of strange tales ranging from Viking raids to firewalking and from political rebellion to slaves being smuggled to freedom.From the grim true story behind ''Oranges and Lemons'' to the deadly secrets of Mary Quite Contrary''s garden, and from how Lucy Locket lost more than her pocket to why Humpty Dumpty wasn''t egg-shaped at all, Pop Goes the Weasel is a compendium of surprising stories you won''t be able to resist passing on to everyone Trade ReviewAn irresistible treasure-trove ... The way these gossipy little rhymes give us a snapshot of everyday life in centuries gone by is enchanting. You'll never look at nursery rhymes again in the same way * Daily Mirror *The history behind nursery rhymes is not only highly specific but often splendidly grim. This book is a reminder of the riches below the surface: characters, jokes, events and stories * The Times *

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Book SynopsisThe best introduction to word history ever published combines scholarship with readability. OED's chief etymologist shows how words originate and change. He explores the histories of place and personal names and explains how to use different kinds of evidence, historical as well as linguistic. This is a book for everyone interested in words.Trade ReviewThis is an immaculate work in every sense, proudly flying the banners of authority and of hegemony ... a galazy of fascinating examples ... a brilliant, addictive work indispensable for school and academic libraries at all levels, and for all with any interest in words and the enchanted patterns they weave. * H. G. A. Hughes, Reference Reviews *a very readable, informative, content-packed introduction for the beginner; for the initiated it provides an incentive to ponder the many open questions presented. As such it can be unreservedly recommended. * Elmar Seebold, Anglia *Our strong expectations of The Oxford Guide to Etymology are fully realized * Nicoline van der Sijs, Nederlandse Taalkunde *Very much to be welcomed * Paul T. Roberge, English Language and Linguistics *Table of ContentsAbout this book ; 1. Introduction ; 2. What is a Word? Which Words Need Etymologies? ; 3. Are Words Coherent Entities? ; 4. Word Formation ; 5. Lexical Borrowing ; 6. The Mechanisms of Borrowing ; 7. Change in Word Form ; 8. Semantic Change ; 9. Etymology and Names ; 10. Conclusion ; Glossary ; Suggested for Further Reading ; References ; General Index ; Index of Word Forms

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Book SynopsisThis book is designed to provide undergraduate students of English historical linguistics with a concise description of the language during the period 1100-1500.Table of ContentsPreface; Abbreviations; 1. Introduction; 2. What did Middle English look like?; 3. Middle English in use; 4. Spelling and sounds; 5. The lexicon; 6. Grammar; 7. Looking forward; Bibliography; Appendix of texts; Discussion of the exercises.

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Book Synopsis

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Book SynopsisFrom bodily functions to the dirtiest insults onto war and weaponry to illicit substances, this book goes where no dictionary has dared go before. It is the only adults-only etymology dictionary.

