Reviews
Hundreds of resources to help you teach yourself
Linguistic Society of America
General, Organizations
Founded in 1924, the Linguistic Society of America seeks to advance the scientific study of language. The organization puts out various linguistics publications, has an annual meeting in early January that causes hundreds of linguists to converge on whatever city is…
Foreign Service Institute Language Courses
Arabic, Dutch, French, General, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Audio Lessons, Websites
These Foreign Service Institute language courses were recommended by a reader. I haven’t tried them, but the holdings are extensive and consist of older courses that are now in the public domain. They are also free, so the main…
Museum of the City of New York
General, Museums/Cultural, Kids
Founded in 1923, the Museum of the City of New York “celebrates and interprets the city, educating the public about its distinctive character, especially its heritage of diversity, opportunity, and perpetual transformation.” It offers exhibits as well as school and…
Language Resource Centers
General, Websites, Organizations, Conferences/Lectures
As of this writing, there are 15 Language Resource Centers (LRCs) across the U.S. at various universities. The first was established by the Department of Education in 1990, according to the website for the centers, “in response to the growing national…
The ING New York City Marathon
Arabic, Dutch, English, French, General, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Persian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Sports/Fitness
Yeah, I know, the marathon is supposedly about running 26.2 miles. I am a runner, so I can appreciate that. Still, for me, New York City’s annual marathon spectacular is more about culture and language. Because of the global obsession…
Language Conferences Worldwide
General, Websites, Conferences/Lectures
This site offers a global list of language-related conferences. Looking over the list now, I see conference titles such as “Ways to Protolanguage 3,” “International Language for Communication Conference,” “The Third Asian Conference on Language Learning,” and “CFP 2nd Annual Igbo…
Online Etymology Dictionary
English, General, Dictionaries, Websites
The Online Etymology Dictionary is the work of a Pennsylvania-based historian and linguaphile, Douglas Harper, who writes on the home page, “This is a map of the wheel-ruts of modern English. Etymologies are not definitions; they’re explanations of what…