Allusionist 217. Feminist coffee houses
In their heyday of the 1970s and 1980s, there were more than 200 - possibly more than 400 - feminist restaurants and coffee shops in the USA and Canada. These…
Why English is full of silent letters
English has a silent letter problem. The situation is so out of hand that it's often said that every letter of the alphabet can be found silent somewhere in our…
The etymology of “earthling”
and its interesting ending via Jess Zafarris
Analyzing the French in Mad Men’s ‘New Business’
French is used heavily throughout the episode, as Megan’s mother and sister help her move on from her life in New York. One conversation in particular stuck out to me.…
Is a hotdog a sandwich? The problem with definitions
We asked you if a burrito was a sandwich, and you said ‘no’. We asked you if ravioli was a sandwich and you said 'heck no’. We asked you if…
œufs à la clémence
recipe
Êtes-vous pour ou contre la légalisation des drogues, qu’elles soient douces ou dures
Are you for or against the legalization of drugs, whether they are soft or hard?
“Tu vis ta culture ou tu tues ta culture.”
la langue française dans Louisiane
Why doesn’t English have genders? Well… it did!
Pretty much every other language seems to have grammatical genders… so why doesn't English? Well, it used to. Old English had three genders, meaning there were at least three different…
British country names explained
Why is 🏴England named after the Angles and not the Saxons? Does 🏴"Welsh" really mean slave? And where was the original 🏴Scotland? These questions answered and many more on this…