What do Madagascar, New Zealand, and Hawaii all have in common? Besides being islands, they all speak languages from the same language family that originated in Taiwan. Enter the Austronesian language family. Spread by seafarers, languages like Indonesian, Tagalog, and even Malagasy developed through 5000 years of Austronesian migration. But wait! It gets better: did... Continue Reading →
Nightwish, Lapland, and winter. Those were the 3 reasons why I wanted to learn Finnish. Okay, I don't actually love winter, but who can resist a photo of Finland in all its snowy glory? Despite it being a childhood dream of mine, I never actually got around to studying Finnish because I always had so many... Continue Reading →
What does every beginner Afrikaans learner need in their tool kit? Why, a good beginner textbook, of course! In addition to online resources such as apps, online tutorials, and video lessons, a good beginner textbook, whether in print or digital, is essential for anyone who wants to learn Afrikaans. Beginner Afrikaans textbooks offer you a... Continue Reading →
In this economy, knowing more than one language pays off. In fact, according to Salary.com, being bilingual can earn you up to 20% more than if you only spoke one language. Learning a language isn’t just for interpreters and translators: whether it’s French, Spanish, or German, speaking another language is a fantastic asset for an... Continue Reading →
The Romani language, much like its speakers, is one of the most elusive languages in modern history. It is spoken by modern nomads called the Roma people, and while the Roma people are fairly widespread in modern Europe, North America, Asia, and Africa, their history and language is the subject of much speculation, and their... Continue Reading →
Punjabi is a language that I have been surrounded by for almost my entire life. Despite the fact that I have lived in a community with many Punjabi speakers since I was a baby, the language itself has been a source of mystery, and I'm even embarrassed to say that I don't actually know how... Continue Reading →
Have you ever travelled to a foreign country only to find out that none of the inhabitants of that country speak English? How annoying is that? Today's post and subsequent video topic was inspired by a livestream I watched between Azren the Language Nerd and Matt and Abigail from Polyglot Progress. To sum up, at... Continue Reading →
Question: what do aliens, cannibalism and evolution all have in common? In the context of language and linguistics, all of these ideas have been touted as being the origin of human language. Some of these ideas are based entirely on myth and religion, while others are based on scientific inquiry. Today, we’re going to explore... Continue Reading →
One of the most requested video topics that I have received on The Polyglot Files YouTube channel has to do with one language in particular: Tamil. According to some, it is the oldest language in the world. To be clear, the theory is that Tamil is not only the oldest surviving language that is still spoken... Continue Reading →
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