Debating Grammar Pt. 3: grammar vs. Grammar”
February 20th, 2009 | 1 Comment
Eagle-eyed blog readers may notice that in my previous posts about grammar, I did not capitalize “grammar” except at the beginning of sentences and in the titles. This is because in the world of linguistics, there is a difference between “grammar” and “Grammar”.
grammar with a small g, refers to language specific patterns and structures.
Grammar with a capital G, refers to Universal Grammar.
Place and Manner (of Articulation)
February 5th, 2009 | 5 Comments
In the teachers’ lounge the other day, a kindergarten teacher was sharing stories about her students. One child had proudly gone to the teacher and said, “Ms. ____, Guess what? I can say ‘Hello’ in Chinese!” She expected the child to say: 你好, ni3 hao3. Imagine her surprise when the child utter the phrase, “Herro!”
About Peter
February 1st, 2009 | No Comments
Ni3 de ma1 shi4 yi4 ge3 da4 wu1 gui1! “Your mother is a big fat turtle!” I proudly shouted at my third grade class, strangely, at the teacher’s request. Weekly trips on Sundays to the local Chinese school were paying off.
I’ve always been fascinated by language. I remember wondering aloud why certain sounds, when put together, created words while others did not. For example, why do we call the writing utensil made of wood and graphite a “pencil” and not a “globsprink”?
American-born Taiwanese girl who married a Japanese guy. And who forgot about six years' of Spanish grammar and most of the vocab.
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Korean-American girl who blogs under a Spanish pseudonym because being culturally confusing is fun. Native speakers say that she has outstanding Spanish (which is a definite compliment) and outstanding German (which is most assuredly not).
Elenita
American-born, Taiwanese guy who took five semesters worth of German and ended up with a major in Linguistics.
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