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Speak: A Short History of Languages
This book is a history of human speech from prehistory to the present. It charts the rise of some languages and the fall of others, explaining why some survive and others die. It shows how languages change their sounds and meanings, and how the history of languages is closely linked to the
history of peoples.
Writing in a lively, readable style, distinguished Swedish scholar Tore Janson makes no assumptions about previous knowledge. He takes the reader on a voyage of exploration through the changing patterns of the world's languages, from ancient China to ancient Egypt, imperial Rome to imperial
Britain, Sappho's Lesbos to contemporary Africa. He discovers the links between the histories of societies and their languages; he shows how language evolved from primitive calls; he considers the question of whether one language can be more advanced than another. The author describes the history of
writing and the impact of changing technology. He ends by assessing the prospects for English world domination and predicting the languages of the distant future.
Five historical maps illustrate this fascinating history of our defining characteristic and most valuable asset.
history of peoples.
Writing in a lively, readable style, distinguished Swedish scholar Tore Janson makes no assumptions about previous knowledge. He takes the reader on a voyage of exploration through the changing patterns of the world's languages, from ancient China to ancient Egypt, imperial Rome to imperial
Britain, Sappho's Lesbos to contemporary Africa. He discovers the links between the histories of societies and their languages; he shows how language evolved from primitive calls; he considers the question of whether one language can be more advanced than another. The author describes the history of
writing and the impact of changing technology. He ends by assessing the prospects for English world domination and predicting the languages of the distant future.
Five historical maps illustrate this fascinating history of our defining characteristic and most valuable asset.
310 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
32 people are currently reading
310 people want to read
About the author
Tore Janson
17 books14 followersTore Janson is a Swedish linguist and professor. Janson was professor of Latin at the University of Gothenburg, and later became professor of African languages at the same alma mater. He retired in 2001, but has since been affiliated with the University of Stockholm.
He devoted much of his time and publishing activities to the way how languages change as well as to the relationship between language and society.
He devoted much of his time and publishing activities to the way how languages change as well as to the relationship between language and society.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
May 19, 2024
Много от фактите, описани в "Кратка история на езиците", са известни на всеки средноинтелигентен човек. Но подредени в систематизиран текст, написан от специалист, те носят съвсем различна информация, а именно - развитието на езиците от дълбока древност до наши дни, обяснено ясно и на достъпен език. Наличието на заглавието на български много ме радва. Предполагам някои ще посочат, че вниманието на автора е съсредоточено повече върху европейските езици, но, бидейки насочена към аудиторията на западната цивилизация, това помага на читателя по-лесно да се ориентира. Искаше ми се да има и информация за езиковите групи, как са създадени от филолозите (наистина смятам, че книгата нямаше да изгуби), но, в крайна сметка, това е история на езиците, не на филологията.
January 24, 2025
(Seychelle-szigeteki kreol nyelvű felirat. Francia szakosok előnyben.)
Az jutott eszembe, hogy mi van, ha az emberi nyelvek vírusok. Bevetnek minden piszkos trükköt, hogy minél sikeresebbek legyenek – praktikusan: hogy minél több gazdatestet fertőzzenek meg. Innen nézve az egész történelem nem egyéb, mint ezeknek a parazitáknak a véres egymás elleni harca, egy monumentális zéró összegű játszma, ahol a legjobbak emberek milliárdjainak agyára tudnak rácsatlakozni, a vesztesek pedig eltűnnek, felszívódnak a semmiben. A mohamedán vallás ebben a kontextusban csak az arab nyelv zseniális fondorlata, hogy eltiedelje Észak-Afrikát a latinoktól, a bolsevizmus ideológiája pedig az orosz nyelv kísérlete arra, hogy elnyomja szegény törpe kelet-európai nyelveket. De a kelet-európai nyelvek nem hagyják magukat, felébresztik és felerősítik felhasználóikban a nemzeti tudatot, és lőn: hiába settenkedik be az orosz nyelv a közoktatásba, ahogy megszűnik a primátusát szavatoló Vörös Hadsereg jelenléte a régióban, máris páros lábbal rúgják ki a krimóból. (Csak nehogy visszasettenkedjen az ablakon.) De a nemzeti nyelvek nem nyugodhatnak meg, mert ha a keleti járvány vissza is szorul, nyugatról érkezik az újabb alattomos versenyző. Hisz elég meghallgatni egy Imagine Dragons számot, és kiguglizni, miről szól a szövege, máris ott a fertezet az agyadban: az angol nyelv.
