No one prepared me for the heartbreak of losing my first language. It doesn’t feel like the sudden, sharp pain of losing someone you love, but rather a dull ache that builds slowly until it becomes a ...

What’s the difference between a language and a dialect? Is there some kind of technical distinction, the way there is between a quasar and a pulsar, or between a rabbit and a hare? Faced with the ...

You’ve probably heard that being multilingual is a great resume builder and a valuable asset to promote career growth. Being able to speak a language that’s in demand may even result in a promotion or ...

Contrary to conventional thinking, it's never too late to learn a new language. Use these tips to get started. For more than two years, Dulcie Shoener of Milwaukee has done daily German lessons on her ...

Explore the Smithsonian Folklife Festival's "One World, Many Voices" program. Nearly half of the 7,000 languages spoken in the world are expected to vanish in the next 100 years. One of them is ...

About half of the world’s population uses a second language in their daily lives. Some areas of the world, such as Switzerland and Singapore, are bilingual hotspots where virtually everyone speaks two ...

Languages have very different rules when it comes to gender – but does that have an impact on how we see the world? Nayantara Dutta takes a look. Every Wednesday evening for the last year, I have been ...

The voice was soft and scratchy, as if a bit timid in front of the microphone. "Ae," she said, meaning "yes" in Hawaiian, when asked a question by a male voice. "Ae hanau ia wau i Honoma'ele." ("Yes, ...

An analysis of language used in grants awarded this year by the U.S. National Institutes of Health suggests that researchers ...

New research suggests wild chimpanzees have developed a far more nuanced communication system than previously realized, using several mechanisms that combine their vocalizations to create new meaning.

Verbal communication is usually straightforward. You open your mouth and say what you want to say. Communication doesn’t only happen verbally. As you speak or listen, you also express feelings and ...