Thoths Pill - an Animated History of Writing NativLang 2024-10-21 | Thoths Pill - an Animated History of Writing
Worlds Hardest Spelling Bee... is a writing systems bee! But what even is writing? NativLang 2024-08-23 | In which I get animated about my writing bee gameshow dream, then handwrite examples from diverse scripts that challenge definitions of writing.Subscribe: youtube.com/NativLang?sub_confirmation=1Patronize: patreon.com/NativLangLinks to those two creators with more to say about "check[ing] our educational priorities" ~Dr. Fatima's video: youtube.com/watch?v=3NCSY85FqVQAndrewism's video: youtube.com/watch?v=9ZGYtHPtZwMMy sources for every claim, beat by beat, along with credits for images and sfx ~docs.google.com/document/d/17YrDbubEAldzHVZHhjEh2NbBH38kK5grUVt-SoPAiOU~ Notes and Corrections ~⚠️ Fast-spinning wheel with bright colors from 0:08-0:15, and 0:57-1:03, and 14:09-14:13 ⚠️Greek Koinéization Attic/Ionic pairs: Ionian side should end not in -η but -α, as it still does in Demotic.Art, animation, narration and music by me; everything else lives in the document above.~ Briefly ~I took a summertime break from animating "grammatical animals". Spent 230 hours wandering through writing systems instead.So let's revisit my concept of a writing bee gameshow and the assumptions it makes about the comparative difficulty of writing systems. Contrast those assumptions with "marks on the page" definitions of writing, and use the writing bee to build a visual model of writing that incorporates roles, people, society. Through my calligraphy practice, reflect on the ways past readers and writers have shaped diverse scripts, and how their decisions challenge our definitions of writing. In particular, watch scripts of Central America break our definitions, with examples from my Maya and Nāhuatl handwriting practice. Finally, Ñuu dzaui codices from Mexico will ask us to rethink what writing even means... next time!
Do these animals form grammatical sequences? – Can Animals Grammar? #6 NativLang 2024-05-30 | Animated critter profiles of the basics of vocal and visual sequences made by frogs, monkeys, squid and more.Subscribe for parts 7 and 8: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangSources for claims: docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRAPatronize me per creation: patreon.com/NativLangTip me once: ko-fi.com/NativLang~ Shortly and sweetly ~We previously learned about animal signals, from calls and gestures to inventories of syllables that resemble meaningful words. This time, longer sequences show off their potential for complex grammatical patterns.Parts 1 through 5 build up to this video. In what's left of this series, we'll scrutinize human language through the lens of animal linguistics, then finally spend time with cetaceans and birds.~ Resources ~Art, animation and music by myself. My sources document backs up claims and gives credits for images, sounds, fonts:docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRA/#heading=h.bhyns12ovf59That same document links to groups focused on animals, their habitats and the people who care for them. There's a narrative tie-in that I hope works at the end of the series; meanwhile I'll just mention:docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRA/edit#heading=h.gpolixoat5xi
Are animal signals ever like words? – Can Animals Grammar? #5 NativLang 2024-04-26 | Are animal calls meaningful? Are they words? Animated signal profiles of prairie dogs, monkeys, insects and more.Subscribe for parts 6-8: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangSources for claims: docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRAPatronize me per creation: patreon.com/NativLangTip me once: ko-fi.com/NativLang~ Shortly and sweetly ~In previous parts we met animal signals from elephant calls to jacky dragon actions. Are these anything like human words? Let's get into the semantics of some suspiciously meaningful animal communication systems.Please watch parts 1 through 4 for background and buildup. This one falls in the middle of building up from syllables (last time) to sequences (next time).~ Resources ~Art, animation and music by me. My sources document backs up claims and gives credit for images, fonts and sounds:docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRA/#heading=h.t1f629ieweizIn that same document I link to groups focused on animals, their habitats and the people who care for them. There's a narrative tie-in that I hope works at the end of the series; meanwhile I'll just mention and link:docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRA/edit#heading=h.gpolixoat5xi
Animals make wild syllables – Can Animals Grammar? #4 NativLang 2024-03-22 | Animated profiles of small sound and gesture units heard and seen in animal repertoires, from elephants to canids to jacky dragons.Subscribe for parts 5-8: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangSources for claims: docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRATip me once: ko-fi.com/NativLangPatronize me per creation: patreon.com/NativLang~ Shortly and sweetly ~Last time we met "talking animals" trained by humans to speak. This time let's turn our eyes and ears toward "wild" communication systems. Part 4 of Grammanimals shows off some of my favorite one syllable repertoires from felids, elephants, giraffes, canids, jacky dragons and rats. We'll get mere hints of more complex sequences to come.Please watch parts 1 through 3 for background and buildup. Next time, are nonhuman "syllables" at all "word-like"? Are they linguistically meaningful?~ Resources ~Art, animation and music by me. I wrote a sources document to back up claims and to give credit for all images, fonts and sounds:docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRA/#heading=h.t1f629ieweizIn that same document I link to groups focused on animals, their habitats and the people who care for them. There's a narrative tie-in that I hope works at the end of the series; meanwhile I'll just mention and link:docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRA/edit#heading=h.gpolixoat5xi
Why talking animals disappointed most everyone – Can Animals Grammar? #3 NativLang 2024-01-26 | Did any trained animal ever really learn to speak? In my last animation, experts trained animal communication's biggest celebrities. Here the animal stars undergo scrutiny and one conference tanks hopes for future nonhuman linguistic marvels.Subscribe for parts 4-8: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangTip me once: ko-fi.com/NativLangPatronize me per creation: patreon.com/NativLang~ Shortly and sweetly ~In part 2 we learned about Alex the parrot, Kanzi the bonobo, Nim the chimpanzee, Hans the horse and other impressive signers and symbolizers. This time, I animate three anecdotes to draw a line from the "Clever Hans Effect" in the early 1900s through a trained chimpanzee and to a conference blowup in the later 20th century. In the end, this line ends at debunkings, disinterest and lack of funding for training talking animals. From there, we anticipate the rest of my Grammanimals series. Turn the camera away from "lab" grammars and toward "wild" grammars. In parts 4 to 8, we'll ask if any of the communication systems used by animals in their own homes contain anything like human grammar.Revisit part 2 to get an overview of the systems scrutinized here. I briefly recap the details on my handwritten "critter sheets", but we spend much more time focused on them in the last video and in my sources document linked below.~ Resources ~Art, animation and music by me. I wrote a sources document to back up claims and to give credit for all images, fonts and sounds:docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRA/#heading=h.9mfoqgt8sbakWithin that document I share links to groups focused on animals, their habitats and the people who care for them. There's a narrative tie-in that will work well by the end of the series, but for now I'll just mention and link:docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRA/edit#heading=h.gpolixoat5xi
