Cultural diversity and biodiversity are often discussed in parallel, and for good reason. Both are invaluable to the richness and sustainability of life on Earth. Just as we must take action to ...

Languages everywhere are dying; it is estimated that one language is driven to extinction every 14 days -- and that's despite an increase in the number of languages supported by the internet. But is ...

Linguistic convergence refers to temporary (and often subtle) shifts in speech to sound more similar to those around us. A new study shows that even our expectations about how other people might speak ...

International Mother Language Day, celebrated each year on 21 February, is an opportunity to highlight the instrumental role of the languages we inherited in early childhood, whether we call them ...

Today, 40% of the people in the world do not have access to education in their mother tongue, the language which they speak or understand best. This takes a considerable toll, both academic and ...

The Bengali language movement of 1952 laid the foundations for the future division of Pakistan and the creation of Bangladesh. The movement, which was a protest against the imposition of Urdu by the ...

In election debates, language matters. So Scientific American reached out to a linguist for a professional analysis of the recent presidential and vice presidential debates. Nicole Holliday is an ...

On South Goulburn Island, a small, forested isle off Australia’s northern coast, a settlement called Warruwi Community consists of some 500 people who speak among themselves around nine different ...