Kinbank is a new database that illustrates the global diversity of family terms. English, for example, specifies sibling relationships with just one of two terms: sister or brother. But most other languages have even more specific terms. In...
A magnificent new book celebrates the richness and diversity of 450 years of written and spoken English in what is now the United States. It’s called The People’s Tongue, and it’s a sumptuous collection of essays, letters, poems...
In Southern California, June gloom is the familiar marine layer that rolls in with overcast skies. Jeremy from Long Beach wonders if other places have similarly named weather patterns. Indeed, Southern California also has May gray, no sky July, and...
If someone tells you it’s flisky or flobby outside, do you need to take an umbrella? A new book about England’s soggy climate includes 188 terms for rainy weather. Americans have their own joking names for local weather, from June Gloom in Southern...
Some people work hard to lose their accent in order to fit in. Others may be homesick for the voices they grew up with and try to reclaim them. How can you regain your old accent? Also, a compelling book about scientific taxonomy shows how humans...
Molasses Monday is a slang term for that first, slow-moving day of the workweek. Other nicknames associated with days of the week include Sunday Scaries, Humpday for Wednesday, Little Friday for Thursday, and of course, Taco Tuesday. This is part of...