Teaching animals to be grammatical – Can Animals Grammar? #2 NativLang 2023-11-30 | Humans tried to teach nonhumans to talk, training animal communication's biggest stars. Which animals did we teach to use words and sentences, and how good was their grammar?Subscribe for parts 3-8: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangTip me once: ko-fi.com/NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Summary ~Last time I introduced my animated series about grammatical animals. We'll spend eight videos wondering together if nonhuman animals can build words, sequences and sentences.This time, I take note of the many ways humans have tried to teach animals words and grammar. From Hans to Alex to Koko and Kanzi, we'll meet several animal stars and lean into their successes. I do hint at issues and failures along the way, but the main backlash to and fallout of this "teach them to talk" approach will be the subject of part 3.~ Resources ~Art, animation and music by me. I wrote a sources document to explain and back up claims and to credit all images, fonts and sounds:docs.google.com/document/d/1r3Am9jL5hVZr0YiQfm7okTtNO42MjG709dS2XUPs7MYWithin that document I share links to groups focused on animals, their habitats and the people who care for them. My narration will tie these in neatly by the end of the series; for now I'll just mention and link:docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRA/edit#heading=h.gpolixoat5xi
Can animals grammar? – introduction to my animated series NativLang 2023-10-31 | Are animal signals word-like or even sentence-like? Are their sounds and signs somehow meaningful and structured? Let's spend some videos together exploring the possible linguistics of animal communication. In part 1 I'll introduce this series and the many grammatical animals we'll meet along the way.Groups to support: docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRA/edit#heading=h.gpolixoat5xiSubscribe for parts 2-8: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangTip me once: ko-fi.com/NativLangPatronize me per creation: patreon.com/NativLang~ Shortly and sweetly ~I've been intrigued by animal language since my two older videos on "design features" and the bee waggle dance. After reading about how Campbell's monkeys suffix -oo to their calls, I read over 100 sources to figure out if animal signals and calls contain anything like human grammar. The answer was complicated and too long for my normal animations, but the story behind the research was fascinating.(~SPOILERS for the series in the list below!)I decided to retell a series with several more parts. Here's the basic storytelling structure, and what to expect from the rest of my latest big animated project:1. (this introduction)2. humans tried to teach nonhumans our grammars3. humans expected more from nonhumans4. humans tried to learn "wild" nonhuman grammars5. nonhuman word-like signals6. nonhuman sequences and sentence-like signals7. human language as animal communication8. birds, cetaceans and compositional syntaxOnce finished I want to stitch everything together in one long animation.~ Resources ~Art, animation and music by me. I wrote a sources document to explain and back up claims and to credit all images, fonts and sounds:docs.google.com/document/d/1r3Am9jL5hVZr0YiQfm7okTtNO42MjG709dS2XUPs7MYWithin that document I share links to groups focused on animals, their habitats and the people who care for them. There's a narrative tie-in that will work well by the end of the series, but for now I'll just mention and link:docs.google.com/document/d/1tK2GjVO19cmd4fBnRwhHrZK7RKYo08nnD_XS10a1wRA/edit#heading=h.gpolixoat5xiMy "Grammanimals" spreadsheet:docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Xgwh0hvPjOFcGgxlPOBUhLXIFes_petgGzv7Hp5blE4
SOV: Why is this the most popular word order across languages? NativLang 2023-06-30 | When languages around the world build a basic sentence, 43% arrange the words this way: subject - object - verb. Who does this? (Hint: not English!) How is it unique? Why is it so popular?Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLangCheck my sources: docs.google.com/document/d/1r3Am9jL5hVZr0YiQfm7okTtNO42MjG709dS2XUPs7MY~ Briefly, with *spoilers* ~Today we learn the characteristics of SOV and figure out why it's the #1 word order. Along the way we'll cover:- SOV's superlatives across history, geography, thought- a feel for V (verb) final languages, using a garden path sentence- roles: SOV as Agent-Patient-Action- flexibility even within SOV languages- cues: meaning, case marking, word order- SOV as the "language of thought"- animacy and (non-)reversible sentences- an underlying human-inanimate-action order- how removing family and area bias boosts SOV at the expense of SVO- colonialism and the (future?) spread of SVOArt, animation and music by me. I've written up a sources document for claims made and for pics, sfx, fonts:Sources: docs.google.com/document/d/1r3Am9jL5hVZr0YiQfm7okTtNO42MjG709dS2XUPs7MYContinuing the call from my OSV video, here are groups to support:Support: docs.google.com/document/d/1W9zHIS1T34aq2giAwWev1HKZkJ2_8gIyvfub96mOvSk/#heading=h.gpolixoat5xi
OSV: Why is this word order so rare in languages? NativLang 2023-03-17 | There are six basic word orders. Which languages have different ones and where? Why is this one so rare?Sources: docs.google.com/document/d/1W9zHIS1T34aq2giAwWev1HKZkJ2_8gIyvfub96mOvSkSupport: docs.google.com/document/d/1W9zHIS1T34aq2giAwWev1HKZkJ2_8gIyvfub96mOvSk/#heading=h.gpolixoat5xiArt, animation and music by me. Open doc above to read sources for claims and for pics, sfx.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly, but with small spoilers ~When I was young, I got interested in how sentences are arranged in various languages. When my grammar books treated basic word orders as different types of languages, I began to imagine them as a linguistic horoscope. I'm back with animated questions about that language zodiac:- What even is word order?- How many languages have different ones and where?- Why is SOV so common and OSV so rare?Along the way, we'll realize that the two least common word orders, OVS and OSV, are found among the languages of the Amazon. Check out my sources document above to even more.
What are (linguistic) nothings? ~ Reading comments and studying Saussure together NativLang 2022-12-16 | My last animation about why linguists believe in invisible words was captivating, also confusing. Let me consider your feedback and try once more. Join me and we'll study zeros again.~ Links mentioned this time ~Sources for this video: docs.google.com/document/d/1_duCLZZVbNwpENJXCQJ6nWd2BWK_8-MZxDDzwdRhS3wSupport impacted people: docs.google.com/document/d/1ywiOfzN5FZt2sh7s3V8EfCB54vUoHg4iA1VevAxgZeU/#heading=h.8iwaseaw0ce6Saussure in French: fr.wikisource.org/wiki/Cours_de_linguistique_générale/Texte_entierhttps://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k314842j/f107Saussure in English:archive.org/details/courseingenerall00sausSubscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~Today we do two things together. First, let's look at the love and confusion expressed in your comments on "Zeros", and let me add a bit of thoughtful commentary. Two, we'll read what Saussure had to say about those unpronounced but meaningful signs we met in "Zeros". All along the way, instead of explaining things to you, I'll animate our study time as we learn and read and think through this together.~ Credits ~Art, animation, narration and music by me. Other credits linked in sources document above (relinked here):docs.google.com/document/d/1_duCLZZVbNwpENJXCQJ6nWd2BWK_8-MZxDDzwdRhS3w
Why linguists believe in invisible words - the story of zeros NativLang 2022-10-14 | Do languages have unspoken meaningful nothings? Grammatical ghosts? Syntactically significant silences? Linguists sure seem to think so. They've been writing zeros in their grammars for years. What are these nulls? Where do they come from? Are they really there?Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLangRead my sources: docs.google.com/document/d/13_5Kej-KmIS-rVRQ6-VY2RBPtW-VBGEsvwWnhMEsTHM~ Briefly ~My animation tells the story of linguistic zeros. We'll see the evidence of their existence I've been collecting in my folder, then meet their proponents and their critics. By the end we'll aim to find good reasons for avoiding and for proposing zeros, depending on the people, the context and the cultures involved.~ Credits ~Art, animation, narration and music by me. All other credits in sources document above.
