POST #3

The click is not just a sound produced by the mouse?

Have you ever heard someone making sounds while speaking?

I do not mean the utterance of words per se. I am referring to clicks of the tongue between one word and another, clicks within sentences. If it is something new for you, WELCOME. We have several languages of clicks. All of them developed on the African continent, in which the clicks fulfill their function as consonants in any language. Let's get to know the Xhosa language.

Xhosa has important roots as a tribe and is one of the official languages of Africa. It should be noted that the fact that it is an official language does not mean that it has the largest number of speakers. The advantage that speaking this language in the country can provide is that it will give some advantages in some areas. Those involved in fields such as various genres of literature and film. South Africa is also known for its incredible cuisine, which refers to high-quality wines.

In this language, the tone in which it is pronounced is important because otherwise, the words can be confusing as it is a tonal language. The sounds produced by the tongue and palate can be related to the noises normally made to stimulate horses (if we are looking for a reference). In fact, if you are reading Xhosa without clicking on the beginning of this word, I'm telling you we did it wrong. This language processing alphabet is quite familiar to Spanish speakers, the Latin alphabet. However, the main influence on the Xhosa language comes from the media, with English and Afrikaans being two of the main languages from which the Xhosa language is derived. There are three types of clicks used in this language: "c "for dental clicks, "x" for lateral ones, and "q" for postalveolar one

What do you think about clicking while talking? Did you know about this language before?

Post #2

Happiness has a Language 

This week we will start with some questions for you, What makes languages peculiar? How about a language without numbers, colors, and verb tenses? Do you think such a language is possible?  At first, it may be hard to imagine, and the answer may be a resounding "NO" or maybe some of you know the answer. For those who, like me, doubted it, the answer is that yes, there is a language with several peculiarities. For us, speakers with an established and well-defined structure would be a "rare" language and it will definitely be a language without such a specific structure as ours. Let's get to know "Pirahã" a little better. Let's get to know "Pirahã" a little better.

Pirahã is the name given to the tribe and the language, however, among themselves the name they call themselves is HÍATIIHI / XAPAITÍISO. In this language, we have several particularities. They emit words and also sounds, such as moans to tell secrets or whistles when they hunt and do not want to be detected. In their alphabet, they have only eleven letters, which consist of eight consonants and three vowels. This is an isolated language since it has no connection to any current language. Many very similar words can have completely different meanings, depending on the intonation. It is not considered an endangered language since it is their only language.

In their language, they do not have numbers. For colors, they only say them with references such as the unripe fruit, which for us would mean a "green" color. Nor verb tenses. They do not have cardinal points, since this aspect is also handled with references. Something that I consider curious is their family circle. Which does not have uncles, cousins, or grandparents, they do not exist as terms in the language nor as family, making the possibility of marrying any of the tribe more extensive. Since their close circles such as siblings, children, father, and mother are the only members identified as family members.

Having mentioned those particularities, this is the part where the title makes sense. They are known as the happiest people in the world, and it was found that most of the time they walk around with smiles on their faces. As they have no worries whatsoever. They are not thinking about what the future holds and are not tormented by the past. That means they live entirely in the present, and that's why they don't count words that identify those times. They are also not interested in money and the amount of it, the only two words they need are few and many. Luxuries, and technologies, do not occupy space in their minds. They have a lot of knowledge about the wildlife that surrounds them, so it is the only thing they need and serves them.

Is it a language that can be considered peculiar? What did you think of their philosophy of life? Would we be happy if we forgot everything?

The documentary film "Grammar of happiness" By Daniel Everett

If you found it interesting, you can learn more about them in this documentary.

POST #1

Worldwide Linguistic diversity 

• This week we will talk about the number of languages that exist around the world, we won't talk about it statistically, let's reflect on it a little. Do you know how much linguistic diversity, we can find, if we just look for it? This is extremely absurd! We live in a capitalist bubble where we are only interested in the languages, we can make money with, and we don't really know what else is out there.

• Let's talk about a hypothetical situation. If a stranger on the street asked you about six languages besides English, French, German, Italian, Korean, or Chinese, what would you say? At first, I didn't know what to say. So, I got interested and started reading a little bit. I realized that we could find thousands of languages if we just search with a click, if we want to be specific, what I read mentioned 6000 /7000 languages. It also mentions that since there are so many, many are on the verge of extinction. Yes, languages will disappear someday, like us. In fact, they are doing it with us.

  As an Ecuadorian I can name languages besides Spanish, I know Kichwa and Shuar. Most of us Ecuadorians have probably heard these names. But just talking about our country, we can realize that there are many more. Some are even difficult to pronounce, and we are just talking about their names. So, with this blog, I hope we will learn together about those languages that are not so well known but can be interesting. So, let me know what you think in the comments.

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