There are around 6000 to 7000 natural languages spoken across the globe. But is there a more precise count? Ethnologue suggests a total of 7139 languages that are known, but there are perhaps more that we do not know about. These languages' existence have largely been attested by researchers and their publications, giving us languages … Continue reading The languages that might not be — Spurious languages
Month: December 2025
What even are ‘pitch-accent’ languages? (Setting the stage)
When you browse through introductions of many languages, you would come across terms such as 'tonal language' and 'pitch-accent language' used to describe some of these languages. For instance, the Chinese languages are among the most well-known tonal languages, while Japanese is amongst the most well-known pitch-accent languages. Furthermore, there are some languages that appear … Continue reading What even are ‘pitch-accent’ languages? (Setting the stage)
Learning Northern Sámi (Davvisámegiella)
In 2025, I started the year with a particular goal in mind. I wanted to commit fully, to the best of my ability, to learn an indigenous language, and reflect on this process towards the end of the year. Now that it is the December of 2025, it is finally time to share this experience. … Continue reading Learning Northern Sámi (Davvisámegiella)
Learning East Frisian Low German with PlattinO
A while ago, we covered one variety of Low German spoken in East Friesland in northwestern Germany, that is, Oostfreesk Platt, or East Frisian Low German. Amongst the resources dedicated to learn this variety of the language, we briefly mentioned the application called PlattinO. Developed by Timm Sodtalbers, and artwork done by Nicolaus Hippen, PlattinO … Continue reading Learning East Frisian Low German with PlattinO
The Language Closet 