What makes Papuan languages so unique? - features from the area with the most languages NativLang 2022-07-29 | Melanesia is the place with the most languages on earth, most of which are Papuan. These are the features that set them apart from surrounding language families.Solidarity: docs.google.com/document/d/1ywiOfzN5FZt2sh7s3V8EfCB54vUoHg4iA1VevAxgZeU/#heading=h.8iwaseaw0ce6Voices: docs.google.com/document/d/1sI3YRMA6jM7GrqiWkGLXS-2FeMYGHhta1smhXQY6BG0Sources: docs.google.com/document/d/1ETctVEewo35-h4c7H8SWMagwtW-Z6ADMTYwS4j7bTicThe Papuan languages are traditionally said to be the old non-Austronesian and non-Australian languages of Melanesia. What makes Papuan languages "Papuan"? And what are the real relations between Melanesian, Oceanic and Austronesian languages? How are these tied to the people and their "langriculture" from the last video?Art and animation by me, with pics from sources above.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLangMost sounds by the Sawos people of Toremby village, recorded by Dr. Tyman: http://www.johntyman.com/sawos/sfx.html
New Guinea - lessons from a cradle of agriculture and languages NativLang 2022-04-29 | This island is home to bananas, sugarcane and more languages than anywhere else. Watch how words, crops and people connect in a place now known to be an original cradle of agriculture.Aid: docs.google.com/document/d/1ywiOfzN5FZt2sh7s3V8EfCB54vUoHg4iA1VevAxgZeU/#heading=h.8iwaseaw0ce6Voices: docs.google.com/document/d/1sI3YRMA6jM7GrqiWkGLXS-2FeMYGHhta1smhXQY6BG0Sources: docs.google.com/document/d/1ywiOfzN5FZt2sh7s3V8EfCB54vUoHg4iA1VevAxgZeUArt, narration and animation by me. Some of the music, too. See sources doc above for details.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLangMost sounds by the Sawos people of Torembi village, recorded by Dr. John Tyman: http://www.johntyman.com/sawos/sfx.html
Why French sounds so unlike other Romance languages NativLang 2021-07-23 | Sound changes left French unlike Latin, Italian, Spanish or Romanian. How? Here's the recipe.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~Follow my animated recipe for a taste of how sound shifts changed French pronunciation throughout the ages: Latin, Gaulish and Frankish influence, an early Romance era of Oïl vs Oc, Old French, Middle French, the Renaissance, all the way to Modern and then Contemporary French.Yes, it's a recipe! I originally wrote this as a more direct history. After much tinkering I wanted to recreate the story of the sounds of French as a pastry.~ Credits ~Art, narration, animation and some of the music by Josh from NativLangSources for claims made, and credits for most of the music, fonts, sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/1lo0bvzhli24783Ox5_THM3rHHe4lNV-7iO2jpqS3UF8Licensed Music:Laid Back Guitars by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3964-laid-back-guitarsLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseDanse Macabre - Sad Part - no violin by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3597-danse-macabre---sad-part---no-violinLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseSardana by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5002-sardanaLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseMarch of the Spoons by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4021-march-of-the-spoonsLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseVillage Consort by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4585-village-consortLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseSuonatore di Liuto by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4440-suonatore-di-liutoLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseHeavy Heart by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3865-heavy-heartLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseSilver Flame by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4362-silver-flameLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseThinking Music by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4522-thinking-musicLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseDuet Musette by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3685-duet-musetteLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseSneaky Snooper by Jason ShawLink: audionautix.comLicense: creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode
Why West Africa keeps inventing writing systems NativLang 2021-04-30 | These dozens of modern African scripts are adding a brand new chapter to the history of writing!Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~Meet Adlam, N'ko, Vai and over twenty more scripts that capture West African linguistic features and give new visual representation to native West African tongues.Topics covered:- backstories of Adlam and N'ko- list of many other scripts- examples of African scripts beyond West Africa- prenasalized stops like ᵐb- labiovelars like g͡b- vowel length in Fula- length and tone in N'ko- nasalization as an areal feature- older visual codes like N'sibidi and Adinkra- sociolinguistics of script creationSee the sources doc below for much more information.~ Credits ~Art, narration, animation and four pieces of music by Josh from NativLangSources for claims made, plus credits for music, fonts, sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/1v4oGwztBdP9-K3CLJuF6fr9zCL33ZyNF0UOjorL_dsY~ Music ~Please see my doc above for full credits. Public domain credits:Teko, song of nostalgia, traditional music of Burkina Faso, Tuasgo & Gouama accompanied by Kondé:https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k10801793/f1.mediaCreative Commons credits:Monkoto by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4072-monkotoLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseThinking Music by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4522-thinking-musicLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseKumasi Groove by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3958-kumasi-grooveLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseSilver Flame by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4362-silver-flameLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseInfados by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3914-infadosLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-license
The Languages of Africa NativLang 2021-03-22 | My animation about the many languages, language families and language areas of Africa.Links to African & diaspora language/linguistic history creators: docs.google.com/document/d/1gbsoD71MNajMJFncLzZjz4E7AZnhoUhgPwGq9H5jSK8Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~At first, the map of Africa's many languages seems complicated. However, in just a few minutes we'll learn how linguists classified them into just five families. Once we meet Africa's language areas, the five families begin to fall apart.We'll leave with a complicated picture of families, hypothetical groups and many isolates and debated classifications. Along the way, come to appreciate Africa's diverse peoples and languages.~ Credits ~Art, narration, animation and some of the music by Josh from NativLangSources for claims made, and full credits for music, fonts, sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/1Hihfgik9supmLFEnyMmQF9iKgnmX-M1hSJG20TgseTMMusic:Please see my doc above. I created the opening piece, the outro and one reprise from Thoth's Pill in the middle. The rest of the credit goes to:Silver Flame by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4362-silver-flameLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseInfados by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3914-infadosLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseThinking Music by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4522-thinking-musicLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-license
Writing doesnt always end in alphabets - the enigmatic Egyptian counterexample NativLang 2020-12-30 | As hieroglyphic writing reached the end of its life, Egyptians didn't simplify it like the alphabets emerging all around. They made it even more complex. Meet what Egyptologists call "enigmatic" or "cryptographic" hieroglyphs.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~I'm following up on my tale of Egyptian phonology with this intriguing hieroglyphic shift. We'll contrast Egypt's developments with the alphabets emerging around the Mediterranean, revisit the basics of how hieroglyphs work, learn some of the readings and substitutions that drive cryptographic writing, and encounter examples of how sign choices relate to mythic context and content. At the end, we'll briefly wonder about the roles of temple, creativity, hybridity, and attrition in favor of alternative alphabets in the long twilight of the hieroglyphs.~ Credits ~Art, narration, animation and much of the music by Josh from NativLang.My sources doc for claims and full credits for music, sfx, fonts and images:docs.google.com/document/d/1vfS3F-Z4YQ8Q33EpGUCNDYgxGgLRgVB9n44oROvqdKcMusic not by me:Peace on the Water, Unlimited Potentialby Darren Curtis (custom license: http://darrencurtismusic.com)Silver Flame by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4362-silver-flameLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-licenseThinking Music by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4522-thinking-musicLicense: filmmusic.io/standard-license
What Ancient Egyptian Sounded Like - and how we know NativLang 2020-11-27 | How did Egyptians pronounce the language behind the hieroglyphs?Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~From Hatshepsut to Nefertiti to a Coptic Abuna, meet the many forms of the long-lived Egyptian language. Watch as they help us listen back to the original sounds of the hieroglyphs. Then, identify a family full of Egyptian's ancestors and relatives, refine those pronunciations and arrive at an outline of Egyptian pronunciation.~ Credits ~Art, narration and animation by Josh from NativLang. Two of the musical scores, too.My doc full of sources for claims and credits for music, sfx, fonts and images:docs.google.com/document/d/15oGlSTW24CrL_fg1g19_Wvt52xLwjrQdKRAjJdgbzFoMusic:Please see my doc above for all songs. Most of the credit belongs to these talented creators: Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) and Darren Curtis (darrencurtismusic.com).Big Mojo by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3435-big-mojoLicense: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0Return of the Mummy by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4281-return-of-the-mummyLicense: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0Silver Flame by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4362-silver-flameLicense: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0Dhaka by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3646-dhakaLicense: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0Thinking Music by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4522-thinking-musicLicense: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0The Path of the Goblin King v2 by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4502-the-path-of-the-goblin-king-v2License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0Virtutes Instrumenti by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4590-virtutes-instrumentiLicense: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0Temple of Endless Sands, Ale and Anecdotes by Darren Curtis(custom license through darrencurtismusic.com)
