Jianghu, Bistouri, Steeze.
Some interesting words I’ve run across recently: 1) I was watching Jia Zhangke’s movie Ash Is Purest White, about a couple involved in the (pretty petty) underworld milieu of Datong, …
And now, let us digress
Q: I couldn’t find anything on the verb “gress,” yet it forms the root of many often used words today. How about a take on the apparently outdated verb and …
My Method for Learning Languages from Scratch
Learning a language from scratch can be a daunting task. Where do you start? How do you develop a language learning routine that works for you? Here is what I …
The Cambridge Handbook of Gesture Studies
16 notes August 18, 2025 I have a long form review of the new Cambridge Handbook of Gesture Studies over on LINGUIST List. The handbook was published as I was …
All Things Linguistic
When we walk around a place where people live, we often see signs of how the people there are thinking about language. Literal signs, from official signage reflecting language policies …
Book review: ‘New Horizons in Prescriptivism Research’ (2024)
In the Preface to his landmark Dictionary of 1755, Samuel Johnson wrote that ‘sounds are too volatile and subtile for legal restraints; to enchain syllables, and to lash the wind, …
Two from Bathrobe. : languagehat.com
The indefatigable Bathrobe has sent me a couple of good links I hereby share with you: 1) Arthur Waley’s “Notes on Translation” (The Atlantic, November 1958; archived) has lots of …
A ‘bad boy’ can be a good thing
Q: I’m perplexed by the use of “bad boy” to refer to an object. For example, a tool: “This bad boy is very useful.” Can you shed light on this …
How to Learn Mandarin in 6 Months
Can You Actually Learn Mandarin in 6 Months? Recently, I received a question from one of my viewers. More or less, the comment reads as follows: “I am a current …
Lingthusiasm – 107: Urban Multilingualism When we…
When we try to represent languages on a map, it’s common to assign each language a zone or a point which represents some idea of where it’s used or where …