Why I love languages… amply illustrated by Lilek…
Why I love languages… amply illustrated by Lileks’ Bleat:
Imagine you’re going through an alphabet book, and it’s the letter A. The picture shows a breakfast tableau, with Daddy cooking up a meal. “Aaron asks for Applesauce,” says the caption. There are many items that begin with A, and Gnat names them all: Apples. Applesauce. Acorns. Airplane. Egg.
“No, honey, Egg begins with E.”
“A is for Egg.”
You try to explain that one. “No, A is for epple. E is for aig.”
$%)%#$ English language. Wait until we get to F, and I have to explain it’s for ghoti.