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Book Synopsis'Marvellous . . . I read it with astonished delight . . . It is equally scholarly and entertaining.' - Jan Morris 'Quirky and compelling.' - The Times Once we've learned it as children, few of us think much of the alphabet and its familiar sing-song order. And yet the order of the alphabet, that simple knowledge that we take for granted, plays a major role in our adult lives. From the school register to the telephone book, from dictionaries and encyclopaedias to library shelves, our lives are ordered from A to Z. Long before Google searches, this magical system of organization gave us the ability to sift through centuries of thought, knowledge and literature, allowing us to sort, to file, and to find the information we have, and to locate the information we need. In A Place for Everything, acclaimed historian Judith Flanders draws our attention to both the neglected ubiquity of the alphabet and the long, complex history of its rise to prominence. For, while the order of the alphabet itself became fixed very soon after letters were first invented, their ability to sort and store and organize proved far less obvious. To many of our forebears, the idea of of organizing things by the random chance of the alphabet rather than by established systems of hierarchy or typology lay somewhere between unthinkable and disrespectful.A Place for Everything fascinatingly lays out the gradual triumph of alphabetical order, from its possible earliest days as a sorting tool in the Great Library of Alexandria in the third century BCE, to its current decline in prominence in our digital age of Wikipedia and Google. Along the way, the reader is enlightened and entertained with a wonderful cast of unknown facts, characters and stories from the great collector Robert Cotton, who denominated his manuscripts with the names of the busts of the Roman emperors surmounting his book cases, to the unassuming sixteenth- century London bookseller who ushered in a revolution by listing his authors by 'sirname' first.Trade ReviewMarvellous . . . I read it with astonished delight . . . It is equally scholarly and entertaining. -- Jan MorrisQuirky and compelling . . . She is a meticulous historian with a taste for the offbeat; the story of the alphabet suits her well . . . Fascinating. -- Dan Jones * Sunday Times *A library and academic essential. -- Libby Purves * The Times *One of the many fascinations of Judith Flanders’s book is that it reveals what a weird, unlikely creation the alphabet is. -- Joe Moran * Guardian *Judith Flanders’s A Place for Everything presents itself as a history of alphabetical order, but in fact it is more than that. Rather, as the title suggests, it offers something like a general history of the various ways humans have sorted and filed the world around them – a Collison –level view of the matter, in which alphabetical order is just one system among many.’ -- Dennis Duncan * The Spectator *Judith Flanders has a knack for making odd subjects accessible . . . In A Place for Everything, the popular historian paints alphabetisation as one of our most radical acts. . . Flanders retains a sense of fun . . . finds contemporary resonance in humanity's search for order. * i *Praise for Judith Flanders' previous book, Christmas: A Biography: 'A catalogue of colourful information, and as surprising an assortment of items as any you might find heaped up under a tree.' -- Lucy Hughes-Hallett * Observer *A well-researched account. There are more footnotes here than there are presents under a Rockefeller Christmas tree. Indeed, the book is stuffed with facts – enough to satiate even the most ravenous postprandial taste for quizzing. * Sunday Times *[An] entertaining biography . . . Following the fine tradition of light entertainment Christmas books, Judith Flanders provides lots of trivia . . . However, there is much more to it than that. Flanders is a respected social historian, best known for studies on Victorian life, and the strength of this warm book lies in its quiet erudition. * The Times *Judith Flanders . . . likes Christmas (I think), but she loves reality and its awkward, amusing facts. (A previous book of hers, Inside the Victorian Home, is deep, bright and encompassing.) * New York Times *The non-fiction I most enjoyed . . . an excellent subject, carried out with exemplary care and authority. -- Philip Hensher * Spectator *

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Book Synopsis'Quite simply, and quite ridiculously, one of the funniest and most illuminating books I have ever read. I thought I was obsessive, but Keith Kahn-Harris is playing a very different sport. He really has discovered the whole world in an egg.' Simon Garfield'There is a delicious humour implicit in every page . . . [the book] is filled with a sense of wonder, gazing at languages that neither the writer nor reader understands . . . The Babel Message was such fun that I even went out and bought a Kinder Surprise Egg.' - Mark Forsyth, The SpectatorA thrilling journey deep into the heart of language, from a rather unexpected starting point.Keith Kahn-Harris is a man obsessed with something seemingly trivial - the warning message found inside Kinder Surprise eggs:WARNING, read and keep: Toy not suitable for children under 3 years. Small parts might be swallowed or inhaled.On a tiny sheet of paper, this message is translated into dozens of languages - the world boiled down to a multilingual essence. Inspired by this, the author asks: what makes 'a language'? With the help of the international community of language geeks, he shows us what the message looks like in Ancient Sumerian, Zulu, Cornish, Klingon - and many more. Along the way he considers why Hungarian writing looks angry, how to make up your own language, and the meaning of the heavy metal umlaut.Overturning the Babel myth, he argues that the messy diversity of language shouldn't be a source of conflict, but of collective wonder. This is a book about hope, a love letter to language.'This is a wonderful book. A treasure trove of mind-expanding insights into language and humanity encased in a deliciously quirky, quixotic quest. I loved it. Warning: this will keep you reading.' - Ann Morgan, author of Reading the World: Confessions of a Literary ExplorerTrade ReviewQuite simply, and quite ridiculously, one of the funniest and most illuminating books I have ever read. I thought I was obsessive, but Keith Kahn-Harris is playing a very different sport. He really has discovered the whole world in an egg. -- Simon GarfieldThere is a delicious humour implicit in every page . . . [the book] is filled with a sense of wonder, gazing at languages that neither the writer nor reader understands . . . The Babel Message was such fun that I even went out and bought a Kinder Surprise Egg. * Mark Forsyth, The Spectator *Gloriously eccentric. * The Observer *Astonishingly rich ... Kahn-Harris writes clearly and entertainingly, with a gentle, self-deprecating humour. The book is also unexpectedly profound. * Times Literary Supplement *The Babel Message is a gloriously inflected record of an obsession ... [It] manages to teach us a great deal about language - its protean energy and its slipperiness - but also makes us properly laugh (a rare Venn diagram, believe me). ... Kahn-Harris's fan-boy passion for the gorgeous surface of written language and his own skill in deploying it make the book a complete delight. -- John Mitchinson, author of The QI Book of General IgnoranceThis is a wonderful book. A treasure trove of mind-expanding insights into language and humanity encased in a deliciously quirky, quixotic quest. I loved it. Warning: this will keep you reading. -- Ann Morgan, author of Reading the World: Confessions of a Literary ExplorerI would warn everyone to read and keep this beautifully written book ... Keith explores the world of language - what it is, what it means and how we use it. Keith's precisely written prose celebrates the wonderful imprecision of language in all its glory. -- James Ward, founder of The Boring Conference and author of Adventures in Stationery: A Journey Through Your Pencil CaseIn this unlikely story of a quixotic translation, Keith Kahn-Harris illuminates how language-learning can hone our minds, strengthen our empathy, and lead us all to justice. Read this book - and immerse yourself in the raw pleasure of linguistic diversity. -- Daniel Bögre Udell, Executive Director, WikitonguesI absolutely loved the premise and execution of this book. * Coffee Time Reviews *Keith Kahn-Harris is a genial, eloquent guide, with a serious message . . . This is a book written with passion and humanity. -- Mark Glanville * Jewish Chronicle *

