Wherein we #GiveLinguistsSwords. (Please note that this recording cut out a lot of background noise and claps/cheers, so if there is a weird volume jump up or down, that might be why.)
Jump right to:
00:04:42 Is syntax fake?
00:10:14 Favorite and least favorite words
00:23:48 How has profanity evolved with language?
00:34:40 What are the rules for onomatopoeia and how do they differ across languages?
00:41:13 What is lenition?
00:47:56 How do puns work in other languages?
01:02:15 What are fricatives?
01:02:33 The LxAD backstory
01:06:19 The first time we bring up L’Académie
01:08:12 Dead languages work poorly on the internet
01:12:44 Best stories of word mix-ups
01:18:12 How do colors work in different languages?
01:29:01 “It’s all Greek to me”
01:29:55 Where did the word orange come from?
01:31:36 Dialect-dependent homophones
01:34:56 What’s the most useless part of language?
01:40:29 Why is English spelling wonderful?
01:59:42 Sarah has to pronounce the hardest IPA sounds
02:07:30 The Thing At The End
Covered in this episode:
That feeling you get when someone else is suffering and you’re just glad it’s not you
How to be rude and insulting but still G-rated
Translator love
SWORDS
On a scale of dead to Amish…
How to accidentally come on to someone in Spanish and ASL
Cappuccinos
Moose
Links and other post-show thoughts:
Ask us questions:
Send your questions (text or voice memo) to questions@linguisticsafterdark.com, or find us as @lxadpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, & Facebook.
Credits:
Linguistics After Dark is produced by Emfozzing Enterprises. Luca edits, Sarah does show notes, transcription is a team effort. Our music is “Covert Affair” by Kevin MacLeod. Join us at linguisticsafterdark.com/volunteer!
And until next time… if you weren’t consciously aware of your tongue in your mouth, now you are :)