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linguistics

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Austria

Austria’s Word of the Year Has 52 Letters

Bundespraesidentenstichwahlwiederholungsverschiebung isn’t just a mouthful—it tells an annoying political story

How does language influence our thoughts? Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner in "Arrival."

Ask Smithsonian 2017

Does the Linguistic Theory at the Center of the Film ‘Arrival’ Have Any Merit?

We asked a Smithsonian linguist and an anthropologist to debate the matter

New Research

Researchers Find Word Optimism Is Linked to National Misery

Even Pollyanna changes her tune in times of war and economic hardship

The Evpatoria radio telescope RT-70 and the Long Range Space Communications Center, which were used for one of the most ambitious efforts at extraterrestrial communication.

How a Couple of Guys Built the Most Ambitious Alien Outreach Project Ever

You might think it takes vast governmental resources to launch an extraterrestrial communication effort. Nope

The only one who really understands me.

New Research

Dogs Know When You’re Praising Them. That Doesn’t Mean They Understand Human Speech

A dose of caution with the results of an intriguing new study

A selection of "Emotikis" inspired by Maori culture and traditions.

Age of Humans

Emotikis and New Keyboards Bring Indigenous Cultures to Text Messaging

From Maori emojis to First Nations languages

A set of the volumes published by 2010 of the Thesaurus Linguae Latinae

Cool Finds

This Latin Thesaurus Has Been in Progress Since 1894

Scholars are still working on the letter “N”

A club from Massachusetts in the shape of a fish, probably Atlantic sturgeon, dates to about 1750. The area was previously thought to have only one language at the time of European contact, but new research reveals there were five Native American languages were spoken in the Connecticut Valley of central Massachusetts.

Five Lost Languages Rediscovered in Massachusetts

Smithsonian linguist Ives Goddard finds that the Native Americans of central Massachusetts spoke five languages instead of one

Only about 2,000 people speak Lakota.

Cool Finds

This News Website Is a Lakota-Speaker’s “Dream”

Woihanble.com could help preserve a threatened language

Trending Today

Here’s Why French People Are Getting Riled Up About the Circumflex

Little accent, big debate

New research shows that magical tales have an even longer history than previously suspected.

New Research

Fairy Tales Could Be Older Than You Ever Imagined

Jack may have been climbing that beanstalk for more than 5,000 years

Cool Finds

There’s a Philly Sign Language Accent

The unique signs used by people in Philadelphia hint at the history of sign language in the U.S.

Trending Today

“Full Blood Resurrection” and Other Gaming Terms Are Entering Chinese Vernacular

As online gaming is so popular in China, it’s changing the way people talk.

Cool Finds

Teenage Girls Have Led Language Innovation for Centuries

They’ve been on the cutting edge of the English language since at least the 1500s

A screenshot of the Tone Analyzer at work

IBM’s Tone Analyzer Could Save You From Sending That Awkward Email

The new service, part of IBM’s Watson artificial intelligence system, scans emails for emotions like cheerfulness or negativity

A screen shot from a video about how Indo-European languages spread around the globe.

Cool Finds

Half of All Languages Come From This One Root Tongue. Here’s How it Conquered the Earth.

Today, three billion people speak Indo-European langauges

Gustavia, St. Barths

Cool Finds

St. Barts Is Like the Galapagos for Linguistic Diversity

Beyond the glitz of tourism, St. Barts natives speak in unique varieties of French

Why Does Rain Smell and More Questions From Our Readers

You asked, we answered

Noc (in 1995) strongly “wanted to make a connection,” says former naval trainer Michelle Jeffries. “I think that was part of the thing behind him mimicking speech.”

The Story of One Whale Who Tried to Bridge the Linguistic Divide Between Animals and Humans

While captive in a Navy program, a beluga whale named Noc began to mimic human speech. What was behind his attempt to talk to us?

Russia and Alaska's current coastlines (the dashed black lines), compared to ancient Beringia (shown in green), the land bridge that brought humans to North America.

New Research

Ancient Migration Patterns to North America Are Hidden in Languages Spoken Today

Languages spoken in North America and Siberia are distantly related. What does that tell us about the first Americans?

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