Clocks around the world: how other languages tell time NativLang 2020-09-25 | How many hours are in a day? Which direction is clockwise? Can hours shrink? Depends on your language!Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~Starting with Swahili, we'll tour a whole range of ways of telling time around the world. I will mention or discuss all of these:- Swahili Time- 12 and 24 hour clocks- Italian and Thai six hour clocks- temporal hours- traditional Chinese time units- Nāhua hours and cycle direction- Hindustani time units- Japanese 30 hour days- natural standards~ Credits ~Art, narration and animation by Josh from NativLang. Quite a bit of the music, too. Other music by Joshua David Mitchell, Darren Curtis, Kevin MacLeod (see required incompetech.com credits below).My doc full of sources for claims and credits for music, sfx, fonts and images:docs.google.com/document/d/1OXoburKVVRjabBs4fUGhBQuKiEIZaAQv8xlaD2-o8rc(? Cut from final edit:Arid Foothills by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3380-arid-foothillsLicense: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)Adding The Sun by Kevin MacLeodLink: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5708-adding-the-sunLicense: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
But are Mesoamerican glyphs still used today? NativLang 2020-08-20 | How are the ancient glyphs of Mexico, Guatemala and Central America written now? These examples made me stop talking about these writing systems only in the past tense.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLangMy previous video about the history of the glyphs, mentioned a couple times:youtube.com/watch?v=RAK87QMbw_0Glyph demonstration mentioned in the video:youtube.com/watch?v=630e2bFLbfY(See my sources doc below for details and full credits.)~ Briefly ~Last time was about the history of these various scripts. This time, let's meet the glyphs in the present, see how they are used, and get curious about their future.~ Credits ~Art, narration and animation by Josh from NativLang. Much of the music, too.My doc full of sources for claims and credits for music, sfx, fonts and images:docs.google.com/document/d/1XHI2TPO83Sxz7ft1rTZtJ_22KSY1ZpdcRs4QHWs63F8
Is this the earliest writing in Mesoamerica? NativLang 2020-07-30 | A quest for Mesoamerica's oldest glyphs and a birthplace of ancient writing.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~The sun rises ever earlier on writing in the Western Hemisphere. Travel back and forth to discover the people present and past whose writings these are, and why the Cascajal Block may change the way you talk about the history of writing.~ Credits ~Art, narration, animation and most of the music by Josh from NativLang. Two pieces of music are by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com).Sources for claims made, and credits for images, music, fonts, sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/10-E55G1VCn9--JHarptC-c0CLp4XCZPPxnIiwI-qboQ~ Chapters ~0:00-0:24 Open0:24-2:13 Intro2:13-3:30 Aztec3:30-3:57 Mixtec3:30-4:31 Teotihuacan4:31-5:24 Maya5:24-6:11 Kaminaljuyu6:11-7:04 Isthmian7:04-7:54 Zapotec7:54-8:32 Olmec8:32-8:57 Outro
First Contact Survival Kit - learn an undocumented language from scratch NativLang 2020-06-26 | Wandering off your map, you meet people whose language is totally unknown to linguists. Can you learn to speak? Yes. Here's how.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~First contact scenarios fascinate us, so I was asked to get animated about how they work from a linguistic perspective. How in the world can you go from total outsider to speaking the language? Start with this first contact survival kit.In this animation, we'll go from the legendary and romanticized "contact" scenario to walking through the steps that researchers use to build trust and start speaking a language monolingually. You'll conclude with questions about the ethics of even doing this in the first place as you stop to consider Indigenous perspectives that reframe your "contact".~ Credits ~Art, narration, animation by Josh from NativLang. Much music, too, including intro and outro theme.My doc full of sources for claims and credits for music, sfx, fonts and images:docs.google.com/document/d/18PL1f0WDLR7YgHzYqA5mLXprkGnbKNtu8XVMOqd_BqU
The Languages of Siberia NativLang 2020-05-22 | One of the world's least populous areas is actually home to about forty languages from over ten language families.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~A journey through Siberia's languages, including large families and "Paleo-Siberian" languages. Come meet the many families of Siberia, from Turkic to Yupik to Yeniseian to Nivkh.~ Credits ~Art, narration and animation by Josh from NativLang.My doc full of sources for claims and credits for music, sfx, fonts and images:docs.google.com/document/d/1KJcDuyfgqhGJ12qNvG5iTqKLa2k6pQ_K6vcDV83rqeU
The Languages of Siberia - OLD (bad audio) NativLang 2020-05-22 | One of the world's least populous areas is actually home to about forty languages from over ten language families.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~A journey through Siberia's languages, including large families and "Paleo-Siberian" languages. Come meet the many families of Siberia, from Turkic to Yupik to Yeniseian to Nivkh.~ Credits ~Art, narration and animation by Josh from NativLang.My doc full of sources for claims and credits for music, sfx, fonts and images:docs.google.com/document/d/1KJcDuyfgqhGJ12qNvG5iTqKLa2k6pQ_K6vcDV83rqeU
The Ainu language - short history, plus a note about last speakers and pandemics NativLang 2020-04-24 | A brief animated history of a language native to northern Japan and the edge of Siberia.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang Earnings from this and other NativLang videos this month will be donated. The highlighted message at 5:49 is from Cultural Survival, though I may add others:https://mailchi.mp/culturalsurvival.org/covid19~ Briefly ~ I've spent the first part of this pandemic researching the languages of Siberia. Along the way I noticed how many languages were spoken by just a very, very small community. Today let's take some minutes to think about one such language traditional to the edge of southeastern Siberia.Start in Japan, then journey through a brief history of Ainu. It's missing many details, but you'll end up with a sense of who the speakers are, where they have lived, down to where the language holds on at present in Japan. Even learn some features that make it similar to and very different from Japanese and from nearby Siberian languages.We'll end with a note about languages with few speakers left (often few elders - sometimes just one!) The month of this video's release, YT ad revenue from across NativLang videos will go to groups who are aware of this issue and support indigenous communities.~ Credits ~Art, narration, animation and much of the music by Josh from NativLangSources for claims made, and credits for most of the music, fonts, sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/1wZwR7UWVF7M637OQecDRF5Ay3kQV1lZmHcGbbaJrCkEMusic:Please see my doc above for sources. There I give full credit to Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) for the track at the start and a couple in the middle.
Mongolic: meet a language family, including Para-Mongolic NativLang 2020-03-20 | Meet the Mongolic languages. Mongolian, Mongguor, Mangghuer, Moghol and more!Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~Take a journey across the entire Mongolic language family in under eleven minutes. Here we learn about the basic traits inherited from Proto-Mongolic, then get brief introductions to the Central, Southern (Qinghai-Gansu), Western (Moghol) and Eastern (Dagur) branches of the family. I take a moment to mention recent attempts to use Khitan and other evidence to extend the family back to a pre-Mongolic Xianbei or Serbi. Finally, I share why Mongolists find family trees insufficient for explaining these unique languages.~ Credits ~Art, narration and animation by Josh from NativLang. Outro theme, too.All other music by Kevin MacLeod – please see sources doc below for full credits.My doc full of sources for claims and credits for music, sfx, fonts and images:docs.google.com/document/d/1M9ffy5d1Dupl3Dwjroe5Gcz5C-AYzG5n_D_yck7gJvU
Khitan: deciphering Chinas forgotten Para-Mongolic language NativLang 2020-02-28 | A steppe empire's undeciphered glyphs are at the verge of recovery. Meet the Khitan language!Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~This animation tells the linguistic story of a script that was invented over a thousand years ago and lasted for three centuries. Despite everything written about them in Chinese history and the written evidence in their language, their scripts remain somewhat of a mystery. We'll get an understanding of the difference between the two scripts, the attempts at decipherment so far, and what we do know about them. We'll end comparing identifiable Khitan vocabulary to other languages to see where it fits into North Asia's linguistic scene.~ Credits ~Art, narration and animation by Josh from NativLang. A bit of the music, too.Most of the music is by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com), with one piece by Darren Curtis. Please see my sources document below for full names and credits!Doc full of sources for claims and credits for music, sfx, fonts and images:docs.google.com/document/d/1Cu74ghDD8zZhNM-LDQT6CMtz-WB6VMIKPTj20LVJjEc
Language nods - meaningful messages from native speakers NativLang 2020-01-24 | Warm messages from native speakers teach me about their own languages, including some lesser-known ones. I can't even animate fast enough to cover all of them! Here are some on my mind. Which have you not heard of before?Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLangVexillographer channel: youtube.com/user/VexillographerArgent's work: argentkvasnikoff.com/qena-sintisis.htmlThank you for watching and supporting across the years. My calendar flipped to 2020, and I'd like to credit some of the people who sent warm messages asking me to tell a tale about their language. It's bothered me over the years that I'm not getting to all of these, so I wanted to appreciate these viewers and their linguistic.~ Credits ~Art, animation, narration and some of the music by Josh from NativLang.Sources doc full of credits for images, music, sfx, fonts and sources for claims made:docs.google.com/document/d/1RKx7TNr3nwm_XfycI26Ug8erWUTez11QLr3joC7TltkMusic:"Cherubs" by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com"Dragons and Fireworks" by Darren Curtis"Sardana" and others by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)(please see sources doc above for full attributions!)
