Linguistics

New Post!

The disquiet of translating Dépaysement: is it really an untranslatable word?

by Laila Hulatt
Join Laila as she discusses all the ways you can be a stranger in a new land, and why there's two sides to the French 'depaysement.'

Editor's Article du mois

Christmas Etymology

My highlighted article for December is nice and festive! Michael explores all sorts of Christmassy vocabulary and where it all came from.

Happy Holidays!

Read here.

News Feed

Language: a mirror image of our culture?

Lucy Ferris looks into the relationship between language and culture and discusses the controversy of 'linguistic relativity.'

The Pronoun Problem

Rosie Bell takes a look into two different languages and how they are exploring gender-neutral pronouns.

Bilingual brains - does age matter?

Lauren Probert discusses how bilingualism can affect your brain throughout your life.

'Feminisé.e : to what extent does gendered language affect our attitudes to gender?'

Eleanor Shearwood examines whether the French language is a fair reflection of the modern society it is spoken in and questions ‘to what extent does grammatical gender actually affect the thought processes of language user?’

Creolisation

Discussing the difference between creoles and pidgin languages and what they can show up about language development.

“Untranslatable” Words

From schadenfreude to mudita, what does it really mean for intriguing words to be lost in translation?

Italy: Division in Unity

Ever wondered why Italy is home to such a rich range of dialects? Read on to follow the evolution of the Italian language from its roots right to the present day.

Linguistics Editor: Rosie Bell

Hi, I’m Rosie and I’m the linguistics editor for The Definite Article! I study Liberal Arts and specialise in French, Classics and Archaeology. One of my favourite aspects that combine all these subjects is language and linguistics and that languages are like windows into the cultures that have come before us, and how the way we speak today was impacted by the past. Every language is like a fossil - ancient or otherwise - that has been affected by the changing world around it, and when we study the linguistic nuances in detail we can learn more about ourselves and why we speak the way that we do--in scientific terms as well! As well as looking into the past, it can be fun to see how we ourselves are editing our languages to fit new cultural values and societal progression. I’d love to hear everyone's take and am excited to discuss this subject together!