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Book SynopsisExploring breakthroughs in language and cognition research, Caleb Everett finds that fundamentals of human perception are culturally encoded by the words and sentences we use. The experience of time, space, color, odor, and taste is substantially influenced by language, so that basic interactions with the world vary greatly across peoples.Trade ReviewIn the Amazonian region of Brazil, where anthropologist Caleb Everett spent much of his childhood, speakers of Tupi-Kawahíb never refer to time ‘passing by.’ Indeed, the language has no word for ‘time.’ By contrast, most European languages have few abstract words for odours, whereas languages in a number of other cultures have more than a dozen. Everett’s fascinating book—based on collaboration with biologists, chemists, political scientists and engineers—ponders such differences between the world’s 7,000-plus languages. -- Andrew Robinson * Nature *An assured guide to new thinking about how language shapes the way we see the world—at a time when thousands of languages are vanishing. -- Colin Barras * New Scientist *Historically, academics have looked for commonalities among languages and focused mainly on those used by Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic (WEIRD) societies. But, Everett says, the tide is shifting…His book synthesizes his own and others’ research that brings in data from non-WEIRD languages and broadens our understanding of how words affect cognition, including how we process the concepts of time, space, color, and kinship. -- Lucy Swedberg * Harvard Business Review *Offers readers a tantalizing glimpse into the wide variety of human speech patterns evident in the world today. * Library Journal *An enlightening examination of human communication based on the findings of linguist fieldworkers—himself included—as well as researchers in areas such as cognitive psychology, data science, and respiratory medicine. * Kirkus Reviews *Everett relates complex linguistic discussions in accessible terms, and each page is full of thought-provoking insights. * Publishers Weekly (starred review) *Blending an ethnographer’s richness with an experimentalist’s clarity, Everett adroitly explains how what we’ve learned from data-driven studies of a myriad of tongues–from Amazonia and Africa to Australia and Austronesia–has dramatically shifted our understanding of the origins and nature of our species’ most salient ability: language. Far from being an isolated projection of innate psychology, languages evolve like other aspects of culture, adapting to our ecological contexts, social norms, acoustic environments, and cognitive inclinations. Languages also shape how speakers think, feel, and even perceive. With balance and breadth, this book offers an easy entry into a fascinating, though often ferocious, interdisciplinary field. -- Joe Henrich, author of The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly ProsperousA marvelous tour of all that is amazing, perplexing, satisfying, and mysterious about languages and the humans who speak them. Everett combines up-to-date analyses with vivid descriptions of the diverse tools that humans use when they speak. His book drills down into deep mysteries but does so with a light hand, leading readers from one big question to the next. An essential read for anyone who wants to understand what we now know about language and how profoundly that understanding has recently evolved. -- Christine Kenneally, author of The Invisible History of the Human Race: How DNA and History Shape Our Identities and Our FuturesDo different languages create different experiences of the world? Everett offers up a wealth of nuanced insights on the state of the science to replace both the old exoticism and the lazy skepticism. This is an overdue and fascinating book. -- Gaston Dorren, author of Babel: Around the World in Twenty LanguagesA gift for language is a large part of what makes us human, but as Everett shows, that gift manifests itself in an astonishing spectrum of ways. As previous certainties about the structure of language erode and dissolve under pressure from new discoveries, researchers in many fields are finally grasping the importance of linguistic diversity. This is a careful yet deeply provocative work. -- Mark Abley, author of Spoken Here: Travels Among Threatened LanguagesThis book resoundingly demonstrates just how different languages can be and what those divergences reveal about us as a species. Based on both cutting-edge research and the author’s own experiences in the Amazon, where he grew up and conducted fieldwork, it will appeal to anyone who is interested in the science of language. -- Nick Evans, author of Words of Wonder: Endangered Languages and What They Tell Us

