The Atlas of Unusual Languages: An exploration of language, people and geography

The Atlas of Unusual Languages: An exploration of language, people and geography
Author: Zoran Nikolic
Publisher: HarperCollins UK
Total Pages: 274
Release: 2021-10-14
Genre: Foreign Language Study
ISBN: 0008524041

We communicate through the spoken and written word and language has evolved over the centuries. Many languages have survived although only in small pockets throughout the world. This book explores a selection of those languages.

The Atlas of Unusual Languages

The Atlas of Unusual Languages
Author: Zoran Nikolic
Publisher: Collins
Total Pages: 240
Release: 2021-10-14
Genre: Historical linguistics
ISBN: 9780008469597

We communicate through the spoken and written word and language has evolved over the centuries. Many languages have survived although only in small pockets throughout the world. This book explores a selection of those languages and some that have now been lost forever. Selection of languages included; ISLANDS OF LANGUAGE ISOLATES - Basque language, Spain/France - Ainu, Japan/Russia - Burushaski, Pakistan - Huave language, Mexico INDO-EUROPEAN LANGUAGE ISLANDS - u er-Sandevo; Selemlija, N. Macedoniae - Trinidadian French Creole, Trinidad & Tobago - Y Wladfa, a Welsh colony in Argentina - Cornish language - Vakifli, Turkey - Bolze language of Switzerland NON-IE LANGUAGE ISLANDS IN EUROPE - Ugric languages - Gagauz language - Kalmyk Oirat language LANGUAGE ISLANDS AROUND THE WORLD - Yele language, Rossel Island, Papua New Guinea - Formosan languages - Kumzari language, Oman "WEIRD" LANGUAGES - Polari language, UK - Shelta traveller language of Ireland EXTINCT LANGUAGE ISLANDS - Sumerian language - Potato Germans in Denmark - Crimean Gothic These and many more instances are captured in this fascinating book full of strange language intrigue.

An Atlas of Extinct Countries

An Atlas of Extinct Countries
Author: Gideon Defoe
Publisher: Europa Editions
Total Pages: 226
Release: 2021-06-08
Genre: History
ISBN: 1609456815

"Prisoners of Geography meets Bill Bryson: a funny, fascinating, beautifully illustrated—and timely—history of countries that, for myriad and often ludicrous reasons, no longer exist. “Countries are just daft stories we tell each other. They’re all equally implausible once you get up close.” Countries die. Sometimes it’s murder, sometimes it’s by accident, and sometimes it’s because they were so ludicrous they didn’t deserve to exist in the first place. Occasionally they explode violently. A few slip away almost unnoticed. Often the cause of death is either “got too greedy” or “Napoleon turned up.” Now and then they just hold a referendum and vote themselves out of existence. This is an atlas of 48 nations that fell off the map. The polite way of writing an obituary is: dwell on the good bits, gloss over the embarrassing stuff. This book refuses to do so, because these dead nations are so full of schemers, racists, and con men that it’s impossible to skip the embarrassing stuff. Because of this – and because treating nation-states with too much reverence is the entire problem with pretty much everything – these accounts are not concerned with adding to the earnest flag saluting in the world, however nice some of the flags might be."

The WEIRDest People in the World

The WEIRDest People in the World
Author: Joseph Henrich
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Total Pages: 420
Release: 2020-09-08
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 0374710457

A New York Times Notable Book of 2020 A Bloomberg Best Non-Fiction Book of 2020 A Behavioral Scientist Notable Book of 2020 A Human Behavior & Evolution Society Must-Read Popular Evolution Book of 2020 A bold, epic account of how the co-evolution of psychology and culture created the peculiar Western mind that has profoundly shaped the modern world. Perhaps you are WEIRD: raised in a society that is Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic. If so, you’re rather psychologically peculiar. Unlike much of the world today, and most people who have ever lived, WEIRD people are highly individualistic, self-obsessed, control-oriented, nonconformist, and analytical. They focus on themselves—their attributes, accomplishments, and aspirations—over their relationships and social roles. How did WEIRD populations become so psychologically distinct? What role did these psychological differences play in the industrial revolution and the global expansion of Europe during the last few centuries? In The WEIRDest People in the World, Joseph Henrich draws on cutting-edge research in anthropology, psychology, economics, and evolutionary biology to explore these questions and more. He illuminates the origins and evolution of family structures, marriage, and religion, and the profound impact these cultural transformations had on human psychology. Mapping these shifts through ancient history and late antiquity, Henrich reveals that the most fundamental institutions of kinship and marriage changed dramatically under pressure from the Roman Catholic Church. It was these changes that gave rise to the WEIRD psychology that would coevolve with impersonal markets, occupational specialization, and free competition—laying the foundation for the modern world. Provocative and engaging in both its broad scope and its surprising details, The WEIRDest People in the World explores how culture, institutions, and psychology shape one another, and explains what this means for both our most personal sense of who we are as individuals and also the large-scale social, political, and economic forces that drive human history. Includes black-and-white illustrations.

