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73 votes

12 answers

26k views

What characteristics are unique to English (or at least rare among language as a whole)?

Zairja

1,148

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66 votes

10 answers

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Why did early Indo-European languages seem to be morphologically complex?

historical-linguistics morphology language-change indo-european

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54 votes

13 answers

14k views

Do unschooled people use cases correctly, e.g. in Germany and in Russia?

language-change sociolinguistics cases german russian

newinterested

659

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41 votes

9 answers

12k views

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James Grossmann

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41 votes

10 answers

4k views

Languages that are gaining morphological distinctions

historical-linguistics morphology language-change

Mitch

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38 votes

5 answers

3k views

Why does speech speed seem to vary between different languages?

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Louis Rhys

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34 votes

4 answers

2k views

Why are certain there-sentences infelicitous in English?

syntax english pragmatics

Vitaly

443

asked Sep 22, 2011 at 13:18

34 votes

2 answers

12k views

Why is “ß” not used in Swiss German?

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alecxe

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33 votes

5 answers

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dainichi

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32 votes

6 answers

6k views

Is there any evidence to support the claim that English grammar is unusually straightforward?

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Tom Hosker

931

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31 votes

5 answers

8k views

Is future tense in English really a myth?

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successive suspension

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26 votes

4 answers

758 views

Why was מֹשֶׁה‎ transliterated as [moʊzɨz]?

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WAF

619

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26 votes

6 answers

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Tim Osborne

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26 votes

5 answers

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Which Romance languages have reflexes of the Latin nominative in nouns?

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JSBձոգչ

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26 votes

8 answers

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American English : are [ə] and [ʌ] different phonemes? (schwa vs. chevron)

phonology phonemes american-english allophones

Fabien Snauwaert

553

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25 votes

9 answers

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Are there any languages or cultures that have genderless given names?

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Robusto

742

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25 votes

3 answers

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hippietrail

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25 votes

9 answers

4k views

Are there languages that distinguish between inclusive and exclusive "or"?

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Phira

1,385

asked Nov 2, 2011 at 1:10

24 votes

23 answers

26k views

Is there a language whose writing is 100% phonemic?

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Pacerier

611

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23 votes

3 answers

6k views

Reversal of kinship terms when speaking to a child

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cyco130

2,165

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22 votes

4 answers

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Why do Polish and Belarusian have an atypical greeting if compared to other Slavic languages?

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Alenanno

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22 votes

8 answers

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21 votes

2 answers

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amjad

219

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21 votes

3 answers

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Are there any fundamental differences in personal pronoun acquisition across languages?

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21 votes

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What is the function of the soft sign (Ь) in Russian?

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Mad Banners

749

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18 votes

4 answers

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18 votes

1 answer

430 views

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What characteristics are unique to English (or at least rare among language as a whole)?

Why did early Indo-European languages seem to be morphologically complex?

Do unschooled people use cases correctly, e.g. in Germany and in Russia?

What is word order used for in "free word order" languages?

Languages that are gaining morphological distinctions

Why does speech speed seem to vary between different languages?

Why are certain there-sentences infelicitous in English?

Why is “ß” not used in Swiss German?

What languages lack personal pronouns, and why?

Is there any evidence to support the claim that English grammar is unusually straightforward?

Is future tense in English really a myth?

Why was מֹשֶׁה‎ transliterated as [moʊzɨz]?

Why is constituency needed, since dependency gets the job done more easily and economically?

Which Romance languages have reflexes of the Latin nominative in nouns?

American English : are [ə] and [ʌ] different phonemes? (schwa vs. chevron)

Are there any languages or cultures that have genderless given names?

How do linguists distinguish between case endings and postpositions, especially in languages which have both and/or have no traditional grammar?

Are there languages that distinguish between inclusive and exclusive "or"?

Is there a language whose writing is 100% phonemic?

Reversal of kinship terms when speaking to a child

Why do Polish and Belarusian have an atypical greeting if compared to other Slavic languages?

Does Japanese have determiners?

Why is /h/ called voiceless vowel phonetically, and /h/ consonant phonologically?

Are there any fundamental differences in personal pronoun acquisition across languages?

Paucal number without singular

How powerful is literacy to slow down language change?

Are the Japanese and Korean subject particles known to be related in any way, including by Sprachbund?

What is the function of the soft sign (Ь) in Russian?

Are there any languages that mark nouns as mass?

Are there any languages that don't permit instrumental subjects?