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 » Papi Jiang: PRC internet sensation

Monday 25 April 16:51:46 UTC 2016

Tom Mazanec wrote in to call Papi醬 (jiàng means "thick sauce; jam-like or paste-like food") to my attention. Tom explains: She's a big internet phenomenon in mainland China who's now in the news (BBC report, Shanghaiist post) because many of her videos were blocked from Youku and Weixin for too much swearing. A few cynics I talked to thought the … [Link]

Urban Word of the Day » emotional whore

Monday 25 April 7:00:00 UTC 2016

A person who shares the most intimate details of their life/heartbreak/feelings with strangers because it's cheaper than mental healthcare, and not subject to the same bias or advice that the person could receive from someone closer to the situation. Give me a drink, and I'm an emotional whore! (Give me good advice and I'll even pick up your tab!) … [Link]

languagehat.com » Website Posts News in Lakota.

Monday 25 April 1:55:27 UTC 2016

Regina Garcia Cano has an AP story on a promising development from South Dakota: A new website created with a primarily Native American audience in mind is posting news, features, sports and weather entirely in Lakota — the first of its kind to do so — in an attempt to help preserve a language that after forced assimilation policies is … [Link]

Language Log » Cactus Wawa revisited

Monday 25 April 0:34:57 UTC 2016

One of the most intriguing and enthralling Language Log posts is this one: "cactus wawa: the strange tale of a strange character" (11/1/14) I spent months doing the research for that post and, although it garnered 80 helpful comments, I still felt that there were some loose ends. Consequently, I was delighted to receive last week (4/13/16) the following message … [Link]

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