When Language Goes Viral
How do innocuous words become insidious in the face of a public health emergency?
How Do We Know That Epic Poems Were Recited from Memory?
Scholars once doubted that pre-literate peoples could ever have composed and recited poems as long as the Odyssey. Milman Parry changed that.
Black English Matters
People who criticize African American Vernacular English don't see that it shares grammatical structures with more "prestigious" languages.
The Theory of Cuss Word Relativity
Which words are considered taboo varies by place and time, scholars find.
Where Do Finger Names Come From?
Our names for our fingers show a surprising depth of cultural variation—and similarity.
Cancel Culture Is Chaotic Good
Cancel culture may prove to be the most memorable linguistic trend of the past decade.
How Linguists Are Using Urban Dictionary
Urban Dictionary continues a long history of recording low-brow language. It’s also a repository of a specific kind of internet immaturity.
How “Carpe Diem” Got Lost in Translation
"Carpe Diem" doesn't actually mean "seize the day." The fact that we understand it that way suggests we are more traditional than we like to admit.
Satan, the Radical
There is a long history of leftist thinkers embracing Satan, usually just as a way to shake up political rhetoric.