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 » How "whopping" is 78 percent monosyllables?
The other day, someone asked me about the claim that "a whopping 78 percent of the words that Trump uses are monosyllabic". We've previously debunked the idea that Trump's speeches aim at a fourth-grade reading level ("More Flesch-Kincaid grade level nonsense", 10/23/2015). And long ago, we took aim at careless assertions about how young people/media/txting/etc. are degrading the language to … [Link]
Language Log » Ask Language Log: "Finna"
From P.S.: Today I was reading a story in the Washington Post (online) about a response to “The Passive Aggressive Neighbor & His Wife”. It starts: “Re: I’m Finna Tell You What you Not Gon’ Do” . I am not sufficiently familiar with what I assume is AAVE and the expression "Finna". I was wondering if you had any more … [Link]
Urban Word of the Day » droplifting
Droplifting is the opposite of shoplifting; it involves leaving a product or item in a shop, rather than taking one. It has been used by artists and musicians to promote their work for free, whilst some people use droplifting to make political or economic statements. (for example by altering shop's products and then returning them) Person #1: Why is there … [Link]
languagehat.com » North Carolina Place Names.
I’m a sucker for unpredictable pronunciations of place names and have posted about them more than once (e.g., in 2003 and 2007), so I was delighted to run across the website North Carolina place names: From the mountains to the coast, place names in North Carolina can be confusing. (Why don’t Rowan and Chowan rhyme?) Click on the map below … [Link]
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