Where the $ symbol actually comes from
Why is the $ sign an S? What does 'dollar' even mean? In this video, I answer both of those questions, while also explaining what the British pound is a…
Why French sounds so unlike other Romance languages
Sound changes left French unlike Latin, Italian, Spanish or Romanian.
Antarctica Has An Accent
Accents: Everybody has one. They usually tell us something about where a person is from, or what languages they speak. But there's one accent that is so new that nobody…
Almost no names are ‘English’
Did you know there are only a handful of truly English names? In this video, let's explore where our names really come from: from the Anglo-Saxon 'Edward' and 'Alfred' to…
The English words nobody can explain
Some of the most ordinary words in English have origins that no one can explain. Among them: "dog", "big", "bird", "donkey", "boy", "girl" and "puzzle".
The entire history of English in 22 minutes
In this video you'll learn about where English came from, what impact the Vikings had on our language, what the Normans did to English, why Middle English is so weird,…
How Old is ‘Haha’? The Sound of Medieval Laughter
Surviving in multiple copies, Ælfric’s work is not only the oldest Latin grammar written in English (or, indeed, any vernacular language), but it’s also been described as ‘one of the…
Time words don’t mean what you think
What is a second the "second" of? What time should noon actually be? And how can "hour" and "year" mean the same thing (because they do!)?
Why Is It Called A Spelling “Bee”?
where lots of people gather socially to do a lot of work.
Chicago Mayor on dehumanizing language
the words used matter