People currently speak 7,000 languages around the globe.
Michael Gavin
There’s little research into origins of the geographic patterns of language diversity. A new model exploring processes that shaped Australia’s language diversity provides a template for investigators.
The small city of Hazard, Kentucky, rests in the heart of Appalachia.
AP Photo/David Stephenson
The founder of the West Virginia Dialect Project hopes to debunk some of the myths about the way Appalachian people speak and instill pride in a rich, oft-maligned culture.
There is so much more to sign language than the hands, as interpreter Christine Dudley demonstrates.
Carlo Allegri/Reuters
Yes, sign language has grammar – and it goes way beyond what you do with your hands.
President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference.
AP Photo/Andrew Harnik
Research shows that context matters for understanding what a person’s words mean – especially when power dynamics are involved.
Amy Adams in Arrival.
Paramount Pictures
Learning languages rewires the brain and changes how we perceive time.
The perceptual process that creates funny mondegreens has the potential to cause wrongful convictions.
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From cussing McDonald’s Minions to wrongful conviction, mishearing what is said can be funny but also very serious.
It’s really ok to be a grammar pedant.
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Grammar pedantry recently contributed to the downfall of World Bank chief economist Paul Romer. But ‘grammonds’ are people to be celebrated not vilified.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu strongly supports the nation-state bill.
REUTERS/Abir Sultan
A linguistics scholar explains why the loss of Arabic in Israel would be a loss of history, culture and possibly human rights.
Knowing how to communicate about death gives us the language to discuss end-of-life topics with our loved ones.
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We use euphemisms about death and dying to soften the blow of the real words, or because we feel awkward being direct. But this can lead to misunderstanding and confusion.
What was between the lines of Scott Morrison’s budget speech?
AAP/Mick Tsikas
The Conversation’s experts annotate Treasurer Scott Morrison’s 2017-18 budget speech.
Do you even lift, Jeremy?
PA/ Jane Barlow
Why is the PM constantly repeating this phrase and what impact is it really having on her campaign?
A Pirahã family.
Caleb Everett
From the Amazon to Nicaragua, there are humans who never learn numbers. What can these anumeric cultures teach us about ourselves?
Gogglebox, where you watch people watching TV.
AAP Image/Foxtel, Nick Wilson
Cult TV show Gogglebox is more than light entertainment: it shows the diverse reality of Australian English, going beyond stereotypes about what Australians sound like.
‘Going forward’ is a boardroom and husting escapee that has now made it big time in the workplace, and even outside.
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When they start life, clichés are fetching and memorable phrases. But overuse has sucked them of vitality – and now they walk among the living dead.
Nyeleti Nokwazi Nkwinika acknowledges the applause after graduating with her Masters degree.
Wits University
This Masters degree sets a precedent in South Africa and gives universities that want to be truly inclusive a lot to think about.
EPA/Jim Lo Scalzo
The @RoguePOTUSStaff account claims to be a genuine inside source of West Wing dirt, and hundreds of thousands of people seem to trust it.
A tourist market in Ivory Coast. Africa needs to harness its rich cultural and linguistic diversity to drive its development.
EPA/Legnan Koula
One of the ways by which Africa can overcome problems of underdevelopment is by using its abundant linguistic and cultural resources.
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There are a range of linguistic strategies to build rapport with customers, but using their name is always the fall-back – with detrimental results.
The Polari bible.
Joe Richardson
While few people use the language today, many cherish its history.
The idea of a ‘native speaker’ creates bias.
Gustavo Frazao/www.shutterstock.com
The belief in the linguistic superiority of the ‘native speaker’ is often based on assumptions of ethnicity.