African Romance: searching for traces of a lost Latin language NativLang 2019-12-27 | Did a Romance language survive in North Africa? What was it like? The story of a late Latin language, people who spoke it and a tour of its possible features.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~Our story starts with a map of modern Romance languages, zooming in one of the areas where a local neo-Latin language did not survive: Roman Africa. We'll meet Punic speakers in Carthage, hear of Roman and Vandal and Byzantine and Umayyad conquests, and Amazigh ("Berber") people all along as we uncover pieces of this tongue's story.In the end we're left speculating, wondering about a language that maybe - possibly! - had a vowel system like Sardinian, k-sounding Cs like Dalmatian, b-sounding Vs like Spain and interacted with local languages that other Romance languages hardly knew.~ Credits ~Art, narration and animation by Josh from NativLang.My doc full of sources for claims and credits for music, sfx, fonts and images:docs.google.com/document/d/1B8CmMkE3PhKOG_pKHyDyeE9HoTaG6Zr1JFLv1P0IO1Y
What English does - but most languages cant NativLang 2019-11-29 | English has unusual linguistic features most other languages don't! These skills really make English unique compared to other languages around the world.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~The second of two fun, experimental takes on features English lacks and has. Part one lives here:youtube.com/watch?v=5iLpKFA1ADQLast time we met skills English is missing compared to other languages, now it's time for what it does have:- (its spelling system)- suppletive ordinals- obligatory plurals- definite and indefinite articles- possession with "have"- perfect with "have"- passive voice- asymmetric noun-pronoun alignment- particle comparative with "than"- interdental fricatives- rhotics- r-colored vowels (ahem, "coloured")- nounless adjectives with "one"Thank you for watching, and see my sources doc below for even more!~ Credits ~Art, narration and animation by Josh from NativLang.My doc full of sources for claims and credits for music, sfx, fonts and images:docs.google.com/document/d/1rlNzQz2JRUOgE5BG9ppKzzMBbUI7r-4qOdLcd_vUqzA
Features English is missing - but most other languages have NativLang 2019-11-08 | Other languages have unique features that English just doesn't have access to. So, English, why don't you level up your skills with these linguistic tricks from around the world?Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~The first of two fun, experimental videos where I'm playing with features English lacks and has. This time we'll take a look at some grammatical skills that English might consider unlocking:- reduplication- distributive numerals- politeness- predicative adjectives- question particles and interrogative word order- copula vs locative be- weather verbs- instrumentals vs comitatives- clusivity- evidentialsThank you for watching!~ Credits ~Art, narration and animation by Josh from NativLang.My doc full of sources for claims and credits for music, sfx, fonts and images:docs.google.com/document/d/1KjWUYZxa2CXo95HXTQ42sO5JtJyGHmlg3q2NaV2enok
Altaic: Rise and Fall of a Linguistic Hypothesis NativLang 2019-09-28 | Languages throughout Asia are startlingly similar, but are they all part of one huge family? Thus began the biggest fight in the history of historical linguistics.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~Starting with my little quiz, see how languages from Turkey to Northern China have "embarrassing" parallels. Some linguists explained these similarities by linking the languages together into one large family. They called the family "Altaic", with a core containing Tungusic, Mongolic and Turkic. Capitalizing on connections between Korean and Japanese, Altaic proponents added these two apparent isolates to form an even larger "macro" family. The result was a sweeping hypothesis: all Turkic, Tungusic, Mongolic, Koreanic and Japonic languages are genetically related.The idea at first seemed to take off, with Moscow at the helm of the research. However, linguists increasingly criticized results and the methods used by Altaicists. They were skeptical that the languages were convergent and shallowly similar rather than divergent and truly related. One notable supporter turned into its most vocal critic. We'll drop in on the spat between him and three foremost Altaicists to uncover the controversy and the controversy over the controversy.We'll leave with a sense of how Altaic fell from linguistic grace, along with some of the main reasons why. While there are people who do Altaic, linguists tend to give me the impression that consensus is strongly on the side of areal explanations for the features we saw in my quiz (like the Mesoamerican Sprachbund) instead of genetic affiliation (like Indo-European or Austronesian).Thank you for watching! This isn't about taking sides, but appreciating the story.~ Credits ~Art, narration, animation and some of the music by Josh from NativLangTurkish captions by Ümit DuranSources for claims and credits for music, fonts, sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/1L5r2chCbT3eIEjx5k-0LPs02lTdfn4Qs7774ZeOMGloMusic:Please see my doc above for all song titles. So much credit to these talented creators:- Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)- Jason Shaw (audionautix.com)
Gvprtskvni - how is this even a word, Georgian!? NativLang 2019-08-23 | The Georgian language has some highly unusual syllables. Here's the linguistics behind its complex consonant clusters.Subscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~Starting from one clustery word, we'll go on a journey looking for the "root" of this record-breaking consonant phenomenon known as Georgian. We'll quickly pass over some of its standout characteristics, from its ejective sounds to its striking writing system, before we settle down into Georgian's atypical syllable structure.Not only are its syllables long, they're full of sonority violations. This happens thanks to the language's morphology, particularly the way its verbs put pieces together. We'll end with a contrast between the clustered but relatively benign gvprtskvni-like verbs versus ones that look deceptively easier to say but have much trickier grammar.~ Credits ~Art, narration, animation and some of the music by Josh from NativLangSources for claims made, and credits for most of the music, fonts, sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/1FiH7PeI-zXUbXQfqUxixzCImgevWyZsfwCPSkCHneBYMusic:See my doc above for song titles. Credit to these talented creators:- Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)- Josh Woodward (joshwoodward.com)- Jason Shaw (audionautix.com)
The complicated linguistics behind how the Maya talk about the past NativLang 2019-07-19 | The Maya language has no past tense, so how do they tell stories? I'll explain the complex way this tenseless language talks about events in the past.Previous video about Maya tenselessness: youtube.com/watch?v=ttq0S4cuIHASubscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang~ Briefly ~Last time we adventured through the strategies the Maya use for sequencing events in time. That journey took us from a lab to an ancient site to a town that was about to be struck by a hurricane.It also left some of the audience confused. This time I'll spend more minutes following up on the details of just one piece of Maya's solution to tenseless time. By the end, we'll cover these concepts:- coding time, topic time, event time- deictic tense- perfective vs non-perfective aspect- imperfectives, terminatives, prospectives- natural temporal reference point (NTRP)- binding non-perfectives to a perfective topic time- temporal anaphora: contextually determined topic times~ Credits ~Art, narration, animation and some of the music by Josh from NativLangSources for claims made, and credits for most of the music, fonts, sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/1FNploKCQIjprjMg9jcva7rfoAaXRitvg1c2TpoD5qF0Music:Please see the sources doc above for full credits and list of songs. Besides parts of three of my own tunes, most of the credit goes out to these very talented and sharing creators:- Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)- Josh Woodward (joshwoodward.com)- Jason Shaw (audionautix.com)
Maya Before, Maya After: How a Tenseless Language Talks Past and Future NativLang 2019-06-28 | The Maya language has no past, present or future tense, and no word for "before" or "after"... yet the Maya still talk time as well as you! How?Become my patron: patreon.com/NativLangSubscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLang~ Briefly ~Two speakers in a lab. Over a thousand years earlier, two glyphs on a stairway. What do they have in common? Time without tenses!We'll journey from an experiment to an inscription, then get an overview of how Maya uses aspects, moods and temporal anaphora to situate events in time.The research made an impression on me. I've been eager to share it with you. I plan to follow up with more of the details, since this is some unique linguistics I haven't seen discussed much outside of the papers I've been reading.~ Credits ~Art, animation and narration by Josh from NativLangMy sources doc with credits for images, music, fonts, sounds and sources for claims made:docs.google.com/document/d/1cTfX1AEtVjXyRTNvOyPqHRrBjVa0X48Ggdn3Yy2S1FA
