by Alison Edwards (Translator), Gaston Dorren (Author), Jonathan Buckley (Editor), Alison Edwards (Translator), Gaston Dorren (Author), Alison Edwards (Translator)
Welcome to Europe as you've never known it before, seen through the peculiarities of its languages and dialects. Combining linguistics and cultural history, Gaston Dorren takes us on an intriguing tour of the continent, from Proto-Indo-European (the common ancestor of most European languages) to the rise and rise of English, via the complexities of Welsh plurals and Czech pronunciation. Along the way we learn why Esperanto will never catch on, how the language of William the Conqueror lives on in the Channel Islands and why Finnish is the easiest European language. Surprising, witty and full of extraordinary facts, this book will change the way you think about the languages around you. Polyglot Gaston Dorren might even persuade you that English is like Chinese.
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 256
Edition: Main
Publisher: Profile Books
Published: 06 Nov 2014
ISBN 10: 1781254168
ISBN 13: 9781781254165
Book Overview: Why the Spanish speak so fast, the Dutch are gender-benders and it's hard to add up in Breton