Atlas of Improbable Places

Atlas of Improbable Places
Author: Travis Elborough
Publisher: Aurum Press
Total Pages: 194
Release: 2021-07-06
Genre: History
ISBN: 0711264015

Atlas of Improbable Places shows the modern world from surprising new vantage points that will inspire urban explorers and armchair travellers alike to consider a new way of understanding the world we live in.

English as a Global Language

English as a Global Language
Author: David Crystal
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 227
Release: 2012-03-29
Genre: Foreign Language Study
ISBN: 1107611806

Written in a detailed and fascinating manner, this book is ideal for general readers interested in the English language.

Lingo

Lingo
Author: Gaston Dorren
Publisher: Open Road + Grove/Atlantic
Total Pages: 232
Release: 2015-12-01
Genre: Travel
ISBN: 0802190944

Six thousand years. Sixty languages. One “brisk and breezy” whirlwind armchair tour of Europe “bulg[ing] with linguistic trivia” (The Wall Street Journal). Take a trip of the tongue across the continent in this fascinating, hilarious and highly edifying exploration of the many ways and whys of Euro-speaks—its idiosyncrasies, its histories, commonalities, and differences. Most European languages are descended from a single ancestor, a language not unlike Sanskrit known as Proto-Indo-European (or PIE for short), but the continent’s ever-changing borders and cultures have given rise to a linguistic and cultural diversity that is too often forgotten in discussions of Europe as a political entity. Lingo takes us into today’s remote mountain villages of Switzerland, where Romansh is still the lingua franca, to formerly Soviet Belarus, a country whose language was Russified by the Bolsheviks, to Sweden, where up until the 1960s polite speaking conventions required that one never use the word “you.” “In this bubbly linguistic endeavor, journalist and polyglot Dorren thoughtfully walks readers through the weird evolution of languages” (Publishers Weekly), and not just the usual suspects—French, German, Yiddish, irish, and Spanish, Here, too are the esoteric—Manx, Ossetian, Esperanto, Gagauz, and Sami, and that global headache called English. In its sixty bite-sized chapters, Dorret offers quirky and hilarious tidbits of illuminating facts, and also dispels long-held lingual misconceptions (no, Eskimos do not have 100 words for snow). Guaranteed to change the way you think about language, Lingo is a “lively and insightful . . . unique, page-turning book” (Minneapolis Star Tribune).

Language and a Sense of Place

Language and a Sense of Place
Author: Chris Montgomery
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 387
Release: 2017-05-25
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1107098718

This book explores twenty-first century approaches to place by bringing together a range of language variation and change research.

Geography of Claudius Ptolemy

Geography of Claudius Ptolemy
Author: Claudius Ptolemy
Publisher: Cosimo Classics
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2011
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781605204383

Geography of Claudius Ptolemy, originally titled Geographia and written in the second century, is a depiction of the geography of the Roman Empire at the time. Though inaccurate due to Ptolemy's varying methods of measurement and use of outdated data, Geography of Claudius Ptolemy is nonetheless an excellent example of ancient geographical study and scientific method. This edition contains more than 40 maps and illustrations, reproduced based on Ptolemy's original manuscript. It remains a fascinating read for students of scientific history and Greek influence. CLAUDIUS PTOLEMY (A.D. 90- A.D. 168) was a poet, mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, and geographer who wrote in Greek, though he was a Roman citizen. He is most well-known for three scientific treatises he wrote on astronomy, astrology, and geography, respectively titled Almagest, Apotelesmatika, and Geographia. His work influenced early Islamic and European studies, which in turn influenced much of the modern world. Ptolemy died in Alexandria as a member of Greek society.

Around the World

Around the World
Author: Ben Knight
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2013
Genre: Almanacs
ISBN: 9783899554977

Looking through an atlas has always been a fascinating way to explore the world. Around the World is a contemporary evolution of an atlas tailored to our information age. With eye-catching graphics, current topics, and clear texts, the book is for anyone who is curious about the state of our planet and how we live today. Alongside classic facts about nature, history, population, culture, and politics, Around the World's compelling information graphics thoroughly explain complex processes that impact our lives such as global trade and changing demographics. The book gives added insight into our modern world through its visual exploration of subjects such as eating habits, overfishing, and internet providers, as well as events that have left indelible marks on our collective conscience including September 11, the Olympic Games, Japan's Fukushima disaster, and the sinking of the Titanic. Enthralling, attractive, and revealing, Around the World is a rich cornucopia of information about local peculiarities of global relevance that bring home the little differences--as well as the astoundingly large similarities--among the citizens of our world.