John Gordon Ross

A Man for All Reasons

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Language Stuff

Almost everyone uses language, so inevitably almost everyone thinks they are an expert in it. I don’t consider myself an expert, though most of my work requires at least language competence and sometimes actual skill, but I do follow the blogs featured on this feeds page.

(If you are wondering where the translation-related feeds have all gone, I have put them on their own page.)

Most of the blogs represented here are in English, most of the time, but don’t be surprised to find other languages used. Go with the flow – I occasionally find myself pleasantly surprised at how much I can grasp in languages I have never seen before.

Language On the Net

Language Log » More bon voyage

Wednesday 14 January 23:48:40 UTC 2015

Perry C. writes: I hope you've been well. I am an active reader of language log and often notice posts that point to odd phrases. On my way back to Penn, jetblue had a sign at LAX that read "have a more bon voyage." I'm not sure of the meaning that the sign (attached below) is trying to convey. Any … [Link]

languagehat.com » Comparing Diachronies of Negation.

Wednesday 14 January 22:35:38 UTC 2015

John Cowan sends me this link (prepublication draft of David Willis, Christopher Lucas and Anne Breitbarth, “Comparing Diachronies of Negation,” from their The History of Negation in the Languages of Europe and the Mediterranean, Vol. 1: Case Studies ), adding: It’s a fairly accessible paper (if you skip the formal-syntax section in pp. 6-7) that talks about how negation elements are … [Link]

Omniglot blog » French & English Language Exchange

Wednesday 14 January 12:24:52 UTC 2015

I went to the French & English Language Exchange group in Liverpool last night – a friend found it on Meetup, decided to see what it was like, and asked me to come along. They meet twice a month at Thomas Rigby’s, a pub in the centre of Liverpool, and last night there were 30 or 40 people there, including … [Link]

Urban Word of the Day » Worldstar

Wednesday 14 January 8:00:00 UTC 2015

First thing out someone's mouth when shit is about to go down. Usually shouted when a fight breaks out. Guaranteed to see at least one titty and a KO. Originates from worldstarhiphop.com (a popular website that showcases upcoming rappers, latest cultural/world news, butt-nekkid women, many fights, etc.) Girl 1: FUCK YOU BITCH! Girl 2: *Throws punch* Guy 1: Oh shit, … [Link]

Language Log » Education in Xinjiang

Wednesday 14 January 4:27:07 UTC 2015

A government sponsored mural in Kashgar: This is one in a series of 14 murals published in "The colourful propaganda of Xinjiang" (BBC News, 1/12/15). I am particularly intrigued by the mural reproduced above because it depicts the Han notion of what education should be for Uyghurs. The fuming fellow dressed in black at bottom left represents an evil Muslim … [Link]

Language Log » China flushes India

Wednesday 14 January 4:17:41 UTC 2015

The following photograph of a Beijing shop sign was buried on my desktop for about five years (I think that it originally came to me from Ori Tavor): Here's what it really says: shùmǎ chōngyìn 数码冲印 ("digital printing") What? How did they so badly mangle those two words that most people in China know the meaning of and use regularly? … [Link]

Language Log » Language lesson

Wednesday 14 January 4:08:11 UTC 2015

This is painful to watch, but here we go: Here's a translation of the exchange between the teacher and the little girl: Teacher: “Very well. Tell me… what lesson are we having today? What lesson did you come to? What lesson are we having today? Which?” Girl whispers: “English.” Teacher: “English! Very good. And in the English language, are there … [Link]

Language Log » Expendables 3: World Series

Wednesday 14 January 4:00:18 UTC 2015

There are some intriguing features about this Japanese poster for Expendables 3: Notice that the furigana ruby for 頂上決戦 (chōjō kessen ちょうじょうけっせん [“summit showdown”]) is ワールドシリーズ (wārudo shirīzu ["World Series”]). One wonders what they mean by that in the context of this film. In English language publicity for the film, I'm not aware of wording similar to junbi wa ī … [Link]

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