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Book SynopsisFirst ever critical study of Tolkien's little-known essay, which reveals how language invention shaped the creation of Middle-earth and beyond, to George R R Martin's Game of Thrones.J.R.R. Tolkien's linguistic invention was a fundamental part of his artistic output, to the extent that later on in life he attributed the existence of his mythology to the desire to give his languages a home and peoples to speak them. As Tolkien puts it in A Secret Vice', the making of language and mythology are related functions'.In the 1930s, Tolkien composed and delivered two lectures, in which he explored these two key elements of his sub-creative methodology. The second of these, the seminal Andrew Lang Lecture for 19389, On Fairy-Stories', which he delivered at the University of St Andrews in Scotland, is well known. But many years before, in 1931, Tolkien gave a talk to a literary society entitled A Hobby for the Home', where he unveiled for the first time to a listening public the art that he had Trade Review‘Anyone who has interest in language, linguistics, storytelling, or simply just fantasy in general should add this to their top shelf’5* Amazon Reviewer ‘An absolute MUST HAVE for any Tolkien fan!’5* Amazon Reviewer

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Book SynopsisLatin names frequently unpronounceable, all too often wrong and always a tiny puzzle to unravel have been annoying the layman since they first became formalised as scientific terms in the eighteenth century. Why on earth has the entirely land-loving Eastern Mole been named Scalopus aquaticus, or the Oxford Ragwort been called Senecio squalidus dirty old man'? What were naturalists thinking when they called a beetle Agra katewinsletae, a genus of fish Batman, and a Trilobite Han solo? Why is zoology replete with names such as Chloris chloris chloris (the greenfinch), and Gorilla gorilla gorilla (a species of, well gorilla)?The Naming of the Shrew will unveil these mysteries, exploring the history, celebrating their poetic nature and revealing how naturalists sometimes get things so terribly wrong. With wonderfully witty style and captivating narrative, this book will make you see Latin names in a whole new light.Trade ReviewWho would have thought that a book about Latin names could be quite so compelling!! * Alan Titchmarsh *Brims with verbal curiosities * Nature *Nature writing at its best: insightful, entertaining and often very funny * British Wildlife *I have not fully recovered from the discovery that the proper Latin name of the western lowland gorilla is Gorilla gorilla gorilla * Independent on Sunday *Weird and wonderful * Sunday Telegraph *Charming * The Lady *The pleasure of Wright’s book is the contrast between the rigour required for giving names and the careless minds and mischievous humour of those who devise them * The Times *Fascinating and funny * BBC Countrylife *Erudite but whimsical ... a book as charming as it is wise * Irish Examiner *A great read * Grow Your Own *