Lendületes és finom könyv, Janson nem csak érti a témáját, de szereti is, ez messziről látszik. Szemléletének két sarkalatos pontját emelném ki. Az első, hogy – bármit is hordtam össze az első bekezdésben – a nyelvek nem élőlények, hanem eszközök. Következésképp nem halnak meg, hanem egyszerűen eltűnnek, ha már nem használják őket. Ami kulturális szempontból persze veszteség, de törvényszerű folyamat. A második pedig az, hogy egy nyelv attól a pillanattól kezdve válik önálló nyelvvé, hogy felhasználói azt mondják: a mi nyelvünk önálló nyelv. (Ez általában együtt jár az írott forma, a helyesírási szabályrendszer mesterséges megkonstruálásával.) Igen, ilyen egyszerű. Ha holnap az amerikai kongresszus úgy dönt, hogy ők innentől nem angol nyelvet beszélnek, hanem amerikait, akkor bizony onnantól kezdve van amerikai nyelv és kész. Minden egyéb határvonal, amit a nyelvészek kiókumlálnak, szubjektív és bizonytalan.
Fogalmam sincs, mennyi újat tud mondani ez a könyv annak, aki járatos a nyelvtudományban. Lehet, nem sokat. Én viszont rohadtul nem figyeltem a nyelvészeti szemináriumokon, szóval nekem okozott némi revelációt. Jó volt feltérképezni a szerzővel ezt a szinte organikus, folyton változó entitást, amit emberi nyelvnek hívunk.
February 28, 2017
Страхотна книга. Представя езика като жив организъм със своя хилядолетна, че даже многомилионна, история. Книгата си е чисто научна, но изключително разбираемо и леко написана. Торе Янсон има изумителна дарба да пише увлекателно научна материя. Езиците се превръщат в твой главен герой и с трепет следиш какво се случва с него през векове и континенти. Определено всеки, който изпитва любопитство, привличане или дори лек интерес към езиците и тяхната история, трябва да я прочете. Научаваш много за произхода им, как се формират като такива, какво ги определя като такива, какво им влияе и куп друга интересна и любопитна информация. Има даже специална глава посветена на темата за сегашното господство в международно отношение на английския език. Определено бих казала, че една такава книга е страхотна база, на която да стъпиш, започвайки да учиш нов и чужд език. Действа изключително надъхващо и енергизиращо.
Единственото нещо, което леко ме кара да се цупя, е липсата на каквато и да е разгледана информация за славянските езици и кирилицата. Щеше да ми е интересно да прочета за тях от гледната точка на Янсон, но въпреки този малък за мен пропуск, книгата е просто велика. :)
Единственото нещо, което леко ме кара да се цупя, е липсата на каквато и да е разгледана информация за славянските езици и кирилицата. Щеше да ми е интересно да прочета за тях от гледната точка на Янсон, но въпреки този малък за мен пропуск, книгата е просто велика. :)
October 6, 2014
The title is somewhat misleading; the book is a "A Short History of EUROPEAN Languages". Other languages are only mentioned in passing and for the sole purpose of establishing connections or development patterns for the major European languages discussed.
Also, it could have been even shorter, since the author repeats himself quite often in some chapters.
All in all it was a very interesting introduction to linguistics for me. I definitely want to read more about the subject. But it was neither thorough nor captivating enough.
Also, it could have been even shorter, since the author repeats himself quite often in some chapters.
All in all it was a very interesting introduction to linguistics for me. I definitely want to read more about the subject. But it was neither thorough nor captivating enough.
April 21, 2011
Only for language geeks. Good, short, history of language.
January 21, 2024
It had a lot of information but was very thorough. The book was written 20 years ago so I’d be interested to hear what the author thinks about how AI will influence language evolution and the impact instant translation apps will have around the world. Technology will change everything.
August 22, 2016
Denne boken burde ha hett Latin og Historie: Latinens fødsel, livsløp, død og ettermæle i europeisk historie, eller Latinens historie: En [relativt] komplett historie om latinens [og greskens] utvikling gjennom tidene, da «språk» ser ut til å bety hovedsaklig latin og gresk, og «historie» vil si europeisk historie, eller historie sett i særdeleshet med europeiske øyne. 70% av innholdet i denne boka forholder seg til enten gresk, latin eller Europa.
