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 →
Should English be the Official Language of the World?
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 →
Where Did Language Come From? (The Origins of Language)
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 →
Is Tamil the Oldest Language in the World?
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 →
Does the Altaic Language Family Really Exist?
If you've scrolled down to the comment section of the video that goes along with today's blog post, it won't be hard for you to realize that the Altaic language family is a very controversial topic in linguistics. I apologize in advance for the offensive language from some of our commenters. So, what makes the... Continue Reading →