Reading time: 15-20 minutes Passing a milestone on a long journey, be it a metaphorical or a literal one, is always a moment for reflection. Recently, after fifteen months, I crawled over the finish line of a large part of my PhD project, and promptly ran off to the pub. The morning after, I awokeContinue reading “(Hopefully) Halfway to Doctorhood”
Author Archives: dannylbate
Bad Romance: An Introduction to the Appendix Probi
Reading Time: 10 minutes How exactly did we get from Latin to the many Romance languages of today? What changes happened to Latin that it should end up looking so different? These are the driving questions of Romance historical linguistics, the field of study that aims to investigate how French, Spanish, Catalan, Italian, Romanian andContinue reading “Bad Romance: An Introduction to the Appendix Probi”
Digging Old Irish
Reading time: 15-20 minutes Old Irish has a bit of a bad reputation. This historical form of the Irish language, dated to between c. 600 AD and c. 900 AD, is a challenge for learners, even for those who already know some Modern Irish. Its systems of spelling, sounds, word order and grammar are veryContinue reading “Digging Old Irish”
The Almost Romance Languages
Reading time: 15-20 minutes If you like languages, you’ve probably heard the terms Romance and the Romance family. Although it started life as a name for the language of medieval France, Romance has come to be the umbrella term for a big group of modern tongues, including French, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, Italian and Romanian. TheContinue reading “The Almost Romance Languages”
Journeying into gender with Words for Granted!
Hot on the heels on my previous podcast appearance, I joined Ray from the popular and long-running etymology podcast Words for Granted to talk about grammatical gender – what it is, why it exists, where it comes from and how English managed to completely lose it! You can listen to the episode in full here:Continue reading “Journeying into gender with Words for Granted!”
Talking etymology with the Lexis linguists!
Just a quick newsflash from me: Last week I had the pleasure and privilege of talking to Dan, Lisa and Jill, three of the team behind Lexis, a podcast about language and linguistics that’s primarily aimed at A-Level teachers and students, although its great content is accessible to all. We talked about etymology – whatContinue reading “Talking etymology with the Lexis linguists!”
Holy Linguists! Part II: Cyril and Methodius, Ælfric of Eynsham, Hildegard of Bingen
Reading time: 15-20 minutes So, continuing on a theme that nobody asked for but I love, here is the second part of my Holy Linguists! series of blog posts. Part I looked at three holy heavyweights from the Mediterranean world in the late antique era: Gregory of Nyssa, Jerome and Augustine. This month’s blog postContinue reading “Holy Linguists! Part II: Cyril and Methodius, Ælfric of Eynsham, Hildegard of Bingen”
Five Sound Changes That Make Italian Make More Sense
Reading time: 10-15 minutes As I write, it’s the 15th of September, and I have just, with a heavy heart, departed Italy. What a time, and what a place! Among its many delights, it was a particular pleasure to be reminded of how much I love the Italian language. I love to hear it, toContinue reading “Five Sound Changes That Make Italian Make More Sense”
Getting to Grips with Greek – Part I: Achieving the Alphabet
Reading time: 10 minutes Since antiquity, the Ancient Greek language has held a certain prestige that extends far beyond its autochthonous corner of the Mediterranean. Its influence has been multi-faceted; Greek vocabulary today turns up in so many different spheres of so many different languages, such as in terminology for medicine, for chemistry, for engineering,Continue reading “Getting to Grips with Greek – Part I: Achieving the Alphabet”
Holy Linguists! Part I: Gregory of Nyssa, Jerome and Augustine
Reading time: 10 – 15 minutes Surprising as it may be, I do actually have other interests besides linguistics. Perhaps the intellectual pursuit that holds second place in my affection (and obsession) is the study of religion and everything that that word encompasses – all the faith, the emotion, the theology and philosophy, the art,Continue reading “Holy Linguists! Part I: Gregory of Nyssa, Jerome and Augustine”
Danny L. Bate 