Først av alt er denne boka forferdelig dårlig skrevet som sakprosaverk. Formen er veldig enfoldig, holder et nivå jeg ville forvente å finne i en historiebok for sjetteklasse.
Da jeg har lest den norske oversettelsen kan jeg ikke være sikker på om det er den svenske forfatteren selv, eller Lars Nygaards norske oversettelse som senker holdbarheten drastisk med stadige skrivefeil, merkelige setningsformuleringer, og annet småpirk; i tillegg til å være uhorvelig kjedelig skrevet, uten antydning til entusiasme eller forsøk på å motivere leseren til å bla om, annet enn et og annet halvhjertet utropstegn.
Dette er for det meste ikke annet enn tørt og lagtekkelig.
Som eksempler på dårlig formulerte (/oversatte?) setninger kan jeg by på følgende
Forfatter Tore Janson begynner ofte en setning med, «Dette er en påstand uten noen som helst forklaring på hvorfor det er en påstand, eller hvor jeg har denne påstanden fra», før han avslutter med «men dette vet vi ikke helt sikkert, så det kan vi ikke egentlig si noe om, og det jeg skriver her en bare min egen gjetning».
Janson presterer også å komme med følgende påstander:
og
Dette er en forferdelig dum og ikke minst ignorant påstand. Selvsagt kan man skjønne Jansons argument; har man et eple og spiser det opp, finnes ikke eplet lenger. Men slik kan man ikke argumentere med språk ettersom språk setter tydelige spor etter seg, som skrifter og liknende. Bare fordi ingen snakker språket betyr det ikke at ikke finnes.
Bare fordi etruskisk døde ut rundt det første århundret f. Kr betyr det ikke at det ikke finnes. Det finnes fordi vi har kunnskap om det.
En annen helt merkelig mening Janson lirer av seg helt i slutten av boka er dette,
Vår venn Tore mente sikkert dette var en dyp og filosofisk avslutning på boka si, men mener han da virkelig at arten homo sapiens sapiens som oppstod i Afrika for rundt 200 000 år siden, først begynte å være menneske når det utviklet talespråket for 40 000 år siden? Noen mener også de første språkene ble utviklet så tidlig som for to millioner år siden, men da altså av homo habilis, og ikke homo sapiens.
Hva nå enn Janson mente med denne eksepsjonelt lite gjennomtenkte avslutningspåstanden orker jeg ikke engang å spekulere i.
Alt i alt er dette en helt grei bok om man hovedsaklig er opptatt av latin og gresk, og om man er på utkikk etter en bursdagsgave til en språkinteressert elleveåring.
Først av alt er denne boka forferdelig dårlig skrevet som sakprosaverk. Formen er veldig enfoldig, holder et nivå jeg ville forvente å finne i en historiebok for sjetteklasse.
Da jeg har lest den norske oversettelsen kan jeg ikke være sikker på om det er den svenske forfatteren selv, eller Lars Nygaards norske oversettelse som senker holdbarheten drastisk med stadige skrivefeil, merkelige setningsformuleringer, og annet småpirk; i tillegg til å være uhorvelig kjedelig skrevet, uten antydning til entusiasme eller forsøk på å motivere leseren til å bla om, annet enn et og annet halvhjertet utropstegn.
Dette er for det meste ikke annet enn tørt og lagtekkelig.
Som eksempler på dårlig formulerte (/oversatte?) setninger kan jeg by på følgende
«Som nevnt i begynnelsen av boken, fantest det antagelig et (sic) mange små språk allerede i steinalderen, men temmelig sikkert ingen store språk».(i Lars Nygaards oversettelse, Pax forlag)
Forfatter Tore Janson begynner ofte en setning med, «Dette er en påstand uten noen som helst forklaring på hvorfor det er en påstand, eller hvor jeg har denne påstanden fra», før han avslutter med «men dette vet vi ikke helt sikkert, så det kan vi ikke egentlig si noe om, og det jeg skriver her en bare min egen gjetning».
