Did English used to have gendered nouns? … Yes!
In Romance languages (and many others), nouns have a gender. English today doesn’t but it wasn’t always so. In this article we look at how this situation came about.
Unlocking the Secret of Egyptian Heiroglyphs – The Rosetta Stone
The Rosetta stone is one of the most valuable artefacts ever to have been found by archaeologists. It literally unlocked the secrets of the Ancient Egyptians. Up until its discovery their rich language, culture and beliefs were a complete mystery and one could only marvel at their accomplishments in art & architecture in a kind of mute awe.
Who invented the comma ?
Such a small thing, as symbols go, but it can make all the difference in meaning and understanding when used in a sentence. But wher did it come from ?
Wordsmith – Test your wordpower
Improve and test your wordpower by matching a word against multiple possible definitions.
Do Babies “Speak” with an Accent ?
Could babies, who can’t even speak yet, be “googling”, “gurgling” and “gaaing” with an accent. This article looks at some recent research.
Lost in Translation – Misadventures in English
English is the global language of communication which means that when it collides with local languages it can have hilarious results. Here we’ve gathered together the results of some of the planets finest misadventures in English.
Origin of Some Popular English Idioms III
The origins of a selection of some popular English expressions and sayings.
Going Dutch – Dutch Influences on the English Language
We’re familiar with the idea that the French, German and Nordic languages have had a great impact on the English language. Lesser known is the impact of Dutch. In this article we look at how our modern English language has subsumed Dutch words and expressions with out us even knowing it.
Speak Like a Saxon
Despite first appearances, the English we speak now is a direct descendant of Anglo-Saxon. So have you ever wondered what Anglo-Saxon might have sounded like ? In this article we look at how Anglo-Saxon was written and how it would have sounded.
In Politics Why Does Left Mean Liberal and Right Mean Conservative ?
We use the terms ‘Left wing’ and ‘Right wing’ in politics without really thinking about it. It’s a pretty odd thing to say. So how did these expressions come about ?
Wordsmith – Indian wordpower
Improve and test your wordpower against some Indian words that have found their way into the English language.
Wordsmith – Test your wordpower
Improve and test your wordpower against some 18th- and 19th-century words, still in use today.
Where did upper and lower case letters come from?
Capitalization rules tend to vary by language and can be quite complicated, but how did we get the mixture we have today in the English language?
Our Living Language
The English language is a constantly evolving. New words are constantly being added. Even the alphabet is not immutable. For example did you know that not so long ago there were 27 letters on the alphabet ?
Nursery Rhymes – Origin & History II
Behind every nursery rhyme is a history and story that’s every bit intriguing as the rhyme itself.