Aizuchi: Why its impolite not to chime in in Japanese NativLang 2019-05-17 | In Japan, you don't wait quietly for a conversation to finish. Be polite - chime in! This is the story behind aizuchi, why Japanese speakers talk back so much more often.Become my patron: patreon.com/NativLangSubscribe for more: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLang~ Briefly ~I'll start with a personal story of how my sensei peppered feedback with filler words as we practiced. That was my jumping off point for learning more about Japanese aizuchi.Compare a sample conversation in English and Japanese. Learn the history behind the term "aizuchi" and how it went from conversing about ironworking to conversing about conversing. After that, come to see how aizuchi work in Japanese, including a quick tour through the research. Finally, I'll consider the back-and-forth conversation building this communication strategy allows and end with a remark on what aizuchi means to me as I reflect back on my sensei's encouragement.~ Credits ~Art, animation and narration by Josh from NativLangMy sources doc with credits for images, music, fonts, sounds and sources for claims made:docs.google.com/document/d/1EIRxnG-1kXtRCEGzLv2Cf7sLYy0697VLxZCKSNvFMwU
What Genghis Khans Mongolian Sounded Like - and how we know NativLang 2018-10-30 | Genghis Khan? Or Chinggis Khaan? Maybe Khagan? History's most famous conqueror kept many secrets. Yet with some clever linguistic investigation, we can reanimate the sounds of his language.Become my patron: patreon.com/NativLang/overviewSubscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLang~ Summary ~Our journey starts with a Mongolian grammar and a trip to modern Mongolia, a language with some standout features. You'll see the Khan's name written everywhere... but in the Cyrillic script. Cross the border to Inner Mongolia in China to see everyday use of a much older script, a script with extra "hidden" syllables.We'll trace those syllables back to when the soon-to-be-Khan, Temüjin, conquered the Naiman and encouraged his dignitaries to use the newfound Uyghur script. That Written Mongol has some archaic features, and comes from the time of the Khan, but another piece of evidence suggests it's too archaic.In the 1800s, a scholarly Russian monk found a history book in China. It was written in Hànzì (Chinese characters), but the text didn't read well... unless you pronounced it in Mongolian. This turned out to be the Secret History of the Mongols. The language of the text was similar to Written Mongol, but it had notable differences, including modern-looking features. Still, it also seemed to come from the Khan's time. Was this Middle Mongol more authentic?That's when we'll run into a third line of evidence: linguists comparing Mongolic languages and reconstructing Proto-Mongolic. There's not just one modern Mongolian; there's an entire Mongolic family. The features of this reconstructed proto-language matched the slightly modern-looking Middle Mongol.In the end, these three ways of looking back to the early Mongols situate the Khan in linguistic history. Before him, there were Turkic loans (including the Khahan, the state (ulus), and the hero (baatur) in Ulaanbaatar), maybe dialects, and perhaps sibling Para-Mongolic languages. After him, a diversification into the modern languages. Between those, he unified his people and, in a "linguistic bottleneck", created a common Mongol language that turned into a language family in a relatively short time.Along the way, we'll meet these forms of the language:- Mongolian: the modern standard language of Mongolia, a standardized form of Khalkha- Mongol: a general term for stages of the standard or prestige language, as well as a native term for many individual Mongolic varieties (Mongol, Mangghuer, Moghol, ...)- Written Mongol (WM): the archaic language behind a continuous stream of texts in the Mongol script- Secret History (SH): the longest early Mongol text, here claimed to represent a different form of MM- Middle Mongol (MM): the oldest attested stage of Mongol, typically including SH and Preclassical WM, plus later material like 'Phags-pa texts- Mongolic: the language family branching from early Mongol after the time of Genghis Khan- Proto-Mongolic (PM): the reconstructed common ancestor of modern Mongolian and its sibling languagesThese discussions were heavily, heavily trimmed for time. They're mostly a given by Genghis Khan's era, but they definitely matter when we're digging into the backstory of PM and early Mongol:- (Mongolized) Turkic: Mongolic has many Turkic words that must predate PM but show clear signs of borrowing, not common ancestry- Para-Mongolic: a headscratcher of a hypothesis, but we may possess evidence of ancient siblings to the Proto-Mongolic or pre-PM language itself (not direct ancestors of modern Mongolian), with current focus on Khitan~ Credits ~Art, animation and narration by Josh from NativLang. Some of the music, too.Other music by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) and one by Josh Woodward (joshwoodward.com). Full credits in the sources doc below.Sources for claims and credits for images, sfx, music and fonts:docs.google.com/document/d/1qPNvp_BES1F3EzHku41FLqFY1nHaeoYH82a7LNZpV8I/edit
Why Danish sounds funny to Scandinavians NativLang 2018-08-24 | The history behind why Danish sounds like a "throat condition". I'm told Danes speak like they have a cough, hiccups, or a potato in their throat. I did some linguistic excavating find out why.Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang/overview~ Issues ~Danish fans & commenters took issue with the way I talked about Danish dialects at the end. I appreciate you sharing more! For my original source vs the opposing dialects-alive-and-well perspective, see the end of my "sources" section in my sources doc linked below.~ Briefly ~Danish sounds funny to other Scandinavians. And just about everyone else, too.When I recently explored the asymmetric intelligibility between Scandinavian countries, I noticed that everyone seemed ready to point the finger at Danish. It sounds weird, funny, throaty, and unlike the familiar Swedish accent or the many Norwegian dialects.Journey back 1300 years ago to Old Norse, then learn how change after change shifted Denmark towards its current standout pronunciation. Along the way, we'll meet:- the splitting of East Norse and West Norse- the vowel reduction of the early Middle Ages- the lenition of the later Middle Ages- the ever-proliferating vowel qualities that give Danish its high vowel count- the extremely unique and notable stød- the "guttural R", a late but fashionable borrowingOne final change will solidify Danish's phonological rift with its neighbors. Unlike Sweden and Norway, Denmark's dialects largely fade in the face of the speech of Copenhagen. This history leaves us with a quirky modern Danish, a unique language indeed.~ Credits ~Art, animation, narration and a bit of the music by Josh from NativLangSources for claims made, along with credits for images, fonts, sfx and the rest of the music:docs.google.com/document/d/1eL6y92d_jBb7I0w9HX9uxM-Pf_kmzFLkE5uSyqYMzqE
Why some speakers cant understand speakers who understand them - Asymmetric Intelligibility NativLang 2018-06-29 | Sometimes two languages are close enough that speakers of one understand the other. But it's not always fair. It's easier for Danish speakers to understand Swedish than the other way around. Same goes for Portuguese and Spanish. Many other languages, too. How come?Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/NativLang/overview~ Briefly ~In this animation I'll share a couple cases of this strange uneven understanding. I'll tell you about a time I witnessed it myself, then take out a map and journey to Scandinavia, where this kind of thing is normal. With Scandinavian languages in hand, we'll think about the terms "mutual intelligibility" and "asymmetric intelligibility".We'll see three factors at work: attitude, exposure, language. Journeying into that last one, we'll look at results of studies that try to relate Scandinavia's linguistic differences to asymmetric difficulties in understanding. We'll hit a snag that requires a bit more research before concluding it's not entirely about the languages themselves.I'll end with some quick examples, including ones that patrons pointed out when they voted for this video.~ Credits ~Art, animation, narration and some of the music by Josh from NativLangDoc full of sources for claims made and images, music, sfx, fonts used:docs.google.com/document/d/1oHh187AWkbZFiICj5wwgyOM4-9Go44p-dQr7BBGrHD8Music that's not by me:Tickled PinkJosh Woodward - http://joshwoodward.comMarty Gots a Plan, Silver Flame, Thinking Music, Cheery MondayKevin MacLeod - incompetech.com
Family Trees in Other Languages: our worlds 7 kinship systems NativLang 2018-04-28 | Not every language talks about family the same way. Why did Latin have so many words for "cousin"? When does "brother" also mean "sister" in Hawaiian? How did Ashanti kin terms thwart British colonizers? An animated exploration of kinship around the world!Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/user?u=584038 ~ Corrections ~One messenger warns that the "Inuit" system does not actually reflect Inuit languages. For more information and multiple sources on this issue, see my sources doc link below.~ Briefly ~ (small spoilers!)We'll take a tour through the traditional breakdown of kin terms around the world into just six systems: Inuit, Hawaiian, Sudanese, Iroquois, Crow and Omaha. Along the way we'll see how each works using my animated family tree diagram full of faces. We'll also meet some truly unique examples of kinship systems, including spending a bit more time with siblings in Hawaiian language itself and a detour to the Asantehene's kingdom to show off how Crow systems work. Wait, but that's just six systems, right? There's one more, a system that looks like Iroquois until we zoom out and meet your grandparents' siblings' descendants.You'll end up with a dizzying but amazing sense for how linguistic kinship systems have been classified in the past. Before you go though, I'll ask a few questions that poke at these systems, challenge the assumptions we make in this video and have been hard for me to answer.~ Credits ~Art, animation, narration and some of the music by Josh from NativLangDoc full of sources for claims made and images, music, sfx, fonts used:docs.google.com/document/d/1uwqu4DXqvhbLhIz689cqp0r-feKzyN6YT08TG4hTXGsMusic that's not by me:Crazy Glue, Tickled PinkJosh Woodward - http://joshwoodward.comThatched Villagers, Thinking Music, The Path of the Goblin King v2, Silver Flame, Arid Foothills, Vadodora Chill Mix, SardanaKevin MacLeod - incompetech.comHappy Ukulele, Sneaky SnooperJason Shaw - audionautix.comDragons and FireworksDarren Curtis - darrencurtismusic.com