Janson presterer også å komme med følgende påstander:
[Om Nancy Dorians uttrykk «language death»]«Jeg stiller meg tvilende til begrepet «språkdød» [...] det sier riktignok på en tydelig måte hva som skjer, men antyder også at et språk har et liv. Ellers ville det jo ikke kunne dø. Det er en naturlig analogi med et menneskeliv, men den er litt villedende. Mennesker bruker språk, og så lenge et språk brukes, finnes det. Når det ikke lenger brukes, finnes det ikke.»
og
«Et språk uten et navn finnes ikke, av den enkle grunn at det ikke går an å snakke om det.»
Dette er en forferdelig dum og ikke minst ignorant påstand. Selvsagt kan man skjønne Jansons argument; har man et eple og spiser det opp, finnes ikke eplet lenger. Men slik kan man ikke argumentere med språk ettersom språk setter tydelige spor etter seg, som skrifter og liknende. Bare fordi ingen snakker språket betyr det ikke at ikke finnes.
Bare fordi etruskisk døde ut rundt det første århundret f. Kr betyr det ikke at det ikke finnes. Det finnes fordi vi har kunnskap om det.
En annen helt merkelig mening Janson lirer av seg helt i slutten av boka er dette,
«[Forfatterens hypoteser om språkets utvikling to millioner år fram i tid] Snakker de ikke språk med de grunnleggende egenskapene som er gitt av vår kroppslige og sjelelige utrustning, så tilhører de ikke lenger vår art. Menneskene ble mennesker da de begynte å snakke som oss. Når de ikke lenger snakker som oss, er de ikke lenger mennesker.»
Vår venn Tore mente sikkert dette var en dyp og filosofisk avslutning på boka si, men mener han da virkelig at arten homo sapiens sapiens som oppstod i Afrika for rundt 200 000 år siden, først begynte å være menneske når det utviklet talespråket for 40 000 år siden? Noen mener også de første språkene ble utviklet så tidlig som for to millioner år siden, men da altså av homo habilis, og ikke homo sapiens.
Hva nå enn Janson mente med denne eksepsjonelt lite gjennomtenkte avslutningspåstanden orker jeg ikke engang å spekulere i.
Alt i alt er dette en helt grei bok om man hovedsaklig er opptatt av latin og gresk, og om man er på utkikk etter en bursdagsgave til en språkinteressert elleveåring.
February 22, 2020
It was so well researched... you learn everything about the history of English. He goes century by century. I feel like I'd never understood what the dark ages in Europe were before this. Janson really goes bit by bit. He goes into the Romans and the Germanic tribes and the Angles and the Saxons and the Normans... all of that stuff. For the rest of Europe, he gets at the intricacies of that moment when, say, the average person's spoken Latin turned into French or Italian. This turns out to be complicated.
People's awareness/labelling of what language they were speaking was much more complicated than how we think of it today. First of all, lots of people were bilingual and any elite was fully bilingual in Latin. For a long time, nobody in Europe even thought to write down anything in other languages. And then there is the fact that they expected written and spoken language to differ, and took this for fact. So it's a hard puzzle to solve and Janson presents the pieces expertly. I felt I learned so so much.
The only downfalls of the book are that a) it is very Eurocentric, other languages of the world don't really get the same treatment - Janson goes over them but there is nowhere near the same level of storytelling, the history is flat... you could say why should someone reading this book in English care about any other language, but I think it matters when you are writing a book about Language (the how and why of it). b) At times the writing can be fuzzy and lack a direction. You'll be reading and reading for a long time and nothing will be happening but then you'll come to a really exciting section. The book could have been better edited.
But taken as a history of the evolution of English (and a few other European languages) it was pretty great.
People's awareness/labelling of what language they were speaking was much more complicated than how we think of it today. First of all, lots of people were bilingual and any elite was fully bilingual in Latin. For a long time, nobody in Europe even thought to write down anything in other languages. And then there is the fact that they expected written and spoken language to differ, and took this for fact. So it's a hard puzzle to solve and Janson presents the pieces expertly. I felt I learned so so much.
The only downfalls of the book are that a) it is very Eurocentric, other languages of the world don't really get the same treatment - Janson goes over them but there is nowhere near the same level of storytelling, the history is flat... you could say why should someone reading this book in English care about any other language, but I think it matters when you are writing a book about Language (the how and why of it). b) At times the writing can be fuzzy and lack a direction. You'll be reading and reading for a long time and nothing will be happening but then you'll come to a really exciting section. The book could have been better edited.
