The Story of Language
Sign in to keep track of books you’ve read and want to read.
From the dawn of time to the mid-twentieth century...Mario Pei discusses the formation and development of language - the weapon by which mankind has advanced from savagery to civilization.
Read more
New features in this revised edition:
-A new chapter on "SELF-DESIGNATION" discusses the names by which countries and people call themselves, as opposed to the names outsiders give them.
-A new chapter on "LANGUAGE AND PSYCHOLOGY" covers one of the mysterious areas of language - the connection of words with the mental processes of both the individual and the social group.
-Detailed discussion of such additional languages as Vietnamese and the African tongues.
-New material on nonlinguistic systems of communication, such as gestural and symbolic language, and animal talk.
-Most recent findings on the origin of language and how a child learns to speak.
-Coverage of slang (American, British, foreign); underworld cant and professional jargons; government gobbledygook; the language of euphemism, politeness and insult brought up to date.
Liked The Story of Language? Here’s where I’d start.
These suit anyone who liked The Story of Language. Sign in and mark a few books for picks shaped around your own taste.
-
The Loom of Language: An Approach to the Mastery of Many Languages Shares language, linguistics, nonfiction -
American English: Dialects and Variations Shares language, linguistics, nonfiction -
Native Tongues Shares language, linguistics, nonfiction -
Letter Perfect: The Marvelous History of Our Alphabet From A to Z Shares language, nonfiction, linguistics
