Cart
Free US shipping over $10
Proud to be B-Corp

The Power Of Babel John McWhorter

The Power Of Babel By John McWhorter

The Power Of Babel by John McWhorter


$63.99
Condition - Very Good
9 in stock

Summary

This text provides a guided tour of languages, aiming to be at once both thought-provoking and entertaining. Examining such things as the way in which Yiddish has been influenced by the grammar of Polish, and how English absorbed French at two stages of its history.

The Power Of Babel Summary

The Power Of Babel by John McWhorter

In this work, the author shares his expertise as a linguist to introduce us to Russonorsk, a creole of Russian and Norwegian once spoken by trading fur trappers in the summer, the ways in which Yiddish, a dialect of German, has been influenced by the grammar of Polish and a dialect of an Australian aboriginal language which only has three verbs. Along the way we learn how English absorbed French at two stages of its history, giving us Norman French warranty and the standard French guarantee, while Japanese has been infused with Chinese vocabulary at four distinct periods, and that Danish, Norwegian and Swedish are best regarded as three dialects of Scandinavian.

The Power Of Babel Reviews

There are some 6,000 human languages. But how and why are there so many? How do languages evolve over time - and is there some original or ur-language from which they all developed? Is language fundamentally encoded in us when we are born, or completely learned? These and many other related questions are investigated in this intriguing book. McWhorter is an American Professor of Linguistics and speaks many languages. But he wears his learning lightly and wittily, and has managed to make this book both accessible and authoritative. He's especially good at teasing out how English and French are shot through with fragments of other tongues, and reflective of their only partially buried pasts.

About John McWhorter

John McWhorter is Associate Professor of Linguistics at UC Berkeley. He is the author of a book about black English The Word on the Streets.

Additional information

GOR001425514
9780434007899
0434007897
The Power Of Babel by John McWhorter
Used - Very Good
Hardback
Cornerstone
2002-03-07
336
N/A
Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in very good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us

Customer Reviews - The Power Of Babel