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Book SynopsisWriting Systems and Phonetics provides students with a critical understanding of the writing systems of the world. Beginning by exploring the spelling of English, including how it arose and how it works today, the book goes on to address over 60 major languages from around the globe and includes detailed descriptions and worked examples of writing systems which foreground the phonetics of these languages. Key areas covered include: the use of the Latin alphabet in and beyond Europe; writing systems of the eastern Mediterranean, Greek and its Cyrillic offshoot, Arabic and Hebrew; languages in south and south-east Asia, including Hindi, Tamil, Burmese and Thai, as well as in east Asia, including Chinese, Japanese and Korean; reflections on ancient languages such as Sumerian, Egyptian, Linear B and Mayan; a final chapter which sets out a typology of writing systems. All of the languages covered are contextualised by authentic illustrations, including road signs, personal names and tables, to demonstrate how theoretical research can be applied to the real world.Taking a unique geographical focus that guides the reader on a journey across time and continents, this book offers an engaging introduction for students approaching for the first time the phonetics of writing systems, their typology and the origins of scripts.Trade ReviewOver the last decades, writing systems have become the step-child of Linguistics, even though the interaction between pronunciation and writing is an intricate and complex field that has great insights to offer. When scholars do examine writing systems, they tend to focus on their history or on western, alphabetic systems. 'Writing Systems and Phonetics', by Alan Cruttenden, one of the world's leading phoneticians, is a clear and convincing introduction to a wide variety of systems from all over the world, explaining how they work synchronically as well as how they came about historically. Professor Cruttenden's approach makes this book accessible to those who have never worked on writing systems before, but the seasoned scholar of orthographies will benefit from it just as much.Professor Wolfgang De Melo, University of OxfordThe difference between language and script is one that is quite hard to explain to students, at least initially. This attractive book navigates the complexities in a way which is to be expected from a scholar of Professor Cruttenden’s standing. It begins by exploring English spelling in relation to historical changes in pronunciation and uses the lessons learned to explain similar problems and how they are solved in other European and beyond, engaging fully with such writing systems as those of Arabic, Chinese and even ancient Egyptian. It will be essential reading for students of Linguistics.Professor John Healey, University of Manchester"Over the last decades, writing systems have become the step-child of Linguistics, even though the interaction between pronunciation and writing is an intricate and complex field that has great insights to offer. When scholars do examine writing systems, they tend to focus on their history or on western, alphabetic systems. 'Writing Systems and Phonetics', by Alan Cruttenden, one of the world's leading phoneticians, is a clear and convincing introduction to a wide variety of systems from all over the world, explaining how they work synchronically as well as how they came about historically. Professor Cruttenden's approach makes this book accessible to those who have never worked on writing systems before, but the seasoned scholar of orthographies will benefit from it just as much."Professor Wolfgang De Melo, University of Oxford, UK"The difference between language and script is one that is quite hard to explain to students, at least initially. This attractive book navigates the complexities in a way which is to be expected from a scholar of Professor Cruttenden’s standing. It begins by exploring English spelling in relation to historical changes in pronunciation and uses the lessons learned to explain similar problems and how they are solved in other European countries and beyond, engaging fully with such writing systems as those of Arabic, Chinese and even ancient Egyptian. It will be essential reading for students of Linguistics."Professor John Healey, University of Manchester, UKTable of ContentsList of TablesList of FiguresAcknowledgementsIntroductionTechnical terms and symbolsChapter 1. English spellingChapter 2. Latin-based alphabets in European languagesChapter 3. Latin-based alphabets outside EuropeChapter 4. Greek, Cyrillic and related alphabetsChapter 5. Hebrew, Arabic and related alphabetsChapter 6. South and south-east Asian alphabetsChapter 7. East Asian scriptsChapter 8. The world’s earliest writing and its deciphermentChapter 9. More early writing and its deciphermentChapter 10. A typology of writing systemsBibliographyAppendix 1. International Phonetic AlphabetAppendix 2. Some basic variables in writing systemsAppendix 3. Writing materialsIndex

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Book SynopsisAn academic staple updated for the first time in fifteen years, David Alan Black 's user-friendly introduction to New Testament Greek keeps discussion of grammar as non-technical as possible. The simplified explanations, basic vocabularies, and abundant exercises are designed to prepare the student for subsequent practical courses in exegesis, while the linguistic emphasis lays the groundwork for later courses in grammar. Revisions to this third edition include updated discussions and scholarship, further back matter vocabulary references, and additional appendices. 'A streamlined introductory grammar that will prove popular in the classroom.' -- Murray J. Harris , Trinity Evangelical Divinity School 'Clear charts, clear examples, clear discussion--what more could one want from a beginning grammar!' -- Darrell L. Bock , Dallas Theological Seminary ' . . . combines the strengths of a fairly traditional sequence of topics, in generally manageable chunks with clear explanations fully abre