But taken as a history of the evolution of English (and a few other European languages) it was pretty great.
December 29, 2013
Тази книга не предлага никакъв флирт с читателя. Не очаквайте информацията да е гарнирана с интересни историйки, които да ви забавляват! "Кратка история на езиците" е строго научен и старомоден (в хубавия смисъл) преглед на известното на науката до този момент. До голяма степен тя предлага отговори на повечето въпроси, които всички сме си задавали: как са възникнали езиците, какво определя един език като такъв, как са се оформили днешните езикови групи, кои са факторите, които влияят на разпространението и развитието на езиците. Признавам, че в началото малко трудно свикнах с монотонния стил и сух стил на автора, но интересната тема успя да ме задържи до края.
May 20, 2020
Lett, underholdende og lærerik.
February 19, 2009
Linguistics is bad-ass
December 14, 2021
My very first book in my first language.
This was once a gift from my grandmother, and ever since I received it, I've been looking forward to reading it. It did not disappoint. It was interesting throughout, though some parts were more interesting than others, but I would like to highlight the short, and highly speculative, part at the very end. It takes a look at how the linguistic situation in the world may look in 200, 2000, and 2 million years from now. It uses knowledge about how languages have evolved and changed throughout history as a basis for the reasoning behind this speculation, which the readers very much can follow, due to what they've learned throughout the book. It's neat.
The book is well structured, well written, and offers exactly what it promises to, and then some. There really isn't much else to say.
Verdict: 7+/10
This was once a gift from my grandmother, and ever since I received it, I've been looking forward to reading it. It did not disappoint. It was interesting throughout, though some parts were more interesting than others, but I would like to highlight the short, and highly speculative, part at the very end. It takes a look at how the linguistic situation in the world may look in 200, 2000, and 2 million years from now. It uses knowledge about how languages have evolved and changed throughout history as a basis for the reasoning behind this speculation, which the readers very much can follow, due to what they've learned throughout the book. It's neat.
The book is well structured, well written, and offers exactly what it promises to, and then some. There really isn't much else to say.
Verdict: 7+/10
October 3, 2024
Light, interesting read regarding languages. How they arise, how they are used, how they evolve, how they die. And a lot more. It’s very eurocentric, with most examples from Latin and their related languages, or germanic languages. The norwegian translation, which I read, focused a bit more on norwegian language and its history. But there are examples from languages from all over the world, and the mechanisms that are described in the book are said to be universal. A lot of these mechanisms are of course qualified speculations, but the author never claims otherwise. In fact, he makes a disclaimer at the start of the book about this. But this guy has a lot of knowledge, and I learned a lot. The book kept me interested throughout, and irritated only once in a while.
July 25, 2020
It is exactly what it's promised: a voyage of explration through the changing patterns of the world's languages. It's a good way to know not only about languages, mas people's cultures. I suppose that language is a unique human characteristic, so learning about the different ways humans can express themselves is at least intriguing. How and why languages came to life so differently depending on what, geographic location? Languages evolve why? So many questions and many different answers, though not definitive. Worth your while.
September 7, 2023
Страхотна книга, отива в списъка на най-любимите. Строго научна книга, която обаче е увлекателно и разбираемо написана. Представя езика в хода на историята и как те взаимно са си въздействали. В книгата срещнах много неща, за които не се бях замисляла, а всъщност са супер интересни.
Затова харесвам лингвистиката - наука, която е точно на границата между хуманитарните и точните науки и благодарение на това разкрива колко логични са някои неща в хода на историята и бита на хората.
Затова харесвам лингвистиката - наука, която е точно на границата между хуманитарните и точните науки и благодарение на това разкрива колко логични са някои неща в хода на историята и бита на хората.
June 13, 2020
very comprehensive book with exciting content from all over the world; however, my language, Persian, has a fascinating story and I became disappointed not to see it in there. Persian language history is somehow similar to Italian and we have our own Dante, named Ferdowsi. I learned many things through this book but, sometimes it was getting boring.
June 9, 2022
The focus of this absorbing survey of the history of languages is how languages form, sometimes grow and spread and sometimes disappear from the world. The role a politics and religion in all of this is given due attention along with a good spread of examples from, mostly, Europe, Africa and South America.
