Welcome to the page for all my website articles. To narrow down the list, use the drop-down menu above to find articles on a variety of topics, from English etymology to Latin linguistics.
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- Ex- a Weird Old Word Order -ploringOnce, in my halcyon days of doctoral studies, I gave an informal presentation that ended not with the typical slide “any questions?”, but rather “any answers?”. The talk’s topic fitted into my overall research into the word order of ancient Indo-European languages. My task was to acquire, present, evaluate and compare the available evidence, uponContinue reading “Ex- a Weird Old Word Order -ploring”
- The Inglish LanguageIt seems all too appropriate that a language infamous for its quirks of spelling should display a quirk of spelling in its very name. The word English would reasonably guide total newcomers to pronounce it with a short E, like the one typically to be heard in pen. Instead, their ears are due to beContinue reading “The Inglish Language”
- Meet English’s Newest ConsonantAs stable as they may seem, every sound of every spoken language, at some point in the past, didn’t exist. The incessant shifting of speech involves the innovation of sounds, when either new ones are born or old ones transform. Consequently, within the sounds that a particular spoken language (such as Modern English) makes useContinue reading “Meet English’s Newest Consonant”
- The Etymological Problem with ApplesI remain resolute in the belief that ordinary, ten-a-penny words are far more interesting than the rare jewels and prized flowers of any language’s lexicon. Miss me with your petrichor and antidisestablishmentarianism; I’d much rather tell you about apple. This isn’t my contrarian streak speaking. I take genuine joy in the fact that tracing the etymology ofContinue reading “The Etymological Problem with Apples”
- The Armenian Who Learned Greek in Ancient EgyptOr: Why my (probably) favourite historical document is a unique Armenian text without a word of Armenian. Centuries before the translation apps and pocketable phrasebooks of today, people who found themselves far from home made do with ink and papyrus. For reasons of pure linguistico-historical nerdery and joy, I’d like to introduce you to aContinue reading “The Armenian Who Learned Greek in Ancient Egypt”
- Fatal Pronunciation: The Shibboleth StoryThe Bible can make for a gruesome read. An effortless observation (which has led to much reasonable criticism) is that, for a collection of texts which many people take as foundational for life, it contains a lot of violent death. This can be of a single named individual or of an uncountable number of namelessContinue reading “Fatal Pronunciation: The Shibboleth Story”
- Vltava, Sázava, Mumlava: A Mumble of Voices Almost LostLocal rivers, specifically just one bit of them, have had me reflecting on lost language and the flow of time again. No one will be surprised by this. I recently descended from the heights of an enjoyable weekend in Krkonoše, a very hilly national park in the Czech Republic. Tucked up between two angles ofContinue reading “Vltava, Sázava, Mumlava: A Mumble of Voices Almost Lost”
- Monica, Erica, Rita, Tina: Why do so many women’s names end in A?There’s a certain air of femininity around the letter A. For one reason, it brings a great number of modern female first names to a close. A sample of famous names, especially if skewed towards the West, will typically include a fair few examples. Among the female winners of a Nobel Prize, we find Claudia, Bertha,Continue reading “Monica, Erica, Rita, Tina: Why do so many women’s names end in A?”
- A Love that Lasts Six Thousand Years“… Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove. O no! it is an ever-fixed mark That looks on tempests and is never shaken.” (William Shakespeare, Sonnet 116) February 14th has come round again, and love is in the air! ‘It was different in my day,’Continue reading “A Love that Lasts Six Thousand Years”
- An Unexpected ‘Indian’ Language in the Middle EastDelighted and motivated by the positive response to my recent article, Greek, the Asian and African Language, my mind has been occupied by an eagerness to share another example of historical languages turning up where we don’t expect them to be. That post and this one are united by an appreciation of how interconnected the ancientContinue reading “An Unexpected ‘Indian’ Language in the Middle East”
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Danny L. Bate 