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Book SynopsisLanguage contact - the linguistic and social outcomes of two or more languages coming into contact with each other - starts with the emergence of multilingual populations. Multilingualism involving plurilingualism can have various consequences beyond borrowing, interference, and code-mixing and -switching, including the emergence of lingua francas and new language varieties, as well as language endangerment and loss. Bringing together contributions from an international team of scholars, this Handbook - the second in a two-volume set - engages the reader with the manifold aspects of multilingualism and provides state-of-the-art research on the impact of population structure on language contact. It begins with an introduction that presents the history of the scholarship on the subject matter. The chapters then cover various processes and theoretical issues associated with multilingualism embedded in specific population structures worldwide as well as their outcomes. It is essential reading for anybody interested in how people behave linguistically in multilingual or multilectal settings.

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Book SynopsisThis Element presents an account of forensic linguistics in Australia since the first expert linguistic evidence in 1959, through early work in the 1970s-1980s, the defining of the discipline in the 1990s, and into the current era.Table of ContentsSeries Preface; Abbreviations; 1. Introduction; 2. Misconceptions and Problematic Ideologies; 3. Linguistic Contexts; 4. Interactional Contexts; 5. Sociocultural Contexts; 6. Engangement, Expansion, and Expectation; Appendix; Cases Cited; References.

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Book SynopsisA textbook survey of how English morphology has evolved from Old English to the present

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It is tempting to take the tremendous rate of contemporary linguistic change for granted. What is required, in fact, is a radical reinterpretation of what language is. Steven Roger Fischer charts the history of language from the times of Homo erectus, Neanderthal humans and Homo sapiens through to the nineteenth century, when the science of linguistics was developed, as he analyses the emergence of language as a science and its development as a written form. He considers the rise of pidgin, creole, jargon and slang, as well as the effects radio and television, propaganda, advertising and the media are having on language today. Originally published in 1999, this new format edition, which includes a new preface by the author, also shows how digital media will continue to reshape and re-invent the ways in which we communicate.

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Book SynopsisThis book challenges several assumptions commonly encountered in Japanese dialectology: that the pitch-accent analysis of modern Tōkyō Japanese is an appropriate basis for describing the suprasegmental phonology of other dialects and earlier stages of Japanese; that the Kyōto-type dialects have been more conservative than dialects to their east and west; that the first split in proto-Japanese was the separation of proto-Ryūkyūan; and so on. De Boer brings together evidence from recent fieldwork, premodern texts, and other sources to establish a theory of dialect divergence that avoids the problems these assumptions entail. Building on De Boer 2010, this book brings the author's theory up to date with research published in the interim, explains why Japanese is best understood as a restricted tone language, and why mergers in the large tone classes of nouns and verbs are especially reliable markers of dialect divergence.

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Book SynopsisA skillfully updated edition of The F-Word which renders a comprehensive portrait of English''s most notorious and colorful word. No word has generated more uses, more creative euphemisms, and more strong opinions than fuck. Jesse Sheidlower''s historical dictionary, now in print for over 25 years, charts the uses of fuck and its many permutations, from absofuckinglutely to zipless fuck. It illustrates every sense of every entry with quotations, from the earliest that can be found to a recent example, showing exactly how the word has been used throughout history.This new edition is not just a minor update but a comprehensive revision of Sheidlower''s groundbreaking text for the internet age. Major new discoveries push back the known history of fuck by almost two hundred years. Sheidlower also considers rapidly changing attitudes towards the use of fuck in public discourse. The volume includes over 2,500 new quotations; over 150 new antedatings (earlier examples of existing entries, improving our understanding of the word''s development); and over 150 entries, including high-profile recent uses such as AF ''as fuck'', fuckboi, and the group of expressions of the sort to give no fucks or zero fucks given.

