Because Language - a podcast about linguistics, the science of language.

Dec 21 2024 100 ep. 98 mins 5.1k

Because Language - a podcast about linguistics, the science of language. artwork

A podcast about linguistics, the science of language.

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111: Words of the Week of the Year 2024 (live with Mignon Fogarty and friends)

Dec 21 2024 102 mins

It's our Words of the Year episode, where we do a vibe check on all the words and name one of them our Because Language Word of the Year. We're joined by Grammar Girl Mignon Fogarty and a lot of friends and supporters. It's going to be weird. It's going to be brat. You know we're going to eat that. Timestamps Cold open: 0:00 Intros: 0:54 All the words from everywhere: 10:58 Relate

109: Language Oppression in Tibet (with Gerald Roche and Sasha Wilmoth)

Dec 05 2024 155 mins

Minority languages are under threat everywhere, but Tibet represents a particularly difficult challenge. The Tibetan language family is under pressure from (no surprise) Mandarin, even as community support for Tibetan remains high. But where does that leave the many other minority languages of the area, like Manegacha? Language policy, community pressure, and individual language ch

108: Mailbag of Etymology (with Douglas Harper)

Nov 16 2024 84 mins

We're joined for the first time by Douglas Harper, proprietor of the world-renowned Online Etymology Dictionary (etymonline.com). He's here to help us with our Mailbag questions, and even test us in a game of Related or Not. In our Mailbag this time: What's the difference between DEPENDENCE and DEPENDENCY? Why is TONGUE spelled that way? What does it mean if reciting a tongue twis

107: Linguaphile (with Julie Sedivy and Matt Spike)

Oct 29 2024 127 mins

Language is a lot like love. You can enjoyably lose yourself in both. They can both be dangerous. And they both entail a responsibility to keep each other safe. A new book Linguaphile: A Life of Language Love is both a language book and a memoir, connecting the strands of language learning, language love, and language loss. Daniel speaks with author Dr Julie Sedivy. Also: Large lan

105 or 500 (live with Kelly Wright and friends)

Sep 15 2024 96 mins

For our 500th episode, we got together with our great listeners for their words, stories, and inspiration. It's a look back at the show, a look at language from our friends' point of view, and a celebration of our great community. Dr Kelly Wright joins us. Big thanks to our friends who joined us, and to everyone who's listened over the years. Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/

104: Dogwhistles (with Elin McCready, Lizzy Hanks, Jesse Egbert, and Rikker Dockum)

Aug 25 2024 104 mins

Can you hear them? Only if you're meant to. Political dogwhistles exploit lack of knowledge in one group to send a coded message to another group. But that's just the beginning. How are dogwhistles different from slurs? How do they licence behaviour? Do progressives dogwhistle? Dr Elin McCready is the author of Signaling Without Saying: The Semantics and Pragmatics of Dogwhistles.

103: Unequal Englishes (with Ruanni Tupas and Nicole Holliday)

Aug 03 2024 140 mins

There are lots of Englishes out there, but the way we approach varieties of English sets learners up to fail. How do we combat language ideologies out there in the world — and in our own minds? Dr Ruanni Tupas is the editor of an important new book: Investigating Unequal Englishes: Understanding, Researching and Analysing Inequalities of the Englishes of the World. We're joined b

102: Signed Language Mailbag (with Adam Schembri, Christy Filipich, and Mark Ellison)

Jul 26 2024 165 mins

What do signed languages have in common? How do oral languages influence signed languages? How do they influence each other? Here to answer these questions and many more, it's Dr Adam Schembri of the University of Birmingham. You can watch our chat with Adam Schembri on video, with Christy Filipich doing Auslan interpretation. That video is here: https://youtu.be/GcV0218VJ2k Also j

101: Talkin' Chomsky (with Katie Martin and Abduweli Ayup)

Jul 07 2024 147 mins

Noam Chomsky is one of the world's foremost thinkers, and his impact on linguistics is incalculable. Yet many people are only familiar with his political activism. What are his linguistic ideas, and why have they been so tenacious? To answer that question, Daniel had a delightful chat with generative syntactician and Chomsky fan Katie Martin. We're honoured to have a chat with lin

99: Gender in Germany (with Rob Tegethoff and Ciarán from Corner Späti)

Jun 11 2024 128 mins

What's going on in Germany? How are people talking about gender in the German language, and how is freedom of expression being handled? We have a couple of German experts — linguist Rob Tegethoff and Ciarán of the podcast Corner Späti — to tell us why other languages were banned at protests in Berlin, and what right-wing activists get from involving language in their plans.