Language sciences

Topic description and stories

̽��ֱ��importance of language is hard to overestimate, yet few of us are aware of the sheer breadth and diversity of language research.

Our ambiguous world of words

30 May 2013

Ambiguity in language poses the greatest challenge when it comes to training a computer to understand the written word. Now, new research aims to...

Welsh Twitter: capturing language change in real time

29 May 2013

A database of Welsh tweets is being used to identify the characteristics of an evolving language.

What is English?

16 May 2013

English speakers who are 18 or under use the word ‘like’ in conversation over five times as often as speakers who are over 70; ‘because’ is the most...

Illustration from the Saga of St Olaf, Flateyjarbók, Reykjavik, Iceland

Explore the scary stories of early cultures

31 Oct 2012

Don’t miss the chance to learn about the rich cultures of the early British Isles in a series of free talks and readings at the Faculty of English...

Cambridge Language Sciences launched

15 May 2012

̽��ֱ�� ̽��ֱ�� launched its new Strategic Initiative in Language Sciences at a special one-day conference at Newnham College on 12 May, attended by...

Detail from the tablet found at Ziyaret Tepe. Inscribed with Cuneiform characters, the tablet consists of a list of women's names, many of which appear to be from a previously unknown language.

Archaeologists discover lost language

10 May 2012

Evidence for a forgotten ancient language which dates back more than 2,500 years, to the time of the Assyrian Empire, has been found by...

Early example of the Welsh word for not (dim, line 5) in the 14th-century Mabinogion

It's 'not' history

09 Mar 2012

̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge linguists have pieced together the curious evolving history of the word 'not' across the languages of Europe. In doing so...

Functional neuroimaging of the human brain

̽��ֱ��communicative brain

29 Nov 2011

What is it about the human brain that makes language possible? Two evolutionary systems working together, say neuroscientists Professor William...

Mining the language of science

18 Nov 2011

Scientists are developing a computer that can read vast amounts of scientific literature, make connections between facts and develop hypotheses.

Testing the World’s English

15 Nov 2011

English language testing, and the research that underpins it, has been elevated to a new level by the increasing global dominance of English, now...

Unconscious language learning

03 Nov 2011

Unconscious learning could be the secret to speeding up learning a second language.

New York, unplugged: a day without words

02 Nov 2011

We are addicted to language. By way of proof, Andy Martin – lecturer in the Department of French and author of books on Napoleon, Bardot and surfing...

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