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Book SynopsisPresenting a host of in-depth case studies, Time and Language: New Sinology and Chinese History argues for and demonstrates the significance of ‘New Sinology’ by restoring the role of language/philology in the research and understanding of how modern China emerged.Trade ReviewThis is a richly researched and intelligently argued collection of studies that highlight a key methodological and interpretive issue in China studies and provides a considerable empirical detail that makes their point. The volume delivers on the promise of the editors to bring language/philology back in—to argue for and demonstrate the significance of "New Sinology": the careful attention to historical language and knowledge in texts both contemporary and earlier to illuminate the power of cultural habitus as well as conscious practice over time as expressed in the written version of Austin’s speech acts. These studies show that the tools of traditional Sinology, with a focus on linguistic and philological expertise, can and do contribute meaningfully to our understanding of the genesis and experience of modern China." - Timothy Cheek, The University of British Columbia

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Book SynopsisContributions by Lisa Abney, Patricia Anderson, Albert Camp, Katie Carmichael, Christina Schoux Casey, Nathalie Dajko, Jeffery U. Darensbourg, Dorian Dorado, Connie Eble, Daniel W. Hieber, David Kaufman, Geoffrey Kimball, Thomas A. Klingler, Bertney Langley, Linda Langley, Shane Lief, Tamara Lindner, Judith M. Maxwell, Rafael Orozco, Allison Truitt, Shana Walton, and Robin WhiteLouisiana is often presented as a bastion of French culture and language in an otherwise English environment. The continued presence of French in south Louisiana and the struggle against the language's demise have given the state an aura of exoticism and at the same time have strained serious focus on that language. Historically, however, the state has always boasted a multicultural, polyglot population. From the scores of indigenous languages used at the time of European contact to the importation of African and European languages during the colonial period to the modern invasion of English and th

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Book SynopsisThe Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology is the most comprehensive dictionary of the English language ever published. It is based on the original edition of the Oxford English Dictionary but much augmented by further research on the etymology of English and other languages. Providing a fascinating insight into the development of English, it describes 38,000 words in 24,000 articles which include: current meanings of each word; date of first recorded appearance in English; chronology of the development of each word''s senses; earliest written form in English; related words in other languages; pronunciation.Trade ReviewODEE is going to be, as it deserves to be, the standard etymological dictionary of the English language. * Times Literary Supplement *This is a very fine etymological dictionary, as aromatic a piece of lexicography as the great Onions (who, sadly died while the work was going through the press) ever achieved Anyone who wants to take journeys back through the mazes of the fickle human mind cannot very well do without this volume. * Anthony Burgess, Observer *

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Book SynopsisLanguage is the medium in which we humans compose our thoughts, explain our thinking, construct our arguments, and create works of literature. Without language, societies as complex as ours could not exist. Geoffrey Pullum offers a stimulating introduction to the many ways in which linguistics, as the scientific study of language, matters. With its close relationships to psychology, education, philosophy, and computer science, the subject has a compelling human story to tell about the ways in which different societies see and describe the world, and its far-reaching applications range from law to medicine and from developmental psychology to artificial intelligence. Introducing Polity’s Why It Matters series: In these short and lively books, world-leading thinkers make the case for the importance of their subjects and aim to inspire a new generation of students.Trade Review"An approachable, fascinating resource for those interested in the mechanics of words." —​The Guardian "[A] fascinating, beautifully written and highly accessible exposition of why the science of language matters. Strongly recommend it."—Oliver Kamm, columnist for The Times of London "Geoff Pullum, tart and cosmopolitan as always, has at last given the world the handiest possible remedy for idea that what's interesting about language is snippy rules about where prepositions shouldn't be, that different languages make you think in different ways, or that Siri actually understands us. Linguistics is fascinating far beyond these myths and this book will show you why in a quick coffee-cup read.'—John McWhorter, Columbia University "Geoff Pullum among our greatest living linguists, with a deep appreciation of the richness of language and the elegance of linguistic theory. He is also one of the finest stylists writing today, and presents ideas with dazzling clarity and wit. No one is better equipped to explain linguistics and why it matters."—Steve Pinker, Johnstone Professor of Psychology, Harvard University, and the author of The Language Instinct and How the Mind Works "Hard to put down and infinitely informative ... Pullum's book has the feel of a casual conversation with a personable and knowledgeable companion."—CHOICETable of ContentsPreface Chapter 1: What Makes Us Human Chapter 2: How Sentences Work Chapter 3: Words, Meaning and Thought Chapter 4: Language and Social Life Chapter 5: Machines That Understand Us Conclusion Notes on Further Reading

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