Query about language-related media articles

[Johanna Rubba]

Hello, everyone,

I would like to compile a list of shortish readings about language  
for my introduction to linguistics students (and perhaps for use in  
other courses, as well). Of course, I would like them to be  
linguistically sound. The topics should be ones that would interest  
the general reader who is in the process of gaining new insights and  
new information about language. The articles should be accessible to  
the general reader. The length I have in mind is, say, the typical  
length of a New Yorker or Atlantic Monthly feature article. It would  
be helpful if the articles were accessible full-text online,  
including through library databases. Some examples I can think of  
from my own reading habits include a NYer article about Dan Everett's  
work on Pirahã, an Atl. Monthly one about growing official-language  
movements for Celtic languages in England, something somewhere about  
language evolution, something somewhere about language in  
Neanderthals -- so the topic range is pretty wide open. They don't  
have to be recent, as long as the content is sound.

Newspaper articles would be too short. But if you have some that have  
a reference to a longer work, it would be helpful to pass that on.

If you have some in mind, could you send along the bibliographic  
information plus a very short summary of the article (1-3 sentences)?

I will post a summary of my responses to the list.

Thank you, and Happy 2011 to you all!

Dr. Johanna Rubba, Ph. D.
Professor, Linguistics
Linguistics Minor Advisor
English Dept.
Cal Poly State University San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo, CA 93407
Ofc. tel. : 805-756-2184
Dept. tel.: 805-756-2596
Dept. fax: 805-756-6374
E-mail: jrubba at calpoly.edu
URL: http://cla.calpoly.edu/~jrubba