Why the English language is odd
Link here.
The writer outlines the history of English and how the many different languages that contributed to it caused it to be so different from most other languages. Some of the oddities he notes are quite fascinating because we English-speakers take them so much for granted. He only hints, however, at what is probably the English language’s greatest gift — its gigantic vocabulary resulting from its remarkable ability to absorb new words — which probably comes from that same polyglot history.
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Link here.
The writer outlines the history of English and how the many different languages that contributed to it caused it to be so different from most other languages. Some of the oddities he notes are quite fascinating because we English-speakers take them so much for granted. He only hints, however, at what is probably the English language’s greatest gift — its gigantic vocabulary resulting from its remarkable ability to absorb new words — which probably comes from that same polyglot history.
In order to remain completely independent and honest in my writing, I accept no sponsorships from big space companies or any political organizations. Nor do I depend on ads.
Instead, I rely entirely on the generosity of readers to keep Behind the Black running. You can either make a one time donation for whatever amount you wish, or you sign up for a monthly subscription ranging from $2 to $15 through Paypal, or $3 to $50 through Patreon, or any amount through Zelle.
The best method to donate or subscribe is by using Zelle through your internet bank account, since it charges no fees to you or I. You will need to give my name and email address (found at the bottom of the "About" page). What you donate is what I get.
To use Patreon, go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
For PayPal click one of the following buttons:
If these electronic payment methods don't work for you, you can support Behind The Black directly by sending your donation by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman, to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
I think that a major part of English’s problems is that we have way too many vowel phonemes and too little vowel letters. So we had to invent new ways of using letter combos to make different sounds. This is unlike Spanish which has five vowel sounds and five vowel letters.
Maybe you misunderstand my perspective. I don’t see any of these English oddities as problems. They aren’t bugs, they are features! Or at least, they are a reflection of the way the language formed, which gave us the largest vocabulary and richest language the world knows.
I have heard English described as the result of Norman Knights working to seduce Saxon Barmaids.
I saw a t-shirt at a science fiction convention that said something like “English doesn’t borrow from other languages, it hunts them down in dark alleys and mugs them.”
Japanese seems close to English in terms of loaned/borrowed words, and neologisms.
The neat thing about Japanese is that when they borrow a word, they write it in a phonetic alphabet (katakana) dedicated to foreign words. Because there are so few sounds in the Japanese language, sometimes it can be hard to figure out the original English word that served as the inspiration.
My favorite is “baa kodo,” or bar code, describing the hairstyle of a balding man who combs the few hairs he has left across the top of his head (from a bird’s eye view his head looks like it has a bar code).
This well written article seems to closely follow this prior work:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1375320/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VsVz5U76kX0
Convergent thoughts perhaps?
I am the product of several Norman knights and Saxon barmaids. Some Viking raiders and Pict barmaids as well.
If you examine Norwegian, it is a kind of middle ground between German and English.
Related:
Free American First Amendment English language for me but not for thee.
http://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2015/11/clinton-goes-after-laugh-factory-comedians-for-making-fun-of-her/
A little too thin skinned for me, and that is the least objectionable thing about her and her followers.
She does not like this Free American First Amendment English language either.
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2015/11/18/watch-how-hillary-clintons-security-handles-man-calmly-holding-sign-critical-of-candidate-during-rally/