What Ancient Chinese Sounded Like - and how we know NativLang 2018-02-28 | How China's scholars uncovered its ancient imperial language and founded a linguistic tradition that's uniquely separate from the West.Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/user?u=584038~ Briefly ~ (spoilers!)What Chinese once sounded like and how that was discovered throughout the ages... to be explained, not through the eyes of European linguistics, but in the old and venerable tradition of Chinese linguistics!Since ancient times Chinese scholars have been arguing about the right way to pronounce classic poetry and literature. Here's how they dug into the past and reconstructed the earlier sounds behind the characters.After a note about my struggles with Chinese phonology, our tale begins in 1842 with Chen Li's attempt to piece together older Chinese pronunciation. He's working from a fanqie dictionary put together more than 1200 years earlier by Lu Fayan after a party at his house turned into an argument about the exact pronunciation of ancient rhymes.We'll look at an example of fanqie, then wander hundreds of years later to see how rime tables presented Chinese phonology in a more systematic way. With these resources in hand, scholars spent centuries convincing everyone that they could reconstruct any syllable and that Chinese had exactly 36 initial consonants.We return to Chen Li's time to watch him dissect the fanqie and prove that Chinese phonology was more complicated and less understood than previously thought. Then, a Swede named Karlgren will visit China and use information from modern "dialects", including Sino-Xenic pronunciations, to fill in the fanqie and rime table categories with real sounds.After considering how scholars have built on this work, we end up with tiny snapshots of historical Chinese pronunciation but a good overview of the framework used to investigate it. With one important adjustment: what's being reconstructed turns out not to be a single language called "Ancient" Chinese. It's a period and a categorical system now known as "Middle Chinese". "Middle" because there's an "Old" Chinese, which is even older, has its own (connected) stories and could be worth a visit.~ Credits ~Art, animation, narration and outro music by Josh from NativLangDoc full of sources for claims made and images, music, sfx, fonts used:docs.google.com/document/d/1uq3P0MCEaNxuG3gynlZo3r-7Q21EGHqQL19NtlrRnrEMusic:Dragons and Fireworks by Darren Curtis - darrencurtismusic.comAsian Graveyard by Darren Curtis - darrencurtismusic.comAll The Tea In China by Shane Ivers - silvermansound.comShenyang by Kevin MacLeod - incompetech.comEastern Thought by Kevin MacLeod - incompetech.comSilver Flame by Kevin MacLeod - incompetech.comOpium by Kevin MacLeod - incompetech.comCrazy Glue by Josh Woodward - joshwoodward.comSneaky Snooper by Jason Shaw - audionautix.comGreat Unknown by Jason Shaw - audionautix.com
What Etruscan Sounded Like - and how we know NativLang 2017-11-17 | Italy's lost language? They gave Rome the alphabet, but we hardly know them. Here's how we pieced together the extinct language of an early Italian civilization.Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBecome my patron: patreon.com/user?u=584038~ Briefly ~A strange Egyptian mummy was found in the 1800s. Its bandages were filled with the letters of a book - not an Egyptian book, but a book written in an archaic Italian language known to Romans as "Etruscan". The book held a deeper mystery beyond the question of its provenance: it couldn't be read, not because the text was undeciphered but because the language was unknown.Throughout the video we'll discover what we can (and can't) say about Etruscan sounds and words. You'll glimpse bits of Etruscan consonants, vowels, grammar, syllables, accentuation and one major change in the language's history. Along the way, I'll share tales of the hopes and frustrations of the scholars who worked through these discoveries. Finally, you'll hear the reconstructed pronunciation of an Etruscan phrase, along with a likely translation, before concluding we're still far from understanding this captivating tongue.~ Credits ~Art, animation, narration and some music by Josh from NativLangFull credits for images, sfx and for claims made:docs.google.com/document/d/1pWBVjtjaeycVAKP2M6qdkopveyxBDw3LCwYnssA9GGgMusic I did not create (see above doc for full attribution):Jason Shaw: Sneaky Snooper, The Great UnknownJosh Woodward: Twinklebell, CherubsKevin MacLeod: Big Mojo, Return of the Mummy, The Sky of our Ancestors, Thinking Music, March of the Spoons, Rynos Theme, The Path of the Goblin King v2
How long can a language last before its unrecognizable? - Dyirbal Glottochronology 2 of 2 NativLang 2017-09-15 | Languages change over time, but how fast? Do they all evolve at the same speed? And how long does it take before a language is no longer recognizable?Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBe my patron: patreon.com/user?u=584038~ BRIEFLY ~In the last video (Dyirbal Glottochronology part 1) we traveled to Australia to meet a quirky language that seemed to change way too quickly. Then Swadesh entered and told us that no, actually, all languages change at the same pace. His idea is called glottochronology, and it's been abandoned and criticized over the decades.Discover some of the reasons why language change rates do indeed vary. Still, with facts, abstraction and a dose of speculation, could we still get to the bottom of this "how long" question? Take another linguistic trip to Australia with brief stopovers in Norway and Iceland, and let's see if we can find something to say about how long a language remains recognizably intact, or "intelligible". Then we'll separate "unintelligible" from "unrecognizable" by moving from single languages to language families, and finally end up with two broad answers to this question.~ CREDITS ~Art, animation, narration and some of the music by Josh from NativLangDocument full of credits for images, sfx and sources for claims made:docs.google.com/document/d/1ewVU3XSN4418d4JRJuYLN8p5DZ3YSAbRN-7q7aHEbmsMusic I did not make (see sources doc for full attribution):Jason Shaw: Sneaky SnooperJosh Woodward: Twinklebell, CherubsKevin MacLeod: The Sky of our Ancestors, Thinking Music, The Path of the Goblin King v2, Chee Zee Jungle
How Fast Do Languages Evolve? - Dyirbal glottochronology 1 of 2 NativLang 2017-08-25 | Do some languages change faster than others? Discover an Australian language that seemed to change incredibly fast in a generation, and meet a linguist who claimed that all tongues evolve at the same rate.Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBe my patron: patreon.com/user?u=584038~ BRIEFLY ~Dyirbal (pronounced like "gerbil") is an eccentric language from Australia. Robert Dixon documented its marvelous features in a book that still captivates grammar nerds and syntacticians. However, when linguists came back to study it just decades later, they encountered a language with very different features.Take a look at some of Dyirbal's traits and its changes. Then meet Swadesh, who thought he could explain language change using word lists and math. Learn the basics of the method and consider what it says about language change, notably the claim that all languages change at the same pace.This is only half the story. Next time, we'll return to Australia and explore the complexities of language change by asking, "How long before a language becomes unrecognizable?"~ CREDITS ~Art, narration, animation and some music by Josh from NativLangSources for claims and credits for imgs, music and sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/1jTXpOxmcxQUR-7l6TD6giL9BO_MxEErJWSTB4btruTE-- Music that's not mine --Pieces I pulled from other talents. All come from artists worth checking out and are used under a CC BY license.Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com):Chee Zee Jungle, The Sky of our Ancestors, The Path of the Goblin King v2, Thinking MusicJason Shaw (audionautix.com):Time Passing By, Sneaky SnooperJosh Woodward (Free download: http://joshwoodward.com):Twinklebell, Cherubs
Does time work differently in different languages? - Hopi Time NativLang 2017-07-07 | Whorf ignited a controversy when he claimed the Hopi don't speak or think about time the way Europeans do. Malotki wrote 600 pages to prove him wrong. Come explore Sapir-Whorf and Hopi Time! Do speakers of different languages have different concepts of time?Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBe my patron: patreon.com/user?u=584038~ BRIEFLY ~After years of studying Hopi, one linguist wrote a whole book focusing on just one thing about the language: it's full of ways of talking about time. Of all things, why time?Decades earlier, Whorf studied Hopi. Building on his mentor Sapir's ideas about language, thought and culture, he drew a provocative conclusion. Comparing Hopi to European languages, he told us that the Hopi have a vastly different notion of "time". To simplify, the Hopi think about time differently because they speak Hopi.Hopi became the poster child for linguistic relativity or "Sapir-Whorf", the idea that language shapes your thoughts or even determines how you think about time. Watch as the big fish claims about Hopi time grow. See why Malotki and other detractors dismiss them. Then explore the resurgence Whorfian ideas about language from curious cases of fieldwork on the ground and results from the lab. Finally, meet the curious case of Yucatec, a tenseless language.In the end, we'll see that languages do talk about time differently, but getting people to act as if they have fundamentally different concepts of time.~ CREDITS ~Art, narration, animation and some of the music by Josh from NativLangSources for claims and credits for imgs, music and sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/1Jo0LZ6rcLpXfmd7yekZDCce_cGLA9T6PZa6rsXIDFmI
