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Category: Language
Why is “cunt” considered very offensive in the US but not in Australia?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cunt Originally Answered: Why is the word ‘cunt’ so offensive in America? Because in America, as distinct from the Commonwealth, cunt is a reductive description of women, when used as an epithet. In the Commonwealth, the epithet mainly refers to men. It is certainly strong, but it can and is used jocularly, and even as […]
Translation of the Greek New Testament began early on in the history of Christianity. Apparently no translations were made into Hebrew. Why?
To expand on Kenneth Bakke’s answer: the Jewish Christians who were the original Christian movement appear to have survived into the 5th century. We don’t know that much about them, but we do know that they had their own Gospels (Jewish–Christian gospels). They certainly would not have had any time for the Gospel of John, […]
Is it true that Americans don’t learn Old Greek, Latin, or German?
Ugh to many of these answers. The traditional European language curriculum was oriented to an elite, and had to do with instilling the cultural values of the West, which privileged Latin and Greek. Latin was still the lingua franca for European intellectuals up until the 18th century, but that does not explain Greek. I’ve written […]
What’s it like to study for a master’s in applied linguistics at the University of Melbourne?
Been A2A’d, but alas, I went through the general linguistics programme 20 years ago, and I haven’t stayed in touch. Some generalities: Melbourne Uni has the Language Testing Research Centre, which means that Language Testing is one of the core strengths of the department. The department also has three ESL specialists. The department includes Tim […]
Would you post a recording of yourself reciting Sophie Dockx’s Eulogia Hiphopia in Latin?
https://www.quora.com/profile/Sophie-Dockx Vocaroo | Voice message Backing track: Answered 2017-06-09 [Originally posted on http://quora.com/Would-you-post-a-recording-of-yourself-reciting-Sophie-Dockx’s-Eulogia-Hiphopia-in-Latin/answer/Nick-Nicholas-5]
Would you participate in Quora in Klingon if it existed?
Translation to Federation Standard follows: yItamchoH jay’ ’ej HuchwIj yItlhap! nuqDaq jIqI’? mach tlhIngan Hol mu’ghom, ’ej tlhIngan Hol Quora tu’lu’chugh, pIj DIvI’ Hol mu’mey lo’lu’ net pIH. jIHvaD qay’be’. cha’ Seng vIpIHlaH: tlhIngan Hol Quora lo’laHwI’ law’ law’, wa’maH law’ puS; ’a wa’vatlh law’ law’. Quoravetlh leHmeH yapbe’. meqna’mo’ tlhIngan Hol Wikipedia bot Jimbo […]
Are there any Esperanto users on Quora? If so, can you write in Esperanto what you did yesterday?
Hieraŭ? Nu, hieraŭ estis dimanĉo, do ripoztago. Kaj mi pli-malpli ripozis, laŭ mia kutimiĝinta maniero. Mi iris kun la edzino por matenmanĝo ĉe franca dolĉejo, kie ni kutimas dum la semajnofino. Mi tie legis du el la tri gazetoj de la urbo, kaj plendis kiel kutime pri la faŝismo de tiu kiun posedas Rupert Murdoch. […]
How is your experience of reading a text in a language other than English different from reading the same text in English?
Reading English is just flowing water to me. The information just snarfs up. Reading Modern Greek, I’m hyper-aware of stylistic differences; every concession to Ancient Greek or opening up to dialect was a political act up until the 70s, and I learned my Greek in the aftermath of that. Journalistic rigid syntax dismays me; I […]
What are some examples of folk etymology?
Bridegrooms, Bonfires, and Woodchucks: Folk Etymologies in English. From that link: The textbook examples for English are sparrowgrass for asparagus, and bridegroom, which should have been bridegoom. (The word gome for “man” became extinct, so people grabbed the nearest similar word. Now that the noun groom for “horse attendant” has also become extinct, people use […]
If you could learn to speak 12 languages (including your native language), which ones would you choose?
Ah, the question asks that I do it for only practical reasons? Erk. That’s… regrettable. I’ll have to jettison languages I know (Lojban, Klingon) and would like to know in theory (Irish). The first six, I know. (Well, kinda, as Clarissa Lohr and Kat Rectenwald can attest.) English. Because I am Australian, and because English, […]