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

languagehat.com » Italian Chewed to Shreds.

Sunday 11 September 19:23:56 UTC 2016

I’ve gotten to the Sixth Promenade in The Gallery (see this post), in which the narrator finally gets to Naples after a spell in North Africa, and was delighted to come upon a passage of linguistic interest. After an extended “poetic” peroration on the standard language (“Italian is a language as natural as the human breath…”), he gets to the … [Link]

languagehat.com » Victor Segalen Online.

Sunday 11 September 14:20:54 UTC 2016

I had heard of Victor Segalen only fleetingly and long ago, and I’m not even sure whether in connection with poetry or Sinology, but he was clearly an interesting guy: the (absurdly skimpy) Wikipedia article says he was “a French naval doctor, ethnographer, archeologist, writer, poet, explorer, art-theorist, linguist and literary critic” and that he “died by accident in a … [Link]

Omniglot blog » Language quiz

Sunday 11 September 8:40:56 UTC 2016

Language quiz image Here’s a recording in a mystery language. Can you identify the language, and do you know where it’s spoken? [Link]

Urban Word of the Day » Corn Art

Sunday 11 September 7:41:17 UTC 2016

A euphemistic reference to taking a massive dump. Typically the corn filled variety. But eloquently expresses any act of defecation. Well I hope everyone enjoyed that Thanksgiving meal. Now if you'll excuse me, it's time for me to work on my corn art. I've got a masterpiece on the way. [Link]

Language Log » Horribles and deplorables

Sunday 11 September 2:15:39 UTC 2016

Hillary Clinton's "basket of deplorables" is destined to become one of the lasting catchphrases of the campaign season. Clinton's use of the phrase (which she says she now regrets*) appeared in a speech delivered at a fundraiser on Friday night: You know, to just be grossly generalistic, you could put half of Trump's supporters into what I call the basket … [Link]

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