August 10, 2024
Från forntid till nutid kring de stora språkgrupperna men också generellt kring olika nutida minoritetsspråk samt nyare språk som kreolska. Ger en bra översikt över muntlig språkutveckling samt skriftspråk kopplade till kulturers, religioners och nationalstaters framväxt och dagens behov av gemensamt språk inom ekonomi, handel och teknik. Vill man gå på djupet inom något specifikt ämne, kan man leta vidare ur den tematiserade referenslistan.
January 3, 2019
The situation, your Honor, is [... that] his tribe has died out. He is the sole and final survivor of his people, his clan. They call him the mute, because there is nobody left on this earth for him to speak with.
'Where the Green Ants Dream' (Werner Herzog (1984))
'Where the Green Ants Dream' (Werner Herzog (1984))
August 2, 2019
Great overview of the history and future of languages. Would have liked some more reflection on Balkan languages but it's still a great read.
November 8, 2025
Very interesting read for anyone curious about the evolution of language. It is well structured and written in an engaging and witty fashion, to keep you engaged while you learn.
January 11, 2019
A very concise and interesting account of the history of language. It's entertaining to read whilst still being fairly informative!
December 16, 2012
I picked this book for the purposes of getting myself ready for a historical linguistics course I'm taking next semester. I was gearing myself up for a dense read, but to my surprise, "Speak: A Short History of Languages" knocked me out and further quenched my curiosity for linguistics. It's an easy enough read for those without a background in linguistics, but has a profound depth for those who want to deepen their studies in language, human evolution and linguistics.
Aside from the historical overview of language formation from our earliest human ancestors to the possible developments and fate of languages 2 million years from now, Tore Janson is able to capture the story of human communication without the technical jargon often found in academic textbooks. What I really appreciate about this book is how Janson connects language to human evolution, social identity/community, colonization and the relationship of language prestige and class conflict/struggle (although Janson doesn't say this outright, the text could be interpreted in this outlook).
Overall, an excellent, excellent book, one that I will certainly read again and use as a reference for future essays, not just in the area of linguistics, but in the many disciplines of social sciences and critical theory.
"New slaves on the plantation therefore had no common language. On the other hand, they had to learn some of the slave drivers' language, as it was used for orders and other elementary communication. As a result, the first generation of slaves were deprived of the use of their native language but were not admitted into a new language community. They lost their linguistic as well as their social identity.
However, no human beings can be completely without a language, and in the plantations new languages emerged in unusual ways." (204)
Aside from the historical overview of language formation from our earliest human ancestors to the possible developments and fate of languages 2 million years from now, Tore Janson is able to capture the story of human communication without the technical jargon often found in academic textbooks. What I really appreciate about this book is how Janson connects language to human evolution, social identity/community, colonization and the relationship of language prestige and class conflict/struggle (although Janson doesn't say this outright, the text could be interpreted in this outlook).
Overall, an excellent, excellent book, one that I will certainly read again and use as a reference for future essays, not just in the area of linguistics, but in the many disciplines of social sciences and critical theory.
"New slaves on the plantation therefore had no common language. On the other hand, they had to learn some of the slave drivers' language, as it was used for orders and other elementary communication. As a result, the first generation of slaves were deprived of the use of their native language but were not admitted into a new language community. They lost their linguistic as well as their social identity.
However, no human beings can be completely without a language, and in the plantations new languages emerged in unusual ways." (204)
December 14, 2010
This is a nice introductory book to language history and it´s evolution. Its easy to read and, through the examples in the book, you get a hint of how languages arise and vanish and how they are related to the events in the history of the speaking culture and their identity.
May 13, 2015
Etwas fluffig insgesamt, der Leser wird keinesfalls durch eine zu hohe Informationsdichte überfordert, und damit auch der letzte Depp versteht, was der Autor sagen will, wird gerne mal was zweimal gesagt.
October 2, 2010
Sufficiently illuminating and enjoyable.
September 20, 2012
Ein sehr gutes Buch um den Einstieg in die Geschichte der Sprachen zu schaffen und einen groben Überblick zu bekommen!
February 24, 2013
simple but engaging.
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February 24, 2015I HAVE "SPEAK: A HISTORY OF LANGUAGE" ON MY TO-READ LIST.
March 2, 2025
A perfect introduction to linguistics and (European) languages. If you love these topics, then this book is a must-read. But even if you don't, it is interesting enough to keep you engaged.
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