Euroversals - Are all European languages alike? NativLang 2017-06-02 | Europe is full of languages! Actually, it may be full of ONE kind of language... Meet Standard Average European!Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBe my patron: patreon.com/user?u=584038~ BRIEFLY ~First, meet Whorf. (Or meet again, for some of you...) After studying Hopi and comparing it to European languages, he's sure of two things: language shapes thought, and Europe's languages can be lumped together into a single "Standard Average European".Is there such a thing as "S.A.E."? If so, what does it look like? Decades of debate followed over which languages belong and which don't, which languages are part of Europe's "periphery" and which are inside Europe's "core".Debate gave way to data gathering: the EUROTYP program (ahem, sorry, programme). On the heels of that huge effort, research shifted to quantifiable efforts to identify and classify European languages against each other.One key part of that shift was to identify features common to most European languages. Another was to identify which ones were uncommon among non-European languages. Haspelmath's work combined the two, bringing us 12 traits that defined Europe as a language area, plus a bunch of likely candidates for further traits.We'll take a few of those traits and play a quick game of You Might Be A European! Then we'll map the 9 of the 12 features that had complete data to find out which languages counted as "Standard Average European". Which languages were revealed to be the linguistic heart of Europe? How European is English? What about Basque?We'll wrap up with some thoughts SAE and the reasons for its existence, including a more recent note on the general scholarly opinion or trend in work on Euroversals.~ CREDITS ~Art, narration, animation and some music by Josh from NativLangDoc full of sources for claims and credits for imgs, music and sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/1lQHKbwHr0n2_YsF-U9_ldMfDlyHsBxhRXBNpskyZR3A
The Caucasus: Mountains Full of Languages NativLang 2017-04-28 | This region has a new language around every mountain. Over 50 languages and 7 language families! Learn why the Caucasus is one of the world's language hot zones.Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBe my patron: patreon.com/user?u=584038~ CORRECTIONS ~- pronunciation of Ossetian (thanks to Taymuraz Tsalikov)~ BRIEFLY ~The Caucasus was runner-up in my patron poll, and then it won in the rematch. So, it's time we travel to this mountainous region and explore its complicated linguistic situation.We go through major languages, family by family, briefly meeting Indo-European languages like Armenian and Kurdish, Turkic ones like Azeri, and even a Mongolic tongue named Kalmyk Oirat. Then, we see how linguists draw a line between "languages of the Caucasus" and the indigenous "Caucasian languages".The Caucasian languages fall in three families: Northeast Caucasian, Northwest Caucasian, and Kartvelian in the south. Explore some of their intriguing features, including massive numbers of consonants and one of the earliest documented examples of something called "ergativity".Despite some similar features, these languages don't belong to the same family. In fact, they may not even be a true "linguistic area"!At the end, we're still left with the question: why so many languages? We'll consider how one linguist looks at the relationship between geography and the lives of language families.~ CREDITS ~Art, narration, animation and outro music by Josh from NativLangDoc full of sources for claims and credits for imgs, music and sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/187Rgxm4pSU058WQxMHn0TPjLhrn3vCL9MwrXOZWnJgQ
Irish Words Can Mutate! NativLang 2017-03-31 | Before you pronounce Irish names or thumb through a dictionary, you should know that Irish words do something quite unusual. They can mutate their starting sounds.Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBe my patron: patreon.com/user?u=584038~ CREDITS ~Outro theme - Celtic by Joshua LF Mitchellsoundcloud.com/joshualfmitchell twitter.com/jlfm97 https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCwTYGa4jPUrZ-Ols4XXUjhQ Art, narration and animation by Josh from NativLangDoc full of sources for claims and credits for imgs, music and sfx:docs.google.com/document/d/10E-LulQznrlPYXv41ky3Jy3he41fMLUonyLEf7Riw0c~ CORRECTIONS ~"i nGaeilge" : "as Gaeilge" is the expected phrase here! Thank you to multiple commenters for pointing this out.~ I GCUPLA FOCAL, BRIEFLY ~I'm preparing a video that explores the entire history of Irish. As I stitch together my notes, I'm noticing I often just have time to name-drop terms like "Proto-Celtic" and "Ogham". Today let's spend time on one of the more unusual ones: "initial mutations".Archaic or "Primitive Irish" had neat Celtic syllables, but when Old Irish pops in just a couple centuries later, it's already full of worn-out endings and these strange mutations.Two types. First, lenition: a word's starting sound gets softer, like /p/ turning into /f/. Second, eclipse: the starting sound gets more voiced or nasalized. The textbook Sengoídelc adds a third type, aspiration: adding h before a vowel.What makes these devious is that they're triggered by grammar. We'll take a look at a few examples.I'll close out by thinking about how Irish's "will mutate for grammar" strategy likely developed. I'll also consider how, even though they now look so uniquely Celtic, mutations are not inherited from the common Proto-Celtic ancestor.
The Other Z - why you mispronounce this Scottish letter NativLang 2017-03-10 | How an old letter and a printing press changed our pronunciation of a Scottish name. A story about Scots - neither English nor Gaelic!Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBe my patron: patreon.com/user?u=584038Discuss this more on Commonlounge:commonlounge.com/community/b6f3a9d85edf4cdebf38c7e79ee9b01d~ Corrections & Additions ~- The traditional Scottish pronunciation of "Gaelic" is G[ɑ]lic rather than G[eɪ]lic. Thanks to John Hamelink and others!http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/gaelic~ The Short of It ~This time it's the tale not of a language, but of a leid. As I prepared to shelve Early Modern English and jump to the next topic, the one that eked out a victory in my first patron vote, I couldn't quite shut my creative notebook on this subplot.A Middle English letter got its second wind in Scotland, and was particularly useful for representing a "y" sound. When the printing press made its way to the Scottish Lallans, the Anglic being spoken there was already distinct from London English. This had become the home turf of Scots, an emerging language with its own literature that it was eager to print. But Scots printers made some spelling compromises, inadvertently paving the way for later speakers to misread a letter. Thanks to this glitch, the original pronunciations of certain Scottish names sound strange to us, while the misreadings have become perfectly standard!~ Credits ~Narration, art and animation by Josh from NativLang.Sources for claims, imgs, fonts, noises and such:docs.google.com/document/d/10swXhvs9epw3efMj76IlahBGR4WcDFEYB8HA3Rp0l7Y
What Shakespeares English Sounded Like - and how we know NativLang 2017-02-24 | Botched rhymes, buried puns and a staged accent that sounds more Victorian than Elizabethan. No more! Use linguistic sleuthing to dig up the surprisingly different sound of the bard's Early Modern English.Subscribe for language: youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=NativLangBe my patron: patreon.com/user?u=584038~ Briefly, and without spoilers ~I'm embarrassed to admit that this is the first time I ever really got into Shakespeare. There's a personal story here, which I'll quickly share in the video.The idea of reconstructing his pronunciation intrigued me. As I started making trips to the library and downloading old grammars, I just found the questions piling on. I did find some answers for you.It starts with his odd spelling - well, the spelling he inherited. Chaucer's medieval spelling was followed by modern sound changes, including the start of the Great Vowel Shift. The introduction of Caxton's printing press and the spelling debates put Early Modern English in a state of flux by Shakespeare's time. They also left our first trail of evidence.Other evidence comes from rhythm, rhymes and - more reluctantly - puns. Many of these don't work the same way anymore, from the rhymes like "sea" and "prey" to the rhythm of "housewifery".Modern dialects add another layer of evidence, at times preserving features that standard English accents, notably RP, have lost.The sound of his language is also shaped by his grammar. His use of "thou" and his third-person "-th" vs "-s" verb endings always stand out to English speakers. Finally, though data-crunchers challenge his legendary status as king of all the words, we consider how innovative he was in the way he used words.We end with a note on linguist David Crystal's Original Pronunciation ("OP") experiment at the reconstructed Globe Theatre, and some thoughts on what studying Shakespeare's sounds as a different pronunciation system says about him and about us.~ Credits ~Narration, art and animation by Josh from NativLang. Some of the music, too.Sources for claims and for imgs, sfx, fonts and music:docs.google.com/document/d/183wkdASSh4RfY52I5hdPOB3-v2gquXwlpd8EyINZHSE
