All the Feels: the Morphology of Reaction Gifs
From visual emojis depicting simple emotional states, it's a short step to emotion or reaction gifs, used to respond in playful ways to online discussions.
Word to your Mother (Tongue): Can Hip Hop Save Endangered Languages?
Hip hop is not only linguistically innovative, it helps preserve indigenous languages via oral tradition.
What’s in a Brand Name: the Sounds of Persuasion
The mere letters and sounds used in a brand name can have a curious impact on its reception by the public.
Are Bilingual People Smarter Than People Who Speak One Language?
Is the bilingual advantage real? Are bilingual people smarter than people who speak one language?
Lingua Obscura: Young Women’s Language Patterns at the Forefront of Linguistic Change
Linguists observe that young women's language patterns invite negative reactions, comments, and suggestions to change.
Lingua Obscura: A New Linguistics Column
A linguistics column that will uncover curious stories of language use from all around the world--written by a linguist.
J. R. R. Tolkien the Philologist
Before The Hobbit, J. R. R. Tolkien was a philologist, a specialist in historical texts.
The Early American Origins of Political Terms
What does stump speech and pork barrel mean? A short lexicon of American political terms.