Linguistics
Celebrating Sequoyah and his Cherokee alphabet
The writing system the Native American devised for his people was soon followed by a printing press, a newspaper and a far higher literacy rate than that of their oppressors
Why are we so squeamish about describing women’s everyday experiences?
Philip Hensher discusses how words relating to women’s ordinary experiences have been shrouded in euphemism over the centuries
A universal language will always be an unattainable dream
The comedian Sacha Baron Cohen, in his stage persona as the dim-witted interviewer Ali G, once asked Noam Chomsky if…
Why do so many academics write so badly?
Why do so many academics write so badly? Those who make the study of language their life’s work are as…
Learning to talk
One of the great achievements of science is that so many of its branches, from astronomy to zoology, have been…
